NY Times: W. Virginia schools begin adding DDR to curriculum

by Christopher Grant { Apr 30th 2007 at 12:41PM }

Over a year ago, West Virginia announced plans to incorporate Dance Dance Revolution into the physical education curriculum in all of their 765 public schools. Today, the New York Times takes a look at their progress, with nearly all of the state's 185 middle schools already outfitted with the obesity-battling leg-shaking simulator and the remainder of the 765 due to receive theirs by next year. While the article goes over the regular praise for exergaming -- namely, getting sedentary kids off their do-nothing keisters -- it's a welcome update on one state's ambitious plans. Huge bonus points to the first state that requires kids to play Devil May Cry with that DDR pad.

Tags: DDR, Exergaming

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

sheppy @ Apr 30th 2007 12:47PM

Alcohol + DDR Pad + Tekken 5 = Fun had by all.

Zertoss @ Apr 30th 2007 12:47PM

Is the Konami Code going to be a new dance?

Todd @ Apr 30th 2007 12:49PM

Apparently results have been mixed. While overweight kids have not shown any major change in losing weight there are indications that overweight kids have not been gaining more.

Grant @ Apr 30th 2007 1:11PM

Dear Society,
Thank you for showing interest in games outside of blaming it for all of your problems. If you continue this healthy interest in our media of choice, you may be pleasantly surprised.

Thanks,
Video Gamers Everywhere

Meowzers @ Apr 30th 2007 1:15PM

Back when I worked for FedEx Ground, I had to deal with a lot of metal mats. The majority went to schools, and now that I think about it, I think they did go to VA. There were quite a lot of middle schools getting them.

Always made me mad getting one... I never had DDR when I was in school. -.-

Ken @ Apr 30th 2007 1:15PM

@sheppy

Those ARE good times, but I think:

Alcohol + CONTRA for NES + Mario Kart (64 or Double Dash) = Fun had by all.

But I do that every Friday, so I might be biased. :)

David @ Apr 30th 2007 1:19PM

But video games caused the VT shootings! NOw they will have thousands of kids going around killing each other!

kingofwale @ Apr 30th 2007 1:19PM

man, why are we trying to poison the kids with HORRIBLE musics from DDR?

I have a feeling that Britney Spears and the Backstreetboys are behind this. ;)

Jonathan Tran @ Apr 30th 2007 1:20PM

I will be impressed when someone can beat Paranoia with a Wiimote hack.

Jason @ May 1st 2007 7:34AM

its good thing for kids to do DDR. However they're not really getting the true experience if they've simply got a few cheap metal pads & TVS. Nothing but the arcade pads & machine can deliever the true expereince needs.
The metal pads provided don't have the shock absorbers that the arcade pads do. And that is crucial for any sort of real exercise development, otherwise they're sliding the pads all over the gym floor.

Jason B @ Apr 30th 2007 1:23PM

Meowzers and David,

It's West Virginia (the state). Not the Western part of Virginia (another state). Sorry, but I grew up in WV and it always irked me that a lot of people think you mean West of Roanoke when you say you are from West Virginia (the state since 1863).

Fernando Rocker @ Apr 30th 2007 1:32PM

Alcohol + a bunch of friends + Mario Kart Double Dash = A lot of fun.

Ken @ Apr 30th 2007 1:45PM

@ Fernando Rocker

That's what I'm talkin' about!

Fernando Rocker @ Apr 30th 2007 2:03PM

@Ken

... and my friends hates mes 'cause I can escape from the blue shells! jaja

Ahh... I want a XX Lager right now :)

A @ Apr 30th 2007 2:25PM

I don't know the frequency of this type of 'gym' class, but this is not healthy.

Kids need to learn to play team sports, try to play sports that theyre not good at and, most importantly, spend time doing sports WITHOUT a computer screen. Maybe they should play sports in, you know, real life. Turns out the physics and graphics don't get any better than the real thing. This is another way to make everything fun and easy for kids, which is why it I think it largely serves to motivate athletic mediocrity.

And sorry to all the wii-dieters, but I don't believe that you have a healthy lifestyle if a video game is your most significant source of excercise. Such a state is both sad and laughable.

Squeek @ Apr 30th 2007 2:30PM

Wouldn't it be easier to use a 4-player console that actually gets everyone moving, doesn't cause severe leg / foot injury, and doesn't require a lot of skill? Possibly a game that is actually fun... like Wii Sports?

