Sunday, December 06, 2009

Follow-up: Lincoln University

According to the Associated Press, Lincoln University has dropped its requirement for fat students to take a special fitness class.

But, you know, they still don't get it. Because apparently, some freshmen will have the course "suggested" to them after they take a health class.

Dudes, when are you gonna cotton on? If the class is really all about health, and you think it's important, all students should take it.

And if it's all about weight loss? No students should take it.

7 comments:

Vidya said...

Or, just no one should take it, period. Is this really common practice in the US, to give students university credits for a *fitness* class? Ye gods...

Harriet said...

At the university where I teach, students can take one-credit classes in all kinds of fitness, from African dance to rollerblading.

Anonymous said...

I was required to take four 1-credit physical education classes to get my undergrad degree. But the other two schools I've attended didn't have a phys ed requirement. So I guess the requirement isn't ubiquitous in the US, but it does happen.

littlem said...

In a nutshell. Nothing to add.

(Except that maybe if the whole point was to get students to take a health class, this extra class - if it should be suggested to them at all, which, as you say, it shouldn't - shouldn't be suggested right after they've just taken a health class.

Bzuh?)

*is roundly embarrassed OBO friends who are alums*

Eating With Others said...

I was required to take 2 PE classes and could take up to 4 that would count as credit. I was also required to take a class on health. It was very good and I liked it but didn't pay much attention.

Paul Murphy said...

Lincoln still does not get it.

http://obesitythunderbay.ning.com/profiles/blogs/advocacy-group-drop-shrek-from

They had a wonderful chance to expose a useless tool called BMI. But they backed away . BMI's do not measure fitness.

I want to welcome you to my web site.

www.obesitythunderbay.ning.com

Rachel said...

It's great news that the class requirement has been dropped and I'm even more pleased to see that it was dropped because they determined it to violate the university's commitment to "equal treatment." So on that count, they do get it at least somewhat that singling out a body of students and privileging the rest is discriminatory.

I'm sure my university offered fitness classes and such, but considering that it now takes five years for many students, myself included, to get what used to be a four-year degree combined with the fact that tuition has steadily risen each year at the max level allowed by the state doesn't really provide an incentive to take them. There are fitness classes offered at our rec center, though, which is free for students. I'm not a group fitness kind of person, but I'd often see lots of people taking them while at the gym.