Bill would make school recess mandatory

FITCHBURG, Mass. (AP) — Running, shouting and four square — all familiar sights and sounds for current and former students alike. It's recess and, for many children, the most anticipated time of the day.

But in some schools the time set aside for recess has strained under the pressures of state testing and discipline, according to state Rep. Marjorie Decker, DCambridge, who introduced state legislation on the topic earlier this year.

"We live in a world right now where, more than ever, I think people would say the ability to resolve conflict with each other is so essential," she said. "All the research shows there's nowhere better to learn this than the playground."

If passed, the bill she introduced to both the House and Senate would require schools to provide at least 20 minutes of recess a day for students in kindergarten through fifth grade.

Locally, many administrators are on board.

"I know my own kids, I would never want them to be in school without recess," said Patty Marquis, principal at Meetinghouse School and Westminster Elementary School.

Currently, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education does not have a statewide policy on recess aside from excluding the period from counting toward physical education requirements, according to a spokeswoman.

Decker said the issue arises when teachers and administrators, pressured to produce students performing well on state testing, cut into the time set aside for recess.