by TRACY MOORE

MINISTER OF FAMILY, YOUTH AND SPORT Esther Byer-Suckoo has called on school leaders and the Ministry of Education to put more emphasis on physical education instead of looking at it as an "extra-curricular activity".

She made the call while giving a lecture at the Democratic Labour Party luncheon yesterday at its headquarters, George Street, St Michael.

"We tell the children to go to school and learn well otherwise later in life you are going to catch hell; so we tell the children books, books and more books.

"A child in Class Four doing the Common Entrance, physical education is optional . . . they don't get to run about outside for even an hour a week.

"In secondary school they may have a physical education session but it might not be in the timetable once they get into sixth form. So what we are telling our children is that in pursuit of your education and career it is so much more important than your physical activity and taking care of your self. They lose all of the benefits that are derived from physical activity and physical education . . . . ," she said.

Byer-Suckoo said her ministry had to "struggle" to get funding from the national budget because all other things were seen as more important.

"Human resource development is not just about education; it has to be about physical development which teaches teamwork, time and self-management, and coping skills. It is a struggle I am facing because we know the value of sport to our youths' development . . . but in trying to introduce it we are up against a system again where the principals, the teachers, even the Ministry of Education will say 'those things are extra-curricular' . . . so less and less emphasis is placed on physical education and our poor kids become very tunnel-visioned.

"Sports cannot be seen as dispensable or disposable. Our children should be exposed to a variety of things because you don't know where our next elite athlete is in whatever field," she said. (TM)

tracymoore@nationnews.com