S.B. No. 891
AN ACT
relating to the public school physical education curriculum.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 28.002, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (d) and amending Subsection (l) to read as
follows:
(d) The physical education curriculum required under
Subsection (a)(2)(C) must be sequential, developmentally
appropriate, and designed, implemented, and evaluated to enable
students to develop the motor, self-management, and other skills,
knowledge, attitudes, and confidence necessary to participate in
physical activity throughout life. Each school district shall
establish specific objectives and goals the district intends to
accomplish through the physical education curriculum. In
identifying the essential knowledge and skills of physical
education, the State Board of Education shall ensure that the
curriculum:
(1) emphasizes the knowledge and skills capable of
being used during a lifetime of regular physical activity;
(2) is consistent with national physical education
standards for:
(A) the information that students should learn
about physical activity; and
(B) the physical activities that students should
be able to perform;
(3) requires that, on a weekly basis, at least 50
percent of the physical education class be used for actual student
physical activity and that the activity be, to the extent
practicable, at a moderate or vigorous level;
(4) offers students an opportunity to choose among
many types of physical activity in which to participate;
(5) offers students both cooperative and competitive
games;
(6) meets the needs of students of all physical
ability levels, including students who have a disability, chronic
health problem, or other special need that precludes the student
from participating in regular physical education instruction but
who might be able to participate in physical education that is
suitably adapted and, if applicable, included in the student's
individualized education program;
(7) takes into account the effect that gender and
cultural differences might have on the degree of student interest
in physical activity or on the types of physical activity in which a
student is interested;
(8) teaches self-management and movement skills;
(9) teaches cooperation, fair play, and responsible
participation in physical activity;
(10) promotes student participation in physical
activity outside of school; and
(11) allows physical education classes to be an
enjoyable experience for students.
(l) A school district shall require a student enrolled in
full-day prekindergarten, in kindergarten, or in a grade level
below grade six to participate in moderate or vigorous daily
physical activity for at least 30 minutes throughout the school
year as part of the district's physical education curriculum or
through structured activity during a school campus's daily recess.
To the extent practicable, a school district shall require a
student enrolled in prekindergarten on less than a full-day basis
to participate in the same type and amount of physical activity as a
student enrolled in full-day prekindergarten. A school district
shall require students enrolled in grade levels six, seven, and
eight to participate in moderate or vigorous daily physical
activity for at least 30 minutes for at least four semesters during
those grade levels as part of the district's physical education
curriculum. If a school district determines, for any particular
grade level below grade six, that requiring moderate or vigorous
daily physical activity is impractical due to scheduling concerns
or other factors, the district may as an alternative require a
student in that grade level to participate in moderate or vigorous
physical activity for at least 135 minutes during each school week.
Additionally, a school district may as an alternative require a
student enrolled in a grade level for which the district uses block
scheduling to participate in moderate or vigorous physical activity
for at least 225 minutes during each period of two school weeks. A
school district must provide for an exemption for:
(1) any student who is unable to participate in the
required physical activity because of illness or disability; and
(2) a middle school or junior high school student who
participates in an extracurricular activity with a moderate or
vigorous physical activity component that is considered a
structured activity under rules adopted by the commissioner.
SECTION 2. Subchapter D, Chapter 25, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 25.114 to read as follows:
Sec. 25.114. STUDENT/TEACHER RATIOS IN PHYSICAL EDUCATION
CLASSES; CLASS SIZE. (a) In implementing the curriculum for
physical education under Section 28.002(a)(2)(C), each school
district shall establish specific objectives and goals the district
intends to accomplish through the curriculum, including, to the
extent practicable, student/teacher ratios that are small enough to
enable the district to:
(1) carry out the purposes of and requirements for the
physical education curriculum as provided under Section 28.002(d);
and
(2) ensure the safety of students participating in
physical education.
(b) If a district establishes a student to teacher ratio
greater than 45 to 1 in a physical education class, the district
shall specifically identify the manner in which the safety of the
students will be maintained.
SECTION 3. Subsection (l), Section 28.002, Education Code,
as amended by this Act, applies beginning with the 2009-2010 school
year.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 891 passed the Senate on
April 9, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0; and that
the Senate concurred in House amendments on May 29, 2009, by the
following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 891 passed the House, with
amendments, on May 20, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 113,
Nays 25, one present not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
Approved:
______________________________
Date
______________________________
Governor