Haven't they been reading the various news reports that Wii is a great workout for people and that Nintendo is releasing fitness and workout games later this year? Sheesh.

sheppy @ Apr 30th 2007 2:34PM

Time to play the bastard. Never cared much for Mario Kart outside of 64. I always got raped. But on another note, Bomberman?

Also, why is that kid in the middle staring at the screen like it's a Hostess commercial? They must be playing Candy

umm....hello??? @ Apr 30th 2007 2:42PM

@14

TOTALLY agree!! DDR is what they ALREADY most likely do outside of school anyway, and look at that picture--they obviously need to do a LOT more cardio, because whatever they're currently doing is NOT working for them.

want to know why europeans are so healthy?? football (what we call soccer)!! all that running around, chasing a ball! pure cardio workout!

sheppy @ Apr 30th 2007 2:43PM

"Kids need to learn to play team sports, try to play sports that theyre not good at and, most importantly, spend time doing sports WITHOUT a computer screen. Maybe they should play sports in, you know, real life. Turns out the physics and graphics don't get any better than the real thing. This is another way to make everything fun and easy for kids, which is why it I think it largely serves to motivate athletic mediocrity."

Or maybe it promotes a system where not everyone can be Johnny Football Hero and that's okay?

Seriously, I don't know how often this system is used (a friend of mine used to play professional soccer and he often commented how DDR wore him out more) but I highly doubt it's the full school year.

And seriously, take your traditional sports. Like a staple for middle schools and elementary schools alike. Kickball. The more inactive kids were often "forced" into the outfield where you would do NOTHING a vast majority of the time. Take Baseball. Same dealio. Hell, I was never the uber athlete so I was often thrown into the useless and boring positions. My only strength was Hockey. Damn good at Hockey.... and for some reason, Volleyball. That was it, 6 weeks of the school year, I had a purpose on the team. This eventually lead to me just bringing a sketchbook to gym class. If DDR was in my gym class, things might have been different. But there is only so much exercise you get when you're playing goalie in Soccer when you're on a team with great forwards.

So tell you what, you refrain from judging programs meant to get physically inactive children active and I'll refrain from making fun of your football hero son when, right after college, he's selling me my washer and dryer at Sears, deal?

sheppy @ Apr 30th 2007 2:44PM

I should correct that. A friend of mine played COLLEGE LEVEL Soccer.

thispaceforsale @ Apr 30th 2007 2:47PM

Interesting article, that last line is important "you don't have to be good at it to get a workout"
I loved team sports in school, I love them now. I played a healthy mix, along with outdoor activities and videogaming. But sports, and team sports especially, can be isolating to the child who is not good or does not perceive themselves to be good.
Being on a basketball team and standing around not enjoying it, getting hassled by other kids or not feeling confident isn't healthy and certainly works out nothing. DDR isn't a cure-all (nor should it be), but for kids who don't like team sports or otherwise dread gym class, it can be a boon.

Ken @ Apr 30th 2007 3:15PM

@ Fernando Rocker

I love when I see a blue shell get shot, and you just tap the brakes to let someone pass you, then BAM they get hit and you drive right by them.

I do alot of Guinness(types really weird, had to double check that I was spelling it right) while playing Mario Kart.

Nohbdy @ Apr 30th 2007 3:23PM

Because EVERYBODY enjoys team sports, right?

And because the exercise in team sports is vastly different and gives different benefits from DDR, right?

Shove your sports up your ass. The most you'll get out of a team sport in a P.E. class is mere cardio, just like DDR. DDR just makes that exercise more coordinated, and, if you keep hogging up the machine, makes that cardio more intense.

The only good sports are handball and dodgeball, by the way.

A @ Apr 30th 2007 3:27PM

haha- Sheppy, i'll judge these programs all i want. i paid TAXES in Virginia. I therefore BOUGHT these exact DDRs. Remind me again where you get your right to speak on VA's public school expenditures?

serously though, I see gym as a way to get kids more than just 'active'. Kids need to NOT be coddled. No more soccer games where no score is kept so 'everyone can be a winner! yay!' Kids need to learn that they are NOT exceptional at everything, and may still be bad at some things.

And let's say DDR is used 3 weeks of the year. Is that really going to make kids lose weight? If it's used the entire year, maybe they don't pork out as much, but they ALSO miss the team aspects of sports, the parts where you LEARN to lose as well as win, the parts where you get hasslled for missing that shot. It's called growing up. I don't want my kid living in a bubble of physical and ego protection. That's also not healthy. These are things that, in correct doses, build character. Besides, do you really think the bad DDR players arent ranked on?

