Dallas School District Makes Recess Mandatory

On Friday, February 5, the Texas Monthly, published an article titled Dallas ISD Made Recess Mandatory, And Here’s Why That’s Important. It explained an approved policy for the Dallas Independent School District, requiring all students from prekindergarten to fifth grade to obtain mandatory recess. Rhea, the founder of the LiiNK (Let’s Inspire Innovation ‘N Kids) Project, investigated the multiple connections between a set recess time and academic achievement improvements. In her research, Rhea found multiple benefits for the kids that obtained this time off during the day. For example, in one of the studies, adding “four fifteen-minute recesses” during the day allowed the students to be “more focused" and  "have less behavioral problems". This article makes the reader think outside the box regarding small adjustments that can be made in our current school system’s requirements. Regardless if this policy goes into effect for other school districts, always finding ways to improve our current education policies should be a priority, especially since I am a college student. It is necessary to think about changes to improve education methods for the upcoming generations.