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Exercise as a punishment in middle schoolers
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mkeonem
Posts: 41 Member
in Debate Club
My daughter came home the other day (11yrs old, 6th grade) and said that since they didn't follow the rules Friday last week in gym they are only going to be doing exercises--bodyweight stuff--for the rest of the year or until they can prove they can listen and follow rules.
While I agree they need to be given some kind of repercussion for not following the rules I do not think that exercises as a "punishment" is the healthy way to go. Not that working out is bad for them but because they are being taught that working out is a punishment for being bad/not following the rules. With obesity issues all over I think it is better to foster a positive relationship with exercising, not a negative one.
What do you think about using exercising in school PE class as a punishment? Any alternatives you recommend instead if you don't agree with it?
While I agree they need to be given some kind of repercussion for not following the rules I do not think that exercises as a "punishment" is the healthy way to go. Not that working out is bad for them but because they are being taught that working out is a punishment for being bad/not following the rules. With obesity issues all over I think it is better to foster a positive relationship with exercising, not a negative one.
What do you think about using exercising in school PE class as a punishment? Any alternatives you recommend instead if you don't agree with it?
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Replies
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I get what you are saying but we have a pretty good example of "exercise as punishment" in the form of the military. If using exercise as punishment ended up discouraging people from exercise I'd think people in the military who aren't in active training wouldn't be in the kind of shape they are in.
Honestly if you are going to punish someone doing so in a way that actually provides some real benefit to them in terms of carrying out the punishment seems like a good way to go. Better than having them just sit in a corner for the period.
17 -
What else would people be doing in gym if not exercising?10
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I agree that your daughter's school is sending the wrong message and will likely cause some issues later in life with the kid's views on exercise.
When my daughter was in elementary school, if the kids was on discipline (acting up, missed homework, etc), they were allowed to go outside for the PE break, but they were not allowed to participate in any of the group activities - they could walk laps around the schoolyard if they chose, but they could not participate with the class. I think this is a much better approach because it promotes the idea of exercise and participation as a reward instead of as a punishment.8 -
Let me get this straight. In GYM class the students were not behaving so the teacher is making them do a different suitable GYM class activity until they show they can behave enough to do the ‘more fun’ group activity?
Sounds to me like the teacher is doing his or her job. Good teacher.44 -
NorthCascades wrote: »What else would people be doing in gym if not exercising?
I assume its the difference between playing a sport the kids enjoy and doing push-ups and sit-ups which the kids do not enjoy.2 -
When I was in high school, I played football and I ran track...exercise was used as both training as well as punishment...can't run the right play? Run some laps! Late to practice? Run some laps or run the bleachers! Not paying attention in meetings? Extra wind sprints for you...
Same when I was in the military.
None of this discouraged me from regular exercise or caused me to have some negative view of exercise...I can separate the training/fitness from the punishment...10 -
Aaron_K123 wrote: »NorthCascades wrote: »What else would people be doing in gym if not exercising?
I assume its the difference between playing a sport the kids enjoy and doing push-ups and sit-ups which the kids do not enjoy.
Withdrawal of privilege is not punishment.
Playing fun sports is a privilege. By acting out, they lost that privilege. Since PE/gym class is where physical activity happens, going to a more regimented less fun activity is not punishment, it's appropriate teaching of consequence.
It's the difference between a pop quiz and playing Jeopardy in History/Science class. The material is still being evaluated, one method is just less fun. Playing Jeopardy is a reward, but the material has to be tested... so the pop quiz isn't a punishment.
And honestly, Doing less fun activity is less fun for the instructor as well as the students.17 -
I guess I did not really explain my point of view well. They do sit ups, push ups, laps and other stuff all the time as well. I am not against WHAT they are doing but, rather, the way that it is being used as a punishment. It is clearly pointed out to them that because they were bad when playing the game they were playing the other day they are being made to do exercises. Exercise is good and should not be pushed as a punishment in my opinion.
They were not being good sports and were cheating in their game. Personally I think that rather than saying "you have to do 30sec wall sit and if anyone falls we restart" as a punishment (which they are doing, according to what I have been told) why not teach them WHY sportsmanship is important when playing on a team?2 -
stanmann571 wrote: »Aaron_K123 wrote: »NorthCascades wrote: »What else would people be doing in gym if not exercising?
I assume its the difference between playing a sport the kids enjoy and doing push-ups and sit-ups which the kids do not enjoy.
Withdrawal of privilege is not punishment.
Playing fun sports is a privilege. By acting out, they lost that privilege. Since PE/gym class is where physical activity happens, going to a more regimented less fun activity is not punishment, it's appropriate teaching of consequence.
It's the difference between a pop quiz and playing Jeopardy in History/Science class. The material is still being evaluated, one method is just less fun. Playing Jeopardy is a reward, but the material has to be tested... so the pop quiz isn't a punishment.
And honestly, Doing less fun activity is less fun for the instructor as well as the students.
Well said. I completely agree.7 -
well, various problems with the format of the discipline delivery there. but not necessarily with the type of exercise. it seems more like the teacher was just 'taking away' whatever more-fun activity has the 'rules' they 'werent listening' to?
that seems like neutral cause-and-effect discipline to me: 'you're not ready for this, so we'll do that instead'. **
but the lag between perpetration and punishment seems a bit long for 11 [can see how a p.e. teacher has to wait for the next class though, so no real comment there]. and probably my main issue is with the duration, and the logical problem with 'how do you prove you're ready to do something now, if you never get to do the thing you're meant to prove it about?'
that sounds like inexperienced/punitive teaching to me. and it does give it the feel of revenge more than a neutral cause and effect. i don't think any of this has to do with making exercise a punishment though. context may be missing.
