Colorado's watered down elementary school exercise law

I-News at Rocky Mountain PBS posted today its package on the Colorado state law and childhood obesity. So far, Rocky Mountain PBS has done a 15-minute program on it and 9News has tapped a segment on the story.

Here is what the story says. It is at www.inewsnetwork.org with a video, photos and interactive charts.

A 2011 state law requiring 30 minutes of physical activity a day for elementary students was supposed to mark a new tool in the fight against childhood obesity – but in reality it did little more than reinforce the status quo, an I-News examination found.

The reason: The measure was so gutted during the legislative process that it has meant virtually no meaningful changes in the way elementary schools are operated. The standard imposed by the law – which allows recess to count as physical activity time – was already being met by districts across the state.

Two years later, the school day looks exactly the same for students across the state as it did before the law was passed.