VCE PE students gain a mental and physical advantage

Thursday 16 July

The VCE Physical Education Enrichment Program at Peninsula campus is in it’s infancy, with a pilot program being run in May, and the full program being run for the first time this week.

As run by Monash Sport, the program allows students studying Physical Education at VCE level the chance to put theory into practise, using a range of equipment and knowledge found at Monash University’s Peninsula campus.

In groups of up to 25, students were led through activities such as VO2 max testing, real time GPS tracking and other fitness/performance analysis systems.

James Kumnick, Head of Physical Education at Flinders College in Tyabb commented “the program adds real value to the students education, especially at this time of the year for the students to experience hands on learning is invaluable”.

“At school we can offer them all the theory and maybe get them to do some beep tests but bringing them to Monash where they can put their textbook into practise with all the additional sport science testing facilities is fantastic for the students.”

Mr Kumnick brought 30 of his students with him today, in total ten schools and roughly 300 students went through the VCE Physical Education Enrichment Program.

The program also proved valuable for Anthony Frost, an Honours student studying Sport and Outdoor Recreation, who took students through the latest GPS and heart rate monitoring systems.

Mr Frost said “The program offers students the opportunity to experience first hand, cutting edge athlete assessment tools used only at the elite level. Students go away from each session with a greater understanding of how theory already learned can be applied in a practical setting. For me personally, the ability to employ what I have learnt through my studies is not only rewarding but gives me real feedback about the strength of my coursework at Monash”.

Students loved the hands on approach to learning and participating in all activities, constantly encouraging each to do better on each of the tests.

The ten schools involved were:

Kambrya College

Westernport Secondary College

Patterson River Secondary College

Flinders College

Norword Secondary College

Mt Erin College

Sale College

St Francis Xavier College

Rosebud Secondary School

Melbourne Girls College

For more information about the program, please contact Tim Wallace.

Mr Frost looks on as the students demo the GPS technology

Andrew Robinson of Monash Sport demonstrates a wattage output test

Mr Kumnick looks on as a student completes a sprint

A student halfway through a VO2 max test

Students complete an agility/reaction test