Oh, and it turns out some of those varsity athletes also did alright after school, in case you werent sure. They're not all Biff Lomans ;-)

Meowzers @ Apr 30th 2007 3:29PM

@10- Jason

Chill Pill. It's just a state, and just a game. I'm lazy when I'm on constricted time like when I only have 10 minutes for email checking while on lunch break. Christ. And some mats I dealt with did indeed have to go to Virginia, as well as West Virginia, and a bunch of other states, too.

Farseer @ Apr 30th 2007 3:31PM

We played a lot of Ultimate Frisbee in gym class. Talk about a cardio workout. On the other hand, people did tend to get hurt a bit, but that was only because everyone got into it. I guess that schools will do whatever they can to avoid a lawsuit. If that involves bringing in game machines.... how can you argue?

Nohbdy @ Apr 30th 2007 3:33PM

@23:

The game DOES have Versus capabilities. A tournament isn't going to be THAT hard to manage with brackets and stuff. Fie on you.

And schools NEED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE GAME HAS A DOUBLES MODE. ONE PLAYER USING TWO PADS. Best mode EVER.

bubka @ Apr 30th 2007 4:08PM

holy crap, i actual taught school at where that picture was taken

Croz @ Apr 30th 2007 4:07PM

Will this mean kids won't pass the year if they can't get an A or above doing Waka Laka on Heavy? ;-)

sheppy @ Apr 30th 2007 4:11PM

"haha- Sheppy, i'll judge these programs all i want. i paid TAXES in Virginia. I therefore BOUGHT these exact DDRs. Remind me again where you get your right to speak on VA's public school expenditures?"
You know, I don't get the right. neither do you, apparently. Because this is West Virginia. Maybe you should have spent less time talking about how great Basketball is and more time identifying geography. At least the states right next to you, for fucks sake.

"serously though, I see gym as a way to get kids more than just 'active'. Kids need to NOT be coddled. No more soccer games where no score is kept so 'everyone can be a winner! yay!' Kids need to learn that they are NOT exceptional at everything, and may still be bad at some things."

I agree the removal of the score system is simply retarded. However, let's put it this way. You have a group of kids, not normally active in sports, suck at baseball, basketball, you name it, they suck at it. Under the old system, these kids were picked last, thrown as far out of the way as possible, hit with dodgeballs first, etc. In other words, in the dog eat dog world, they were the bitch. Not competing, not even existing to the "team," just there to get fucked. Sorry, but team sports are good if you're GOOD at team sports. Otherwise each lost play, you never hear the end of. Each ball someone in outfield caught from your kick, you're the dumbass. That's a great system to force children in. Just ask Carneal, Harris, Klebold, and Cho. Wonderful way to feel good about yourself. Why, that kind of fostering system couldn't possibly be related to bullying and suicidal thoughts at all. This just doesn't exist. Everyone loves sports and are good at them altogether.

Meanwhile, in a system like DDR or other style games like this, you live and die by your own ability. You don't let a "team" down because it's just you. You can even set your own goals from there. In other words, blowing a play isn't going to get you bashed for a solid week.

"And let's say DDR is used 3 weeks of the year. Is that really going to make kids lose weight? If it's used the entire year, maybe they don't pork out as much, but they ALSO miss the team aspects of sports, the parts where you LEARN to lose as well as win, the parts where you get hasslled for missing that shot. It's called growing up. I don't want my kid living in a bubble of physical and ego protection. That's also not healthy. These are things that, in correct doses, build character. Besides, do you really think the bad DDR players arent ranked on?"

Dude, seriously, Team Sports aren't the beat all to end all. That's a limited mindset. You can learn teamwork without being the fat worthless kid stuck in far right field. You can learn social skills with fellow students without being the person just thrown on Defense at Soccer just because he sucks. I mean, seriously, you state that lacking team sports kills a childs ability to learn they are worthwhile but what kind of mindset does a child fall into when they are constantly bashed for sucking at "real sports." DDR in schools isn't going to ruin this next batch of children. It's parents trying to teach their children to "shut up and just play your fucking video games" that's going to ruin the next batch of children.

