Minister says onus on individuals
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Updated: September 08, 2009 2:57 PM
There apparently is an “i” in team when it comes to the B.C. education minister’s view on formal team sports in the school system.
When asked how cutting one-third of the budget to school sports will impact the physical fitness of B.C.’s students, Education Minister Dr. Margaret MacDiarmid replied that “walking, dancing and playing in parks” is a better alternative to team sports.
“Each of us has a personal responsibility to be physically active. We can take it upon ourselves and rather than joining a formal sports team, there is things like walking, dancing and playing in parks.”
It was either cut funding to sports or slash something like library funding, MacDiarmid said on Friday in a conference call with Fraser Valley media.
“It was a difficult decision to make, but there are many demands on grants and there’s still significant support for sports,” she said.
“It’s just not business as usual, and our top priority is to put the maximum of funding into classrooms.”
Last year, teachers were asked to provide five minutes of exercise inside the classroom each day and the government encouraged kids to walk to school instead of getting a ride.
The provincial government pulled a $130,000 operating grant — roughly 30 per cent of B.C. School Sport’s operating revenue of $450,000.
A BCSS rep told The Times last week it should be able to carry out all the sports for this calendar year, but sports from January to June face serious challenges.
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