Physical Education
Why study Physical Education?
The Hawaiian term lōkahi means harmony or balance. Academic achievement is critical, but it is equally important to ensure that the mental, social, emotional, and physical aspects of student lives develop and flourish.
One of the core values in Hawai‘i schools is a focus on the whole child. Physical education is an essential component of the Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC) model, as it contributes significantly to students’ overall health and wellbeing.
The WSCC model focuses on the Whole Child “to transition from a focus on narrowly defined academic achievement to one that promotes the long-term development and success of all children” (ASCD, 2018).
A high-quality physical education program is a key component of the WSCC model as it strives to create physically literate individuals who value an active lifestyle, improved health, and motor skill development.
Childhood Obesity in Hawaii
Over one-third of children in the United States are overweight or obese (CDC, 2018), with higher levels of obesity prevalence in minority populations and children from low-income families (CDC, 2018).
Here in Hawaii, 28.4 percent of high school students are overweight or obese (Youth Risk, 2018). Food is a big part of the culture in Hawai‘i and many family gatherings are “potluck” style in which everyone brings a dish to share and you don’t want to show up empty handed. With so many delicious food options from a wide variety of cultures readily available, it should not be surprising that childhood obesity is a problem in Hawai‘i.
Why is Obesity an Issue?
Children who are obese have an increased risk of:
high blood pressure and high cholesterol (Cote et al., 2013; Lloyd, Langley-Evans, & McMullen, 2012)
type 2 diabetes (Bacha & Gidding, 2016; Pollock, 2015)
asthma and sleep apnea (Mohanan, Tapp, McWilliams, & Dulin, 2014; Narang & Mathew, 2012)
Obesity is related to psychological problems such as:
anxiety and depression (Morrison et al., 2015)
low self-esteem (Halfon, Kandyce, & Slusser, 2013)
increased risk for social problems such as bullying (Beck, 2016)
Obesity tracks into adulthood (Singh et al. 2008) as obese children are 75 percent more likely to become obese adults with a significantly higher risk of chronic disease.
How can Physical Activity and Physical Education be a part of the solution?
Participation in physical activity can combat childhood obesity and lead to significant physiological and cognitive benefits (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 201; Institute of Medicine [IOM], 2013).
Physical activity and fitness has a positive impact on the academic achievement of youth (Hillman et al., 2009; Hillman et al. 2014; Leblanc et al., 2012; Stevens et al., 2008)
Many organizations encourage schools to embrace quality physical education and physical activity as an essential part of their school day (National Academies of Science, 2013; CDC), striving to meet the nationally recommended guidelines of 60 minutes of physical activity per day for youth.
Daily physical education for all students is recommended by numerous national associations including those listed below:
Physical Activity
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that children and adolescents do at least 60 minutes of physical activity every day, the majority of which should come from aerobic activity. Aerobic activity should include moderate-intensity activities such as brisk walking and/or vigorous-intensity activities, such as running. The CDC further recommends that vigorous physical activities be done 3 times per week.
According to the 2017 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), only 19.6 percent of Hawai‘i high school students reported doing 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity daily in the past week compared to 26.1 percent of high school students nationally.
Lack of physical activity among high school students is a problem across the country as just over a quarter of students nationally reported getting their 60 minutes of physical activity seven days a week as recommended by the CDC (YRBS, 2018).
High quality physical education programs can help to increase physical activity as they provide an opportunity for all children to be physically active and improve their overall fitness and wellness.
Core Principles of Physical Education
Physical Literacy
The goal of physical education is to develop physically literate individuals who have the knowledge, skills, and confidence to enjoy a lifetime of healthful physical activity. To pursue a lifetime of healthy physical activity, a physically literate individual:
Has learned the skills necessary to participate in a variety of physical activities.
Knows the implications and the benefits of involvement in various types of physical activities.
Participates regularly in physical activity.
Is physically fit.
Values physical activity and its contributions to a healthful lifestyle (SHAPE America, 2018a).
