Newfoundland and Labrador�s physical education and healthy living initiatives were highlighted at a meeting in Ontario this week, sponsored by the Ontario Association for the Supervision of Physical and Health Education (OASPHE).

"We are very excited that our efforts are being recognized nationally," said the Honourable Joan Burke, Minister of Education. "Clearly, we are leading the way when it comes to promoting healthy, active living in our schools. The fact that we were invited to provide the keynote address at the forum is an indication of our expertise in the areas of health and physical education programming."

In recent years, government has introduced an entirely new physical education curriculum throughout the K-12 system, and has made physical education mandatory for graduation. To support the new curriculum, over $2.4 million has been spent over the past two years on new physical education equipment for intermediate and high schools. Programming now focuses on activities that appeal to a broader student base, moving away from a sports-only model, which in turn, contributes to young people leading more active, healthy lives.

The minister pointed out that the new equipment is state of the art and appeals to students of all physical levels. Schools have been provided with such items as elliptical machines, spinner bikes, and commercial rowers. Outdoor equipment includes snow shoes, cross country skis, a compass and a GPS.

Minister Burke recently received a letter from Gonzaga High School, written by Kevin Redmond, the physical education teacher and several of his students, expressing their satisfaction with the new equipment. One student said, "The new equipment in physical education class helped me focus better in other classes." Another wrote, "The machines opened my eyes about getting into shape, they helped me to understand that it isn�t that difficult and can be enjoyable too." Finally, one noted, "The new equipment encouraged healthier lifestyles for the class and the rest of our lives."

Minister Burke said, "It is very encouraging to hear first hand that our students are benefiting from this initiative and are embracing healthy, active choices both in and out of scheduled physical education classes."

The renewed focus on healthy living is in many ways student-based. Government sponsored the Healthy Schools Student Summit in the fall of 2005 to hear first hand from students what they need to support active living in our schools. This led to the Living Healthy Commotions last fall. During the Commotions, students in nearly every school in the province created unique and interesting events to promote healthy eating and active living.

Government invested $3.7 million in Budget 2006 for the Provincial Wellness Plan, which included the development and implementation of new provincial School Food Guidelines to ensure students are presented with healthy food options at school. Students provided input into the development of these guidelines, and government continues to work with schools to ensure menus offer a wide variety of healthy foods, while keeping the costs reasonable for parents.

"Government has committed to a comprehensive health and physical education program in our schools. And we�ve put significant funding in place to support this goal. We hope that our provincial counterparts can learn from our experiences and that they will adapt some of our initiatives as they set their own directions for physical education programming," said the minister.

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Media contact:
Jacquelyn Howard
Director of Communications
Department of Education
709-729-0048, 689-2624
jacquelynhoward@gov.nl.ca

2007 02 02                                              9:20 a.m.