Hallett, Vicky. "DDR and 'exergames' Studied as a Way to Liberate Children from Couches." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 10 Feb. 2013. Web. 14 Feb. 2013. Dance Dance Revolution is an "exergame", or a video game that is much better than sitting on the couch, which has made an appearance in Washington DC public school PE programs because it is a fun way to keep students entertained while being active at school. An experiment was conducted to see just how effective these video games were in different age groups. Results showed that younger students were able to meet the criteria in both the active video games as well as regular physical education, however kids in sixth through eighth grade were not. Only boys were able to meet the criteria for physical education, not the video game and girls were unable to meet either. Some students do not take games like Dance Dance Revolution seriously and it is easy to slack off in, however many students thought that DDR was a great alternative because it was less intimidating than sports played in PE. Also, the new and more advanced technology helps with accuracy in tracking each student's BMI, heart rate, and caloric burn rate. It provides students with even more information than a teacher could and the game requires concentration on the screen, which decreases the self consciousness of those who do not want to be watched. Overall, it has had a good impact on schools, and is much better than not doing any physical activity at all. 

Comment: With all our technology we have today, it can be fun to experiment with all these newfound resources. Even though these video games have proved to be successful at times, physical education should still be taught to give kids the basic fundamentals of exercise. It is nice to separate ourselves from our technology once in a while and learn skills that do not require anything but ourselves. I do however think it's great that there are fun alternatives to be physically active with.