It is essential that every student, regardless of disability, ethnicity, gender, native language, race, religion, or sexual orientation, is entitled to a high-quality physical education program throughout their K-12 educational experience.
Physical education contributes to the success of the whole child and provides students with “a planned, sequential, K-12 standards-based program of curricula and instruction designed to develop motor skills, knowledge and behaviors for active living, physical fitness, sportsmanship, self-efficacy and emotional intelligence” (SHAPE America, 2018b).
What physical education is NOT
Physical Education is not the same as physical activity. Physical education is:
an instructional program
taught by teachers with professional credentials in physical education
facilitates the achievement of national and state standards for physical education
Physical education programs should provide a significant amount of time for moderate to vigorous physical activity, while also working towards the content standards. During physical education students should be provided with a wide variety of learning experiences related to physical activity options and instructed on how to make positive choices regarding the activity. Cognitive, physical, and social learning occurs through a variety of physical activities that are carefully planned and sequentially taught.
It is important to note that although recess is an integral and important part of the school day, as it has been shown to enhance participation and learning in the classroom, as well as provides additional opportunities for student decision-making, creativity, and social learning, it is not equivalent to physical education as it does not meet the criteria listed above.
Policy, guidelines
The BOE Policy 103-1 Health and Wellness mandates implementation of DOE Wellness Guidelines in compliance with the provisions of the Local Wellness Policy, under the Healthy, Hungry-Free Kids Act of 2010 (Public law 111-296).
The Department’s Wellness guidelines include six that support physical education:
PE1: Instructional content of physical education classes is aligned with HIDOE standards for physical education.
PE2: Physical education is provided to students in elementary grades for at least 45 minutes per week and secondary grades for at least 200 minutes per week.
PE3: At least 50 percent of physical education class time is dedicated to moderate to vigorous physical activity.
PE4: Physical education classes are taught by state-certified physical education instructors.
PE5: Physical education classes have a student/teacher ratio similar to other classes.
PE6: Physical education in grades 5, 7 and 9 includes a health-related student fitness assessment.
Where is Physical Education headed?
The Future of Physical Education Standards
Physical Education in the HIDOE is defined by the Hawai‘i Content and Performance Standards (HCPS) III for Physical Education K-12. In 2013, SHAPE America updated the National Standards and Grade Level Outcomes for K-12 Physical Education. The Department is in the process of reviewing and updating the HCPS III to better prepare students to be physically literate individuals so that they are equipped to live healthy, active lifestyles. The breakdown below shows the comparison between the two:
HCPS III
Standard 1: Movement Forms. Use motor skills and movement patterns to perform a variety of physical activities.
Standard 2: Cognitive Concepts. Understand movement concepts, principles, strategies, and tactics as they apply to the learning and performance of physical activities.
Standard 3: Active Lifestyle. Participate regularly in physical activity.
Standard 4: Physical Fitness. Know ways to achieve and maintain a health-enhancing level of physical fitness.
SHAPE America National Standards
Standard 1: The physically literate individual demonstrates competency in a variety of motor skills and movement patterns.
Standard 2: The physically literate individual applies knowledge of concepts, principles, strategies and tactics related to movement and performance.
Standard 3: The physically literate individual demonstrates the knowledge and skills to achieve and maintain a health-enhancing level of physical activity and fitness.
Standard 4: The physically literate individual exhibits responsible personal and social behavior that respects self and others.
Standard 5: The physically literate individual recognizes the value of physical activity for health, enjoyment, challenge, self-expression and/or social interaction.
Hawai‘i is unique, unlike any other place in the world. The mild climate, recreational parks and playgrounds, various mountains, trails, lagoons, beaches, and the easily accessible ocean provide a multitude of opportunities for Hawai‘i residents to be physically active year round.
