A Profile of SWD and

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Changing Our Landscape

• A Profile of SWD and
• Advocacy Recommendations

Monica Lounsbery, Ph.D. Associate Professor and
Chair Department of Sports Education Leadership
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Consider the Mission of Schools
http//www.ed.gov/admins/lead/account/standassess0
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• Where does Health PE fit?
• Are we being left behind?

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SWD-AAHPERD

• As a profession, we have to decide what should or
  can be done?
• Lets take look at some of the options were
  currently pursing at the national level
• What might be their impact?
• Are they enough?

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Reauthorization of NCLB

• No subject will likely be added to the core our
  best option is
• Addition of language
• mention of importance of school health and
  physical education
• better yet, we should be vying for language that
• Stipulates schools must comply with state
  mandated requirements for health and physical
  education
• Schools should provide adequate resources and
  student access to both health and physical
  education programming PA at school
• But how effective will this be in changing the
  status of health and PE?

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Fit Kid Act In the HR there are 36 co-sponsors
and in the S there are 2 co-sponsors

• If the HR version of the act were passed it would
• Would amend the Elementary and Secondary Act of
  1965 to add measures of the quantity of physical
  education to states accountability system
  schools would have to provide measures on
• Progress toward meeting national minute goal for
  PE (150 and 225 min)
• Attendance rates in PE
• Space used primarily for physical education and
  activity
• Whether there is a health council in place
• Expands uses of Health High-Performing Schools
  Program to support funding for space and
  facilities for school PE and PA
• Amends section 1118 to include training to
  parents to encourage their children to active and
  eat healthy
• Amends the Parental Assistance and Location
  Family Information Centers program to include
  training for parents and educators on the
  importance of healthy, active habits, and the
  positive impact on learning

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Fit Kid Act In the HR there are 36 co-sponsors
and in the S there are 2 co-sponsors

• Amends Title II Part A to include training for
  all teachers and principals on effective
  strategies for improving healthy habits and rates
  of physical activity
• Funding Mechanisms
• National Research Council recommend ways to
  improve children health increase PA student
  impact of health, PA and PE on learning provide
  recommendations for measuring progress of
  students in improving their health, PA, and
  wellbeing analysis of time spend in MVPA in PE
  and how schools can effectively engage parents to
  improve health, and changes to the school
  environment
• Assessment incentive grants for states to
  develop, pilot, and implement high-quality, valid
  and reliable assessment that measure knowledge
  gain in physical education, cognitive development
  in PA skills and how much children value PA as
  part of a comprehensive plan to improve the
  health and wellbeing of children

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If It Were Passed, What Kind of Impact would the
Fit Kid Act Have?

• It would set up the infrastructure to help
  schools be more successful in the delivery of PE,
  and other health measures
• Butthats if, schools and state depts. of ed.
  WANTED to improve
• Weve all worked in schools and we know what
  happens there
• How many of us really believe health and the care
  of it is really on the radar of schools?
• This provision does not REQUIRE schools to
  operate differently in terms of quantity and
  quality of PE
• reporting is good but what accountability is tied
  to continue to report and to show progress?
• This is especially concerning if states do not
  have a separate PE coordinator who will stand
  up for PE and compliance with the act?

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Will this be enough?
Our members need more. They Need Our Vision
Leadership
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Where Do We Go From Here?

• What do we know about national trends?
• What do we know about those trends in SWD?
• How do these trends relate to school PE?
• What do we know about national trend status of
  school PE?
• What do we know about the status of school PE in
  the SWD?
• What advocacy asks should be prioritized?

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National Trends

• Physical Inactivity and unhealthy eating habits
  account for at least 400,000 deaths each year
• Obesity
• Cancer
• Cardiovascular Disease
• Diabetes
• Only tobacco use causes more preventable deaths

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PEOPLE WITH A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE CUT THEIR RISK
FOR DISABILITY by 50

• ¼ of U.S. adults eat the recommended 5 or more
  servings of fruits and vegetables each day
• Only 21 of young people eat the recommended 5 or
  more servings of fruits and vegetables each day
• Good nutrition lowers risk for
• Heart Disease
• Stroke
• Cancer
• Diabetes
• Osteoporosis

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CHRONIC DISEASES ARE DIRECTLY ATTRIBUTED TO
UNHEALTHY LIFESTYLE CHOICES

• Physical Inactivity and unhealthy eating habits
  account for at least 400,000 deaths each year
• Obesity
• Cancer
• Cardiovascular Disease
• Diabetes
• Only tobacco use causes more preventable deaths

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Trends in SWD

• Examined data from CDC
• BRFSS YRBSS
• Overweight and obesity status are consistent with
  national trend data
• Overweight M 36., range 35.1-38.4
• Obesity M 23.8, range 21.7 - 25.8
• Direct costs medical care costs associated with
  overweight and obesity
• CA more than 7 billion AZ - 752 million NV -
  337 million

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Trends in SWD

• PA and Dietary Behavior
• Two critical behaviors highly associated with
  overweight and obese status
• Most adult and youth respondents (more than 70)
  indicated
• Poor dietary behavior
• Inadequate PA

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How Does Chronic Disease Status Relate to School
PE?

