A report entitled Current situation and prospects for physical education in the EU, by Professor Ken Hardman of the UK's University of Worcester, written for the European Parliament's Committee on Culture and Education, was presented in a public hearing on the role of sport in education on 28 February 2007.
The study addresses the European school curriculum physical education (PE) time- allocation, the status of PE, curriculum thematic aims and content, resources (material and human) and gender, disability and ethnic-minority issues.
According to Hardman, current national practices vary widely across the EU, with some member states paying more attention to sports than others. He also referred to large differences in the number and quality of sports facilities between schools in eastern and western European countries.
The main policy recommendations of the report include:
- Compulsory physical education in schools, as school PE programmes are seen to play key role in countering high cost health-risks and anti-social behaviour;
- the modernisation of the PE curriculum, paying attention to societal trends to attract young people to physical activity, and;
- the adoption of a minimum two hours PE per week, with the aim of increasing it to three hours in the long term.
"Currently, 77% of total primary school PE and 79% in secondary schools consists of games, gymnastics and athletics. This is absolutely not relevant in the 21st century," said Hardman. He also said that financial considerations have had a negative impact on PE education, as 50% of EU countries have indicated reductions in support for PE during the past decade.
Presenting the Commission's upcoming White Paper on Sport and its approach to sport in education, Commissioner Jan Figel said that it would address the time allocated to PE in school curricula, the quality of education and ways to exchange best practice at EU level. "Schools play an important role in PE, but they need more support," he added.
Commissioner Figel also pledged a "clearer EU sports agenda" and said that this could be done with an action plan, which could support common action across Europe. "I'll try to engage other DGs," he said.
