Increasing concerns about the depleting global water supply, water scarcity, and drought in the Southwest might get high school students off the hook from taking the big dive in swimming class.
Should high school deans and the Department of Education at large rethink requirements for swimming and other water sports due to water worries in the United States?
Maintaining a swimming pool and program in public schools is incredibly costly, especially in times of economic recession. The budget for water sports programs in high school include fees for supplies, staff, and other maintenance. Are major swimming pools for high schools and recreational teams still a cost effective activity considering natural resource concerns?
Ultimately, ensuring the sustainable use of water resources necessitates control for consumption in all capacities. Affects of the global water crisis are felt at every level of the population in industrialized and developing countries alike.
Since swimming is a recreational activity, can policy makers or local schools prove that such classes are imperative to delivering a quality education to high school students? Or will the Department of Education and local school districts need to make a big plunge…eradicating water sports from education?
Due to economic disparities that exist between school districts in communities with different tax brackets, removing swimming lessons could be a step toward equalizing education across the United States.
If school districts with swimming pools effectively prove that swimming lessons are an integral part of quality education, then a case for establishing swimming pools in every school could be made. Clearly, such a mandate would not be economically viable.
For some students, swimming lessons may present an exciting alternative as opposed to otherwise dry physical education classes. For others, changing into a swim suit in front of classmates is a dreadfully uncomfortable experience.
Firstly, educators should analyze how swimming made its way into public school curriculum. Secondly, budget experts and deans need to identify if such a costly program is indeed still an immutable facet of the American secondary education experience.
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