American Education
Research Association
Research on
Learning & Instruction in Physical Education
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Special Interest Group (SIG) for Research on Learning and Instruction in Physical Education is pleased to bring you the sixth volume of SIG paper and roundtable abstracts. This year marks the fifteenth consecutive year that members from the SIG for Research on Learning and Instruction in Physical Education have formally met during the annual American Educational Research Association Conference. The purpose of the SIG for Research on Learning and Instruction in Physical Education is to disseminate research findings in areas related to learning and teaching in physical education. These proceedings contribute to this purpose by a) providing new findings and research developments, and b) offering a definitive source for citations supporting progress in developing ongoing research. This year the SIG for Research on Learning and Instruction in Physical Education has two Paper Sessions (8 papers), three Roundtable Sessions (14 papers), the Invisible College Meetings, and the Business Meeting and Scholar Lecture. We look forward to continued growth and development in the upcoming years and hope the SIG for Research and Learning and Instruction in Physical Education will continue to serve your interest. Cathy Ennis, Chair Ben Dyson, Program Chair Linda Rikard, Secretary/Treasurer
The following individuals served as reviewers of abstracts submitted for the 2000 SIG Sessions at the AERA National Conference in New Orleans.
What do Students Learn in Physical Education and How do They Learn? Judith E. Rink, Ph.D University of South Carolina
"What Do Students Learn in Physical Education Programs?." The simple answer to the question is that students learn what we teach and they do not learn what we do not teach. People do learn from non-instructional environments. What distinguishes instruction from non-instructional environments is the idea of intended learning. Instruction is characterized by intended learning. A teacher defines the goal or aim and selects learning experiences most likely to achieve those goals based to a large extent upon a knowledge base of how students learn, and, more specifically how particular students learn particular content. The more complex answer is that student learn what we teach effectively. The issue of what students learn is of course related to questions about how to instruct effectively. Or, how do we instruct so that students learn. As a teacher I have spent a professional career trying to understand the idea of effective teaching. I would like to share with you several themes or assumptions that guide how I think about the teaching and learning process and perhaps more importantly how I think about studying the teaching and learning process. These themes are: That which is not taught is not learned - teaching is specific. There are effective generic skills of teaching that transcend "method". The study of instructional methodology should be rooted in learning theory.
Purposes The purpose of this paper was to draw on the evidence base of the implementation of a Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU) approach to junior high school basketball to develop a situated perspective on student learning. Accepting the challenge of Hastie and Siedentop (1998) to investigate the relationships between the phenomena that interact to produce learning, the situated perspective aimed to integrate constructs from cognitive, motor behaviorist, classroom ecology and ecological information processing perspectives. The purpose of this integration was to provide a more comprehensive explanation of learning than has to date been possible. The task of integration of constructs from rival theories is implicit in the structure of TGfU since the approach attempts to overcome the dualisms of knowledge versus performance and teaching versus learning. Theoretical Framework The Relationship between Knowledge and Performance In their discussion of expertise in sport, Thomas and Thomas claim that some measure of declarative knowledge is a precursor to procedural knowledge and that both are present in activities in which it is possible to develop expertise, such as playing chess, programming a computer, or writing an essay. Some of the experimental studies of TGfU seem to have built into their design the notion that TGfU is primarily concerned with developing declarative and procedural knowledge, while the traditional, technique-based approaches are primarily concerned with the effectiveness of movement execution. Such dualist notions of physical performance remain pervasive. A case in point is McMorris's (1998) recent critique of TGfU from the perspective of motor behaviour. McMorris starts with the view that TGfU is a cognition-to-technique approach. Motor behaviourists in contrast recommend a technique-to-cognition approach. On the basis of this view, he claims that criticisms made by proponents of TGfU about traditional technique-based methods of teaching games are criticisms of poor practice rather than of the technique-to-cognition approach. He concludes that TGfU has provided very little that is new to knowledge about motor behaviour. In traditional forms of practice in school physical education and within some forms of motor learning theory concerned with motor behaviour, technical proficiency is given greatest emphasis. In much of the research on TGfU, declarative and procedural knowledge are given considerable attention. In some cases, such as McMorris's critque, these perspectives are represented as polarities concerned with cognition at one extreme and behaviour at another. Recent development of an `ecological' version of information processing has revealed the inadequacy of representing these perspectives as polarities by embracing both and by adding the additional process of perception (Abernethy, 1996). This perspective assumes that are three sequential phases in skillful performance, perceiving, deciding and acting. The ecological version of the information processing approach to learning makes an important contribution because it shows clearly the significance of the processes of perceiving and deciding in learning to play games. Movement execution remains a vital part of skilful physical performance within this framework, suggesting that it may provide a useful perspective for theorising learning within a TGfU approach. Situated Learning Perspectives Situated learning offers the possibility of integrating constructs from a range of rival theories of learning. Consistent with situated perspectives on learning, the ecological information processing perspective assumes that learning involves the active engagement of individuals with their environment (Rovegno and Kirk, 1995). Rather than merely receiving information transmitted from another source and internalizing that information, as some versions of the cognitive perspective would suggest, individuals actively appropriate information (Kirshner and Whitson, 1998). In so doing, they adapt new knowledge in order to fit it to what they already know (Prawat, 1999). As Hastie and Siedentop (1998) remind us, a pivotal concept in Walter Doyle's work is the relationship between the individual learner, a task requiring mastery of specific content, and a set of environmental conditions in which the learner-task relationship is located. This conceptualistion of learner/ task/environment proposes the active engagement of learners with a task within the classroom environment. Situated learning also locates a learner's engagement with a task within a specific physical setting. The identification of the context for learning in a physical form is a shared feature of each perspective. Hastie and Siedentop (1999) note that, from a classroom ecology perspective, the constructs of learner/ task/ environment are considered to be interdependent. This suggests that the relationships between each component are important, not merely the components themselves. In other words, this paradigm heralds a shift from investigating three separate units of analysis to investigating a unit of analysis with three interdependent components. The key principles of a situated perspective on learning to play games which inform the analysis of the three critical incidents are presented in the full paper. Methods Following their suggestions, observational data formed a major source of evidence. Each lesson was video-taped and the tapes were transcribed in order to facilitate researcher recall and to permit post-fieldwork analysis. Students were randomly selected for informal interviews in small groups before, during and after episodes of participation to allow us to probe for understanding of the strategies and techniques being practiced. A, the teacher of the class, and S, one of the authors, also kept personal-professional diaries during the fieldwork phase of the project. The observational data, interview transcripts and diaries were analysed using a grounded theory approach involving thematic and line-by-line analysis techniques and memo writing (Glaser, 1978). The observational data and interviews with students were used to provide narrative accounts of lessons. Embedded in these narratives are interpretations made by the authors regarding the extent to which a group was able to complete successfully the tasks set for it by the teacher. Line-by-line and thematic analysis and theoretical memos were also used to generate substantive theory to explain the data. Data Sources Three critical incidents are presented from the basketball unit to illustrate how a situated learning perspective can be employed to theorise student learning within a TGftJ framework. The first critical incident illustrates the emphasis placed on cognitive processes and the Socratic Method in TGfU. It also demonstrates the relationships between student learning and the physical environment, centred on the need to be able to recognise and respond appropriately to visual cues. The second critical incident is concerned with the relationship between student learning and the significance of player to player interaction. The third critical incident focuses on the institutional-cultural dimensions of learning and reveals a need to attend more closely to students' perspectives on learning tasks and the sense they make of these tasks. Guided by a situated learning perspective, the analysis of each critical incident incorporates constructs from cognitive, motor behavioural, ecological information processing and classroom ecology perspectives. Analysis of critical incident 1 - `Remember those strategies we talked about' We suggest that this incident is critical because it shows it is possible for individuals to develop declarative knowledge relatively early in the learning process, `to remember those strategies we talked about', but that this knowledge does not immediately transfer into the successful performance of the tasks. Accurate passing to a teammate was important for the tagging team, particularly following the introduction of the intercept rule. While poor execution of this technique might explain to some degree why declarative knowledge did not transfer immediately into procedural knowledge, other factors are also relevant. From a situated perspective, the extent to which players' were able to perceive cues for action in the physical environment was a key factor limiting their success in performing the tasks set by A. The clearest example of this was the fake and lead practice. This was hindered by the frequent failure of the passing player to release the pass to the leading player at an appropriate moment. This example provides support for the claims made by each of the ecological information processing, classroom ecology and situated learning perspectives that the learner's active engagement with a task located in an immediate physical environment is central to learning to play games. Analysis of critical incident 2: `We're all clumped in like porridge' Successful performance of keyball also required cooperation and communication between the teams. For example, the Greens could have chosen as a team to mark the Reds at half court rather than full court, or to stand back twice the usual distance. A team decision to recognise the opponents' weaknesses and to compensate for these by adjusting their own practices would have assisted the group as a whole to perform the task successfully, that is, to employ various strategies in a game of keyball. But this is a complex process demanding an additional category of knowledge that is not contained within the constructs of declarative and procedural knowledge and technical proficiency, although it is informed by each of them. Analysis of critical incident 3: `We've got no idea what we're doing' The incident is critical because it provides a glimpse of the institutional-cultural dimension of situated learning in which the students' comprehension of the task is not a mirror image of the teacher's intentions. This concern for the institutional-cultural dimension of the learning environment and recognition of the importance of the student's comprehension of appropriate engagement with a task requires the introduction of a new construct. If the learner's perspective is to be incorporated into a theory of learning to play games, we need to add the construct of `making sense'. Making sense of experience lies at the center of the process of adapting new knowledge to fit what a learner already knows (Prawat, 1999). Making sense is not merely a matter of acquiring new knowledge. Both perceiving and understanding are terms that describe the process of making sense. Making sense captures the interface of the known and familiar and the new and strange. The problem for the students practicing the fake, lead and shoot drill was that it only made sense to them as part of the schoolwork module. The drill was the kind of activity teachers in school physical education lessons asked them to do. The schoolwork module, reflecting the institutional form of the school, prevented these students from making a connection between the task and learning to play basketball on the basis of the personal cultural resources they brought to the lesson. Conclusions Analyses of three critical incidents from the basketball unit showed that the constructs employed in cognitive, motor behavioral and ecological approaches remain useful, but that they provide incomplete explanations of learning to play games. Consistent with experimental studies, critical incident 1 suggested that students taught from a of TGfLJ perspective develop declarative knowledge of strategies early in the learning process, but that this knowledge is not transformed into procedural knowledge, even when the technical demands of the task are simplified. A situated perspective suggests that the ability to recognise visual cues in the immediate physical environment is one important limiting factor for novices. It is also suggested, drawing on the evidence presented in critical incident 2, that the social-interactive nature of the basketball lessons, particularly the interactions between and within teams, are key factors in determining learning. Finally, it is argued on the basis of evidence contained in critical incident 3 that players' abilities to make sense of tasks was shaped by the institutionalised culture of the school in the form of the schoolwork module, and the popular cultural meanings they themselves bring to lessons. Educational Significance We suggest that these findings hold a number of implications for further research on TGRJ and for student learning in physical education more generally. One advantage of studying attempts to implement TGfU within the regular practice of schools is that no artificial contrasts are drawn between tactical and technique-based approaches. Naturalistic studies also provide opportunities to investigate student learning within the routine institutional practices of schools. We would argue that it is only by taking this approach that it becomes possible to access the usual school learning experiences of students in relation to the real social and cultural dimensions of the learning environment. At the same time, some reconsideration of the original TGfU model first presented by Bunker and Thorpe in 1983 may be required in order to accommodate constructs from ecological and situated perspectives. With respect to studies of situated learning in physical education more generally, further development of the notion of environment is required, including the generation of constructs that permit the theorization of the relationships between learners and tasks and between the physical, social-interactive and institutional-cultural dimensions of learning environment.
