The Virginian-Pilot
©
VIRGINIA BEACH
Kathleen Kohm, 15, took a deep breath and glanced at her heart rate, the black number blinking on her wristwatch.
"Let's see how long I've been higher than 135," she said, pausing after an exercise catching softballs.
A period of elevated heart activity is a daily requirement of the new online physical education class she's taking through Virginia Beach public schools.
This summer is the first time schools in Virginia Beach are offering online classes for high school health and PE. All students are supplied with heart monitors and activity logs to track their exercise.
For Kathleen, a rising sophomore at Salem High School, the class means she will have room in her schedule for both Spanish and a leadership class this fall. She will even be able to continue her studies while on a mission trip to Marseilles, France, this week. She plans to hand out videos about the Gospels with her family.
"It's as much time as face to face, but it's flexible," said Kathy Harcourt, an Ocean Lakes High health and physical education teacher who co-designed content for the 10th-grade course. "You can go to the beach and then do it."
Physical education is being offered online more often, said Cheryl Richardson, senior program manager for physical education with the Reston-based National Association for Sport and Physical Education. In 2006, 12 states allowed physical education credits to be earned online.
"While we recognize this is a sign of the times, it's definitely not a direction we like to see physical education moving," she said.
An online class lacks a social component. "You can't teach offensive or defensive strategy on a computer," Richardson said. Same goes for teamwork and interpersonal skills, she said. The association recommends that schools blend online work with some in-person instruction.
In Virginia Beach, more than 100 students registered for either the ninth- or 10th-grade online class, which costs $300 and will run through mid-August.
Brenda Fuller, the school division's health and PE coordinator, brought the idea back to the Beach after hearing about Henrico County's program at a conference last year.
Beach schools developed content to teach online and bought heart-rate monitors to lend to students.
Last Tuesday, registered students and their parents gathered to try out the devices, which include a chest strap and wristwatch.
DaJoun Willingham, 17, said the strap didn't bother him. He's just grateful for the class.
He missed a lot of school because of eye surgery and is taking three classes this summer to graduate from Green Run High School next year.
He used the monitor on the treadmill at Bayside Recreation Center and watched his heart rate skyrocket from 154 to 200. "It was really cool to see," he said.
Kathleen, who plays softball at Salem High, said it makes sense to recognize exercise that students already do. She wore her heart rate monitor last week during exhausting exercises to strengthen her ankle at Atlantic Physical Therapy in Norfolk, but she also wore it to the YMCA and while she practiced hitting and fielding.
"I would do sports on my own. I think it's great that it's recognized," she said. "It's a good thing to learn when you're young, that hard work pays off in the end."
Lauren Roth, (757) 222-5133, lauren.roth@pilotonline.com
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VB Mom, my son had no free blocks for three years in high school
He took 8 classes for three years, and never had a lunch period.
VBCPS allows this, and I daresay encourages this. Everyone wants school to be over with as soon as possible. Teachers love a school where students are done at 2:00 p.m.
Makes you wonder, doesn't it? Research shows teens need a later school start time AND proper nutrition during the day, but VBCPS doesn't care.
Core Subjects Are An Even Bigger Problem
While I love the concept of online courses (my son is taking one this summer), students can easily cheat. There is nothing to stop them; the teachers and administrators admitted this at the informational meeting. Because kids are sneaky,cheating does occur in a traditional classroom,but at least there is a teacher to observe them. I believe in personal responsibility but teenagers haven't yet matured enough to have this much responsibility.
On-line Health and PE
My son is a rising freshman in VB. He is taking this class. He is enjoying the flexibility it offers. He is also learning there are many activities that qualify as exercise. If he did not take this class (either on-line or in person), he would not have lunch every day next year because he wants to take band. The way VBCPS schedules the high schools, if you want to take an elective(s), such as band, you have to sacrifice lunch everyday or every other day. This is not a healthy option for growing teens.
What about Health and Classroom Driver Ed
How are the Health and Classroom Driver Ed components of the course taught? Are these also online? I question whether Classroom Driver Ed should be taught online. This is an area where teacher/student interaction could be very important.
Anything we can do....
...to get kids and adults more active is a good thing. Everyone is not a team player, but that does not mean that they should not exercise. Lots of sports are a race with yourself and we need to build upon those self-motivational skills. I was thinking, (scarey eh?), that support groups find people at their lows and bring them back up; but often cause them to rely solely upon the group for their motivation instead of teaching them self-reliance and self-motivation. America is the home of self-motivated, entrepreneurial individuals and it is what makes us great, (jeeez, a flag waving moment). So, if they can stay in their own space and do the exercise (monitoring and verification required) then more power to us all. Not to mention that people who are exercising, regardless of where, are not doing gang activities, crime, drugs, etc. Just do it! (Nike, show me the money!) ☺☺☺
Call Me Old Fashsion ...
But P.E. requires a gym, a whistle, and rainy day war ball games.