Physical fitness for every child

Brad Cowger and the rest of the physical education staff in the Conway School District want to make sure every child's needs are met when it comes to physical fitness.

In order to do this, a change in curriculum is a necessity and an application for a federal grant is in the works to help further that change.

Cowger, who teaches at Ruth Doyle Intermediate School, made a presentation in the district's administration office Wednesday for members of both the community and the school district.

After attending a conference to get a start on the grant application, Cowger said the grant could fund Conway's schools with up to $500,000. This money could be used to fully stock P.E. rooms and gyms with the latest fitness equipment, from exercise stations to monitors to fun games.

However, with or without the grant, Cowger said it is time for a curriculum change.

"We want to make our program more available to every single kid, not just the athletically inclined," Cowger said. "We want to try to modify our curriculum so it's more fitness based."

The biggest change Cowger said he hopes to see on Conway's campuses is a method of accountability for physical education teaching methods.

"We want our curriculum and programs to be able to show what we're actually doing and one way we're going to do this is through a unified assessment in every grade level," Cowger said. "That will identify whether they're on healthy fitness zones and they can take home detailed progress reports that give something for the parents to see and know what's going on in schools."

Meeting the students' cravings for the newest technology is another thing Cowger said he likes to implement into physical education lessons. The kids at Ruth Doyle already enjoy playing a Nintendo Wii and a giant Dance, Dance Revolution game on a jumbo screen.

Cowger said he hopes the next purchase, whether or not it's made using a federal grant, will be heart monitors.

"Basically we can link up the heart rate monitors to the computer after they finish an activity and it shows a digital picture of what that kid was doing all throughout class," Cowger said. "For instance, there are some kids you may not think are on level or are slacking, but with the monitor, you can see they are actually way above the level and need to slow down."

Cowger said he has been learning a lot from a school in Naperville, Ill. that has adopted the PE4life Academy program he hopes to bring to Conway. He said the basis of their program is that physical activity and exercise can boost academics.

"They are taking kids and making them take P.E. before their most difficult classes and then seeing drastic improvements in test scores," Cowger said.

He added the classroom teachers in Naperville are also getting involved by occasionally replacing students' standard desks with modified exercise balls and often encouraging them to get up out of their chairs.

Students a little closer to home are also beginning to get into the groove of physical education for the whole student as the school district in Rogers, Ark. has become widely known for its program.

"When you walk in their doors, you see a gym, rock walls, fitness equipment, mountain bikes and kids going through exercise stations like you'd see at Conway Regional," Cowger said. "That's where we want to be."

Conway physical education teachers are currently studying these programs and working with the University of Central Arkansas to change the curriculum so whether or not they receive the grant, they'll be ready to adjust. However, he said it is time to stop looking and start changing.

"There is just so much out there and the fact of the matter is kids spend most of their time at school and at least two of their meals are eaten at school," Cowger said. "So if we want to make a change in a kid's life, we have to do it at school and we can't wait around for anyone else to do it."

(Staff writer Jessica Bauer can be reached by e-mail at jessica.bauer@thecabin.net or by phone at 505-1236. To comment on this and other stories in the Log Cabin, log on to www.thecabin.net. Send us your news at www.thecabin.net/submit)