Objective The purpose of this study was to examine (a) the relationship between personal interest and situational interest in middle school physical education and (b) the extent to which both interests were influenced by student gender, grade and physical skill levels. The Construct of Interest Interest has been identified as a major motivator in schooling since the beginning of the 20th century (Dewey, 1913). Latest theoretical articulation about motivational effect of interest has differentiated influences of personal interest and situational interest on student learning. Personal interest is defined as a person's psychological disposition in preference of an activity over others (Krapp, Hidi, & Renninger, 1992). It is developed over time during a person's constant and consistent interaction with certain activities in a particular environment. Therefore, it is viewed as evolving along with a person's knowledge repertoire and value system (Krapp et. al., 1992). Situational interest, on the other hand, is a person-activity interactive or relational construct. It "flows from a person's relationship with a particular activity" (Reeve, 1996, p. 170) and occurs at the moment of a match between a person and an activity. In school learning, situational interest results from students' recognition of appealing features associated with a specific learning task (Mitchell, 1993). Classroom research (Krapp, 1999) has shown that both personal and situational interests have significant impact on students' motivation to learn. Yet, the association of the two is unclear. Questions that remain include whether each interest relates to the other in learning and to what extent both are influenced by student individual characteristics such as gender, grade, and prior knowledge and skill. Research in physical education (Chen, Darst, & Pangrazi, 1999) has generated some preliminary results suggesting a weak relationship between personal and situational interest. Chen and Darst (1999) also reported that gender, grade, and prior physical skill levels had insignificant impact on situational interest. To further explore the influence of interest, this study was designed to extend the research on interest by examining specifically the relationship between personal interest and situational interest and the association of them with gender, grade, and prior physical skill levels. Methods Participants and Setting. Permitted by their parents, 191 students of 7th and 8th grade from a middle school in the Phoenix metro area participated in the study (57% female, 43% male). The sample included 3% African American, 62% European American, 26% Mexican American, 4% Native American and 5% in other ethnicity. The school offered daily physical education taught by four male and four female certified physical educators. Stimulus Learning Tasks. Basketball was chosen as the content area for the study for two reasons. First, it is one of the most popular activities in secondary physical education curriculum. Second, responses of a personal interest survey indicated that it was the only activity that received the highest average rating scores from both boys and girls, suggesting it was an activity that represented high personal interest of the student population from which the sample for the study was drawn. A pass-shoot learning task was used to elicit situational interest. Students in previous studies regarded the task as the most interesting task. The task required students to focus on two balls' and two partners' movements simultaneously when dribbling, passing, and shooting in three locations. Data Collection and Analysis. Personal interest data were collected in a survey in which students were asked to rate 8 activities offered in the curriculum for the semester. A 7-point Likert-type scale was attached to each of the activities (7=highest interest, 1 =lowest interest). Student demographic data were collected along with the survey. The survey was conducted in classrooms with regular classes of approximately 30 students each. Students' basketball skills were assessed using an AAHPERD (1984) basketball passing skill test. The test was conducted after the survey. In the test, students were required to move (using shuffling footwork) along a 22-foot line and chest pass the ball into 5 target boxes at various height on a wall 8 feet away from the line. Two points were awarded for a pass into a box, one for a pass between two boxes. Performance was evaluated in terms of the total points earned in two trials of 30 seconds each. Situational interest of the pass-shoot task was assessed using the Situational Interest Scale, a 24-item instrument that measures situational interest (Total Interest) and its dimensional sources of Novelty, Challenge, Attention Demand, Exploration Intention, and Instant Enjoyment (Chen et al., 1999; Deci, 1992). Immediately after experiencing the task, students were asked to complete the items in the Situational Interest Scale on a 5-point Likert scale (5=strongly agree, 1=strongly disagree). The criterion validity and construct validity of the Scale were established with a factor-analytical approach (Chen et al., 1999) and deemed satisfactory. Cronbach's a coefficients for the item internal consistency were .78, .80, .90, .91, .90, and.95 for the five dimensions and overall interest, respectively. The reliability of data collection protocols was examined through testing and re-testing an independent group of students (N=61) in a two-week interval. The intra-class correlation coefficients ranged from .97 to .99 on the dimensional and overall interest measures. Correlation analysis was conducted first to examine the overall relationship between personal and situational interest. The impact of gender, grade, and physical skill level on personal and situational interest were examined using MANOVA. An attempt was also made to establish profiles of students who were classified in upper or low quartile personal and situational interest categories using the contingency-table approach where gender, grade, and skill level were analyzed in association with response patterns to personal and situational interest measures. Findings Similar to previous findings, personal and situational interest were found not correlated (r=.13, p=.06). However, a moderately positive correlation was found between personal interest and physical skill level (r=.38, p=.00). A weak but significant correlation was also found between situational interest and physical skill level (r=.17, p=.O 1). The results echo research findings from classroom research (Tobias, 1994), which have demonstrated that prior knowledge and skill serve as the basis for personal interest and facilitate recognition of situational interest in the immediate learning tasks. Results from the MANOVA analyses showed no gender X grade X physical skill interaction and subsequent 2-way interaction effects on either personal or situational interest. But these three factors had complex impact on personal and situational interest. There was a gender influence on personal interest. Boys demonstrated higher (F--18.28, p=.00) personal interest (M--6.88, SD=1.24) than girls (M--5.62, SD=2.12). However, personal interest was not influenced by grade (F--1.93, p=.17) and physical skill levels (F--.16, p=.69). The findings strongly demonstrated the influence of social expectancy on middle school students' personal interest or activity preferences (Eccles, et al., 1999), supporting the notion that personal interest is based not only on an individual's knowledge repertoire but also on a social value system (Krapp et al., 1992). MANOVA analyses also showed that there was a grade influence on situational interest. Consistent with previous findings in classroom education (Hidi & Anderson, 1992) and physical education (Chen & Darst, 1999), situational interest did decline with grade. Students in the 8th grade (M--12.71, SD=4.60) rated situational interest of pass-shoot lower than their 7th grade counterparts (M--14.60, SD=4.60; F--7.10, p=.O1). Physical skill level did have impact on situational interest. In this sample, students with high basketball passing skills (M--14.54, SD=4.28) rated the pass-shoot task with higher situational interest than those with relatively low skills (M--12.30, SD=4.81; F--11.07,p=.00). Although this result is not consistent with those reported in physical education research (Chen et al., 1998), it is supported by findings from classroom research (Tobias, 1994). To further explore the complex results from these analyses, students within highest and lowest quartile range of score of personal interest and situational interest measures were grouped into separate groups. The group profiles of gender, grade, and physical skill levels were analyzed. Students who acknowledged high situational interest were in lower grade (,'=3.92, p=.02) with higher physical skill (,'=9.78, p=.00) and higher personal interest (,2=5.69, p=.O1), regardless of their gender (,&00, p=.52). Similar analyses with personal interest revealed that only gender mattered in the student profiles. More boys than girls were in high personal interest group, while more girls than boys were in the low personal interest group (,'=16.70, p=.00). Conclusions The findings indicate that the relationship between personal and situational interest is weak. Personal interest is highly influenced by gender, suggesting that the social expectancy system have a strong impact on the students' preferences of physical activities. Situational interest, on the other hand, is influenced by years in school and physical skill level. The data support the observations that situational interest declines with years in school or age, but is positively influenced by physical skill levels. The preliminary profile analyses indicate that situational interest is more likely to be appreciated by students who possess high personal interest in the activity, have relatively high physical skills, and are at low grades. Personal interest in basketball is highly associated with gender and is favored by boys. Researchers (Hidi & Anderson, 1992) have argued that it is difficult to change and utilize personal interest to enhance learning. It is recommended that teachers should enhance situational interest to facilitate instant motivation at the moment of learning-task interaction (Krapp, 1999). The data from this research seem to suggest that both boys and girls can be motivated by highly situationally interesting activities. However, they should be aware that the motivation effect of situational interest might not be as effective for low skilled students as it is for highly skilled students.
Overview Although physical educators are relatively well informed about the individual attitudes and actions of teachers and students' related to co-educational physical education, prior research has ignored the interactive and mutually influencing nature of teachers', male students' and female students' attitudes and actions in coed classes. It was the purpose of this study to explore the complex interaction of participants' attitudes and actions in coeducational physical education Gender and Class Ecology Physical educators actually know quite a bit about the perspectives of individuals involved in coeducational physical education. We know that many female students hold a low value for sport (Vertinsky, 1992), have a lower participation rate (Eccles & Herold, 1991) and selfconfidence (Martinek 1989), experience role conflict (Coackley, 1994) and interact less with teachers (Dunbar & Sullivan, 1986). Male students' experiences are characterized by a general reversal of the female pattern. Teachers' attitudes and actions impact the equitable learning environment (Griffin, 1985, Hutchinson, 1995) and are often characterized by a gap between beliefs in equality and their practice. Although informative, a majority of prior research provides a singular focus on a particular group's perspective on coed physical education. Educators, however, increasingly recognize the inter-related ecology of educational settings. Teachers and students do not exist in isolation, but rather influence, and are influenced by, all other members of the class. For example, gender roles are socially constructed so without examining the social milieu in which gender roles are played out, educators are left with an incomplete picture of gender relations. By examining the simultaneous interactions of all participants' (teachers, male students, and female students), this investigation will provide insights into the complex interactions in coed physical education and their influence on participants' attitudes and actions. Methods Participants and Setting. Seven physical education teachers and 67 students at four high schools were the participants in this study. All four schools were members of the same large urban school system. The four year high schools ranged in size from 960 to 2100 students. Three of the schools shared similar demographic trends with the schools' student bodies being over 90% African American. The fourth school was 67% African American. In all four schools, European American students represented the vast majority of the remainder of the student body. The seven teachers, two men and five women, were full time physical education staff members at the four high schools. The teachers ranged in experience from one to 26 years of teaching. All physical education students in the classes under study at these four schools were eligible for participation and encouraged to participate. A total of 67 students, 31 boys and 36 girls agreed to participate. Students were selected to represent a range of classes, demographics, and participation patterns. Data Collection and Analysis. Data were collected via class observations and interviews. Each school was observed a minimum of 40 hours. An interview guide provided the focus for interviews with 7 teachers and 67 students. Interviews were taped and transcribed. The constant comparison process outlined by LeCompte and Preissle (1993) served as the guide for data reduction and analysis. Several measures were taken to insure the trustworthiness of the data collected. Regular meetings with peer debriefers were utilized to insure the emerging themes were grounded in the data. Triangulation of data sources was provided by comparing observations from different schools, teachers, and classes. Repeated re-analysis of the data occurred to search for negative cases that might offer alternative conceptions to emerging themes. Results and Discussion Observations and interviews revealed a cycle of expectations and participation patterns, frustrations, and accommodation strategies. Students and teachers entered class with expectations about the course content and participation. The differing expectations for and participation patterns of male and female students contributed to frustration on the part of the teachers and female students as they clashed over engagement. Relatedly, due to the differences in participation between female and male students, all parties developed accommodation strategies that allowed the class to progress with minimal disruption despite unequal participation. Expectation and Participation. Similar to results reported in earlier studies, participation patterns varied greatly among students. In general though, male students, regardless of their skill level, were active in class. Even when off-task, they were moving. In contrast, the female students were not actively involved in class. Their participation ranged from passive involvement in games to not dressing out for class. The participation patterns were influenced in part by the expectations students and teachers held. In particular the students held strong beliefs about what were appropriate activities for boys and girls. Chamiqua explained it this way, "It's a girl-sport, boy-sport thing.". They were also clear that male and female students were very different. The teachers shared the students' belief that female and male students were quite different. Ms. Wass described the difference, "Girls and boys think differently and behave differently. You know, men are from Venus and women from Mars. That's the simple facts." Although they claimed boys and girls were different, the teachers then incongruently expected both boys and girls to act alike in competitive games and drills. Frustration. When male and female students did not act alike in class activities, the teachers became frustrated. The teachers believed that the female students had equal opportunity to participate in class and were frustrated when the female students did not participate actively. Ironically, the female students were also frustrated with their participation in class. Unlike the teachers, however, they did not believe that they had an equal opportunity to participate. The girls believed that boys controlled the class and did not want them involved in game play. Tabila described her basketball class, "Boys don't let girls play. They don't like us in there so we just stand there and look stupid and they act like they don't even know we're there." Although less frequent, boys also expressed frustration with girls' attitudes and skill levels. Accommodation. The cycle of different expectations and frustrations resulted in accommodation strategies for all participants. The teachers lowered expectations for girls and/or provided an alternate curriculum (dance and jump rope) to promote female engagement. The male students ignored the girls, even when on their team, or occasionally involved the girls with "charity" passes and opportunities where the boys stopped the natural flow of the game and let the girls "play". Trey described how his team involved the girls in hockey, "If we're playing a bad team or something we'll tell them to stand by the goal and we'll pass it to them and let them shoot. If it's a good team we just kind of play around them." The girls' strategy was primarily one of rejection and disengagement. Regina described the dilemma, "We can sit here or stand out there. It's the same thing. We ain't be playing either way. " The result of the interaction of attitudes and actions was a negative educational cycle. The accommodating strategies lead to reinforcement of the expectations which made the frustration greater which led to even more accommodation. The female students seemed most aware of the complex and largely negative role they played in class interactions, but were unable to break the cycle with the limited power they held. Educational Significance Over twenty-five years have passed since Title IX legislation integrated classrooms. Just as our classroom counterparts still struggle with meeting the needs of all students, physical educators still struggle with engaging all students. Perhaps with increased understanding of the complex interactions that make up a physical education class, educators are better prepared to alter the negative cycle and increase quality movement experiences for all.
