A new national report on recess sheds light on the importance of the traditional activity, while criticizing school systems like D.C.’s that neither devote separate funds nor have set standards for recess.
The findings, by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, were unveiled Monday as part of a national effort to expand recess offerings.
Recess is the single best opportunity to raise the fitness of children, researchers found. At the same time, though, school systems are not devoting anywhere close to the amount of funds to recess as they do after-school and physical education pursuits.
Researchers also said that the most vulnerable children — those from minority or low-income families — are “being short-changed” when it comes to recess.
“Children who go to large, urban schools receive the fewest recess minutes per week,” the report states. “And schools with more than 50 percent minority enrollment and the lowest income levels are the ones most likely to have fewer minutes for recess or even lose recess altogether.”
In D.C. Public Schools, there are no set requirements or standards for recess, according to Mafara Hobson, spokeswoman for Chancellor Michelle Rhee. Therefore, no specific monies are set aside to improve the quality of recess systemwide.
Four District elementary schools are the exception, however. At these campuses, recess is a larger focus through the Sports4Kids program, which awards participating schools with $22,000 apiece and one full-time recess coordinator. These D.C. schools are Brookland, Clark, Montgomery and Bunker Hill elementary schools.
Childhood obesity has been dubbed a major problem in D.C. schools by the newly reorganized State Board of Education, with members saying they hope to increase physical offerings to stave off the problem.