The National Standards & Grade-Level Outcomes for K-12 Physical Education (SHAPE America & Human Kinetics, 2014) provides a good illustration of the road to a lifetime of physical activity. It illustrates what should be occurring at the various grade levels:
Elementary School
Fundamental skills, knowledge and values
Middle School
Application of skills, knowledge and values
High School
Lifetime activities skills, knowledge and values
College/Career-Ready
Physically active lifestyle
Quality physical education programming should ultimately result in students that choose to live physically active lifestyles both now and later in life by participating in a variety of physical activities such as:
individual (e.g. jogging, yoga)
dual (e.g. tennis, racquetball)
team (e.g. soccer, ultimate frisbee)
lifestyle physical activities (e.g. surfing, canoe paddling, beach volleyball, biking, hula dancing).
Physical Education Resources
Aspen Institute (2015). Physical literacy in the United States: A model, strategic plan, and call to action. https://www.shapeamerica.org/uploads/pdfs/PhysicalLiteracy_AspenInstitute-FINAL.pdf
Bacha, F., Gidding, S. S. (2016). Cardiac abnormalities in youth with obesity and type 2 diabetes. Current Diabetes Reports, 16(7), 62. doi: 10.1007/s11892-016-0750-6.
Beck, A. R. (2016). Psychosocial aspects of obesity. NASN School Nurse, 31(1), 23–27.
Cote, A. T., Harris, K. C., Panagiotopoulos, C., et al. (2013). Childhood obesity and cardiovascular dysfunction. Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 62(15), 1309–1319.
Halfon, N., Kandyce, L., & Slusser, W. (2013). Associations between obesity and comorbid mental health, developmental, and physical health conditions in a nationally representative sample of US children aged 10 to 17. Academic Pediatrics, 13(1), 6–13.
Hillman, C.H., Pontifex, M.B., Castelli, D.M., et al. (2014). Effects of the FITKids randomized controlled trial on executive control and brain function. Pediatrics, 134(4), e1063–71.
Hillman, C.H., Pontifex, M.B., Raine, L.B., Castelli, D.M., Hall, E.E., & Kramer, A.F. (2009). The effect of acute treadmill walking on cognitive control and academic achievement in preadolescent children. Neuroscience, 159(3), 1044–54.
LeBlanc, M.M., Martin, C.K., Han, H., et al (2012). Adiposity and physical activity are not related to academic achievement in school-aged children. Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, 33(6), 486–94.
Lloyd, L. J., Langley-Evans, S. C., McMullen, S. Childhood obesity and risk of the adult metabolic syndrome: a systematic review. International Journal of Obesity, 36(1), 1–11.
Mohanan, S., Tapp, H., McWilliams, A., & Dulin, M. (2014). Obesity and asthma: pathophysiology and implications for diagnosis and management in primary care. Experimental Biology & Medicine, 239(11), 1531–40.
Morrison, K. M., Shin, S., & Tarnopolsky, M., et al. (2015). Association of depression and health related quality of life with body composition in children and youth with obesity. Journal of Affective Disorders, 172, 18–23.
Narang, I., & Mathew, J. L. (2012). Childhood obesity and obstructive sleep apnea. Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism. doi: 10.1155/2012/134202.
Pollock, N. K. (2015). Childhood obesity, bone development, and cardiometabolic risk factors. Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology, 410, 52-63. doi: 10.1016/j.mce.2015.03.016.
Singh, A., Mulder, C., Twisk, J., Van Mechelen, W., Chinapaw, M., 2008. Tracking of childhood overweight into adulthood: A systematic review of the literature. Obesity Reviews, 9(5), 474–488.
Society of Health and Physical Educators [SHAPE] America (2018a). What is physical education? Retrieved from https://www.shapeamerica.org/uploads/pdfs/2017/Grade-Level-Outcomes-for-K-
Society of Health and Physical Educators [SHAPE] America (2018b). What is physical education? https://www.shapeamerica.org/publications/resources/teachingtools/teachertoolbox/explorepe.aspx
Stevens, T. A., To, Y., Stevenson, S. J., & Lochbaum, M. R. (2008). The importance of physical activity and physical education in the prediction of academic achievement. Journal of Sport Behavior, 31(4), 368–88.
Youth risk behavior survey reports. (2018, July 19). Retrieved from http://hhdw.org/health-reports-data/other-reports/