Theoretical Perspective Social cognitive theories of achievement motivation acknowledge the critical role that individual beliefs about competence play in determining patterns of behavior in a specific domain (Bandura, 1986; Fletz, 1992, Harter, 1981). Perceived competence is defined as the manner in which an individual perceives her or his own ability to perform a specific task or a role appropriate behavior (Nicholls & Miller, 1984; Treasure & Roberts, 1995). Harter's (1981) competence motivation theory asserts that individuals will be motivated to engage in tasks when they perceive themselves to be competent, and conversely will withdraw from activities when they perceive themselves to lack competence. Self-efficacy theory (Bandura, 1986) provide a framework for the examination of social cognitive variables and how they interrelate to affect behavior. Self-efficacy can be described as a specific kind of perceived competence, reflected by an individual's confidence that he or she can effectively use her or his ability in a specific situation. Theoretical predictions are that individuals with a high level of self-efficacy will be more likely to engage in a pattern of behavior that will facilitate achievement. That is, they will attend to instructional information, employ problem solving strategies, exert effort, and work at a challenging level. Conversely, when self efficacy is low, individuals are deemed at risk to display a maladaptive pattern of behavior, withdrawing effort and avoiding challenge. One factor that has emerged as an important variable in the formation of beliefs about competence and efficacy is the perceived gender appropriateness of an activity (Lee, Fredenburg, Belcher, & Cleveland, 1999; Lirgg, George, Chase, & Ferguson, 1996), and there is clear evidence that sextyping of physical activity choices exists. Prior experience is the most influential source of self-efficacy beliefs, but when prior experience in a specific domain is limited, vicarious information becomes an important factor (Feltz, 1992). When approaching a task or activity with no prior experience, the level of efficacy should be enhanced when a model is perceived to be similar in personal or performance characteristics (Gould & Weiss, 1981). It follows then, that when an activity is perceived to be gender appropriate, competence beliefs should be stronger than when the activity is perceived to be gender inappropriate. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of beliefs about gender appropriateness on beliefs about competence in a physical activity setting. Using self-efficacy as a theoretical framework, we also investigated whether or not the gender of a model performing a novel task would have an effect on the beliefs about the gender appropriateness of a task and the participants' levels of confidence in their ability to perform the task. Method Participants for this study were 432 (324 females and 108 males) enrolled in a variety of kinesiology classes at a major university in the southeast. They agreed to complete a survey on their beliefs about physical activity as a part of a larger research study. Hockey was selected as the topic on the basis of a pilot survey indicating most individuals in this region had little direct experience with hockey. It was also evident that, although generally considered to be a male sport, hockey is an activity that a number of female students rated as equally appropriate for females and males. Individuals who had previous experience with hockey were eliminated from the study. Participants completed the first section of the questionnaire by rating on Likert scales how interested they were in hockey, the level of importance they placed on hockey, the perceived level of difficulty of hockey, their current ability level, and their level of confidence in improving their hockey skills. Additionally, individuals were asked to indicate whether they considered the physical activity of hockey to be only for females, mostly for females, for both males and females, mostly for males, or only for males. Participants were randomly assigned to view one of two videotapes demonstrating the hockey wrist shot. An expert male model demonstrated the skill on one of the tapes, while an expert female was the model on the other. After viewing the appropriate tape, participants completed the second section of the questionnaire. They rated on Likert scales how confident they were that they could learn the hockey wrist shot, and indicated whether they considered the hockey wrist shot, as a specific skill, to be only for females, mostly for females, for both males and females, mostly for males, or only for males. In addition to the rating scales, participants were asked, using an open-ended format, to explain the rationales for their confidence ratings and beliefs about gender appropriateness. Data were analyzed using both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Frequency counts and chi-square analyses were used to describe the beliefs about the gender appropriateness of the physical activity of hockey and the specific skill, the wrist shot. A one-way multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) with univariate follow-ups was used to detect differences between males and females with regard to interest, perceived importance, difficulty, current ability, and confidence in the ability to learn hockey skills. A 2 (sex of participant) X 2 (sex of model) MANOVA with univariate follow-ups was used to assess the effect of the sex of the model on beliefs about gender appropriateness and confidence levels for the wrist shot. To more closely examine the impact of beliefs about gender appropriateness on competence beliefs, a separate analysis was conducted for the female participants. Using beliefs about gender appropriateness as the independent variable, a MANOVA with univariate follow-ups was used to determine if females' interest levels, perceived importance, difficulty, current ability, and confidence differed as a function of their beliefs about gender appropriateness. The open-ended responses were analyzed using constant comparison (LeCompte & Priessle, 1993). Results The frequency count suggests that overall, hockey was perceived by the participants as an activity primarily for males, as 76°/ of the participants indicated they believed the sport of hockey was either mostly or only for males. The chi-square analysis [F-VI (2, N = 428) = 9.80, p< .007] indicates that males were more likely to express the belief that hockey was only for males than females. However, the specific skill, the wrist shot, was perceived to be gender neutral, with 90% of the participants indicating it was appropriate for both males and females. The distribution of beliefs about gender appropriateness did not differ with regard to the hockey wrist shot. The open-ended responses explaining the rationales that individuals provided for their gender beliefs suggest that, although a majority of participants believed that hockey was for males, they perceived the wrist shot to be such a simple skill that anyone could perform it. The MANOVA to test for differences between males and females with regard to competence beliefs about the sport of hockey revealed significant differences [Wilks' Lambda .93, F ( 6, 418) 5.12, p < .0001 ]. Univariate follow-ups indicated that males and females did not differ with regard to interest levels or perceived importance of hockey, but that males perceived themselves to have a higher level of current ability, had more confidence that they could improve their hockey skills, and perceived hockey to be less difficult than did the females in the study. TheMANOVA testing for differences attributable to the sex of the model revealed a significant main effect for sex of the participants [Wilks' Lambda .91, F (2, 424) 19.62, p < .0001], but the main effect for the sex of the model and the interaction were not significant. The univariate follow-ups indicated that males were more confident than females that they could learn the hockey wrist shot. The results of the MANOVA conducted for the female participants revealed that their competence beliefs differed as a function of beliefs about gender appropriateness [Wilks' Lambda .91, F ( 2, 424) 2.14, p < .009]. Univariate follow-ups indicated that females who perceived the sport of hockey to be gender neutral had a higher perception of their current ability than females who believed hockey to be predominantly for males. Females who believed hockey is only for males perceived hockey to be more difficult and had less confidence that they could learn the skills of hockey than females who perceived hockey to be gender neutral and those who perceived hockey to be mostly for males. The qualitative analysis of the open-ended responses yielded information that extends the quantitative results by providing insight into the origin of beliefs about gender appropriateness and impact those beliefs have on beliefs about competence. Participants indicated they based their confidence ratings on a variety of factors: motivation to learn, effort, interest, willingness to practice, prior experience with similar tasks, the level of difficulty of the task, availability of quality instruction, natural athletic ability, and the ability to learn quickly. Individuals who expressed a low level of confidence cited a lack of ability and a lack of interest in the task as factors contributing to their lack of confidence. Fernales tended to cite willingness to practice as a major factor in their high levels of confidence, while males more often attributed their confidence to natural ability. Consistent with the quantitative data, the open-ended responses reflected a belief by a majority of participants that the sport of hockey was for males. The rationales offered for this belief were physical factors (e.g., it is a rough, tough, violent sport requiring strength and power) as well as sociological factors (e.g., I have only seen men play hockey on television). Individuals who characterized hockey as gender neutral indicated that women were capable and should have opportunities to participate in any activity they want. The qualitative analysis suggested that the gender of the model had no significant effect on perceived confidence because the task itself was perceived to be very easy, or one that either males or females could do, because it did not appear to rely on strength and power. Educational Significance Females are less active in physical activity than males, and their perceptions about gender appropriateness of physical activity have the potential to impact their decisions to engage in physical activity. These results provide information that can be useful to physical education teachers and teacher educators as they address the problem of engaging girls in physical activity. It is clear from this study that when females perceive an activity to be for males, they are unlikely to perceive themselves to be competent in that activity, and therefore unlikely to exert effort. Recent research (Solmon, 1997) suggests that many girls perceive their physical education classes to be for boys, and this study indicates that when they have that perception, they are unlikely to have confidence in their ability to succeed in class. These findings underscore the importance of making learning activities in physical education meaningful for all students.
