P.E. — students’ choice

Have you ever wondered what it would be like if IU required physical education credits?

Maybe some of you think it wouldn’t be so bad. You could take bowling or golf or something easy.

I have a friend who attends Anderson University. She’s taking a dog-walking class.

Dog-walking was one of the options to fulfill her P.E. requirements. Yes, my friend paid money to walk poodles and chihuahuas so she can get her degree in elementary education.

I’m going to be blunt — this is stupid.

All throughout grade school I thought P.E. was stupid, but I’ll admit that’s because I’m chubby and averse to sweat.

To be fair, it was high school P.E. that was especially and annoyingly stupid.

By that age it should be a choice left up to the student.

We all know childhood obesity has become an epidemic in current generations. More children are being diagnosed with diseases such as diabetes.

Kids are getting heavier, and groups like PE4life think increased physical education is the answer.

PE4life is a non-profit organization working to “build fit kids” through developing physical education programs and activities in schools and communities.

In younger children, P.E. is important. They’re at an age when establishing a healthy lifestyle is easy. Most importantly, they can learn to love that lifestyle so that it becomes the norm for them.

But once you get to high school, I don’t think it should be up to the school to decide how much physical activity you get.

High school P.E. was a waste of time. It didn’t teach us anything other than the importance of washing laundry, which some still failed to grasp.

The point of high school is to prepare us for college, and not once last year did I need to know the rules and regulations of ultimate frisbee.

I also didn’t need to know the Pythagorean identities, but that’s a problem for my pre-calculus teacher.

What I needed to know were the characteristics of Anglo-Saxon poetry and how to write a groundbreaking article on local soup kitchens.

Instead, I was stuck sweating in P.E., faking or forcing asthma attacks and plotting to accidentally on purpose hit my coach with a ping pong ball.

Health class was where I learned the techniques and information needed to stay healthy. That’s where they teach you about calories and carbs — what’s bad about them, what’s good about them and the effects they have on our bodies.

Schools need to worry about our health by monitoring the food they serve students. No more mystery meat hamburger patties three times a week.

They need to incorporate more fresh fruits and vegetables, and no, the gunk collecting dust in industrial-sized cans does not count.

I’m not saying all schools should get rid of P.E.

I’m saying that for high school and college students, it should be a choice.

If you liked P.E. growing up and you want to keep relearning how to play kickball, as if it’s not obvious, then take it as an elective.

If you’re interested in pursuing personal training as a career, go crazy. If you think P.E. will increase your health, then take it, and feel good about yourself.

It’s not fair for schools or colleges like Anderson or IU to expect us to pay for classes we don’t want to take and that don’t pertain to our future careers.

­— lnbanks@indiana.edu
Follow columnist Lexia Banks on Twitter @LexiaBanks.