K-12 standards focus on student movement, emphasize fit and healthy lifestyles
BATON ROUGE, La. — Louisiana students will spend more of their physical education class moving, starting with the 2027-2028 school year. The Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) approved revised K-12 physical education standards during its meeting Wednesday. The standards were developed by a committee of educators and stakeholders through a review the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) began over a year ago.
“Research consistently shows the positive impact of personal fitness on a healthy life,” said Louisiana State Superintendent of Education Dr. Cade Brumley. “These fitness-based standards equip students with knowledge and skills they'll use the rest of their lives to remain active.”
Along with BESE approval, the standards have also been endorsed by the Physical Education Content Standards Steering Committee and the Superintendents' Advisory Council. The revised standards reflect the following shifts:
- Lifelong movement: The standards center on fundamental movement skills needed to stay active past graduation. Where the old standards asked students to name a skill, the revised standards ask them to demonstrate skills.
- Developmentally appropriate: Skills build on each other throughout K-12.
- Supports instruction: Expectations are stated in practical terms and avoid mandating specific equipment or facilities, allowing teachers to adapt instruction to their available space and resources.
Louisiana’s commitment to physical fitness
The revised standards are the latest in a series of federal and state actions on student physical activity.
- Presidential Fitness Test: President Trump signed an executive order in 2025 re-establishing the Presidential Fitness Test. Governor Landry issued a related order that year directing state agencies to work toward establishing the fitness test in Louisiana and asking the LDOE to determine how to integrate it into the standards then under review. Under the revised standards, students participate in age-appropriate fitness assessments beginning in kindergarten. Those assessments measure the same areas as the Presidential Fitness Test. The LDOE will recommend use of the Presidential Fitness Test in a resource guide for school systems.
- Recess: A 2023 state law (Act 219) requires every public school serving grades K-5 to provide at least 15 minutes of recess each school day. Recess consists of supervised, unstructured free play. The physical education standards address instruction, a separate part of the school day.
Standards review process
The review of Louisiana’s physical education standards began in 2025 as part of the state’s regular seven-year standards review cycle required under BESE policy. The current standards were established in 2017.
More than 140 individuals applied to participate in the standards review process. From that pool, 26 educators and stakeholders were selected to serve on workgroups, with 11 members also serving on the steering committee guiding the review.
Committee members represented a range of perspectives, including classroom teachers, health professionals, higher education faculty, and other education stakeholders from across Louisiana. Together, they collaborated to review and draft updated standards designed to strengthen physical education instruction and promote lifelong physical activity.
The LDOE released a draft of the standards for public review in March 2026. Respondents supported the improved clarity and the emphasis on active participation. Some commenters raised concerns about available facilities and instructional time.
Implementation
The LDOE will provide professional learning for teachers this school year, including in-person training sessions for school systems across the state and training videos available for ongoing use. A standards resource guide with examples, definitions, and implementation guidance is in development.
Standards vs. curriculum
Student standards are different from curriculum in that standards define what students are expected to learn in a particular subject and grade, and a curriculum defines how teachers will teach to ensure students learn the standards.
In Louisiana, the LDOE works with stakeholders to set and review high-quality student standards. School systems make their own decisions to choose a curriculum. To support local school systems in selecting and implementing high-quality instructional materials, the LDOE provides reviews of instructional materials per statute, the Instructional Materials Professional Learning Partner Guide, and instructional support resources.
Louisiana's revised physical education standards can be viewed online.