O’Donovan encourages active lifestyle for Ireland’s youth

Added April 17th, 2012

In response to a Parliamentary Question posed by County Limerick Deputy Patrick O’Donovan, Education Minister Ruairi Quinn has said that Irish schools will soon have the opportunity to offer Physical Education as part of a student’s Junior Cert.

Fine Gael TD O’Donovan has spoken in the Dáil on a number of occasions since he was elected on the importance of tackling the issue of childhood obesity and the risk to the nation’s health and finances posed by the increase in diabetes, particularly amongst children. A study carried out by the University of Limerick in March found that teenage girls spend almost 19 hours a day either sitting or lying down. The study also found that participants spent longer periods sitting still during school hours than at the weekend.

“The findings of this study were particularly worrying but unfortunately not all that surprising when one looks at the trend of increasing levels of diabetes amongst children in Ireland and the rise in the rate of childhood obesity,” said Deputy O’Donovan this week. “One of the ways which we can tackle these trends is by ensuring that schools are encouraged to emphasise the importance of Physical Education as well as the more traditional academic subjects.”

In the Parliamentary Question which he posed to Minister Ruairi Quinn, Deputy O’Donovan asked the Minister if he would “consider introducing physical education as an exam subject for the junior certificate”.

In his response, Minister Quinn said he appreciated the importance of Physical Education in promoting “positive well-being, and mental and physical health in schools, and the role this plays in supporting student achievement.

“As part of the revised Junior Cycle framework, there are 24 statements of learning which set out what students should learn in Junior Cycle. One of the statements of learning provides that, at the end of Junior Cycle, students should be able to participate in physical activity confidently and competently,” wrote Minister Quinn.

“In addition, as part of the Junior Cycle Review there will be an opportunity for schools to provide short courses which can be assessed as part of the Junior Certificate. Short courses will generally be locally developed, of 100 hours duration and will be assessed by means of a portfolio. There will be scope under these arrangements for schools to extend the provision for sports and PE, including as part of the Junior Certificate qualification, should they wish to do so.”

Deputy O’Donovan commended the Minister for recognising the role Physical Education can play in improving the health of the nation. “A change such as this could offer the gentle nudge that is required to help our youth get outside a little more and spend that bit more time on their feet as opposed to in a chair or on a couch. Having more exercise in children’s routines, coupled with a good diet, will have many benefits for each individual and for the country as a whole in the long run,” he finished.