Purpose This paper reports on the outcomes of project, funded by the Curriculum Support Directorate, NSW Department of Education and Training, which was designed to improve the experiences of girls and boys in physical education by adopting an approach which takes gender as 'socially constructed'. The paper will critically examine the key strategies put in place as outcomes of the project; and will propose a set of guidelines for 'best practice' in addressing gender issues in physical education. The paper will argue that we need to interrogate the old 'verities' of role models and single sex education and explore alternatives, which may not necessarily replace, but which could support these traditional responses to the 'problem' of girls' participation in physical education. In doing so the argument will be that in designing inclusive practices in physical education we need to take into account the power relationships, needs and experiences of both girls and boys and indeed different groups of girls and boys. Theoretical framework Historically gender reform in physical education has been informed by a number of different approaches, each of which has reflected current feminist thinking and has been responsive to public concerns at the time. For many years policy and strategies have been primarily motivated by a perceived need to address inequalities in educational provisions for girls compared with boys. While some outcomes for girls have changed, for instance, their participation in physical activities has increased and broadened in scope, their participation and experiences in physical education continue to be problematic. These becomes even moreso the case with particular groups of girls (e.g. in Australia, girls of Asian and Middle Eastern heritage). In addition, there is growing body of literature which points to the place of physical activity and sport in constituting and perpetuating forms of masculinity which are oppressive for some groups of boys and for most girls (Connell 1995; Gilbert and Gilbert 1999). In the last decade, the focus in education more generally has shifted from strategies designed to provide the same opportunities and access for girls as compared to boys, to an attempt to understand how the practices of schooling, including physical education, may contribute to limiting constructions of femininity and masculinity (Kenway &Willis 1998; Gilbert & Gilbert 1999). Most recently an approach which takes gender as socially constructed has been taken up as offering possibilities for gender reform in schools. This way of thinking has informed policy making in Australia at the national and state level. The term 'gender reform', though somewhat clumsy is used deliberately in this paper to move beyond a position where policies and strategies are solely concerned with increasing the participation of girls in physical activity. For instance, the argument will be made that while moving to single sex classes will in the short term create a safe and supportive environment for girls it rarely addresses the ways sport is implicated in producing forms of masculinity that are oppressive for some groups of boys and for most girls and women. Nor does it necessarily change the power relations between girls and boys in other physical activity contexts such as the playground and other sporting and leisure contexts inside and outside school. In 1997-1998, improved student fitness and participation in physical activity was made a priority area in NSW for government schools. One outcome of this was a number of programs to provide support for schools through curriculum resources and professional development. One such initiative was the Gender Issues in Physical Activity (GIPA) Program to improve the experiences of girls and boys in physical education. This program was developed in the context of two policy documents - one national and the other specific to New South Wales - which argued for strategic change which took account of gender as socially constructed - that is, that people come to understand what it means to be male or female through social practice, including the practices which produce the knowledge, skills and social relations in physical education lessons. Methods and data sources The GIPA project had a number of components, including workshops with 110 physical education teachers and district consultants, funded projects under an active girls program and tendered research whereby university researchers evaluated the workshops and worked with teachers to support and document gender reform projects. The Gender Issues in Physical Activity workshops were developed within a framework that foregrounded the 'social construction of gender' as a key concept. The general aim of the workshops was to facilitate an understanding of gender difference in relation to physical activity and offer support in effecting change. An evaluation immediately following the workshops was conducted by a short anonymous questionnaire which asked participants to rate various aspects of the workshops using a scale with four intervals and to make comment on their experience. A follow-up survey which was specifically designed to determine how far the participants had progressed with implementing changes was conducted two months later. The survey was used to identify strategies that the participants had implemented or were considering implementing and was followed-up by phone and face-to-face interviews with teachers and consultants. The survey had two main components the first was to be filled in anonymously and the second asked that teachers or consultants to identify themselves and their school or district. This last component was returned separately and was designed to provide information which could be followed up with interviews. The anonymous component was designed to elicit comments about the workshop, shifts in understandings concerning gender construction and strategies adopted or to be adopted in schools or districts. With such small numbers the intention was to identify trends through descriptive statistics rather than look for significant relationships. In particular the purpose of the surveys was to determine the impact of the workshop on the strategies considered or implemented in schools The surveys were followed-up by interviews with all those teachers who had indicated that they had implemented or intended to implement some form of gender reform strategy. The consultants were also interviewed about strategies in the schools in their districts. Results This anonymous questionnaire conducted immediately following the workshop indicated that the participants left the workshops with at least a willingness, indeed for some, considerable enthusiasm, to put ideas generated by the workshops into practice. There was less certainty from the point of view of the participants that the workshops had increased their repertoire of strategies for implementing specific school-based actions to address gender equity issues. Some of the responses to the questionnaire pointed to what would become an issue in the broader evaluation of the project as a whole, that is, the difficulties associated with being a lone voice in the school or the physical education faculty, the need for principals and the senior executives in school to hear the workshop messages, `to be challenged about their narrow views', and the difficulty in changing the `culture' of schools and programs. Out of the 110 questionnaires sent out two months following the workshop, 58 teachers and 25 consultants responded. Their responses indicated that most of the participants perceived themselves as making major shifts in their understanding of the construction of gender and in their ability to explain it to their colleagues. Over a half of the participants had spoken formally at faculty or at school staff meetings on gender issues. One of the most valued aspects of the workshop was the opportunity to share ideas and to network with others. Again one of the criticisms of the workshop was that it did not provide specific strategies to take back to schools. From the teachers' responses group interaction and sharing of ideas about strategies were very productive ways of learning and of motivating action. In the follow-up interviews, teachers reported a range of imaginative strategies which will be described in the paper. Despite the emphasis on the social construction of gender in the workshops the concept was less evident in the strategies proposed to address gender issues in the participants' schools. What was clearly most immediate to the teachers' own experience was the reluctance of female students to participate in physical activity and physical education. The strategies implemented or planned for reflected this concern. Few strategies directly addressed issues of gender construction or looked to address the power relations between girls and boys. It is this issue that will be taken up in a critical examination of the strategies most often nominated by the teachers. These strategies were single sex teaching environments and programs specifically designed for 'reluctant' or low participating female students, many of which made use of elite athletes as role models. These approaches have also been historically prominent in the literature in education and physical education. One of the major aims of this paper then is to scrutinize these approaches in terms of current theorising and research on gender issues, particularly that written from a feminist and poststructuralist perspective, with the view to developing a set of principles to inform a more inclusive practice. Educational significance Single sex classes as a strategy for addressing gender issues in physical education classes has been particularly prominent in the research literature and school practice. Indeed one might argue that interest in the topic has been exhausted. Its salience for teachers in this and other research suggests however that it is still the major strategy adopted to solve 'the problem' of girls' low participation in physical education. In addition the debate has usually been about whether girls prefer single sex coeducational physical education classes and whether they increase the participation of girls in physical activity in physical education. The argument here is not that these are unimportant concerns but that there are other consequences and implications of class organisation that are rarely taken into account. Some of the schools in the study were beginning to explore creative and flexible arrangements to address this issue. In addition the paper will interrogate the often taken-for-granted notion that the presence of role models will have a positive effect on participation in physical activity. The concept of role modeling does not sit well with the notion of gender as socially constructed. It suggests a simplistic process by which one person will copy the behaviours of another. Where it is used as a gender strategy it assumes that young people will recognize and take on the attributes of models who are deemed by adults to embody socially valued characteristics. It does not ask questions about how the young people see these models, what sense they make of their attributes and whether they see their attributes as desirable enough to incorporate into their own behaviors. It seems to take little cognizance of the local cultures of the young people the strategy is being employed to influence. One of the central aims of the GIPA project was to encourage strategies which made explicit the ways in which gender was constructed and how this affected the participation of girls and boys in physical activity. Following the project we would argue that this continues to be essential to changes which address the power relations between boys and girls and which take into account the differences in experiences and needs of different groups of girls and boys. A set of principles to do this will be elaborated in the paper. References Connell, R.W. (1995) Masculinities. Sydney: Allen & Unwin. Gilbert, P. &Gilbert, R. (1998) Masculinity Goes to School. Sydney: Allen & Unwin. Kenway, J. & Willis, S. (1997) Answering Back: Girls, Boys and Feminism in Schools. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.
Purpose of the Study This study examined the effectiveness of having beginning learners watch other beginners practicing a motor skill and listening to the feedback provided by the teacher as they practiced. Specifically, the study investigated differences between students who observed a learning model (with feedback), a learning model (without feedback) and a "correct" model in the acquisition of a complex sport skill (soccer kick-up). It has been hypothesized that making participants privy to feedback of a learning model should engage them in the error detectioncorrection and problem solving processes of observational learning. These processes should accelerate participants in performance and learning compared to other combinations of taskrelevant information. Theoretical Framework In physical education demonstrations or models are one of the most common ways teachers provide learners with information about a task to be learned (Rink, 1993). Researchers in motor learning have studied the use of skilled and unskilled models (Adams, 1986; Hebert & Landin, 1994; McCullagh & Caird, 1990; McCullagh & Meyer, 1997; Pollock & Lee, 1992; Twitmyer, 1931) using tasks ranging from laboratory activities (e.g., manual timing tasks) to real world tasks (e.g., tennis volley). If a "correct" model is the goal, the learner is exposed to a demonstration that initially and consistently displays flawless performance. Early theoretical support for the "correct" model was provided by Sheffield (1961). The observer of a "correct" model would form a symbolic representation of the observed skill in memory. The purpose of the blueprint would serve as a representation of "what to do" and as a referent for making corrections thus subsequently guiding the learner's overt reproduction of the task. Repeated observation of a model provides a means to obtain a "blueprint". Evidence provided by Bandura and Carroll (1986) suggest that increased exposure to modeled actions enhances the cognitive representation and the behavioral reproduction. While viewing the "correct" model, the observer learns visually by picking up the invariant features of the model's coordination pattern (Magill, 1998). Research has provided evidence that observing a "correct" model does help facilitate skill learning (McCullagh, 1993). However, according to Magill (1998) viewing of a "correct" model may cause the observer to try to learn through response mimicry. In contrast, observing an unskilled model might discourage imitation and encourage the use of individual exploration and problem solving. Another approach, called a learning model, affords participants the opportunity to watch a beginning learner experience acquisition difficulties while gradually improving performance (McCullagh & Meyer, 1997). Several studies support the usage of learning models to facilitate skill learning (Adams, 1986; Hebert & Landin, 1994; McCullagh & Caird, 1990; McCullagh & Meyer, 1997; Pollack & Lee, 1992; Twitmyer, 1931). The participants see what is wrong with the attempt, hear the augmented feedback provided by the instructor, see what the beginner does to correct the errors and observe how successful the learner is on succeeding attempts. According to motor learning theory, this process is different from simply watching an unskilled model because the learner is involved critically through receiving the model's augmented feedback. In other words, the feedback highlights the cause and effect relationships of behavior change. Involvement in the error-correction problem allows the observer to be actively engaged in the problem solving process thus providing a conceptual insight into the cognitive base of the task to be learned (Lee, Swinnen, & Serrien, 1994). Based on theoretical predictions the learning model plus feedback group should perform significantly better during acquisition trials than the other two combinations of task-relevant information (i.e. learning model without feedback and "correct" model). The effect of giving feedback and viewing a learning model should engage the subjects in the error detection-correction and problem solving processes of observational learning, which should aid performance and learning. Significant results will give support for Lee, Swinnen, and Serrien's (1994) cognitive effort hypothesis and clarify the equivocal results of the learning model vs "correct" model research line. Method The participants in this study were 50 female undergraduate students who had no experience in soccer. The students filled out an informed consent and were randomly assigned to one of the three treatment groups. The task that was learned was a soccer kick-up. The task required the participant to stand behind a stationary soccer ball and lift the projectile over a barrier with the foot and onto a target (on other side of barrier). The ball was placed 6 ft. in front of the barrier. On the other side of the barrier, the center of the target was placed 6 ft. from the barrier and marked with different colors laid out in concentric rings. A large area was arranged with three sets of barriers and targets. Task and inter-coder reliability was obtained. Split half method assessing consistency within the task produced a corrected reliability coefficient of .87 (Spearman-Brown Prophecy Formula). Interobserver agreement was .95. The barrier was made from PCP pipes constructed with two end pieces and a cross-bar. The target was marked on the floor and was in view of the participants while they projected the ball. The concentric rings started with a yellow center followed by light blue, red, blue, purple, and pink. Two lines were marked 3 ft. from the outer edge of the target and the back edge of the target was 3 ft. from the wall. A female helper served as the "correct" model. She was videotaped as she executed 40 soccer kick-ups. The videotape angle changed each trial rotating from the side-front-back-side (McCullagh & Meyer, 1997). Also, two female learning models were videotaped. The learning models received feedback (prescriptive KP) after every three trials. The cues that were given to the learning models were selected and sequenced by the experimenter. After the learning model corrected the first error, a different KP statement was given. The sequence of the six KP-statements correspond to the soccer kick-up task-analysis. On arrival, after signing consent forms, the first four participants were led into a room with a VCR and monitor. The subjects viewed one of the three conditions (learning model plus feedback (LM + KP), learning model no feedback (LM-KP) and "correct" model (CM) as deemed by their random assignment. The LM + KP condition consisted of watching the learning model on the monitor/VCR with the volume loud enough to hear the model' s feedback. In contrast, the LM -KP saw the model with the volume turned off. Finally, the "correct" model group saw the "correct" model. Participants performed 6 blocks of ten trials (40 on the 1st day, 20 on the 2"d day) during the acquisition phase. Subjects alternated watching 10 trials of videotape and independently performing 10 trials until they kicked the ball 60 times. Before the twenty trials on the second day, the subjects performed 4 trials to minimize the warm-up decrement (Schmidt & Lee, 1998). On Day 2 the participants performed a block of 10 trials for a retention test and another block of 10 trials for a transfer test. The transfer trials required the participants to kick the ball from 8 ft. behind the barrier, which was 2 ft. further from the target than the practice distance. Outcome scores for each trial were recorded from videotape and participants filled out a short questionnaire describing the strategies they used to solve the action goal. Analysis/Results Separate analyses were conducted for acquisition trials and the formative measures (retention and transfer). For acquisition, a 3 (group) x 6 (blocks of ten trials) ANOVA with repeated measures for block revealed very good evidence (significant at the .O1 level) for improvement over time F(5, 40)= 5.3473, p=.0007. This finding indicates that, regardless of the communication strategy used by the teacher, students improved over time. Very poor evidence (non-significant at the .05 level) was provided for between treatment group effect F(2,44)=2.39, p=.1032 or time by group interaction F(10, 80)=.3916, p=.9468. The ANOVA comparing the three groups on the retention test provided poor evidence (non-significant at the .05 level) F (2.44)=1.70, p=.1953. However, the transfer test provided good evidence (significant at the .05 level) F(2,44)=4.44, p=.0175 that the groups were different. Tukey post hoc analysis indicated that the "correct" model group (m=2.53, sd=.969) and the LM-F group (m= 1.41, sd=.93108) were similar and significantly better than the LM+F group (m=2.13, sd=.66). Conclusions and Educational Significance The primary finding from the acquisition phase is that participants improved significantly from the beginning to the end. This indicates that students can learn from both learning and "correct" models and teachers should take advantage of both. Contrary to the hypothesis, no significant group effects were found during acquisition. However, upon examination of the means, the group that viewed the "correct" model demonstration performed better in acquisition than either group that watched the learning model. This suggests that viewing a "correct" model may be more "expedient" way to learn the soccer kick-up skill. According to the cognitive effort theory, the effect of giving feedback and viewing a learning model should have engaged subjects in error-detection correction and problem-solving processes of observational learning. This hypothesis is not supported by the results. For the learning tests, no group differences appeared for the retention test but were evident in the transfer test. The groups that viewed the "correct" demonstration and the learning model where the feedback could not be heard (LM-KP) performed better than those that viewed the learning model and could hear the feedback (LM+KP). Students who were not provided a "correct" model and did not hear the learning model's feedback (LM-KP) actually improved from the retention to the transfer test. This finding suggests that these students probably engaged in more exploration and problem solving. They acquired heuristics for transferring learning to a new situation which is the goal of all education.
