Two Papers Provide New Information for Wellness Policy Discussions and Implementation
Two papers were published in the last month that contain information that will be useful to districts as they finalize and implement their wellness policies. The Department of Education released Calories In, Calories Out: Food and Exercise in Public Elementary Schools, 2005, the results of a survey of public elementary schools that looked at the opportunities students have to both consume and expend calories. In addition, the National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) made public a position paper Recess for Elementary School Students, which describes NASPE’s position on the importance of recess in elementary schools.
Calories In, Calories Out contains the results of a survey conducted in the spring of 2005 that looks at the potential energy balance –the number of calories eaten compared to the number of calories used – for students at elementary schools. The survey was sent to a representative sample of 1198 regular public elementary schools that asked about food served and sold outside of full school meals, recess and physical education practices, and physical assessments of students. The response rate was 91%. By looking at both the number of calories available for children to take in and the amount of energy they have the opportunity to expend during the day, school board members, educators, and administrators can reexamine practices that may be affecting the current obesity epidemic.
The report is broken into categories: Availability of Foods Outside of Full School Meals, Opportunities for Students to Engage in Physical Activity, and Physical Assessment of Students. The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), which conducted the research, does not attempt to analyze the results across areas, but presents the data by category. Some highlights of the results from the Availability of Foods Outside of Full School Meals include: 94% of the schools offered food outside of the full school lunch; 23% had vending machines and 35% had school stores or snack bars. Schools with any cafeteria or lunchroom food services were asked which foods from a list of 15 could be purchased outside of full school meals and the availability of nine listed foods (such as nondairy beverages and snack foods) via vending machines and school stores or snack bars and the times these foods were available. In addition, the study examined three indicators of physical activity: scheduled recess, scheduled physical education, and school activities or programs to encourage physical activity. 83% – 88% of the schools had daily recess across elementary grades (the variation is due to differences by grade level); 99% of the schools reported scheduled physical education; and the average number of days per week that physical education was scheduled was 2.4 days per week for first through fifth grades and 2.6 days per week for sixth grades that were considered elementary students. Approximately 33% of the schools had calculated the students’ body mass index (BMI). Of those that collected the information, only 39% sent this information home to caregivers.
Recess for Elementary School Students emphasizes the need for physical activity in the lives of elementary school children. It reiterates that elementary school children should be moderately to vigorously active at least 60 minutes a day and that physical activity may improve attention, focus, behavior, and learning in the classroom. It is recommended that recess not replace physical education classes and should not be viewed as a reward for accepted behavior or a punishment for unacceptable behavior. Safety should be taught, and children should be supervised. It further posits that elementary school children should have at least one daily period of recess for no less than 20 minutes in length and discourages more than 2 hours of consecutive inactivity.
For more information on Calories In, Calories Out, please contact:
Bernie Greene
FRSS Project Director
National Center for Education Statistics
1990 K St. NW
Rm. 9033
Washington, DC 20006
Bernard.Greene@ed.gov
For more information on Recess for Elementary Schools, please contact:
Paula Keyes Kun
Director of Communications
NASPE
1900 Association Drive
Reston, VA 20191
703-476-3410
PKun@AAHPERD.org
Source: NASPE and Department of Education websites