**occurs to me too that the teacher may have got a tiger by the tail there. bodyweight needs some 'rules' too. such as 'stack your joints safely' and 'don't x or y which could be harmful' and all of that stuff.3 -
Well, the point of PE class is exercising, so I don't think having them exercise during that class is exactly using exercise as punishment. The punishment is not getting to do the various other activities that can be incorporated into the curriculum because they are not demonstrating that they can listen or follow the rules meant to keep them safe.
I doubt every single kid in the class was breaking the rules, so by the entire class having to do bodyweight stuff, the peer factor is going to come into play. The kids are mature enough at middle school age to understand that actions have consequences, and now they are at the point where they can learn that some actions can have consequences that affect more people than just themselves. They're going to realize that others aren't going to be willing to put up with their crap and have their lives impacted by shenanigans, and that being part of a group means pulling your own weight.
It's an important life lesson - and to build on what Aaron_K123 pointed out with the reference to the military, it's also the reason why military teams function so well.8 -
I guess I did not really explain my point of view well. They do sit ups, push ups, laps and other stuff all the time as well. I am not against WHAT they are doing but, rather, the way that it is being used as a punishment. It is clearly pointed out to them that because they were bad when playing the game they were playing the other day they are being made to do exercises. Exercise is good and should not be pushed as a punishment in my opinion.
They were not being good sports and were cheating in their game. Personally I think that rather than saying "you have to do 30sec wall sit and if anyone falls we restart" as a punishment (which they are doing, according to what I have been told) why not teach them WHY sportsmanship is important when playing on a team?
You can do both...and I would say it's more "consequences" than "punishment"...and like @stanmann571 571 pointed out, loss of privilege...
I helped coach my 7 year old's flag football team this fall...there was one game in particular where they were really getting full of themselves and a couple of the player on our team started making comments and taunting some of the players on the other team which we ultimately got flagged for by the ref.
First off, those couple of players got to ride the bench the rest of the game. After the game, we had a good long huddle about sportsmanship. Most of our teams other players were also kinda laughing and joking around about it even after our huddle...so the next practice, instead of doing fun stuff like running plays and passing drills and whatnot, we spent the whole time running laps, doing wind sprints, and doing calisthenics and it was explained to the kids as to why...the other coach and I got our point across as we had no issues going forward...and all of the kids still showed up to practice and play, so they weren't "discouraged"9 -
No issue with it. We had the same thing in middle school. If we weren't doing what we were supposed to be doing, the class went to the weight room rather than playing; floor hockey, basketball, etc...
Not a big deal.4 -
This isn't punishment, but a corrective and instructive measure. Military forces have this ingrained throughout their lives:
Not paying attention? 20 pushups
Last man in line? 20 pushups
Fall asleep in class? 20 pushups
My 9 year old son gets corrected for not paying attention in baseball and the team runs laps.
Punishment on the other hand incorporates an element of retribution.
6 -
I guess I did not really explain my point of view well. They do sit ups, push ups, laps and other stuff all the time as well. I am not against WHAT they are doing but, rather, the way that it is being used as a punishment. It is clearly pointed out to them that because they were bad when playing the game they were playing the other day they are being made to do exercises. Exercise is good and should not be pushed as a punishment in my opinion.
They were not being good sports and were cheating in their game. Personally I think that rather than saying "you have to do 30sec wall sit and if anyone falls we restart" as a punishment (which they are doing, according to what I have been told) why not teach them WHY sportsmanship is important when playing on a team?
Cheating? running laps is a mild consequence.
Without knowing what game/how they were cheating it's impossible to tell how mild.5 -
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This isn't punishment, but a corrective and instructive measure. Military forces have this ingrained throughout their lives:
Not paying attention? 20 pushups
Last man in line? 20 pushups
Fall asleep in class? 20 pushups
My 9 year old son gets corrected for not paying attention in baseball and the team runs laps.
Punishment on the other hand incorporates an element of retribution.
Except that elementary school kids in gym class are not on a team and are not in the military. They are supposed to be getting educated along with participating in physical activity. This removes the education aspect in favor of a retributive measure. Athletic kids will do fine and probably will blow it off as easy, while the less athletic kids will be the ones who will find it miserable. Perhaps some of those kids will develop a distaste for exercise as a result. Maybe it will take them decades to develop a taste for it.
Ask me how I know.9 -
stanmann571 wrote: »Aaron_K123 wrote: »NorthCascades wrote: »What else would people be doing in gym if not exercising?
I assume its the difference between playing a sport the kids enjoy and doing push-ups and sit-ups which the kids do not enjoy.
Withdrawal of privilege is not punishment.
Playing fun sports is a privilege. By acting out, they lost that privilege. Since PE/gym class is where physical activity happens, going to a more regimented less fun activity is not punishment, it's appropriate teaching of consequence.
It's the difference between a pop quiz and playing Jeopardy in History/Science class. The material is still being evaluated, one method is just less fun. Playing Jeopardy is a reward, but the material has to be tested... so the pop quiz isn't a punishment.
And honestly, Doing less fun activity is less fun for the instructor as well as the students.
This is a better way of putting it than what I said and I agree completely.3 -
as a former amateur Athlete I can tell you this discourages no one from exercise. Coaches have been using this as punishment for decades. I still love to play basket ball, my husband still loves to play baseball. We both try to work exercise into our daily lives.
Your behaviors at home effect a child's obesity more than 1hr of gym class.6 -
You all make great points. I guess I was just going with my own personal experience with things I was made to do as a child as punishment and how much I despise/avoid doing said things now as an adult where I have a choice in the matter.3
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