Kids’ Physical Fickleness : Testing: Students generally fared poorly in statewide physical education ratings, but their scores raise more questions than they answer.

California Assessment Program scores for physical fitness offer a statistical snapshot of a flabby, weak and wheezing student population. But they do not tell everything about the state of the state’s youngsters and their fitness.

In fact, experts say the recently released CAP scores raise almost as many questions as they answer.

Are today’s students worse off than those of a generation ago? What with television and video games aplenty, experts say probably yes, but the answer is not in the CAP numbers.

Are schools the problem, or is it working parents, junk food and hours upon hours of television viewing? There’s plenty of blame to go around, physical education specialists respond, and everyone probably shares in it. But there again, the CAP scores don’t tell.

“I don’t know for sure whether students today are less fit than they were 15 or 20 years ago,” said Pat Valladao, a consultant to the Health, Nutrition and Physical Education unit of the state Department of Education. “I see some kids do some things on skateboards and wish I could do them myself. If we had test scores for 15 or 20 years ago, we’d know, but we don’t.”

What educators do know, however, is not encouraging.

“I can tell you that 800,000 kids took the test this year and that almost all of them cannot meet the minimum fitness standards. That’s alarming,” Valladao said.

Students were tested in four, sometimes five, categories. To be considered fit, students had to meet the minimum standard in at least four areas, a goal that eluded 87% of the state’s fifth-graders, 83% of its seventh-graders and 80% of its ninth-graders.

Students were asked to run or walk a mile, as well as do sit-ups, pullups and the “sit-and-reach”--a stretching exercise that tests flexibility. School districts also were given the option of administering a skin-fold test that measures flabbiness in the student’s arms and legs.

The minimum fitness standards varied depending on a student’s age and sex. A 9-year-old girl, for instance, had to run or walk the mile in under 10 minutes and 30 seconds to pass; a 9-year-old boy had to complete the mile in under 10 minutes. By age 13, a girl would have to complete the mile in under 10 minutes, and a 15-year-old boy would need to finish in less than 7 minutes, 30 seconds.

Several glitches emerged in collating the test results, some of which are reflected in scores assigned to Orange County schools. Most notably, some schools incorrectly coded a section of the test that asks whether the students being tested are disabled.

The half-dozen or so Orange County schools that filled out that portion incorrectly show either zero or 100% on their physical fitness tests.

“Those numbers look funny, and you know that something went wrong,” said Nancy Sullivan, a CAP analyst.

In addition, some schools neglected to administer the test altogether. The state education code requires that all schools test their students, and state education department officials said they are notifying schools that did not test their students last year to ask them for their testing plans this year.

Although the initial year of CAP scores for physical education has left questions for researchers, the forthcoming tests probably will iron out the wrinkles. Over time, educators say, patterns will emerge, helping to direct attention to weak physical education programs and to identify and emulate those that are especially effective.

“That’s what it’s built for,” said Don Carlos, an instructional supervisor for the Garden Grove Unified School District. “You get it and you say there are some things you need to do. And then you do them.”

RELATED SCORES:How local schools fared in the California Assessment Program tests in physical education. Page 4