No Recess
Eliminating Recess
Recess is a playground for debate amongst educational researchers and philosophers. In primary schools, twenty five percent of injuries will take place on the playground (Hill). Bullying and unhealthy competition are areas of recess concern and thus recess is considered a waste of academic time. Is this a valid reason to completely eliminate recess in elementary schools? Forty percent of the nation’s 16,000 schools have either already modified, replaced, or consider eliminating recess (LaHoud).
As far back as 1884, a paper written by W.T. Harris, a philosopher and educator, debated the question of whether recess should be allowed or dismissed in elementary schools (Brosnihan). When delivering his address before the Department of Superintendents of the National Education Association (DSNEA), Harris presented moral arguments defending recess by saying that the students ' physical needs outweigh the loss of discipline in the classroom. One hundred five years later in the United Nations ' Convention on the Right of the Child, adults are still trying to defend recess for their children (Brosnihan). On the recess debate playground, concerned Americans must strongly consider the arguments of the advocates of recess, based on their scientific and philosophical analysis and their simple common solutions.
One reason that schools are considering eliminating recess is that school administration is afraid of law-suits that may be filed if a child is injured during recess. Many law-suits have already taken place and in both cases the school district has been held financially responsible. In reaction to these law-suit, schools feel they have no other option but to cancel recess from a child 's daily activities. School policy makers consider it illogical for the schools to allow children to play when they are knowingly endangering the students. Safety procedures are already in place at schools to prevent injuries yet some injuries still occur because of
Recess is a playground for debate amongst educational researchers and philosophers. In primary schools, twenty five percent of injuries will take place on the playground (Hill). Bullying and unhealthy competition are areas of recess concern and thus recess is considered a waste of academic time. Is this a valid reason to completely eliminate recess in elementary schools? Forty percent of the nation’s 16,000 schools have either already modified, replaced, or consider eliminating recess (LaHoud).
As far back as 1884, a paper written by W.T. Harris, a philosopher and educator, debated the question of whether recess should be allowed or dismissed in elementary schools (Brosnihan). When delivering his address before the Department of Superintendents of the National Education Association (DSNEA), Harris presented moral arguments defending recess by saying that the students ' physical needs outweigh the loss of discipline in the classroom. One hundred five years later in the United Nations ' Convention on the Right of the Child, adults are still trying to defend recess for their children (Brosnihan). On the recess debate playground, concerned Americans must strongly consider the arguments of the advocates of recess, based on their scientific and philosophical analysis and their simple common solutions.
One reason that schools are considering eliminating recess is that school administration is afraid of law-suits that may be filed if a child is injured during recess. Many law-suits have already taken place and in both cases the school district has been held financially responsible. In reaction to these law-suit, schools feel they have no other option but to cancel recess from a child 's daily activities. School policy makers consider it illogical for the schools to allow children to play when they are knowingly endangering the students. Safety procedures are already in place at schools to prevent injuries yet some injuries still occur because of
Cited: Meyers, David. Exploring Psychology. Page117. Fifth Edition. Holland, Mich.:Worth Publishers, 2002. Pellegrini, Anthony “British Journal of Education” Relations between children 's playground and Classroom Behavior. 1993 <www.library.adoption.com/Education> Shelby, Don