Competition is great for a child, don't get me wrong. But CONSTANTLY forcing them into a situation where they are left to feel worthless is NOT a healthy situation. And yes, if you're not good at sports in the country, you ARE made to feel worthless. It's everywhere in every commercial. I mean, seriously. How often have you heard of commercials being supportive of our music makers or artists? Is American society actually THAT shallow that the grandest of achievements for a human to strive towards REALLY getting your face in a fucking Beer commercial during SuperBowl?

And, incidently, if the child finds they like a sport, they tend to pursue it outside of school, wouldn't you agree? I discovered I liked Hockey, joined a team for 5 years. This turned into inlining and aggressive inlining. Which turned into skateboarding. My physical hobbies only took a massive dive the moment I was attending college AND working 40-60 hours a week.

sheppy @ Apr 30th 2007 4:13PM

"Will this mean kids won't pass the year if they can't get an A or above doing Waka Laka on Heavy? ;-)"

Heh, I can't even pass Waka Laka on heavy, let alone get an A. Then again, haven't played in three years. Has Waka Laka even made a US mix?

Shockgamer @ Apr 30th 2007 5:02PM

I'd rather see kids who have trouble with team sports and gym in general have a physical activity that makes them feel good and gives them some exercise instead of being forced into something they don't like.

I don't see how forcing kids to grow up introverted and bitter helps anybody.

A @ Apr 30th 2007 4:56PM

hehe- that tax part was a joke sheps. lower the heart rate there. breath in.... breath out.... deep breaths.... (they teach that in gym class ;-)

sheppy @ Apr 30th 2007 5:19PM

Damn, I dropped a few too many f bombs there. Trust me, nothing on the internet gets me truly pissed.

horngreen @ Apr 30th 2007 5:23PM

The school I teach at uses DDR. Makes sense when your gym class is held in a one room prefab and there is no gymnasium. I have no idea what else they do in there beside sit ups at shit. Schools are really going into the shitter in this fine old country of ours.

s256 @ Apr 30th 2007 7:09PM

"I don't see how forcing kids to grow up introverted and bitter helps anybody."

Good point. That happens to too many people.

I'm terrible at sports, period. You get harassed by morons when you suck at sports.

I played DDR for years and I got good at it. It was the most fun I'd ever had doing physical activity - I met up with my friends at the arcade many times per week and my leg muscles were massive!

Why do people have to bust on DDR music? There's just as much trance/electronic/drum&bass/REGGAE as J-Pop or eurobeat. Hell, DDR has like 10 J-Pop and 30 eurobeat songs out of.. what, 360+ total in SuperNOVA?

Grant @ Apr 30th 2007 7:32PM

if anyone thinks that getting exercise in gym class is not the point, you are either a sports fanatic, and are pushing your own adgenda, or you simply don't want to pay taxes for something different. Not to mention team work is not vital to be successful in America these days, the only major company currently really looking for team players is Google. having a healthy self image comes from competition, not from standing in the outfield playing with flowers.

Simply put, americas youth are fatter than ever. ANY exercise more than they usually get is healthy.
If you really believe cardio exercise is not healthy, you are simply ignorant and do not understand how the human body works. It is not the athletic children that NEED gym class, it's the anti-social ones that don't contribute because they are out of shape and uncoordinated.

DDR helps both of these problems, and people need to realize that no one is touting this(or wii playing) as a substitute for working out, but it's a way for people who don't do traditional work-outs or are just too unmotivated/discouraged to go to a gym.

xstompx @ May 1st 2007 12:49AM

Ultimate Frisbee > DDR. That's all I'm saying...

Besides that I don't believe that DDR can take the place of good old sports; you know, the way gym was meant to be. If you're playing the majority of sports, you don't have to be good to get a workout... you just have to not be lazy. Kids are too damn lazy, god damn.

Dirk Pitt @ May 2nd 2007 9:53AM

Back when I was in grade school, we had dancing lessons. We all hated it, but it's much better than this. Kids need to be outside doing something. "TEAM" sports. DDR isn't going to teach them how to solve problems with other kids, other than how to beat their high score. They need to learn to work in a group to accomplish goals. I could maybe see using DDR as perhaps a program of some sort at like the end of the year for all the children who had accomplished a goal, such a reading 100 books or so, but not put into the PHYSICAL education curriculum. Also, when I was raised DDR was the acronym used for the name of the Democratic portion of Germany, or is that just a time so far passed that no one else remembers it, why not teach kids that?

