THE SENATE	S.C.R. NO.	25
TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2018
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

requesting the department of education to report to the legislature on the status of physical education in hawaii's public schools.

WHEREAS, research suggests that schools that provide time for high-quality physical education generate a positive effect on academic achievement and some of the benefits include increased concentration; improved scores in mathematics, reading, and writing; and a reduction in disruptive behaviors; and

WHEREAS, physical education offered within public schools can provide all students access to physical activity regardless of race; ethnicity; socioeconomic status; gender; or urban, suburban, or rural setting; and

WHEREAS, physical education programs are critical to providing students with the skills necessary to achieve and maintain life-long physical fitness; and

WHEREAS, regular physical activity and physical fitness can play a significant role in promoting health and preventing chronic illnesses such as heart disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes, and osteoporosis; and

WHEREAS, in 2013, the Institute of Medicine identified daily school physical education for all students as a strategy to prevent obesity across the nation; and

WHEREAS, SHAPE America, the American Heart Association, and a number of other national health organizations recommend that schools provide one hundred fifty minutes per week of instructional physical education for elementary school children and two hundred twenty-five minutes per week for middle and high school students throughout the school year; and

WHEREAS, the Hawaii Content and Performance Standards III for physical education were based on national standards in 2005, but have not been updated since then and do not align with the National Physical Education Standards developed in 2013; and

WHEREAS, barriers and challenges have impeded the Department of Education from fully implementing the Hawaii Content and Performance Standards III for physical education in all grades; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-ninth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2018, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Department of Education is requested to provide a report to the Legislature on the status of physical education in Hawaii's public schools; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the status report include but not be limited to:

(1) The current state of physical education in Hawaii's public schools, including the number of physical education instructional minutes per week provided to all students in grades K-12, qualifications of personnel delivering physical education, and methods for assessment of student achievement on instructional standards for physical education; and

(2) A plan for adoption of current national recommendations, including an estimate of needs and resources to implement updated instructional standards, increased minutes of instruction, professional development, assessments, and sequential standards-based curriculum; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2019; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Education; Superintendent of Education; and Hawaii Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title:

Department of Education; Physical Education; Report