Physical Education Through Time

Events

1774 - 1825

Johann Bernhard Basedow is considered the "founder of physical education." He was a German teacher, and the first to use physical education, or gymnastics, as a part of schoolwork and summer courses. He was a controversial and often unpopular figure, but ultimately inspired others to continue physical education.
Friederich Jahn is another influential German physical education instructor. In 1811, he conducted the first public physical education class, in a park, where boys and men could participate. His goal in teaching physical education was to build a strong generation of young people fit for military service. Jahn developed many of the events we see today in men's gymnastics, including pommel horse and parallel bars.
George Bancroft was an American historian, politician, and the founder of Round Hill School, the first American school to offer physical education.
Charles Beck was a German-born American scholar and philosopher. He was a follower of Friederich Jahn, and became the first physical education teacher in America when he was hired by George Bancroft to teach at Round Hill.

1851 - 1870

In 1851, the YMCA (Young Man's Christian Association) was founded. This gave young people a centralized place to go for physical activities.
The Civil War caused many U.S. states to begin implementing required physical education programs into their curriculums. California was the first state to do so, in 1966. Emphasis was put on safety.
Early American physical education was about three basic categories: Human growth/development, cleanliness and how to prevent disease, and gymnastics.
It was around this time that colleges, following primary schools, began to add physical education to their course plans. Emphasis was placed on sports, including running and football.

March 31, 1906 - 1921

The National Collegiate Athletic Association, or NCAA, was founded on March 31, 1906, after meetings between thirteen colleges resulted in changes of the rules of football.
The NCAA was originally called the IAAUS, but its name was changed in 1910.
There were 62 original members of the IAAUS, whose goal was to promote athletic achievement in balance with academic education.
The NCAA began as simply a board in which meetings took place between colleges about sporting rules and regulations, however, it later developed in to a facilitator for athletic competition.
The first NCAA championship was the Track and Field Championship in 1921.

1970 - 1980

Due to cuts to education funding, many physical education programs were eliminated in schools.
During the late 1970s, when schools began offering more elective choices (fine arts, etc.), many students began to choose these over physical education classes. As a result of this lack of interest, P.E. programs began losing traction.
Many new technological innovations, such as video games and improved television, led to a general lack on interest in physical activity amongst young people. This lead to an increase in obesity and diabetes.
Part of the solution to this issue was increased government enforcement of mandatory physical education. Another main part was offering different forms of physical education, such as yoga, as opposed to traditional sports, as a means to entice uninterested students into becoming enthusiastic about P.E.

June 23, 1972

On June 23, 1972, Richard Nixon signed Title IX, which banned giving government money to educational organizations that discriminated based upon gender.
Title IX opened up many opportunities for women in college sports. It required that they receive equal treatment to male athletes, with equal-quality equipment, facilities, medical treatment, and coaching.
Before Title IX, women were vastly underrepresented in college sports. At the time Title IX was enacted, there were only 30,000 female athletes in NCAA, as compared to 170,000 male athletes. Women received often-inferior equipment and coaching, weren't offered scholarships, and no women's championship events were held.
Title IX's benefits are still seen in today's world. There are five times the number of female college athletes as there were in 1972, and Title IX is a major form of encouragement for women to complete high school and college.