Seiena @ May 2nd 2007 10:47AM

Okay look I ain't from Virginia buuut I can wager kids are the same no matter where they are. Here's the thing I'm a young woman, I had those "TEAM" Sports people keep trying to say are the greatest thing since sliced bread...but I can tell you...I hated P.E. I cried before P.E. -every-day...why you ask? Because I wasn't just picked on verbally in P.E. The teachers didn't care that the athletic kids would hit me, kick me or shove me down so that I'd get hurt bad enough they could play their sports without me. I have never been good at any sports and if they'd had DDR in my school maybe I wouldn't have grown up with low self-esteem, a fear of other people, problems with my Anger that a shrink can't help because there is just too much anger pent up and he's amazed I only release the Excess in short bursts of rage, and not to mention the best hate of all...I LOATHE Sports...I won't play anything Sports related now because I can't stand them they promote people to be vicious and nasty and not worth my time...and yeah I'm 23 years old so it wasn't that long ago I was in school..and school children are getting worse by the year so if it was that bad when I was a kid...guess what their doing to your kids to keep them out of their game.

Alex @ May 2nd 2007 11:35AM

I love DDR. I play it on workout mode for hours and it's a lot of fun. I was thinking that they could use it in gym because it's really a workout. It's like aerobics in a family gym.

Gym, in American schools is virtually pointless. If we didn't have to dress out and walk around the gym it's actually a study hall. Team sports....ha! Not in the gym I had in a public school. We learned the rules of sports, but an actual workout I got twice in my entire 10th grade year. I didn't break a sweat but twice. I always break a sweat with DDR. If you go and watch an actual gym class now it's nothing like what you see in movies. It's girls not wanting to run because their make-up will run or they'll get sweaty and the boys won't like them. The guys do nothing but stare at the shorts rolled up so high on the girl's ass they're not playing team sports either.

If you want to complain DDR is dumb, then try to get actual gym put back in schools. Bring back the rings, the horse etc. I never even saw that in gym.

Someone @ May 2nd 2007 11:56AM

What the fuck ever happened to the rope?

I loved the rope.

I OWNED THE ROPE.

Manda @ May 2nd 2007 12:04PM

I am an overweight 17 year old, who plays DDR and was picked on immensely during PE and Team Sports for my chub, and the fact that I was just flat-out SHIT at these sports. It's completely fucked that the people who are good at the sports, think that it's okay to make the rest of us feel like shit. I was one messed up kid, that was transferred into my teenage years, and will continue through my life. It greatly affects us, mentally.

I have lost weight, though. Around 20 pounds in the past eight months. And it has made my self-esteem shoot through the roof. I feel so much better about myself. And my friend lost over 30 pounds, competes in competitions at anime conventions and I've never seen her happier, either. She places 1st, almost always.

All of my friends, the outcasts or "losers" of the school, as we are sometimes called, play DDR. It's something that we can feel good about. And when we get a lower grade than the other person we are playing against, it gives us drive and motivation to get better.

We take on goals, and work at them. I have been playing a certain song for three months on Standard, because there's still a part that I can't get all the way. And we keep working until we get that, and it makes us feel so good about ourselves.

I know some people who think that DDR is one of the best workouts ever, and I am in no place to disagree. My best friend in the entire world plays lacrosse, and she is more tired after playing six songs on DDR, than her two hour workout with her team.

It's great that they have them in schools, and I wish that my school had them in more than just the DDR club every Friday.

Sheri @ May 2nd 2007 2:47PM

This guy kills me!!
i'll judge these programs all i want. i paid TAXES in Virginia. I therefore BOUGHT these exact DDRs. Remind me again where you get your right to speak on VA's public school expenditures?

serously though, I see gym as a way to get kids more than just 'active'. Kids need to NOT be coddled. No more soccer games where no score is kept so 'everyone can be a winner! yay!' Kids need to learn that they are NOT exceptional at everything, and may still be bad at some things.

And let's say DDR is used 3 weeks of the year. Is that really going to make kids lose weight? If it's used the entire year, maybe they don't pork out as much, but they ALSO miss the team aspects of sports, the parts where you LEARN to lose as well as win, the parts where you get hasslled for missing that shot. It's called growing up. I don't want my kid living in a bubble of physical and ego protection. That's also not healthy. These are things that, in correct doses, build character. Besides, do you really think the bad DDR players arent ranked on?

