Physical Education
Instructional Program
Instructional Objectives and Competencies to be Achieved
After reading this chapter, the student should be able to:
Provide a description of the nature, scope, purpose, and worth of instructional
program in physical education.
Outline management guidelines for preschool, elementary school, secondary
school, and college and university physical education instructional program.
Thus far in this text we have concerned ourselves with the nature and
scope of management as they relate to physical education and sport. We have also
discussed the objectives these programs are designed to achieve and the
organizational structure needed to efficiently and effectively pursue and
accomplish these goals.
Meaningful assessment and developmental records that follow a student
from grade to grade should be maintained throughout his or her school life. These
records will indicate the degree to which the objective of the program have been
achieved by the student.
MANAGEMENT
GUIDELINES
FOR
SCHOOL
AND
COLLEGE
crucial for the child intellectually, physically, socially, and emotionally. In light of
such findings, as well as the return of many mothers to the workforce, nursery
schools and child day-care centers have gained wide popularity.
Preschool educational programs should involve indoor and outdoor playlearning activities. Physical education activities should include the development
of fundamental movement skills, fitness, self-testing and team-building activities,
music and rhythmic activities, creative free play, and rhymes and story plays.
Preschool programs are becoming an integral part of educational systems
in this country, and physical education should play an important role in such
programs.
Elementary School Physical Education Programs
Contemporary elementary physical education programs continue to focus on the
foundation of the profession human movement. Physical education takes on an
important part of the schools instructional program and is designed to foster
development of fundamental motor skills, health related fitness, and knowledge
and attitude relative to physical activity through a carefully planned curriculum
that includes, for example, movement skills (running, jumping, skipping/fitness),
nonlocomotor skills (stretching, balance), manipulative skills (throwing,
kicking/ball skills), and rhythms and dance.
Physical education at this level should promote the individual childs
standard of motor performance and establish a physical activity comfort level so
that each child develops an appreciation and enjoyment movement.
Elementary schools also combine the essential movement skills and
perceptual motor development, and in some schools, an interdisciplinary approach
is utilized, whereby the subject matter of physical education is integrated with
certain other subjects such as health, music, science, history, and act.
Secondary School Physical Education Programs
The junior high, middle, and senior high schools of the nation should build on the
physical education foundation provided at the elementary school level. Here are
some management guidelines that represent important considerations in secondary
school physical education programs. Most of the guidelines set for the elementary
school also have merit in developing programs for secondary schools. The
secondary program should be based on the developmental tasks of secondary
schools students.
In addition, to these management guidelines, the following points should
be stressed:
The physical education class provides the student with a safe and
wholesome environment in which to learn the skills, strategy, appreciation,
understanding, knowledge, rules, regulations, and other material and information
that are part of the program. It is not a place for free play, intramurals, or varsity
practice. It is a place for proactive and dynamic instruction. The class period
should be devoted to teaching students the skills and content matter of physical
education.
Instruction should be progressive. There should be a definite progression
from basic to complex skills. Just as a student progresses in mathematics from
basic arithmetic to algebra, geometry, and calculus, so the physical education
student should progress from basic skills and materials to more complex and
involved skills, techniques, and strategies.
Trends and Innovative Ideas in Secondary School Physical Education
Many innovative instructional programs are being employed in physical education
at the secondary school level. This is a result of AAHPERDs Lifetime Sports
Education Project (LSEP). It is estimated that 75 percent of the nations secondary
schools emphasize lifetime sports.
College and University Physical Education Programs
College and universities should provide instruction in physical education that
meets the following management criteria:
The program should be available to all students.
The program should not be a repetition of the high school program, but should
offer more advanced work in physical education and health-related fitness (i.e.,
FACTORS
RELATING
TO
ONE
OR
MORE
EDUCATIONAL LEVELS
Some of the more pertinent factors include interrelationships of elementary,
secondary, and college and university program; instructional aids and materials;
class management; interpretations of Title IX regulations for instructional
strategies; and implications of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
(IDEA) for adapted/developmental physical education programs for persons with
varying disabilities.
Interrelationships of Elementary, Secondary, and College and University
Programs
The physical education programs for the K 12 level through the college and
university level should be interrelated. Continuity and progression should
characterize the program from the time the student enters kindergarten until
graduation. Program content and its delivery should be based on current research.
Overall planning is essential to ensure that each student becomes physically
educated and to guarantee that duplication of effort and time, curricular omissions,
and shortages do not occur.
Management Guidelines for Selecting Instructional Aids and Materials
When selecting audiovisual aids or other instructional resources and materials,
physical educators should consider the following principles that make using their
aids effective, meaningful, and valuable.
Class Management
Sound management does not just happen. It requires careful thought, good
judgment, and planning before the class begins. Management practices help to
ensure that the class functions as a coordinated group in order to effectively and
efficiently accomplish the goals and tasks that have been established. Quality
management leads to enjoyable, satisfying, safe, and worthwhile experiences. The
teacher who is in charge of a class where optimal learning conditions exist has
spent considerable time planning the details of the class from start to finish.
Management Guidelines
The classroom environment should be one that is safe yet unrestricted, and
creative movement should be encouraged. Equipment should be in proper
condition and place condition and placed appropriately for safe activity. Field
and gymnasium markings, equipment arrangements, logistics for activities, and
other essential details should be attended to well before class.
A risk management walkabout before class is highly recommended.
Strategic and long-term planning for the semester and the year should be
prepared as well as daily, weekly, and seasonal planning.
