Interpretation and Implications of the 2024 U.S. K-12 National Physical Education Standards

To deepen the reform of China's school physical education curriculum standards, it is essential to prudently understand and draw on the cutting-edge concepts of international physical education curricula while grounding practices in local realities. This study examines the 2024 U.S. K-12 National Physical Education Standards, analyzing its revision background, core content, and distinctive features to identify implications for the reform of physical education curriculum standards in China. The 2024 U.S. K-12 National Physical Education Standards have established a progressive, personalized, collaborative, and lifelong learning-oriented framework through a rigorous revision process, a logically coherent structure, and a content system closely aligned with classroom practice. Based on this analysis, six recommendations are proposed to advance the reform of physical education curriculum standards in China: develop a vertical curriculum link by coordinating physical education content across educational stages; enhance students' role by promoting autonomy, self-directed learning and reflective practice; integrate health education modules to achieve an integrated approach combining health knowledge and motor skill development; shift the focus of curriculum goals toward fostering students' physical literacy and lifelong wellness awareness; refine the assessment system to include the development of students' social and emotional competencies; establish a comprehensive curriculum resource platform to support teachers' professional capability.