This month I am delighted to introduce what we hope will become regular PELINKS4U features.

Don Hellison writes this month's PELINKS4U Guest Editorial and shares his thoughts about the challenges facing today's physical education. As most readers probably know, Don has focused his career on teaching physical education in a way that develops student responsibility. Many physical educators now regularly integrate Hellison's levels of responsibility into their classroom management protocols. Especially impressive is the fact that Don is a practitioner of his ideas, choosing to test his methods in some of the toughest schools in the country. Don is a widely acclaimed author and workshop presenter. Several years ago I also had the pleasure of interviewing him as part of our PE Today and Tomorrow video series. If you are familiar with Don you'd definitely enjoy the video we made. Be sure to read his editorial!

PELINKS4U also features a slide presentation this month on the topic of "Using Physical Activity as Punishment." You may remember that I raised this issue in a previous editorial. Many readers wanted more information. Here is a first effort put together by graduate students in the CWU online masters program. PELINKS4U plans to include more visual presentations in the future in addition to written articles. Be sure to contact us if you have ideas to share.

Finally, our No Child Left ON THEIR Behind buttons and T-shirts continue to be distributed nationwide. If you are interested in using either in your advocacy efforts with administrators, boards, parents, or legislators click the PE Store button in the top menu bar.

With the school year almost over, we wish you a great finale to your quarter and encourage you to get outside for some health-promoting physical activity.

Steve Jefferies
Central Washington University
Publisher PELINKS4U

Back in Paleolithic times, 1987 to be exact, John Massengale invited Shirl Hoffman and me to write about the future of physical education. My task was to describe "the rise and triumph of physical education" while Shirl addressed its "decline and fall." When I recently reread and compared these chapters, it was evident who'd "won." Shirl got much of it right-- the creeping privatization of physical education, the commercialization of athletics, the over-specialization of university physical education scholarship. My crystal ball must have sprung a leak, filled as it was with ideas like physical education in higher education becoming more applied and relevant; professors and practitioners truly collaborating on a regular basis; a reversal in the fragmentation of health, physical education, and recreation (maybe that wasn't totally off the mark); school physical education moving to smaller classes and away from the three week unit; and interscholastic athletics offering different kinds of options to meet the needs of more students while shifting more responsibility to student athletes.

Click here for the rest of the editorial

2004: No Child Left ON THEIR Behind

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April Book Feature

This month we are looking at the book "Teamwork and Teamplay" by Jim Cain and Barry Jolliff

This book is perfect the person who manages a group of students. Easy to follow and very informative. Check it out.