According to the province, 29 per cent of Alberta youth are overweight or obese. (CBC)

The Alberta government is taking a fresh look at physical education classes, with plans to focus the curriculum more on "wellness."

Statistics show the current curriculum isn't effective in dealing with the escalating weight gain among children in Alberta. According to the province, 29 per cent of Alberta youth are overweight or obese.

"The intention is not to decrease physical activity for kids. We have world-class programs in place right now. We are looking to enhance our current programs and make sure that we are meeting the needs of students in our province," said Michelle Kilborn, the wellness program manager with Alberta Education.

The proposed changes are vague at this point.

Minor changes would be made to the current kindergarten to Grade 9 physical education program and the health and life skills course, which would be renamed "wellness."

Grade 10 physical education would also be renamed wellness and be mandatory. In Grade 11, students would be required to take a wellness class, but physical education would be optional. By Grade 12, both courses would be optional.

Holistic approach

Chris Hooper, who teaches physical education at Calgary's Westmount Charter School, said integrating wellness into other subjects makes sense.

"It's just not healthy eating and active living, there are other aspects to it too. Spirituality, the social and emotional health of the student, and looking at wellness as basically an umbrella term for the health of the whole student. Geared toward, hopefully, making wellness more systemic in the whole school, as opposed to just a course."

Alberta hasn't reviewed the physical education curriculum since 2001. During budget cutbacks in the 1990s, many physical education teachers lost their jobs and classes were often taken over by teachers with no special training.

Bev Robinson, a physical education specialist with Calgary's public school board, said she hopes this signals a change in direction.

"In the past, physical education has never, ever been on the radar."

Despite the focus on wellness, students shouldn't be any less active, she said.

"We don't want to see our students having more butt time — more inactivity time — so in any feedback we've given, we've said we can meet these outcomes through physical activity. We don't want to see a decrease in that and students don't want to see a decrease in physical activity."

Alberta Education is asking for input from parents, teachers, and students on the changes, which won't be implemented for three to four years.