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of the implementation of cooperative learning in a high school physical education class on skill acquisition, intra-group relations, and teachers' and students' perceptions as an alternative to the traditional teaching method of mastery learning (Jewitt, Bain, & Ennis, 1995). Theoretical Framework: Cooperative learning is a process of learning whereby students work together to reach common goals (Putnam, 1998). In contrast to individual styles of learning in which the student is solely responsible for receiving and interpreting knowledge, students learn to work together to understand and utilize common knowledge and establish group goals. Cooperative learning has been used in a variety of teaching environments and is associated with many positive effects including higher self-esteem (Slavin, 1996), motivation to learn (Daniels, 1994; Slavin, 1990), better achievement levels (Johnson, Maruyama, Johnson, Nelson & Skon, 1981; Slavin, 1996), and the ability to work collaboratively (Johnson & Johnson, 1989). Several characteristics have emerged in cooperative learning as essential to the process. These include face to face interaction, individual accountability, positive interdependence, group goals, interpersonal relationships and group processing. Various methods have been developed to incorporate cooperative learning into the educational process. The conceptual approach (Johnson & Johnson, 1989) encourages teachers to explore cooperative learning structures as a means for promoting prosocial behaviors and cooperative skill development. This approach stresses the adaptation of curricula to the cooperative learning process and generic cooperative structures. In contrast to the conceptual approach, the curricular approach (Slavin, 1984) supports curriculum specific approaches to cooperative learning with an emphasis on an extrinsic reward structure. Two commonly used models, team accelerated instruction and cooperative integrated reading and composition, provide teachers with specific strategies to accommodate the needs of students. The structured approach (Kagan, 1992) consists of a series of steps and prescribed behaviors which are content independent and formally structured for situation specific learning experiences. Kagan (1992) proposes a number of different structures such as Numbered Heads Together and Jigsaw II as functionally specific to learning outcomes. The complex instructional approach (Cohen, 1994) is a multi-ability, varied-structured task system that promotes higher ordered, conceptual forms of thinking. Expectations of low status students are raised by highlighting the contributions of individuals to task relevance. In general, cooperative learning structures capitalize on the notion that students are their own best resource for learning. Although cooperative learning has shown to positively effect student's behavior, achievement, and commitment to learning within the context of the group, most research has been conducted in the general education classroom. Due to the paucity of research on teaching cooperative learning in physical education, a qualitative study of the implementation of cooperative learning in a high school physical education class was initiated. Ironically, the two groups most intimately involved in the day-to-day function of education, teachers and students, have rarely been asked for their thoughts by researchers (Cohn & Kottkamp, 1993). Our intent, to examine the effects of cooperative learning on skill acquisition, intra-group relations, and teachers' and students' perceptions, addresses these concerns. Methods and Data Collection: One ninth-grade physical education class was team taught by two physical education teachers. Classes met one period a day for a forty-five minutes. A table tennis and ultimate frisbee units were observed over the course of one month. Planning for the cooperative learning unit began one month in advance of instruction, with two weekly meetings involving the physical education teachers and the researchers to develop lesson plans consistent with the principles of cooperative learning. Weekly planning and review meetings continued throughout the duration of the study. A multiple-method approach was utilized to determine the implementation of cooperative learning in a high school setting. Data collection included formal and informal interviews, focus group interviews, non-participant observation, and the videotaping of lessons. The physical education teachers were formally interviewed at the beginning and close of the study for a forty-five minute time period. The teachers were informally interviewed at the beginning of each lesson to check for learning goals and teaching strategies and formally interviewed at the close of each lesson. Three to four students were interviewed in focus groups at the end of each lesson and were asked to submit daily written reflections on their cooperative learning experiences. All students were required to submit a final reflection and complete a unit exam. Other relevant documents included the daily lesson plans and personal reflections of teachers. Data Analysis: All of the interviews were audio-taped and transcribed for analysis. Data collected from field notes, videotapes, interviews and documents were organized into manageable and accessible records. The data were read and re-read to find concepts that arose frequently, which were then combined to form themes and sub-themes. Inductive analysis and constant comparison were used to analyze and organize the data thematically (Denzin & Lincoln, 1994). Trustworthiness was established through the triangulation of different data collection modes of interviews, videotapes, field notes, and teacher-student materials (Lincoln & Guba, 19$5). On-going analysis occurred with the assistance of a peer debriefer. Member checks included the physical education teachers reading the interview transcripts to modify and clarify any aspects of the interviews. Results: Skill acquisition: In the reflective journals, the female teacher noted significant improvement in the skill level and overall understanding of the game as compared with other classes not using cooperative learning. Both teachers commented on the use of skill cues and task cards in providing specific feedback for learning, and the students' utilization of skills and strategies for use in a game setting. Intra-group relations: Both teachers and students noted the function of specific roles to establish common goals and facilitate group dynamics. And while some groups had difficulty performing their roles and operating cooperatively, students conducted daily evaluations in assessing group efficacy. Students became more comfortable with the concepts of positive interdependence and group goals and appreciated the cooperative roles of encourager and coach to support learning. Students' Voices: Three student themes emerged in the student voices: working together, class enjoyment, and students helping each other learn. The concept of "team work" took on new meaning as students attempted to establish working groups by completing group goals. Students commented on the positive and negative contributions by individual group members and the process of getting to know group members and group roles. Students also commented on their enjoyment of cooperative learning and the difference between past and present experiences in physical education. They felt less time was spent on teacher explanation and more on activity. Teachers' Voices: Three themes emerged in the teacher's voices: time limitations, teacher responsibility, and communication. The teachers found the planning time consuming, and the resources limited. Both teachers had been accustomed to a direct style of teaching in which verbal instructions were given and tasks executed. In particular, the male teacher struggled with relinquishing teacher directedness. The teachers also believed the students had difficulty in their ability to communicate instructions related to the task. The teachers felt students lacked adequate preparation and experience in adopting the characteristics of cooperative learning. Educational Importance of the Study: Cooperative learning is an alternative to traditional didactic methods of teaching so often found in physical education settings. The establishment of roles and group goals provides a structure that facilitates the transference of knowledge between peers, and encourages a dynamic contextual setting that highlights intra-group responsibility. Equally important for the teachers is on-going support and consultation in adopting this model.In high school settings, physical education has often been criticized for catering to the athletically gifted as a "performance curriculum" (Sage, 1995). Cooperative learning is one method which facilitates student engagement as a means for encouraging pro-social behaviors and cooperative skill development. Simply placing students in situations that provide contact is not sufficient for learning, accepting, and appreciating differences. If we, as physical educators, are to value principles of recognition and equity, productive, engaging interactions must occur between members of diverse groups. Cooperative learning is instrumental to this process.
Objectives This paper provides an analysis of the longitudinal generalization effects of one documented successful positive social curriculum designed for elementary physical education (Sharpe, Brown, & Crider, 1995) and structured youth sport (Sharpe, Brown, & Foulk, 1999) settings. The focus of this study was on determining the strength of the curriculum on exposed students as they matriculated through their high-school years, in comparison to characteristically similar students who had received no prior exposure to the positive social curriculum. Study focus was felt significant given the increasing incidence of violent and disruptive behavior in high-school settings, and given the challenge of ensuring generalization of positive social skills through these critical developmental periods. Purposes Following the treatment model of Sharpe et. al. (1995, 1996), the purpose of this study was to continue this line of research by examining the long-term generalized effectiveness of a behaviorally-based positive social skill treatment across previously exposed and non-exposed participant groups. Theoretical Framework An important potential benefit of participation in organized youth sport activities is the development of positive social skills. Select studies are now available to support the short-term effectiveness of positive social skill training in sport settings regarding their ability to increase and maintain important leadership and conflict resolution behaviors within those settings. A remaining challenge to this line of inquiry, however, is one of demonstrating the long-term generalization of successful behavior changes into the later developmental years. Clearly public school physical education and structured youth sport programs which are documented as successful in promoting the long-term use of positive social behavior throughout a client's lifespan are important given the knowledge that anti-social children are over represented within adult groups characterized by societal ills (Caspi, Elder, & Bem, 1987), and that we know the positive social behavior of adults to be associated with the positive social dimensions of childhood performance (Parker & Asher, 1987). In these regards, this study looked into the long-term effects of children exposed to a documented successful positive social instructional treatment versus similar youth not previously exposed. Participants and Setting Participants included eight male high school students, all of whom had demonstrated an initially high incidence of disruptive antisocial behavior and related office referrals in their early K-6 years, and who all began attendance at the same metropolitan high school with the onset of this study. Four participants were exposed to the positive social curriculum model during their elementary school years, and four participants had no prior exposure. All participants were purposefully chosen and matched according to similar positive social, academic, and socio-economic characteristics. All exposed and non-exposed participants were involved in a daily 45 min. structured sport-based recreational activity time after their lunch period within a large metropolitan high school facility. Recreational activity time took place in a well equipped double indoor gymnasium in which students were given opportunities to play various forms of group games of their choosing. Each recreational activity time typically included 60-90 male participants and was supervised by multiple (N=2-3) physical education teachers. Supervision duties were limited to sport equipment provision, and resolving student conflicts when deemed necessary. Students were responsible for all activity initiation, implementation, and referee-type governance for the duration of the activity time. Two separate activity times were monitored, each containing two exposed and two non-exposed study participants. Methods An ABA prompt + maintenance design across exposed and nonexposed groups was used to compare long-term generalization effects of prior exposure versus non-exposure to the K-6th grade positive social curriculum treatment. Long-term effects were compared within and across groups over a four semester period as a function of intermittent treatment prompt exposure for both groups in multiple baseline format. Measures Target measures included behaviors of Peer Conflict, Disruptive Off-Task, Peer Leadership, Authority Independent Conflict Resolution (AICR), and Participant Activity Engagement. Number of incidences and percentage of recreational time were used as indices. General Procedures All exposed and non-exposed participants were directly observed on all target measures for an extended baseline and then exposed to the positive social treatment in intermittent prompt form to respectively determine (a) long-term generalization, and (b) the effects of continued exposure. The prompt form of the positive social treatment was administered on select days by the teacher supervisor group during 5 min. periods occurring before and after the activity time. The treatment prompts included supervisor talk over specific positive social objectives, encouraging and reinforcing the use of Peer Leadership and AICR behaviors in the context of winning and losing and conflict situations, providing information related to the number of positive and negative social interactions exhibited on that recreational day, and verbally reinforcing specific participant instances of Peer Leadership and AICR behaviors. This study lasted for the first four consecutive semesters of high school for each study participant. Data observation days consisted of one complete structured activity time twice per month on the same time and day of the week. Phase one of the study for each participant was akin to a first longitudinal baseline, with consequent intermittent treatment prompts provided only on select observation days across exposed and non-exposed participants. Results Results on the target measures of conflict, off-task, peer leadership, and authority independent conflict resolution (AICR) frequencies indicated (a) consistently low levels of off-task behavior for those exposed in contrast to high levels of off-task for those not exposed, (b) continuously improving trends in leadership and AICR behaviors for the exposed group as a function of treatment prompts, (c) no effect of treatment prompts for the non-exposed group, and (d) greater percentages of time devoted to activity engagement for the exposed group. Scientific Importance The results of this study first provide overwhelming evidence in support of the K-6 positive social behavior treatment in training for the successful long-term extinction of off-task behavior and the successful long-term use of leadership and AICR behaviors. In addition, evidence is provided related to the positive long-term treatment effects with regard to ensuring appropriate activity engagement in school-based settings in which teacher supervision is relatively unobtrusive and in which students are given degrees of freedom in activity direction. This study also provided evidence in support of the importance of positive social behavior training at an early developmental age, given the lack of effect of the treatment prompts on the nonexposed group. Last, this study provided important evidence in support of the potential for long-term maintenance and generalization of behaviorally-based educational treatments, strengthening the argument for the value of early positive social intervention programs in physical education and youth sport settings.
