February 2022 is Active Classrooms Month

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Throughout the month, Active Schools and partners will provide teachers and families with resources for integrating movement into the classroom. Classroom physical activity helps students feel better, work together as a team, reduce anxiety, and maintain focus all while learning and retaining academic content.

Participation is FREE. Register by using the LINK or by scanning the QR-code. Participants that register will receive exclusive resources, and also have the opportunity to win weekly prizes.

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Universal Design for Learning in Physical Education

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UDL is a way of thinking and acting that may change the way you approach student learning. Rather than thinking a student needs to change, UDL looks at the learning environment. Consider what within the environment is a barrier to learning. Is it that space itself? Is it the equipment you are using? Perhaps it is the way the students are expected to learn. The learning environment can include other barriers such as the goals of the class, the way assessments are conducted, or the way the students are organized. See below for a diagram that outlines an ecological analysis of the learning environment (Haywood & Getchell, 2019). When considering implementing UDL in the classroom, it is important to look at the following elements.

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UDL provides a framework for implementing strategies to reduce barriers to student learning. The main way to do this is to create a learning environment where students have what they need to flexibly meet the learning goals. When developing and planning your lesson, think about the students, the classroom environment, and the task you are teaching.

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Editorial Board Announced for 2022

PHE America has announced its editorial board members for 2022, including the addition of two associate editors.  The Editorial Board is comprised of professionals in higher education interested in serving as reviewers to offer writers constructive feedback in preparing their articles for publication. Editorial Board members serve both PHE America and Sport Coach America.

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The nine-member board includes Associate Editor for PHE America, Brian Sather, a professor at Eastern Oregon University; Associate Editor for Sport Coach America, Collin Fehr, an assistant professor at Lewis-Clark State College; Editor-in-Chief, Pete Van Mullem, a professor at Lewis-Clark State College and director of Sport Coach America; Sean Dahlin, an assistant professor at Central Washington University; Greg Lott, an assistant professor and assistant director of athletics at Denison University; Hillary Robey, an assistant professor at Western Washington University; Jessica Savage, an instructor at Lewis-Clark State College; Aubrey Shaw, an academic program advisor at the University of Idaho; and Heather Van Mullem, a professor at Lewis-Clark State College.

For more information on the Editorial Team visit: https://sportcoachamerica.org/editorial-board/

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Language Matters in the Gymnasium

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Toasting the new year offers physical education teachers the chance to rethink, reframe, and reteach. Thinking back over the last six months, have your classes been meaningful? Are your students learning? Did students’ faces light up like lightbulbs when they suddenly “got it?” That spark is part of the magic of teaching and learning.

Thoughtful physical education teachers strive for movement literacy, which requires student thinking, moving, and feeling. The acquisition of motor skills, physical fitness, core knowledge, personal and social development, and joy results from concise teacher language and communication (both verbal and nonverbal). Strauss & Feiz (2014) write that “Discourse is the social and cognitive process of putting the world into words, of transforming our perceptions, experiences, emotions, understandings, and desires into a common medium …” (p.1). The words teachers select, the images they create, and the frames students and teachers construct, matter in the classroom. Our words create our world, and as teachers, they create our student’s learning environment.

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We Coach Humans – Not Machines

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Recently, an article surfaced exposing the culture of body shaming and disordered eating at the University of Oregon (OU), one of the most prestigious track and field programs in the NCAA. The female athletes interviewed discussed how the coaching staff used DEXA scans, which measures one’s bone density and body fat percentages, to determine their training programs (Goe, 2021). The Director of Track and Field, Robert Johnson stated, “Track is nothing but numbers. A good mathematician probably could be a good track coach” (Goe, 2021). Johnson’s perspective showcases society’s obsession with the objective experience defined by the numerical outcome. By solely allowing the numbers on the DEXA scan results to dictate one’s training, the human element is being completely ignored. However, practices like using DEXA scans and other objective measures to enhance performance are defended because of the “win-at-all-costs” culture plaguing sports. Johnson has won a lot; 14 NCAA national championships and multiple Olympians have emerged from UO’s program. Some people believe that if an athlete wants to be the best, aspire to be an Olympian, then the experiences of the UO athletes is “the price one has to pay” to be the best. Though, when is sacrificing one’s wellbeing worth the risk?

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The “win-at-all-costs” culture is driven by money, power, and success, which makes coaches, athletes, and administrations focus on one part of the experience – winning. And if a team is not winning, then changes on the roster occur and coaches are fired; new coaches are hired but only given a couple of years to build a winning culture, otherwise, they are fired, and the vicious cycle continues. The athletes ultimately suffer the consequences of the cycle. The athletes know, feel, and learn to believe (if they do not already before college), that the only aspect of sport they should care about is winning. For many teams, success is not about the athlete’s personal growth and journey, but whether they won or were part of a winning team. Thus, the objective experience seems to be the only part of their collegiate athlete experience that is discussed and emphasized.

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The Value of an Intramural Program for High School Students

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As an educator for close to ten years, I (Collin) have coached many sub-varsity teams and for various and real reasons, some student-athletes get less playing time than others by being pushed out or leaving varsity athletics for a variety of reasons including lack of talent and team size restrictions. I am sure this happens all over the country in every sport setting. By adding high school intramurals to the extracurricular options, students will get opportunities to use their athletic skills and build on social skills in a less competitive and fun environment.

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Intramural sports in high schools can greatly benefit students, as well as the school. The implementation of high school intramurals is meant to be an additional extracurricular option for non-varsity players and/or “non-athletes” (those that are not out for a school sport). Removing varsity players from the intramural program levels the playing field for other athletes and helps students with little or no experience feel more comfortable when participating. With that, I believe in giving students the chance to create teams, organize gameplay, and be part of activities that they can enjoy for the rest of their life. Being part of a team helps participates grow in confidence, team building/bonding, self-esteem, and provides health benefits. With intramural sports, students can be tasked with creating their own teams and problem solving without a teacher or coach always mediating and controlling the situations.

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It’s Not Working

I wonder how many people within the work of physical education can admit what they are doing isn’t working. Kids can say it (Edwards, 2019). Parents can say it.  Academics who perhaps used to teach can say it.  But can people in the field say it?  And if they can say it, what is the result of this confession?  Frustration?  Blame?  Who is open and willing and free enough to utilize this acknowledgment as a means to do things differently?

The schools have done it (and continue to do it) by replacing physical education with physical activity.  They don’t need a teacher, they need space and equipment, and supervision.  The purpose and success of recess don’t get questioned as PE does.  Its benefits are known and agreed upon — it releases energy, encourages play, offers socialization, and doesn’t have an expectation of an outcome.  A kid can just sit in the grass and be left alone without worry or concern that something specific should be achieved or accomplished.

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