Tuesday, 25 October 2016

Nearly half of children ‘leave school without basic movement skills’, study says



Nearly half of children ‘leave school without basic movement skills’, study says

A A new survey has revealed that many children leave primary school with poor physical literacy, despite the majority of teachers viewing PE as an important subject. Nearly half of primary school pupils are leaving school without “basic movement skills” to engage in physical activity.

B Teachers also said more than one in three children dislike exercise by the time they leave primary school and believe 42 per cent of children don’t enjoy PE lessons. However, a survey of 400 primary school teachers revealed negative attitudes towards physical activity among primary school pupils still prevail. The survey, by Virgin Active, the University of Bedfordshire and primary school teachers nationwide, revealed teachers believe 39 per cent of children across the UK leave primary school with a negative attitude towards being physically active.
C Experts say primary school teachers play a crucial role in helping children develop physical literacy. But a third of them lack confidence when it comes to teaching PE, while over a quarter said they don’t feel adequately qualified to teach the subject and more than half want more professional development opportunities for PE. The vast majority of teachers, or 88 per cent, say they recognize PE is as important as the other subjects they teach.
D Professor Margaret Whitehead, an academic on physical literacy, said: “PE lessons help shape a child’s first experiences of physical activities and their attitude towards leading an active lifestyle. It is crucial that these first experiences are positive, rewarding and enjoyable. We must do all we can to make sure teachers are equipped with the knowledge and tools they need to deliver quality PE, helping all students to make progress on their physical literacy journey. We need to enable teachers to nurture a lifelong love of physical activity among future generations.”
E To help tackle the issue, Virgin Active are launching Active Inspiration, a five year-long programme working with charities such as the Youth Sports trust and various educational partners. Their aim is to introduce an active lifestyle to 500,000 young people, by developing new ways of approaching PE that they hope will inspire a lifelong love of physical activity in primary school pupils. Official figures show more than one third of children in England are now overweight or obese by the time they leave primary school.
Adjusted to (1)

prevail – převládat
vast – obrovský, rozsáhlý
nurture – živit, vychovávat
tackle – bojovat, poprat se


1) Read the article and match each of the headings to a paragraph.
1 A new survey on physical literacy
2 Whitehead’s opinion
3 A new active programme is starting
4 Children dislike PE
5 Teachers don’t feel to be qualified

2) Read the article and answer the questions.
1 What does a new survey deal with?
2 How do teachers feel about PE education and their pupils?
3 Who is Whitehead? What does she say?
4 What is Active Inspiration?
5 What kind of problem do 33% of children leaving school have? Why?

3) Explain the following words and phrases.
1 poor physical literacy
2 basic movement skills
3 negative attitude towards being physically active
4 don’t feel adequately qualified to teach the subject
5 overweight or obese

4) Answer the following questions.
Why is physical activity important? How much physical activity should a preschooler get daily? How to make physical activity fun? What are social benefits of physical education?

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Source:
(1)
ESPINOZA, Javier. Nearly half of children 'leave school without basic movement skills', study says. The Telegraph [online]. 2015 [cit. 2015-09-22]. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/11693791/Nearly-half-of-children-leave-school-without-basic-movement-skills-study-says.html

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