Purposes The purpose of this study was to describe how the preservice teachers promoted high school students' critical thinking skills while teaching adventure-typed cooperative learning activities during their practicum experiences. The key factors that facilitated the preservice teachers' teaching critical thinking skills were also explored. Theoretical Perspective Since McBride (1991) proposed the critical thinking framework in the psychomotor domain, infusing critical thinking skills into physical education curriculum has been increasingly advocated among scholars and physical education teachers (e.g., Cleland & Pearse, 1995; Ennis, 1991; McBride & Cleland, 1998; Schwager & Labate, 1993; Tishman & Perkins, 1995). Scholars posit that the efficient movement performance and creative generation of solutions to movement problems involve in crucial elements of critical thinking skills, such as identifying successful and problematic movement responses, drawing inferences from previous movement responses, trying out possible solutions, adjusting planning and ideas, and evaluation decisions and consequences. The psychomotor domain provides a special and potential opportunity for promoting students' critical thinking skills. However, critical thinking skills cannot be acquired automatically. McBride (1991) noted that critical thinking skills can be promoted only when teachers used appropriate teaching strategies to create the supportive and productive learning environment. His argument ignited researchers' interests in investigating teachers' teaching strategies that promoted students' critical thinking skills. For example, McBride and Knight (1993) suggested that to teach students' critical thinking teachers primarily used three teaching strategies: (a) providing students with opportunities for inquires, (b) promoting students' cooperation with each other, and (c) modeling how to be open-minded . Ennis (1991) reported that teachers engaged students in rnetacognitive thinking processes by focusing students' attention to the movement task, encouraging students to explore possible movement responses, guiding students to identify errors based on certain criteria, and inviting students to draw their conclusions. In a study by Cleleand, John, and Fry (1999), teachers invited students to design their movement sequences by providing them with themes and processes for generating ideas and guided them to think critically about the quality of movement responses by having them compare and contrast possible ideas. Taken together, researchers have begun to investigate how in-service teachers taught critical thinking in physical education curriculum. However, fostering a change in infusing new teaching perspectives into the field of teaching starts from both preservice and in-service teachers. Thus, more studies need to investigate how preservice teachers learn to teach critical thinking during their teacher preparation courses and practicum experiences. Methods Participants and research setting-s. The participants in this study were two preservice teachers enrolled in the teaching practicum during their junior year at a major university and 28 12"' graders from one inner city high school in which African American were approximately 90%, while Asian, Hispanic, and European American represents 10% of the student population. Prior to their practicum, the two preservice teachers took one teacher preparation core course in which first session was the adventure session including 15 lessons, each for one hour and 20 minutes. During a semester-long practicum, the two preservice teachers team-taught the first unit of 10 lessons on adventure-typed activities to one physical education class which met twice a week, each for 40 minutes. Data collection. We observed a two-day adventure workshop which was the portion of the 15 adventure lessons taught by a teacher educator and took some field notes focusing on how the teacher educator presented movement problems, asked questions, conducted debriefs. We observed the two preservice teachers' teaching the adventure unit and videotaped their teaching seven adventure-typed lessons to 12"' graders. Two formal interviews were conducted with the two preservice teachers at the beginning and the conclusion of their teaching the unit. Each of the interviews lasted 30 minutes and was audiotaped and transcribed for analysis. Informal interviews occurred after the two preservice teachers finished teaching each of the adventure-typed lessons. Relevant documents, including all of the two preservice teachers' lesson plans and reflection papers and the students' open-ended evaluation for the adventure unit, were collected. Seven videotaped lessons were coded and re-coded by the first researcher with the interval of 10 days using the descriptive coding framework which consists of seven categories: learning task, focus of the task, task presentation, students' learning responses, teacher's intervention, progression within the task, and debriefing. The coding protocols include: (a) watching each episode of the taped lessons, (b) descriptively recording the information and instances associated with each of the seven categories, and (c) repeatedly watching certain episode of the taped lessons if necessary. The second researcher coded the taped lesson using the same coding framework to confirm and disconfirm the data coded by the first researcher. Data analysis. The coding data, the interview transcripts, the field notes, and documents were analyzed using the following steps suggested by (Glaser and Strauss, 1967): (a) reading-and re-reading the information, (b) identifying the instances associated with teaching critical thinking, (c) labeling the instances with the ideas, (d) grouping similar ideas into categories, (e) generating themes emerged from categories, and (f) comparing theoretical premises with themes and labeling the themes. The trustworthiness was established through using different data sources and checking the accuracy by researchers. Results Creating trusting and supportive learning environment. To ensure students are willing to share ideas and feel comfortable with working together to solve their joint movement problems, the two preservice teachers intentionally created trusting and supportive learning environment throughout the unit by employing the following strategies which were integrated in practices. First, they provided students with movement challenging tasks in a small-stepped and interconnected sequential manner to develop students' senses of trusting themselves and trusting partners as well as trusting group members. Following that, they engaged students in a number of cooperative learning tasks, which required everyone's, contribution to develop students' senses of group cooperation. Second, in the process of the students' accomplishing the tasks, the two preservice teachers clarified the criteria and used relevant learning cues to provoke everyone to contribute to the task productively. Third, the two preservice teachers facilitated students' sharing ideas and supporting each other by asking questions to elicit students to reflect on their status of sharing ideas and using examples of students' helping each other to situationally highlight the group cooperation. Guiding students to "think outside the box." To engage students' critical thinking skills in solving movement problems successfully, the two preservice teachers guided students to think outside the box by enacting the following teaching techniques. First, when introducing the learning task, the preservice teachers consistently presented scenarios that were relevant to the task and came from students' authentic life experiences to put students into problematic situations and to inspire students' interests in solving problems. Second, during the course of solving the problem, the two preservice teachers provided hints and suggestions to help students think beyond the obvious when students reached impasse; they engaged students in strictly following the rules specified for the task to challenge them to persistently adjust their previous actions and to try out possible ways of completing the task. Third, during the debrief session, the two preservice teachers modeled creative thoughtfulness through: (a) guiding students to analyze the difficulties they encountered and to reflect on the way they used to solve the problem, (b) listening to students' ideas by asking thoughtful questions to invoke students to express their thoughts about possible solutions to the task they just completed, (c) modeling their alternative ways to solve the movement problem to open students' minds, and (d) pinpointing students' creative ideas as examples to send the message of valuing students' adventure and unique thinking. The two themes demonstrated by the two preservice teachers were confirmed by the students' open-ended evaluation at the conclusion of the unit. Key factors that facilitated the preservic teachers' knowledge of teaching critical thinking. Three key factors, leadership experiences, knowledge base, and the teacher educator's scaffolding, were identified as facilitating the two preservice teachers' acquisition of teaching critical thinking. Two of them have taken different leadership roles in different settings for years before they entered the teacher preparation program. That helped them develop their self-confidence and comfortable level in taking the teacher's roles effectively. They had taught adventure and adventure-relevant activities before and their content knowledge of adventure-typed activities was refined and elaborated when they took the adventure course from the university. They reflected that their knowledge base helped them to come up with various solutions to the learning task and to respond to students' responses relevantly. When teaching the preservice teachers to learn to teach adventure activities, the teacher educator scaffolded how to ask questions invoking students to think broadly and creatively and how to relate students' ideas to leading the shared discussion as well as how to respond to students' emerging responses. This helped the preservice teachers learn how to embed critical thinking into teaching adventure-typed activities. Educational Importance The results of this study are promising in that the preservice teachers successfully employ appropriate teaching strategies to promote students' critical thinking through teaching adventure-typed activities. The preservice teachers in this study did not separate promoting critical thinking skills from pursuing adventure-typed activities, rather, they guided students to use critical thinking skills to accomplish adventure-typed and problematic tasks. So, this study suggests that helping preservice teachers learn to teaching students' critical thinking through teaching a relevant content area is more effective than isolating critical thinking from the content domain. This study confirms that instructions of teacher educators can make a change in preservice teachers' knowledge of teaching critical thinking. This study may make contribution to the literature on teaching critical thinking skills.
