From the start of middle school to the end of high school, most students dread the day they have to run the pacer. If you’re lucky enough not to know what the pacer is, it is a multi-stage fitness test that measures aerobic capacity by having participants run back and forth over a 20-meter distance to a series of beeps. This pacer test is not only exhausting, but it’s humiliating. There are health dangers, such as overexertion and anxiety, which can cause panic attacks. The pacer should absolutely not be a requirement!
I started the pacer for the first time in seventh grade, and no one had really warned me what it was. Being young and in an awkward place in life is already hard. When you add running in front of your entire grade, it definitely does not help. Girls are expected to get 70 reps, while the boys are expected to get 90. These standards are good for the kids who are in sports full-time; however, for the kids who don’t spend every day running, these standards are unreachable.
No one was expecting the pacer to be taken as seriously as it was, but to have to get a grade for it was completely humiliating for so many kids. When the first students stopped running, nobody noticed, but once it was my turn to stop running, it felt like everyone was staring and judging. This running test is humiliating, and every child can not be expected to be held to the same standards because we are all completely different people.
April Lobdell, an ER nurse at Community Hospital, says, “Sprinting when you’re not physically prepared can lead to injury. Pulled muscles, stress fractures, and rolled ankles. It is also bad mentally for a kid who compares themselves to everyone else. The fact that they are graded on how many are completed is ridiculous. It needs to be a “compete with yourself.” Here’s the baseline of what I can accomplish to start, and here’s my improvement seems like a better option, Pacers are not an effective way to build self-esteem or physical stamina, especially when done only a few times a year. It can be straight up detrimental.”
I have personally seen so many kids leave the gym with pale faces and almost in tears. Schools need to do more research and begin doing what is best for the students.
There are so many alternatives to doing the pacer; not all kids spend every waking minute doing exercise. Kids should be given options on how they want to show their growth in cardio. Some alternatives include the walk test, which involves walking as quickly as possible for a mile; you have the option to run or walk. This test uses heart rate and the resulting time to show fitness levels. Another test you can use is the step test. This test involves stepping up onto a bench for a set period of time. This test will show heart rate, as well as a great way to show the fitness levels that your students are at. An article by the National Institute of Health says that this alternative will greatly decrease the panic attacks that students get due to anxiety because everyone will be focused on their test.
The pacer test is a very long, dreaded test that feels like complete humiliation to do in front of everyone. I think that schools should take a long look at the system they have for physical education. Not all kids can be held to the same standards because every person is different. Being graded on how much you can run is completely unethical. We should be graded for the effort, not the outcome.
