The Sept. 11, 2012 piece“Fitness Can’t Be Mandatory,” by Colin Moran raised an issue about why the HPS 1000 Fitness for Living class is mandatory for all Kennesaw State degree seeking students. Moran claims to have investigated why there is no College-Level Examination Program test for students to receive course credit for the class. Moran insinuates that members of my staff and I were unhelpful to him in answering this specific question. This is not true. Both my secretary and I engaged in several conversations with Moran explaining our department’s HPS 1000 policy.
In his emails to me, he did include one complaint about the fact that there is no CLEP test for HPS 1000, but he never explicitly asked me why the test did not exist. His main contention was that his outside athletic achievements and coursework at another school should exempt him from the course. In a general response relating to the denial of his substitution request, I explained that my decision was made according to our long-standing policy regarding transfers from Georgia Perimeter, and that if he disagreed with a widely publicized KSU requirement that he should have brought this up long before the final registration period of his graduating semester. I also offered to help him register for an HPS 1000 class so that he could graduate on time. He did not contact me again. He appealed my decision regarding his substitution request to KSU’s upper administration.
Though I am not pleased with the way Moran has handled himself as a student or a journalist; he does ask a valid question that I am willing to answer. Why isn’t there a CLEP test for HPS 1000?
First, there is a lack of demand for a CLEP test for HPS 1000. I have received few requests to test out of the class. CLEP tests typically are offered in subjects that are taught at an advanced level in high school. HPS 1000 is considerably different from high school physical education and personal health issues courses that students often confuse with Fitness for Living.
HPS 1000 is grounded in the scientific study of physical activity in human health and disease and includes sections on aging, nutrition, body composition, weight control, flexibility, stress and general principles of fitness.
Cardiorespiratory fitness and muscular fitness are two examples of specific levels of focus.
The second reason no CLEP test is offered is that one third of the class is devoted to physical activity. Students engage in activity labs to observe how material covered in class applies to their own health and well-being. Including this component in a CLEP test poses significant challenges. However, if we receive more requests from students who appear to be knowledgeable of the material, than the faculty might consider taking on the difficulties to provide a CLEP test. With the rapid growth of KSU we struggle to offer enough seats in HPS 1000 every semester, so I would welcome opening up more seats in HPS 1000 by allowing qualified students to test out of the course.
