Mandatory swim instruction for adolescents and adults has been of interest to me for quite some time. Many high schools and a few colleges require students to pass a swim test or take a swimming course in order to graduate. In the past, more colleges and universities has this requirement than at present, but most have dropped it, but a few still do, including several Ivy League schools.
It is always said that such a requirement is good because it helps to insure that more people become safe in the water. I wonder about the effectiveness of this. Do such swim tests/courses really work--do they really do the job they're supposed to do? Do they really get people to swim with ease or be safe in deep water? And what about fearful students, those with no aquatic experience and who are often studious or unathetic? Please go to the following websites and post your comments:
MIT Department of Athletics, Physical Education
Time to Swim or Graduate--Boston Globe
Welcome MIT Department of Athletics, Physical Education (watch video)
YouTube video: Adult Learn to Swim
The college that I attended back in the 1980's, Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia had a swim requirement. The high school and middle school that I attended also had a pool, and we were required to take swimming in PE class. I don't seem to see a problem with making it mandatory. I don't know why some colleges eliminated the requirement. I think students should choose a different college if they don't like the requirement. It was more that just passing a test. We practiced skills and even got to play water polo. Since I was on the swim team growing up until I was 12, the requirement wasn't a problem for me. However, I remember some of my friends complaining about the requirement.
The college that I attended back in the 1980's, Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia had a swim requirement. The high school and middle school that I attended also had a pool, and we were required to take swimming in PE class. I don't seem to see a problem with making it mandatory. I don't know why some colleges eliminated the requirement. I think students should choose a different college if they don't like the requirement. It was more that just passing a test. We practiced skills and even got to play water polo. Since I was on the swim team growing up until I was 12, the requirement wasn't a problem for me. However, I remember some of my friends complaining about the requirement.
