Recess

I was talking to my mom today about a lady that has 'pioneered' a program for organized recess in California. The program, which schools pay $50K for, teaches basic games and conflict resolution (in no small part using Rock-Paper-Scissors) to inner-city kids. After working with city kids all summer I know that this kind of guidance is needed, but I question the need for this kind of costly and, seemingly, common-sense program. Why aren't teachers teaching the tools of organization, conflict resolution, etc? Is there any (public) school that isn't so bogged down by bureaucracy and propriety that they can make an attempt to teach tools instead of information. Has the "curriculum" of our public school system become so dogmatic and prescribed that we have lost all adaptability and, terrifyingly enough, imagination? I'm going to check the documentary tomorrow - perhaps that will spark an update...