I would say to do it how we do it at my school: two credits of PE, and then it's optional...
I am now known as Flyboy.![]()
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Not having enough of it? I made it clear that I had no need for P.E. in high school and that I could have proven it.
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Technically, you can. There are a bunch of ways to get credit for courses without taking them, from AP tests, to CLEP. The GED (which grants the equivalent of a high school diploma) by the way, does not include P.E. in its curriculum.
I remember some time ago I heard one scientist on BBC talk about how exercise had next to no effect on children's weight, and it was all mostly about their diet. I especially found it interesting that children in India who grow up in the countryside, eating a rural diet, suddenly start gaining weight after their families move to the city and the diet completely changes. Same children, being as active as ever, gain weight just because the diet changed! Which is why focusing on PE will hardly make any difference at all. Yes, sure, maybe you COULD burn that fat, but doesn't it make more sense to prevent that fat from accumulating in the first place?
edited 29th Sep '11 2:03:32 AM by fanty
There were a couple of fat teachers back when I went to American school. You know, those who are so fat they look literally round? I mean, Jesus Christ, before seeing them I didn't even realize people could be that fat. I was surprised that those people could even walk.
Continuously reading, studying, and (hopefully) growing.Thread Hop also.
I'm surprised that this discussion went so far without bringing this up (unless it did come up, in which case I apologize):
That transformation disturbs me to this day. I think it would definitely scare some kids, if you wanted to take the Scare 'Em Straight route.
Keep in mind this was made back in 1988. Clearly Weird Al is quite prescient...then again, what were the numbers like back then?
Expergiscēre cras, medior quam hodie. (Awaken tomorrow, better than today.)Exercise gets you muscle tissue, which is useful in every day life.. It also gives you a clearer mental state, improves blood flow, and a host of other things.
Hiking has always been my favorite exercise because I really like to talk to people and I enjoy exploring, so I'll take a few friends and we'll get a map of a national park so we can just go buck wild and see how far we can get.
That was my point. The school board doesn't care to give you the opportunity to prove that you don't need to take PE.
First of all, that was calculus. And I stand by that claim. The amount of thinking that goes into football games pales in comparison to the effort needed to master even the most basic mathematical exercises, like performing differential equations or measuring volume by integration.
edited 29th Sep '11 12:26:43 PM by Vellup
They never travel alone.What the hell kind of middle/high school did you attend where that's the simplest math?
So what if it takes thinking, it's not risky or ballsy.
You would also be surprised by the complexity of football.
edited 29th Sep '11 1:09:00 PM by Erock
If you don't like a single Frank Ocean song, you have no soul.Unless you have career as a mathematician how often will you use calc in life? Now ask yourself, how often you'll have to run quickly, follow directions under duress, or lift something heavy?
But how often am I going to be doing cross-country against a handful of professional athletes (and a group of not-so-professional people), compared to basic multiplication?
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edited 29th Sep '11 1:41:52 PM by AllanAssiduity
Perhaps thing have changed since I was in school, but we all sensed on some level that the Food Pyramid and those movies they showed us about balanced diets were, well.. disingenuous. Our mathbooks were sponsored by Mcdonald's, there was an ice cream bar next to the cafeteria turnstiles, and everybody chugging Sunny Delight like it was mineral water.
I'm a skeptical squirrel

...or, just make P.E. optional. You don't lose anything important, and everyone's happy. Honestly, I've always found it ridiculous that (In the U.S.) you can't just prove you're already fit enough to just skip PE (Run a start of the year P.E. "final exam" that consists of running laps or something.), kind of like testing out of low tier math and foreign language courses. When I was in high school, I weighed 110 lbs (about 50 kg) and could have easily passed any kind of stamina test the school cared to throw at me. In any case, I sure as hell wasn't suffering from any "obesity epidemic."
They never travel alone.