Discovering a Solution at CAHPERD Conference
Hobayon attended the 2023 California conference for state PE teachers and administrators, where he saw a presentation about the IHT heart rate monitors. Intrigued, he sought out more information and then connected with District PE Teacher Specialist Michelle Baumgartner to get her support.
“Kalani said he was really interested in this and I thought it sounded like a really good program for us,” Baumgartner recalled.
The technology works well with students of all ages. With the heart rate monitors, students will be able to benefit from:
- Seeing their heart rate – and heart rate zone designated by color – in real time as they exercise
- Achieving a session goal for minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity that is specific to their fitness level and physiology
- A detailed post-session report that includes a graph of their heart rate throughout the session that can be used to connect data to feeling
“It’s a good pilot program at the elementary level because we’re going to give these students a basic foundation,” Hobayon said.
Using the IHT Heart Rate Monitors District-Wide
Once Hobayon got Baumgartner’s approval, they worked together to build a proposal they could take to district leadership to make a purchase. Baumgartner started with what she felt was a responsible proposal – sets of heart rate monitors to pilot them at 8 of the district’s elementary campuses.
“But then my director really liked the idea and she said let’s double it,” Baumgartner said. “We got a quote for that and my director was okay with that too. Then she said, ‘I’m thinking big now. Why can’t we just have it for all 24 sites?’”
The district identified some of its federal funding - part of the American Rescue Plan (ARP)’s Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund -- on her proposal.
“Everything kind of fit hand-in-hand,” Hobayon said. “We had technology that we could use for PE if we had this money, so we wanted to invest in it.”
Making Physical Activity a Priority Again
As PE teachers across the country experienced, when students went back to school for on-campus learning, many showed severe signs of long-term inactivity. Baumgarnter and Hobayon saw various reports that all painted a bleak picture, a picture they were able to confirm by watching their students try to go through the motions during their PE classes.
“We had studies that showed that as many as 87% of students were not getting any movement (in their daily lives) at all,” she said. “How were we going to make our program better so that these students will be moving again?”
Hobayon was confident the IHT heart rate monitors would help students become active again. By extension – as a result of post-session summaries that can easily be emailed home after each class – the teacher felt he could also get entire families to re-embrace physical activity.
“We needed to get parents on board in terms of moderate to vigorous physical activity and that was the biggest thing I was stressing,” he said. “When we get kids back into physical education, we’re giving them quality moving experiences. Now, how can we further extend that? This tool gives everyone a sense of ownership.”
Thinking Beyond Elementary Programs
As another school year with the monitors begins to wind down, Hobayon already has an eye on expanding the program. He and Baumgartner will evaluate their progress – and their students’ achievement – following the year and then make a plan to get more heart rate monitors for the district’s middle and high schools.
If they can make it happen, Pomona’s students will have a wealth of heart rate data to build from as they stay focused on their journey to physical fitness.
“By the time they get to middle school and high school, think of all the data they’re going to have in terms of physical activity,” Hobayon said. “If we continue to build a program and we have monitors at the (middle and high school levels), by the time these 4th graders get to high school, they’re going to have all of that data.”
Boost Student Emotional Health with IHT heart rate monitors:
