OLPE

Initially I thought that the idea of Online PE was ridiculous because I thought that sitting in front of a computer would be the worst way to get students physically active. I am a strong believer in the phenomenon that the increase in sedentary children is due to the prevalence of video and internet games that most kids spend most of their time playing these days. And having physical education not be a requirement in school means that some children are likely to not participate in any kind of physical activity regularly which is not healthy at all.

However, after a few weeks of class, I have decided that if physical education could be taught online if it were a hybrid course in which students would spend time learning about Physical Fitness online and also spending time in the gym actually being active. This would be an effective way for older students (high school and college age) to participate in learning about health, fitness, etc. and also do some physical activity. I do not think that this is a viable option for students younger than high school age, however because it would be much more difficult for them to make it for time outside of school to the gym. In a hybrid class situation, I imagine that students would spend the online portion of the class learning the information about components of fitness, or learning the rules and regulations of a specific sport, and then spend time in the gym either working out or playing the sport they are learning about. This does not make sense for younger students who might have restricted internet access or not be able to get to the gym easily. Which is why I can only see partial online physical education being an option for older students and would not serve the purpose of pedagogy students who plan on teaching students who are in middle school and junior high.