|
|
Physical Education and Public Health: Active Community
Environments
I drove by our local wellness center on my way to
work this morning and noticed their new sign claiming - Exercise
is Your Best Health Insurance!
While few of us would dispute such a claim, I wonder
how many of us have taken an active role in becoming agents of social
change in our local communities to enhance public health.
The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention outline several public health programs including
of interest to physical educators including the 5-A-Day
for Better Health program designed to increase the consumption
of fruits and vegetables and Active
Community Environments designed to encourage the development
of recreational facilities.
I encourage all secondary
health and physical education teachers to share their thoughts regarding
the ways they have positively impacted the health of their local
community... The PE
Forum provides the perfect outlet to hear your voice!.
Jon Poole
Secondary Section Editor
|
| Rails-to-Trails
Conservancy
I'll bet many of you, like me, live within reasonable proximity
to a multi-use path or trail...perhaps one of the hundreds of former
railroad lines that have been reclaimed for public recreational
use. In my community we have both the Huckleberry Trail and
New River State Park Trail that afford many miles of biking, running,
horseback riding, and walking opportunities.
Perhaps using one of those two trails could be a homework assignment
for K-12 students living in my neck of the woods. Many of
us have seen physical activity logs as assessment pieces for the
national standard - exhibits a physically active lifestyle - maybe
its time to fill those logs with trips up and down the trails over
the course of the semester!
|
|  |
|
What are the health
benefits of active community environments?
|
According to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention:
- People report being more active in neighborhoods they perceive
as being safe and of those reporting they live in neighborhoods
they perceive as unsafe, over 1/2 of women and elderly are inactive.
- In neighborhoods with connecting city blocks, people report
walking up to three times more than those living in neighborhoods
with cul-de-sacs or other features that keep streets from connecting.
- People report being more physically active if they have recreational
facilities in close proximity to their house.
Active
Community Environments are those that have sidewalks, on-street
bike lanes, multi-use paths and trails, parks and open spaces, and
recreational facilities in close proximity to housing. Candidly,
too many communities were built to accommodate automobile traffic
into and out of neighborhoods, into and out of shopping malls, and
into and out of schools. Even in neighborhoods where schools
are relatively close, many children are driven to school because
parents are concerned about the lack of a safe walking route for
their children.
Is your own school walking or bicycle friendly? If not, are
there some changes your administration and school district could
make to encourage more physically active students (like having clean,
safe, and convenient bike storage, etc.).
|
|
"Community
parks and recreation programmers are responsible for
addressing the needs of the entire community.
Parks and recreational professionals must seize the
opportunity to extend the benefits of physical activity
to the diverse population of America"
--
Janet Hodges
& Karla Henderson
|
|
|
|
A
few years ago while serving as a faculty member at Virginia Tech,
my students were required to be involved with the Walk-to-School Day
during the fall of 1999. Media coverage included our local paper
and even a highlight through the Partnership
for a Walkable America website. Most recently, the 2001
Walk-to-School Day was held on October 2nd.
- Any idea how many youngsters
in your school district walk to school?
- As you examine your local schools do you find them "walking
friendly"?
- Are there strategies you might be able to adopt along with your
professional colleagues to encourage more walking for America's
youth?
The Centers for Disease Control
have published a guide that is available at KidsWalk.
|
| Check out the research
papers and resources available through the HealthPapers.Net
to see if some are of benefit to your secondary program.
|
|
If you have ideas, comments, letters to share, or questions about
particular topics, please email one of the following Secondary PE
Section Editors: |
| Help to support quality physical education and health education
by contributing to this site. |
| |
| |
|
Please let your colleagues know about PELINKS4U, and remember you
can catch up on a year's worth of news in our PE
Archives. |
| |
|
