Sample Essay

Should Physical Education be Compulsory in Schools?

The importance of physical activity for young and old is well established in recent times. PE lessons in schools normally are devoted to light exercises coupled with some games. Even though the types of exercises may differ, all schools normally insist that students engage in some form of physical movement. It is commonly agreed that physical education should be compulsory in schools. However, even if physical exercise is good for children, should it be made compulsory for all?

First of all, let us quickly enumerate the many benefits of physical education in schools. Almost all remedies for any kind of illness include physical exercises. Physical movement is in fact the magic bullet that can prevent a multitude of lifestyle illnesses including diabetes, high blood pressure and certain cancers. Physical activity is the only answer to the obesity epidemic of the modern world.

Secondly, the opportunities for physical exercise at a young age can lead to a lifelong interest in sports and games. It can even develop into a daily habit of exercising for at least 30 minutes. It is in childhood that the foundation for healthy habits is laid. This is why it is important to introduce physical education at a very young age in schools.

Thirdly, compulsory physical education can alleviate many of the psychological problems that plague children especially in adolescence. Children who play and engage in other physical activities tend to be more confident about their own body. It can also improve moods, boost self-esteem and decrease the chances of depression and anxiety. It also gives opportunities for children to develop sportsman spirit and team spirit. They learn how to accept failures and defeat in a positive spirit.

Another important argument to include PE in daily lessons at school is that we live in an age when children are mostly glued to screens of one kind or the other. Mobile phones and video games take up all their free time, and often the only time they engage in physical activity is during the physical education time at school. The allure of the screens is so irresistible that compulsory physical activity may be the only way to combat it.

It may be surprising to know that there are critics who think that Physical Education is not important. Sadly, the lessons that are most often cancelled in schools are physical education lessons. The reason for this is that standardized tests do not assess physical fitness, and schools concentrate all their efforts on producing good results in standardized tests. Maths and Science are considered the important subjects precisely because good results in these subjects translate directly into good grades and later on, a great career. This is however, a very narrow view of education. If the goal of education is the holistic development of the child, physical education has to be a vital part and parcel of it.

There is a school of thought that believes that not all students are ‘cut out’ for physical education. In other words, there are children for whom physical activity is very difficult. They are considered ‘nerds’ and they may be bullied in the PE class because they don’t perform well in sports. However, it should be remembered that human beings have evolved from hunter-gatherer tribes who moved from place to place in search of food. Even the modern-day ‘nerds’ would be forced to move and hunt for food if food was not readily available to them. So movement of some kind can be engaged in by all children; it is the responsibility of the school to provide a variety of physical activities that are suitable for all children. For example, not all children will be able to engage in high-intensity exercises or rough games like baseball; they should be able to do light exercises.

Why should physical education be compulsory? It should be made compulsory for the same reason that languages, Maths and Science are compulsory in schools. In other words, physical education should be compulsory because it is an important activity that requires proper training. School is the place where lifelong habits are formed, and physical activity is an extremely important lifelong habit that all human beings should engage in. It is high time that schools and education authorities realized this fact and gave physical education the importance that it deserves.