• Chronic disease status and associated costs as
  well as health risk behavior status demonstrate
• Compelling need for prevention
• Early and sustained programming will be key
• This is the most compelling role that health and
  PE can play in schools today
• In order to realize change in priority in our
  nations schools
• PE must embrace its relationship to PA and public
  health goals
• We cant address public health goals until we
  address some barriers to quality programming

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National Trend Status of School PE

• According to the 2006 SHPPS we know that
• 3.8 of elementary schools
• 7.9 of middle schools
• 2.1 of high schools
• REQUIRE DAILY PE
• Many states do not require PE to be taught by a
  certified specialist
• Far too many states
• do not mandate teacher to student ratios for PE
• do not require PE teachers to continue
  professional development
• do not have a full time physical education
  coordinator
• do not require a specific fitness testing
  protocol

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SWD Status of School PE

• SWD data were obtained from the Shape of the
  Nation Report and the 2006 CDC SHHPS report
• State mandated enrollments ranged
• Arizona had no mandated enrollment requirements
• Three states did not require elementary PE to be
  taught by a credentialed PE teacher (Arizona,
  Hawaii, and Utah)
• Hawaii did not require elementary or secondary PE
  to be taught by a credentialed PE teacher

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SWD Status of School PE

• No state required an evidence-based PE curriculum
• No state mandated an allowable teacher to student
  ratio
• Only one state, CA, required the use of a
  particular fitness protocol (Fitnessgram)

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SummaryThe Physical Inactivity Problem
and the Role of Health and Physical Education in
our Schools
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With so many barriers to quality programming,
what are the most essential elements needed to
make an impact?
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Recommendations

• Data are disturbing but they present enormous
  opportunity for health and physical education
  professions to reform and/or recalibrate to
  address public health needs
• More does not mean better
• Enrollment requirements are concerning but,
  without addressing threats to quality, increases
  would likely result in widespread failure to
  produce meaningful outcomes
• Particularly those associated with public health
  goals
• Threats should receive advocacy priority
• Threats should be carefully weighed and
  prioritized so that implemented measures will
  have marked widespread improvement on the quality
  of programming

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Recommended Advocacy Asks

• With those criteria in mind, the following
  advocacy asks are recommended
• 1. Requirement for an evidence-based physical
  education curriculum
• 2. Requirement that PE be taught be certified PE
  specialists

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Additional Recommendations

• 3. Requirement that state licensure programs for
  school administrators be modified to include
• Coursework to learn about school sources of PA
• Administration of programs
• Program assessment
• 4. School funding accountability for PE teacher
  performance to meet a specified performance
  criterion (e.g., 50 of class time devoted to
  MVPA)
• Inspire address of other important threats (e.g.,
  mandated student to teacher ratios)

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Essential Next Steps

• Step 1 Agree on SWD advocacy asks (Fall Board
  Meeting 2008 - Year 1)
• Step 2 Conduct state level analyses and set up a
  district-wide database (Report due at the January
  Board Meeting 2009 - Year 1)
• Individual states should complete a report that
  includes
• Review of the status of the issue at the state
  level including relevant historical
  considerations
• Identification and contact information for key
  stakeholders (chronic disease organizations,
  state and local PTA organizations, other related
  professional organizations, local and state
  leaders who champion health related issues).
• Identification of advocacy targets and contact
  information (e.g., individual members of the
  state legislature, state superintendent of
  schools, members of the state school board,
  district school board members, school
  superintendents, physical education teachers,
  school principals, parents, and students)
• Report of member representation on other state
  level organizations and/or coalitions

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Essential Steps

• Step 3 Further develop/modify the ask (Summer
  2009-Year 1)
• Partner with the research consortium to convene a
  panel of researchers to review the scientific
  literature and provide a statement that
  addresses
• Evidence-based curriculum (operational
  definition) and rationale
• Projected cost/benefit analyses
• Implications for sustained professional
  development teacher education
• Quality of instruction as delineated by teacher
  credentials
• Step 4 Mobilize the Profession (Year 2)
• Convene a SWD Advocacy task force to work
  collaboratively with state associations (Fall
  Board meeting year 2)
• Get member buy in (state and district meetings
  Years 2-4)
• Town hall meetings
• Mobilize grassroots efforts (state and district
  Years 2-4)
• Apply for advocacy funds help states to develop
  an advocacy plan
• Apply for advocacy grant to cover travel
  expenses

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Essential Steps

• Step 5. Build Coalition Efforts (year 2)
• Develop power point presentation to communicate
  advocacy efforts (e.g., share scientific report
  and solicit support)
• Share state level advocacy plans and highlight
  specific needs -
• Advocacy message endorsements
• Representation at meetings with advocacy targets
• Shared costs for campaigns
• State development of strategic plan for
  sustaining coalition advocacy efforts (e.g.,
  mechanisms of communication Years 2-5)
• Step 6 Create Advocacy Materials (years 2-4)
• Contract the development of materials
• Brochures, newsletters, press releases, formal
  letters, etc.
• Step 7 Identify legislative champions to sponsor
  state level bills (Years 2-5)
• Step 8 CPR Advocacy (Years 2 - 5)
• Apply for advocacy grant to cover material ,
  labor expenses, and contracted work associated
  with advocacy

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Proposed 5 Year Timeline
Year
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The Time is Now SWD, We Need to DIVE IN!