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Play, Policy, and Practice Interest Forum
THE DEMISE OF RECESS in many elementary schools - and of outdoor play in general - is an issue of great concern to many members of the Play, Policy, and Practice Interest Forum. If there is any doubt that this is a problem, pick up publications as diverse as Sports Illustrated, Pediatrics, the New York Times, or your local newspaper to read about it.
Most of us remember recess as an important part of the school day. It was a time to be outdoors; to organize our own games; to play on the swings, slides, and other playground equipment; or just to hang out with friends.
In contrast, children today are likely to have 10 to 15 minutes of outdoor playtime during the school day, if they are lucky. No wonder there is an upswing in childhood obesity and an increase in childhood heart disease and type 2 diabetes. No wonder teachers are concerned about a generation of children who can't entertain themselves, have social difficulties, and are fidgety and off task in class.
Cutting back on recess
In the late 1980s, some school systems began cutting back on recess to allow more instructional time. The trend accelerated with the passage of No Child Left Behind in 2001 and was particularly widespread in urban schools with high numbers of children from marginalized populations (Jarrett 2003; Roth et al. 2003; NCES 2006). The arguments against recess involved both academics and safety issues. Some administrators believed their school's test scores would improve if children spent more time on school work. Some feared lawsuits from playground injuries.
A number of school systems have a recess policy; others allow the principals or teachers to determine whether the children go out to play. Officially having recess and actually having recess are two different issues. A recent study in Pediatrics (Barros, Silver, & Stein 2009), using a national data set of 11,000 children, found that 30 percent of third-graders had fewer than 15 minutes of recess a day. Recess time is often cut because of academic pressures or as punishment.
Recess's many benefits
To make recommendations for policy changes, we, as members of the Play, Policy, and Practice Interest Forum, spent the past decade...