Is recess detention a thing of the past? |
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As districts begin to implement policies across the nation mandating recess, I'm wondering, " Will this bring an end to Recess Detention?"
The era of recess detention for incomplete homework or arriving late to school may be coming to an end. As the childhood obesity crisis grows the practice of keeping kids inside at recess will be harder to enforce.
Schools that eliminate recess risk losing community support and sometimes even face battles with parents who act as recess advocates. But the practice of recess detention appeared to be a happy medium whereby schools could use recess as a stick they hold over students to garner conformity in homework, behavior and compliance to school requests in general. One teacher asked, "if we get rid of recess how will I discipline my students?"
Some states and school boards are beginning take action to see that recess is available to all students. Once such example is a policy written by the Connecticut State Board of Education.
In 2010, the Connecticut State Board of Education revised their position statement on the elimination of a recess detention practice in public schools: "Health messages taught in the classroom should not be contradicted by unhealthy school practices such as... taking away recess as punishment." (CT BOE, 2010).
