New state physical education standards being drafted by the Nebraska Department of Education focus less on the intricacies of basketball, football and baseball and more on fitness and developing skills that students can use throughout their lives.
“We’re specifically emphasizing skills for life, which takes you out of the realm of football,†said Julane Hill, the state education department’s coordinated school health career education specialist. “You don’t’ see a lot of 60-year-old football leagues.â€
The proposed standards replace a similar framework from 2006 called “Essential Learnings.â€
Both documents stress fitness, mastering various skills, teaching responsible behavior and living healthy lifestyles, but the proposed standards spell out specific skills students should learn in each grade and how that learning should progress from year to year.
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In kindergarten, for instance, students are expected to hop, gallop and jog as well as throw underhand.
By eighth grade, students are expected to strike a pitched ball, catch and dribble and perform “pivots, fakes, and jab steps.â€
That means that students in those physical education classes may play basketball and volleyball, but they’ll do it in smaller groups so all students, regardless of athletic skill, will play, Hill said.
The standards focus on five areas: physical activity skills; understanding and applying concepts, strategies and tactics of movement (communicating with teammates, moving from offense to defense, for instance); health-related physical activity and fitness; responsible behavior; and understanding the benefits of physical activity.
While state law requires schools adopt standards -- and be tested -- in core subjects such as math, reading, writing and science, they’re not mandated in areas like physical education.
But the state has created standards in several other areas including fine arts, world languages and career and technical education, which districts can choose whether to adopt.
One of the biggest shifts in the proposed standards from the current framework is defining high school standards by individual courses rather than by grade level.
Hill said the department looked at the most common courses offered by high schools and developed specific standards for those courses, which include such classes as swimming, a host of different dance classes, strength and conditioning classes, team games and outdoor pursuits.
People can read the standards and participate in an online survey on the department's website at . The board is expected to vote on a final draft in October.