The 'new P.E.'

               Fitness organization makes Naperville schools the model for nationwide program
               By Melissa Franic
              10/10/01
 

               STAFF WRITER

                 Phil Lawler can almost remember — down to the day and moment — when he decided to try and change
               the physical education movement.

                  The Madison Junior High School teacher was in a department meeting when someone handed him what he
               called "yet another article about kids being out of shape."

                  "I figured, we have them in P.E. class every day," Lawler said. "How can we change our curriculum to get
               kids more active?"

                  With the help of other community members, Lawler spearheaded efforts to change P.E. classes to focus
               less on sports skills and more on overall health and wellness. Today, Madison Junior High has a
               state-of-the-art fitness center, complete with exercise equipment and a rock climbing wall.

                  Students have individualized fitness programs and access to heart monitors. They keep journals about
               their target heart rates and have more "ownership" of their health, Lawler said. The movement has been
               dubbed "the new P.E."

                  The change, he said, is mostly philosophical.

                  "To be honest, it has taken over 10 years to develop," said Lawler, standing in the school's fitness room.
               "What you see here is the result of a 12-year labor of love."

                  That labor, and efforts from factions of the community that raised money and donated equipment, has
               received a lot of national recognition. In the past three years, representatives from more than 100 schools
               across the country have visited Madison's fitness center, Lawler said.

                  On Tuesday, the district officially formed a partnership with P.E. 4 Life, a national nonprofit organization
               dedicated to promote a healthful and fit lifestyle for children.

                  Ann Flannery, president of P.E. 4 Life, said she first found out about Lawler and the Naperville program
               while reading a May 2000 article in USA Today about the "new P.E." The story highlighted Naperville and
               its changing physical education curriculum.

                  Flannery invited Lawler to attend a press conference, and the two eventually worked together to develop
               an alliance. Naperville schools, and particularly Madison, will serve as the model sites for other schools to
               duplicate.

                  "We're going to make this movement nationwide to affect all kids," Lawler said.

                  One of the biggest obstacles about changing physical education is changing people's perceptions about it,
               Lawler said. Most people remember gym classes that were geared toward a small percentage of children.
               Others have bad memories about being the last kid to finish the mile run or getting picked last to play on a
               team.

                  This isn't the same P.E. that people making decisions about it at the administrative and even legislative
               levels grew up with, Lawler said.

                  "The old delivery of physical education did not always meet the needs of every child and, in some cases,
               may even have caused some children to be turned off to exercise," Lawler said.

                  Now, students work at their own levels, focusing on cardiovascular exercises, flexibility, upper body
               strength, muscular strength and a more healthful lifestyle. When they graduate from junior high, Lawler said
               they'll get a 14-page profile about the fitness tests they've taken.

                  "I'm not saying physical education is every child's favorite subject," Lawler said. "But every child who
               comes in here knows what's expected of them."

                  Lawler, a 24-year veteran of Madison Junior High who also serves as the district's athletics director, said
               he used to be called a gym teacher. Then it was a physical educator. Now, in the 21st century, he perceives
               his job will be more along the lines of "personal trainer."

                  High-tech equipment also might help propel P.E. into the new millennium. Madison is the pilot center to
               test Game Riders, a new product from Cycle FX that consists of a stationary bicycle hooked up to a Sony
               PlayStation and a television.

                  As a person rides the bike and twists the handlebars, he or she has control of the actions in a biking video
               game.

                  "It's just a different kind of joystick, if you will," said Mark Payares, sales and marketing coordinator for
               Cycle FX. "It's different from watching TV because you're interactive. You actually focus on the game."

                  With innovations and changes, Lawler and Flannery said legislators also have to jump on board with the
               "new P.E." to continue in this high-technology manner.

                  P.E. 4 Life will serve as an advocate for public policy change, Flannery said, and work through awareness
               campaigns, research projects and support for public policy and grassroots development.

                  Through its alliance, P.E. 4 Life and District 203 hope to conduct seminars during the academic year for
               school administrators, school board members, parents and P.E. teachers throughout the country.

                  Already, about 30 percent of Illinois schools have developed programs similar to District 203.

               10/10/01