Fitness
Tests Show Kids Out of Shape
Jean Cowden Moore -
Ventura County Star Less than one-third of
Ventura County students are physically fit, according to test results.
Students in fifth, seventh and ninth grades
were tested in the spring last year in six areas: aerobic capacity, body fat,
abdominal strength, lower-back health, upper-body strength and flexibility.
Those who passed all six tests were
considered physically fit.
Educators pointed to a variety of changes in
schools and homes to explain the results: Teachers spending less time on P.E.
and more on academics; students spending more time in front of computers
instead of going outside to play; and poor eating habits.
"In past years, students had more active
time," said Martha Tureen, assistant superintendent for the Fillmore Unified
School District. "Childhood is very different now from the way it was."
School districts that posted top results
include Conejo Valley Unified, Mesa Union and Briggs Elementary.
In Briggs, 47 percent of fifth-graders
passed all six tests. In the Conejo Valley, it was 49 percent of ninth-graders.
In Mesa Union, 52 percent of seventh-graders passed.
High-scoring districts might be more likely
to have trained P.E. instructors in the elementary schools, administrators
said. They probably also are focusing on standards set by the state, defining
what kids need to be able to do physically.
"It's not just five days of dodge ball,"
said Richard Simpson, assistant superintendent of Conejo Valley schools.
"They're saying, 'Maybe we need to work on other muscle groups, as well.'"
Low-scoring districts included Ocean View,
Oxnard Elementary and Somis Union.
Martha Hernandez, an administrator in Oxnard
Elementary, said the results indicate her district needs to do more than it
already has to make sure students are fit.
But not all the results, good or bad, can be
pinned on the schools, Hernandez and other administrators said.
Students who scored well also might be
playing after-school sports, in addition to taking P.E. at school.
Those who did not score well might go home
and watch TV, play video games or spend hours on homework. And they might be
eating too much junk food while they sit.
"Some things we cannot control," Hernandez
said. "We need to focus on those things we have some influence on."
The state requires elementary schools to
offer 20 minutes of P.E. a day.
Middle school students must take one period
-- roughly 45 minutes -- of P.E. a day. And high school students must take at
least two years of P.E. or the equivalent in sports or marching band.
Physical fitness test results are available
at www.cde.ca.gov.
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