TITLE IX
On May 27, 1975, President Gerald Ford signed into law Title IX (Clement 1998)
of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, which states that no person, on the
basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be
also finding problems such as being unable to perform some activities satisfactory
in front of members of the opposite sex; and those with poor skills are excluded
from participation on highly skilled coeducational teams.
Compliance with Title IX
Title IX is being enforced by the Department of Education of the federal
government. The first step seeks to have voluntary compliance. This process
should be the job of the physical education teacher, physical education
department, and school administration.
THE
ADAPTED/DEVELOPMENTAL
PHYSICAL
EDUCATION
PROGRAM
The adapted/developmental program refers to the phase of physical education that
meets the needs of the individual who, because of some physical inadequacy,
functional defect capable of being improved through physical activity, or other
deficiency, is temporarily or permanently unable to take part in the regular
physical education program or the phase in which special provisions are made for
students with disabilities in regular physical education classes.
People with Varying Disabilities
The nations estimated fifth million people with disabilities have engaged in an
aggressive civil rights movement. These actions were aimed at obtaining the equal
protection promised under the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the
United States.
Definitions Relating to the Adapted/Development Program
Many terms have been used to define and classify persons with disabilities. These
terms vary from publication to publication. Categories of children designated by
the U.S. Congress in relation to legislation for persons with disabilities, Section
50A of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, (P.L. 93-112), will be the primary
classification used in this text; however, these terms will be modified to reflect the
changing view concerning persons with disabilities, such as those infected with
Provide each student within his or her capabilities the opportunities to develop
organic vigor, muscular strength and endurance, joint function and flexibility,
and cardiovascular endurance.
Public Law 94-142/Public Law 101-476 (IDEA)
These services have now been extended from birth through age twentyone. Children with disabilities, as defined in IDEA-Part B, are those who require
some type of special education and related services.
Individualized Education Programs for People with Disabilities
After identification and eligibility have been determined for students with
disabilities, an IEP must be developing for each individual.
The comprehensive IEP is developing using the team approach. The
following persons may be included on the team: parent, teacher (classroom,
adapted physical education, and special education), administrator, case manager,
student, and when appropriate the people responsible for supervising special
education, related services such as school psychologist (diagnostic evaluation),
and other agency representatives (e.g., social worker, physical therapist, etc).
Adapted/Developmental Physical Education Facilities
Appropriate and adequate facilities, equipment, and supplies are important to
successful programs of physical education for persons with disabilities. However,
these items must be modified for special or adapted physical education students
because facilities and equipment are usually designed for students in the regular
class.
Adapted/Developmental Physical Education Equipment and Supplies
For the most part, equipment and supplies that are used in the regular classroom
can be modified to meet adaptive needs, and certainly equipment that already
exists at regular playgrounds can and should be employed.
MANAGEMENT
PROBLEMS
IN
INSTRUCTIONAL
PROGRAMS
The manager of any physical education program is continually confronted with
questions such as the following: Should physical education be required or
elective? Should other activities be substituted for physical education? How much
credit should be awarded?
1. Should Physical Education Be Required of Elective?
General agreement is that physical education should be required at the
elementary, junior high, and middle school levels. However, there are many
advocates on both sides of the question of whether it should be required or
elective at the secondary and college levels.
2. Required
Physical education is a basic need of every student. Students need regular and
vigorous physical activity to develop to their fullest potential and to release
tension from the rigors of not only the academic setting, but also daily life as
well.
3. Elective
Physical education carries its own drive. If a good basic instructional
physical education program is developed in the elementary and middle schools,
with students acquiring the necessary skills and attitudes, the drive for such
activity will carry through to the secondary school and college.
4. Should Substitutions Be Permitted for Physical Education?
A practice exists in some school and college systems that permit students to
substitute some other activity for their physical education requirement. This
practice should be scrutinized and resisted aggressively by every educator.
5. Should Credit Be Awarded for Physical Education?
Whether credit should be awarded for physical education is another
controversy with which the profession is continually confronted. Here again
advocates can be found on both sides.
6. What Policy Should Be Established on Class Attendance?
It is important for every department of physical education to have a clear-cut
policy concerning class attendance that covers absenteeism and lateness.
7. What about Excuses
The principal, nurse, or physical education frequently receives a note from a
parent or family physician requesting that a student be excused from
participating in physical education.
8. Grading and Assessment of Students
To determine whether students are meeting the objectives of the physical
education instructional program, it is requisite that each instructor develops
meaningful, effective, and efficient methods for assessment.
CRITERIA
FOR
EVALUATING
PHYSICAL
EDUCATION
INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAM
The following checklist (pp. 101103) has evolved and has been adapted for
evaluating physical education instructional programs. This checklist can serve to
assess the instructional units or modules as well as the people who use (student)
and deliver (teacher) the learning package. The checklist results can also guide
both curriculum service and development of new instructional strategies.
SUMMARY
The instructional program in physical education is the place to teach such vital
elements as skills, strategies, and understanding concerning the contribution of
physical activity to total well-being.
Physical education instructional programs exist at all educational levels
and in various community agencies and private volunteer organizations.
Management guidelines exist for teaching physical education in all these
settings as well as for selecting instructional aids, guides, materials, and
appropriate educational technology.
Management matters that relate to physical education instructional
programs include scheduling, grading, and assessment, class size, differentiated
staffing, selection of appropriate activities, grouping of and instructional strategies
for participants, and student involvement.