I'm 40 years old and graduated high school 23 years ago. I was one of those kids that got picked last, one of the kids that always got picked on. I still remember the jocks, the sports freaks, whatever you want to call 'em doing everything they could to avoid having me on their team. Well I started skating-and was good at it. I lived on 33 acres of woods...walking, climbing trees..all that good stuff. I also helped my Dad cut wood, I got my exercise outside of school. Sports are NOT the "be all end all". Obviously this joker hasn't been at the receiving end of those torments.

Andrew @ May 2nd 2007 3:00PM

Being a DDR person myself (and highschooler) I can say that adding DDR to the curriculum is good overall. Yes, it does help promote more video game playing, but, unfortunately, the average kid spends most of their time on video games already, why not get them hooked on one that helps them get into shape, or prevent them from getting fatter?

However, A, you do have a point. team sports do help promote unity and teamwork. DDR and team sports should be an interchangable option, niether should be forced on the kids. Let them decide if they want to nail someone in the head with a dodgeball or tottaly pwn them in DDR (and possibly Wii at a later date.)

The world is changing rapidly, and video games are becoming a very big part of it. Almost every calcualtor you need for geometry up now has games on it too. They're too hard to ignore and try to work around.

Overall, it's a good move, but it will have some issues to be worked out (such as getting some of the kids to let others have a turn, lol)

And david, the VT shootings where NOT caused by a video game (and/or movies). it's a scientific fact that they do NOT increase the likihood that they will happen. All they do is give the person the idea of HOW to do it. The shooting would have happened one way or another, the video game is not at fault. (It's like saying that it's a resturant's fault that someone chked and died on a piece of their sandwich because the idiot didn't chew enough.) While it's not proven, some scientists believe video games may help LOWER anger in kids and the suicide/shooting rates by giving them a way to vent their anger. (honestly, what's better then killing/blowing up pixilated people when you're angry?)

Point being, video games are an integrated part of life now, might as well embrace it and use it to your advantage. Look at Japan, they have DDR machines all over the streets and how many of them are over weight?

chlo @ May 2nd 2007 4:10PM

I love DDR, i play it practically every day. I only wish that my school could have ddr. In my elementary school they only had ddr once on health day but that was about like, wat, 20 minutes?

drew @ May 2nd 2007 3:59PM

the reason japanese people arent over weight has nothing to do with ddr and video havent you seen their work ethic they work more than anything. I dont think it should be the goverments responsibilty that people are eating too much fast food its your own fault nobody elses. What happened to PE and team sports or was it just the fat asses who couldnt be bothered to have self respect and go exercise get off your lazy asses and go do something for once

rocco @ May 10th 2007 7:19PM

everyone can suck dick

dreamswitboysnit @ May 2nd 2007 5:40PM

Wow..Very interesting comments from everyone lol Love the conversation flipping to Mario Kart and back to DDR. Basically, I think its alright to have DDR in schools, but not for the entire time. They do need to learn team work and get physical. You won't know if you like a sport or not, if you don't try it. For those that get hurt emotionally in PE, you have to learn to not let people get to you. You have to be able to lift yourself up and look at the good things about you. Motivate yourself to exercise for your health not for others to treat you better. Not everyone will like you or treat you well. It's life. Once you learn to control your emotions then you will be able to motivate yourself to do anything. Anywho, DDR helps gain some muscle and burn fat, but you need alot of other exercises as well. Including eating right and all that. It doesn't help if you play DDR 24/7 and eat all fatty junk foods. Your health isn't really making much improvement. Well, that's basically my opinion on it.

Go Gaming!! If anyone is a big Super Smash BRos. player, email me sumtime! or just likes a girl gamer..rofl Feel Free to chat! *Michelle*

andy @ May 2nd 2007 5:58PM

hell yes. man DDR rocks. i havent met a kid fat or skinny that doesnt like it either. me and my brother play it in the coldest days on winter and we're down to our boxers with 3 fans going cause we get so worked up into it. its a crazy good work out, and about time they threw it into the school mix.
P.E. these days is a joke. half the time we sit on the floor and learn the rules of a game. no offense to these sorts of athletes, but badminton and vollyball dont take a lot of physical strain. sure we play basketball and crap too, but when half of ur class is made op of preppy little shits and huge kids who cant run 10ft without having an athsma attack, the whole competitive spirit dies along with the need to perform at an active level.

in conclusion, DDR kicks ass and should b used in schools cause everyone can do it at their own pace. even if a million arrows are flyin up the screen and u cant even tell whats going on, the people who cant keep up can still pick out a few moves and throw down. props to the director who gave schools DDR

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