The purpose of this study was to examine the influences of teacher professional backgrounds and class size on situational interest in fitness activity learning tasks. The Theoretical Foundation Interest has been identified as a major motivator in schooling since the beginning of the 20th century (Dewey, 1913). Latest theoretical articulation about motivational effect of interest has differentiated influences of personal interest and situational interest on student learning behavior. Personal interest is defined as a person's psychological disposition in preference of an activity over others. Personal interest is developed over time and evolves along with a person's knowledge repertoire and value system (Krapp, Hidi, & Renninger, 1992). Situational interest, on the other hand, is a person-activity interactive or relational construct. It "flows from. a person's relationship with a particular activity" (Reeve, 1996, p. 170) and occurs at the moment of a match between a person and an activity. In school learning, situational interest results from students' recognition of appealing features associated with a specific learning task (Mitchell, 1993). Because personal interest is deeply associated with a person's value system, it is difficult to change. Teachers often find it difficult to utilize students' personal interest to enhance learning the content at hand (Hidi & Anderson, 1992). Recent research findings have generated encouraging evidence that suggest situational interest may have a direct and immediate motivational effect on student learning (Krapp, 1999). Researchers in physical education (Chen, Darst, & Pangrazi, 1999) have identified direct and indirect sources of situational interest, which have been considered as integral dimensions of the situational interest construct (Deci, 1992). These dimensions include Novelty, Challenge, Attention Demand, Exploration Intention, and Instant Enjoyment (Chen et al., 1999). The researchers have also found that situational interest is a function of learning task design (Chen & Darst, 1999). Physical learning tasks with high cognitive demand possess high level of situational interest. The findings suggest that teachers should emphasize cognitive components in physical activities to enhance situational interest that facilitates student motivation to learn. To continue investigating the effect of situational interest in physical education learning settings, this study was designed to examine the extent to which two key instructional factors, teacher training background and class size, influence situational interest in fitness learning tasks for elementary and middle school students. Methods Participants and Setting. Participants of the study were students from selected elementary (5th and 6th grade, N=350) and middle (7 and 8 grade, N=221) schools in the western United States. They were taking physical education classes that were taught by 8 physical education specialists and 5 classroom teachers. The sample included 54% male and 46% female students. Among them, 42% participated in after-school athletic and sport programs. There was 1% African American, 6% Asian American, 63% European American, 8% Hispanic American, 9% Native American, and 13°/o with other ethnic backgrounds. About 20°/o students participated in assisted meals program. Classes varied drastically in size, ranging from 14 to 47 students (M=31.40, SD=7.39). The physical education specialists had an average teaching experience of 15 years (SD=2.48), while the classroom teachers had approximately I 1 years (SD=5.46). Fitness Activities. Five fitness routines were selected as stimulus activities for this study. Namely, they were race track, four corners, jump and jog, fortune cookie, and squad leader. All these routines were primarily aerobic in nature and had varying levels of intensity. The routines were easily incorporated into the existing teaching situation. They were novel to the teachers, and their students presumably. The researchers provided the teachers with three in-service training sessions on how to implement the routines during a 15-minute warm-up and fitness session in the nonnal physical education classes. All the teachers participated in the training. During the training, the teachers were given visual materials and activity instruction on how to implement the routines. Data Collection and Analysis. During data collection, each teacher taught a fitness routine at his/her choice to two classes during the first 15 minutes after they had formularized the content and teaching method. After the fitness segment of each class was completed, the researchers immediately administered the Situational Interest Scale (Chen, et al., 1999). The Situational Interest Scale is a 24-item instrument that measures situational interest (Total Interest) and its dimensional sources of Novelty, Challenge, Attention Demand, Exploration Intention, and Instant Enjoyment (Chen et al., 1999; Deci, 1992). Students were asked to rate the items in the scale on a 5-point Likert scale (5=strongly agree, 1=strongly disagree). The criterion validity and construct validity of the Scale were established in a previous study (Chen et al., 1999) and deemed satisfactory. Cronbach's a coefficients for the item internal consistency were .78, .80, .90, .91, .90, and .95 for the five dimensions and overall interest, respectively. The students were also asked to rate their effort during the fitness activity on a scale of I-10. The researchers collected data on class size of each class at the same time. The measures of situational interest were used as dependent variables in MANOVA analyses with Teacher Status (specialist or classroom teacher), Class Size (regular and large), and School Levels (elementary and middle) as factors. Student self-report of effort was used as a motivation measure. A correlation analysis was conducted to examine the relationship between effort and situational interest measures. Findings and Conclusion The MANOVA revealed no Teacher Status X Class Size X School Level interaction effect on the situational interest measures. There was, however, a Teacher Status X Class Size interaction effect (Pillars Trace=.02, F=2.29, p=.03). None of the other 2-way interaction effects were statistically significant. Follow-up analyses of the Teacher Status X Class Size effect on individual measures of situational interest showed that the differences were statistically significant in Total Interest (F=4.24, p=.04), Novelty (F=5.18, p=.02), and Instant Enjoyment (F=10.04, p=.00). A univariate analysis was conducted on the interaction effect with each of the measures to identify where the differences might be located in the 2-way interaction. The results showed that the significant effect was generated exclusively by classroom teachers under the condition of class size. For Total Interest measure, students in regular size classes (n<30) taught by classroom teachers rated the measure about the same as those in PE specialists' classes (M 13.33 and 13.10 respectively, p=.57). However, when class sizes increased to large (n>30), the mean rating score of students in classroom teachers' classes decrease dramatically to 10.99, while the same mean score from students taught by specialists remained unchanged, 13.12. The difference between the two means was statistically significant (p=.00). Similar results were found in the dimensional measures of Novelty and Instant Enjoyment. In these dimensions, no significant differences were found in student responses in cases where both classroom teachers and physical education specialists taught classes of less than 30 students. In larger classes, however, students taught by specialists rated Novelty (M 13.05) and Instant Enjoyment (M 13.02) of the activities more favorably than those taught by classroom teachers (M=11.43 and 10.87 respectively, p=.00 for both). These findings provided strong evidence suggesting that situational interest is not only a function of task design (Chen & Darst, 1999), but also is likely a function of teaching methods which are specific to teaching a particular physical education content. It can be speculated that with large size classes physical education specialists can initiate teaching approaches more effective than those used by classroom teachers that can maintain the appealing effects of the physical activity. These approaches may include using multiple student groups, bringing additional equipment, moving the class to a larger space, and providing effective verbal and nonverbal demonstrations and instructions. The correlation analysis revealed that student effort of participation in the fitness routines was significantly (p<.05) correlated with Total Interest (r=.46), Novelty (r=.33), Attention Demand (r=.35), and Instant Enjoyment (r=.45). Taken the self-report effort exerted in the activities as an indicator of motivation, the results support the notion that situational interest is associated with student motivation to learn (Hid] & Anderson, 1992). Positive correlation between Total Interest and other dimensions was also observed in the data (ranging from r=.34 to r=.87). These correlations are consistent with previous research findings (Chen et al., 1999) and in-depth theoretical articulation of the construct (Deci, 1992). They further indicate that the sources of situational interest are embedded in the characteristics of activity itself. Teachers should reveal these features by emphasizing task design and utilizing physical-education-specific teaching methods to motivate students to learn.
This study was designed to replicate and extend the previous work on children's conceptions of ability (Lee, Carter & Xiang, 1995) by examining how children and adolescents conceptualize their ability in physical education. Specifically, the research questions were: 1) What criteria do children and adolescents use to assess their ability in physical education? 2) Do children and adolescents with the differentiated conception of ability believe in the efficacy of effort? Perspective Motivating students to participate in physical activity on a regular basis and encourage them to develop lifetime activity habits have become increasing concerns for both researchers and teachers in physical education. Research suggests that how students at different developmental stages define and assess their ability is crucial to understanding motivation in achievement settings. This is because students' ability perceptions play a central role in their achievement motivation, and influence their behavior and learning (Covington, 1984; Eccles et al., 1983; Nicholls, 1989). Inherent in this notion is the belief that ability perceptions are related to achievement goals, another driving force in motivation. According to Nicholls (1989), most young children cannot completely differentiate ability from effort. They have an undifferentiated conception of ability. They believe that ability can be developed with effort and persistence over time, and competence is judged in a self-referenced matter. These children tend to adopt a task orientation. By the time children reach the late elementary school years, they understand the distinction between ability and effort and their differential contribution to success and, therefore, have the notion of ability as a stable capacity. Children with the differentiated conception of ability understand that higher effort implies lower ability, and competence is judged high or low by comparing one's effort and performance with those of others. Such children are more likely to be ego-oriented. In physical education, students' conceptions of ability have not been extensively examined. To date, three studies have been conducted to understand this important motivation construct. Fry and Duda (1997) and Xiang and Lee (1998) examined developmental differences of conceptions of ability in children from kindergarten through 1 Ith grade. Results of each study revealed that children's conceptions of ability changed with age and children developed a differentiated conception of ability over the school years. Lee, Carter, and Xiang (1995) examined children's views of competency in physical education in their qualitative study of kindergartners, first, fourth, and fifth graders. They found that younger children were more likely than older ones to see effort or mastery as evidence of their competence in physical education. However, these studies have focused primarily on elementary school children. As a result, little is known about conceptions of ability in adolescence in physical education, especially in terms of the ways adolescents attach meaning to their physical competency. Given the factor that students' motivation to actively participate in physical education starts to decline during the middle or high school years it is important to understand how adolescents construe ability in physical education. Such information may provide insight into the ways to promote motivation among adolescents in physical education. One purpose of our investigation, therefore, was to examine how children and adolescents view their own competence in physical education. Students with the differentiated conception of ability are theoretically assumed to believe that ability and effort are separate concepts and effort causes success only in situations where abilities are adequate. Researchers (Dweck & Leggett, 1988; Lee, Carter & Xiang, 1995; Nicholls & Miller, 1984), however, have argued that it is possible for children to believe that ability can be modified through effort though they have developed a concept of ability as a stable capacity. To explore this possibility in the context of physical education, the second purpose of our investigation was to identify children and adolescents who attained the differentiated conception of ability but believed in the efficacy of effort. The reasons why those children and adolescents believed in the efficacy of effort were also examined. Method Data for the present investigation were drawn from an earlier study of children's self-perceptions of ability and achievement goals in physical education (Xiang & Lee, 1998). The total sample included 308 students in 4th, 8th and 11th grades from five private schools in a southeastern state. Participants for the present study were 120 students drawn randomly from the sample, with 40 students from each of the three grades, equally divided by gender within each grade level. Interviews and questionnaires were used to collect the data. Beliefs about competence were obtained through interviews. Participants were interviewed individually. The interview procedure was adapted from a study by Lee, Carter and Xiang (1995). Each interview lasted approximately 10 minutes. All responses were tape-recorded and transcribed verbatim for analysis. Using a structured interview format, the interviews moved from open-ended questions about school in general and physical education class in particular to more specific questions related to students' beliefs about competence. The interview questions included: How many stars would you get in physical education? Why would you get a 5? If I observed your physical education class, how would I know you were such a student? Conceptions of ability and beliefs on the efficacy of effort were assessed by asking participants to respond in writing to two scenarios designed to tap these two variables. Data Analysis Interview data on beliefs about competence and students' responses to an open-end question of beliefs on the efficacy of effort were analyzed using constant comparison. Students' responses to questions designed to tap their understanding of what ability mans were categorized into three levels of conceptions of ability described by Nicholls (1989) as undifferentiated, partially differentiated, and differentiated. Results The interview data indicated that criteria children and adolescents used to determine their competence in physical education can be explained by three higher order categories and several subcategories that emerged from the data. The three higher order categories were ability, effort and comparisons. The ability category was defined as the mastery of a variety of skills including meeting some performance goal or standard or the perception of a natural ability that makes students feel competent in physical education class. Statements like "During basketball, I play good defense, I get rebounds, I steal, I get points, and I block" are representative of mastery. When students made reference to an overall natural ability and discussed their self-rating in terms of whether they are athletic or in terms of how fast or slow they are, their responses were classified as natural ability, as in this example: "I am strong, agile, fast, and I can play a lot of sport very well." The effort category is defined as actions in physical education class that imply, explicitly or implicitly, a desire to achieve the goal of the class. The main underlying themes from which this category emerged were class behavior and a willingness to try. Statements like "Paying attention, listening, following the rules, and doing what the coach tells us to do" are typical of class behavior. Statements like "Because I participate in the activity and I try" or "I am not the worst because I do not give up and I keep on trying and I like to play sports a lot" were coded as a willingness to try. The comparisons category is defined as comparative information the children and adolescents used to judge their competence. This category included intraindividual comparisons and interindividual comparisons. Statements like "I am good at dodge ball, I am half good at basketball" are representative of intraindividual comparisons and statements like "There are students who are better than me. But I am better than many other students. I am in the middle" are typical of interindividual comparisons. Examination of the frequency counts for categories of mastery, natural ability, class behavior, a willingness to try, intraindividual comparisons and interindividual comparisons at each grade level revealed the following results: 4th graders were most likely to use mastery (26%) and class behavior (21 %) as evidence of their competence; 8th graders were most likely to perceive mastery (25%) as evidence of their competence; 1lth graders were most likely to see natural ability (24%) and a willingness to try (24%) as evidence of their competence. Students, regardless of their grade level, tended to compare their own competence with that of their classmates. The percentages of students' responses in 4th, 8th and 11th grades were 20%, 20% and 24%, respectively. Among 120 students, 34 (1 fourth grader, 17 eighth graders, and 16 eleventh graders) were identified with the differentiated conception of ability. Thirteen of them (41.18%) indicated that they had a belief on the efficacy of effort in their responses to the open-ended question. Further analysis of their responses revealed that in these students' eyes hard working was valued and effort was seen as the road to improvement and enhanced ability, as reflected in such response, "I would like to have the natural ability in everything, but unfortunately no one does. So if you do not then you must work hard to improve yourself in those areas." Importance of Study Findings of the present study offer information that might help to understand and increase student motivation in physical education. First, children and adolescents differed in their criteria for assessing their own competence in physical education. This suggests that teachers need to be sensitive to the differences in order to maintain and enhance student positive ability perceptions. Second, some students with the differentiated conception of ability were found to believe that ability could be modified through effort. This finding provides empirical evidence that students can still have faith in the efficacy of effort even though they understand the notion of ability as a stable capacity. It also has important implications for physical education teaching. It is possible for students with the differentiated conception of ability to maintain the belief that ability can be modified through effort if they are situated in a learning environment where effort is highly valued and success is defined as an attainment of performance goals or standards.
