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Opinion
 

Staff Editorial

                Chris Elliott                        Zach Lee                  Christian Palmer
                Geronimo Rodriguez       Blake Whitaker       Kristen Young

Put down that can of soda, kid

Elementary school students participating in a study in Minnesota must think they've died and gone to fourth-grade heaven.

The study, which looks at ways to combat childhood obesity and poor attention spans among the nation's youngest students, involves a classroom that lacks chairs and desks, instead providing kids with big exercise balls and adjustable podiums. Phil Rynearson, the teacher of the fourth- and fifth-graders, and Mayo Clinic researcher Dr. James Levine, the architect of the experiment, hope increased movement and more physical options for stationary students will help reveal ways to cut fidgeting and fight unhealthy weight levels among children.

The results seem promising -- the students report being free to move around makes it easier to focus and creates a better learning experience. If the results can be applied on a broad scale, teachers will be able to impart knowledge more effectively and spend less time disciplining hyperactive kids. Meanwhile, a constant level of activity will help youngsters burn calories and stay relatively trim. 

That's great news, but parents and administrators shouldn't ignore the other roots of the problem.

Diet is a huge source of the problems being addressed. There may not be soda machines in most elementary schools, but having free-flowing Coke available at middle schools only adds to the problem for pre-teens and new teenagers. Sugary soda is nothing but diabetes and toothaches waiting to happen. When schools sign contracts to include soda machines on their campuses, it sends the wrong message to kids who aren't necessarily old enough to make smart diet decisions.

And don't forget cafeteria food, which is often unsafe at any educational level. Taste isn't a huge issue but health should be a concern. No more fried food or vegetables steamed so long they no longer represent actual food. 

New classroom dynamics will certainly help high levels of childhood obesity and attention problems, but administrators need to dig deeper into the issue, even if it means spending more.