Mandatory PE Classes for High School

The Alabama legislature is considering making physical education (PE) mandatory rather than optional for high school students in Alabama. (Illinois is the only other state with mandatory PE). State policy currently requires 30 minutes of PE daily for children in kindergarten through 8th grade and only one unit of PE for ninth through 12th graders. The Senate Education Committee, in response to the alarming increase in childhood obesity, approved a bill that would require at least 30 minutes of PE daily for children in kindergarten through 12th grade. This requirement will be phased in over a four year period. The bill must pass the Senate & House before taking effect.

Stephanie Oakes is a fitness correspondent for Discovery Health Channel, a contributing editor for USA Weekend Magazine and the LA Times, and appears on NBC's 'Today in New York'. She can be reached at soakes@beststuff.com.