Health Education
Legislative Requirements
The Comprehensive Health Education Act and 1986 Defined Minimum Program for South Carolina School Districts published by the South Carolina Department of Education in 1986 mandate the number of minutes health education is to be taught to students in grades kindergarten through twelve:
Students in grades kindergarten through six should receive 75 minutes per week of health instruction for 36 weeks or the equivalent, which must equal 45 hours per year.
Students in grades seven and eight should receive 250 minutes of health instruction per week for nine weeks, which must equal 37.5 hours per year (South Carolina Department of Education, 1986).
“At least one time during the four years of grades nine through twelve, each student shall receive instruction in comprehensive health education, including at least seven hundred fifty minutes of reproductive health education and pregnancy prevention education” (Comprehensive Health Education Act, 1988 §59-32-30(A)(3)).
Physical Education
Legislative Requirements
Physical education is part of the school experience of South Carolina students. Physical education provides students with important opportunities for healthy activities and play. The National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) recommends that schools provide 150 minutes of instructional physical education for elementary school children, and 225 minutes for middle and high school students per week for the entire school year.
The time requirements for physical education in grades K-5 are outlined in the 2005 Students Health and Fitness Act. Students must have 90 minutes of Physical Education and 60 minutes of planned physical activity per week.
Students must engage in some form of physical activity at school on a regular basis and that students in kindergarten through grade five receive instruction in nutrition at least once a week.
In 2006-07, a minimum of sixty minutes a week must be provided in physical education, and as Section 59-10-20 is phased in, the minimum time for physical education must be increased to ninety minutes a week.
For middle grades, physical education is one of the curriculum programs that must be included in instruction along with a list of other core subject areas. The time allowed for each curricula area is determined by each local school district. Please refer to State Board of Education Regulation 43-232.
Students must pass at least one Carnegie unit of physical education to include one semester of personal fitness and another semester in lifetime fitness. Exemption applies to students in Junior ROTC, Marching Band, and for students exempted because participation will jeopardize the student’s health and well-being or for religious reasons. Please refer to South Carolina Code of Laws Section 59-29-80
An individual student's fitness status must be reported to his parent or guardian during a student's fifth grade, eighth grade, and high school physical education courses.