Purpose and Research Questions Frequently physical education teachers who attempt to design and implement a gender equitable physical education program are faced with students who have developed stereotypical attitudes about gender-appropriate behaviors at a very early age. While these attitudes may be attributed to a variety of factors, much of what students have learned as young children has likely come from the mass media. Traditional stereotyping of activities, toys, and behavior in print media photographs and advertising reinforces conventional gender roles for children, according to Schwartz and Markham (1985). Since children, especially young children with limited reading abilities are receptive to photographs and images, teachers need to pay close attention to the gendered messages conveyed by a magazine designed especially for children, such as Sports Illustrated for Kids. Two studies prior to the 1996 Olympics examined the messages conveyed in Sports Illustrated for Kids and found that conventional stereotypical relationships between sport and gender were represented in the majority of the sport photographs and advertisements. This study builds on the work of Cuneen & Sidwell (1998) and Duncan & Sayaovong (1990), examining how males and females have been framed in the pages of Sports Illustrated for Kids since the 1996 Olympic Games. America's female squads of the 1996 Olympic games were billed as "the games hottest acts" (Zaglin, 1996) and the games themselves were called "the Gender Equity Olympics" (McCallum & O'Brien, 1996). Our primary question is, Has the photographic framing of male and female gender roles in Sports Illustrated for Kids progressed since "The Year of the Woman?" We want to know if the strides that women athletes reportedly took during the 1996 Olympic Games have been reflected in the pages of this magazine aimed at highly impressionable readers. The following questions were designed to illuminate our research: 1. Is there a difference in the overall number of photographs of females and males in ads and editorial content? Is there a difference in the number of prominent female-dominated or male-dominated photographs (such as covers or posters)? How does the overall number of photos, and the number of cover and poster photos, compare with the difference in early issues of the magazine (Duncan & Sayaovong, 1990)? 2. How does framing of gender in team and individual sports in Sports Illustrated for Kids ads and editorial content compare to data from early issues? Are males still more often associated with team sports, and females with individual sports? 3. What are the levels of activity or inactivity portrayed in association with gender? Are males still shown, as they were in Sports Illustrated for Kids early issues, in more active roles, and females in passive poses (Duncan & Sayaovong, 1990; Cuneen & Sidwell, 1998)? 4. What has been the change, if any, in framing of gender differences in leadership positions? Are males more often than females shown in coach, official and owner roles? 5. What has been the change, if any, in framing of gender differences and the type of sport depicted? Duncan and Sayaovong (1990) found females more often associated with aesthetic sports, and males more often associated with strength or high-risk sports. Cuneen and Sidwell (1998) found that males were depicted more in all ad scenarios. Is this still the case? 6. Do camera angles and positions of photo subjects in ads and editorial content support the cultural stereotype of males as central and dominant, and females as peripheral and inferior? How does this type of framing compare to the earlier studies? Framing: A Theoretical Paradigm Both media researchers and the public have speculated about the degree to which the mass media shapes the attitudes and behaviors of its consumers. That the media influences the construction of social reality is a widely accepted notion; Walter Lippmann's 1922 reference to the media's ability to select and arrange the "pictures in our heads" is considered conventional wisdom for media researchers in the age of television, mass-produced publications and the Internet. The often-intertwined information and entertainment media possess the power to influence the opinions of people on a variety of issues, especially those about which consumers have little knowledge. Information is shaped, then circulated; through the frame of the media, people learn about themselves and others, their institutions and their lifestyles and culture (Tuchman, 1978; Schnell, 1997). The ability of the media to frame coverage of events, issues and cultural norms is reflected in a formal research paradigm of the same name. "Framing," an often casuallyused descriptor of the media's function (with much left to the understanding of the reader and researcher), provides a structured way to study the influence of messages (Entman, 1993; Just & Neuman, 1992; Gamson, 1989; Iyengar, 1991; Schnell & Terkildsen, 1997). This research approach directs explicit attention toward the construction and use of media frames--conceptual tools which news makers use to convey, interpret and evaluate information. A media frame connects ideas within text, photos or audio-visual presentation in a way that suggests a particular interpretation of an issue. Frames are indicated by the use of keywords, phrases, stereotypical images, sources and sentences that reinforce a particular judgement or interpretation, making a particular "world view" more salient (Entman, 1993: Iyengar, 1991; Just & Neuman, 1992). Frames make sense of news and information for both media producers--who often use frames unconsciously--and media consumers, who often don't perceive them (Williams & Williams, 1995; Gamson, 1989). While framing cannot force a universal reading of the text, research has consistently demonstrated that frames do have a common effect on large portions of the receiving audience; framing analysis does not speculate on "alternative readings" of frames or on exceptions within the text to the dominant message provided by the frames (Entman, 1993; Iyengar, 1991). Instead, framing analysis looks at what is both included and omitted within the way an issue is framed; information missing from a media presentation is just as important as that which has been presented and reinforced (Gamson, 1989). Looking at frames in media presentation is particularly relevant when examining an issue that can be presented in a variety of ways, and frame analysis has provided a useful and revealing way to examine the presentation of news on political issues such as the environment, abortion, euthanasia, First Amendment rights and more (Entman, 1993; Iyengar, 1991). Because research also indicates that media frames can affect the perceived legitimacy of groups in society, framing has been deemed particularly useful for examining images of gender, class and race presented by the media (Schnell & Terkildsen, 1997; Entman, 1993; Hamilton). Frame analysis is also relevant when media consumers are not "sophisticated" about a particular topic--for instance, individuals who do not have alternative sources of information or lack understanding on how to get them, or children, who are far more vulnerable than adults to media messages. Although neither study employed framing analysis as a formal theoretical approach, both Duncan and Sayaovong's 1990 study and Cuneen and Sidwell's 1998 study of gender images in Sports Illustrated for Kids effectively demonstrate the use of frames to construct notions of sexual difference; Cuneen and Sidwell (1998) acknowledge the power of media frames in their opening sentence. Both studies revealed the way images and stereotypes were employed in ad and editorial photographs to construct and reinforce ideas about gender to an audience most susceptible to the power of such framing. Method Content analysis was chosen to help us answer the research questions. Content analysis, influenced by framing as a research paradigm, is an effective way to discern dominant textual meaning; relationships of the most salient clusters of images and information may be gauged to accurately represent the dominant messages (Entman, 1993). Commonly defined as an objective, systematic and quantitative discovery of message content, content analysis has also been determined as an effective way to examine media images of minority or historically oppressed groups (Berelson, 1971; Hocking and Stacks, 1998, Dominick and Wimmer, 1991). Data Collection Sports Illustrated for Kids served as the subject for this study. Both advertisements and sports photographs in 36 issues of Sports Illustrated for Kids, from July 1996 to June 1999 were examined. Coding Categories Two code sheets were constructed to evaluate photographs of females and males; one for coding advertisements and a second to analyze cover, poster, and editorial content photographs. The code sheets were designed using the categories from the work of Cuneen & Sidewell (1998) and Duncan & Sayaovong (1990). Only advertisements and editorial content photographs featuring human (nonfamous and celebrity) models were studied. Artistic models (computer-generated figures such as drawings of athletes, graphic representations, and Claymation figures) were not coded. Items of analysis included the total number of advertisements and editorial content photographs featuring females and males, genders represented as prominent or supporting, dominance on the page, camera angle, active vs. passive poses, and the type of sport depicted. Gender portrayals in advertisement product types and leadership positions depicted in editorial content photographs were also examined. Coding Procedures The four researchers for this study served as coders of all the data. Following training on the categories of analysis, intercoder and intracoder reliability was reached using 15 pages (cover to page 15) of the June, 1996 Sports Illustrated for Kids. Analysis of Data The SPSS statistical package was used to analyze the data. Data was sorted by select cases (gender), and a descriptive analysis performed to yield separate data sets for males and females. The frequencies procedure was used to determine the occurrence of variables of interest in each gender group.
Purpose The purpose of this study was to identify the perspectives of practitioners regarding physical education teacher education (PETE) governance, curriculum, and evaluation. Three questions were addressed: (a) what role should institutions, organizations, agencies, and individuals play in designing programs of teacher education, and how should the faculty of teacher education programs be involved?, (b) what types of knowledge are important in the preparation of physical education teachers and what kinds of experiences should provide this knowledge?, and (c) what types of evaluations should be applied to PETE programs, by whom, and how often? Perspective/Theoretical Framework Research from teacher socialization (Templin & Schempp, 1990) was used to develop the theoretical framework for this study. Public school teachers are socialized through their biographies (Lortie, 1975), experiences in PETE programs (Graber, 1990), and experiences as teachers (Lawson, 1990). Based on their experiences teachers develop perspectives about the physical education teaching profession and how pre-service teachers should be prepared to fill the role of a physical education teacher. These perspectives are important for two reasons. First, practitioners have an impact on the next generation of teachers because they socialize future teachers in their classrooms and as cooperating teachers. Second, teachers' perspectives provide insight into how they view their job as a physical education teacher and how future teachers should be prepared. For these reasons it is important for PETE faculty to understand the perspectives of these "significant agents" (Dodds, 1990, p. 83) regarding PETE and to take into account these perspectives when designing and improving PETE programs. Method Participants. Eighteen physical education teachers from Georgia participated. Participants were drawn from three sources: (a) a list provided by the Georgia Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance (GAHPERD), (b) a list provided by the coordinator of physical education for a local school district, and (c) lists of previous participants in research projects. The teachers who were selected for the study represented urban, rural, and suburban schools and elementary, middle and secondary grade levels. The participants included African-Americans (n=5), Caucasians (n=13); nine were female and nine were male. Teaching experience of the participants ranged between 4 and 28 years, with the average 14.5 years. Seven teachers taught at the elementary school level, six at the middle school level, and five at the high school level. One teacher was a national teacher of the year and one was a state teacher of the year. Over half of the participants had masters degrees, and two had obtained their doctorate. These practitioners obtained their degrees from a variety of colleges and universities that were both small and large, public and private. Over half of the sample were coaching or had coached at some point in their careers and were currently serving as cooperating teachers or had served as cooperating teachers throughout their careers. Selected teachers were contacted by letter requesting their participation, explaining the study, and indicating that they would be contacted by phone for confirmation of participation. Data Collection. The primary data source in this study was interviews. Using a variety of interview techniques, the teachers were encouraged to respond in detail. Interviews lasted approximately 90 minutes. Fontana and Frey (1995) indicate that "interviewing is one of the most common and most powerful ways we use to try to understand our fellow human beings" (p. 361). A set of structured and semi-structured interviews were developed. The questions (which were based on a review of the literature in PETE) specifically reflected elements of PETE that were related to the governance, curriculum, and evaluation of PETE programs. Each participant was interviewed for approximately 90 minutes. Follow-up interviews, in person or by phone, were used when clarification, expansion, or accuracy checks were deemed necessary by the researcher. These interviews lasted between 10 and 20 minutes. The interviews took place in a mutually agreed upon location. All interviews were audiotaped and subsequently transcribed for data analysis. Data Analysis. Interview data were analyzed through analytic induction (Manning, 1991) which is the process of drawing themes and commonalities from data. By focusing on the common themes, one is better able to understand the participants' viewpoints and experiences (Patton, 1990). From the data, a composite of the participants' views regarding the governance, curriculum and evaluation of PETE programs was developed. Huberman and Miles' (1995) four stage analysis framework was used to analyze the data in the study. In the first stage, the researcher conducted data collection and early analyses. Data were coded, summarized, and clustered according to themes during the second stage. The conceptual framework derived from the literature review was used when coding the participants' responses. For example, their responses about PETE program governance were placed in a cluster titled "governance" from which themes were drawn. The third stage, data display, involved compressing the information so that conclusions could be drawn and actions taken. In this stage, the researcher placed the data in smaller forms that took on different constructs such as vignettes, diagrams and matrices (Huberman & Miles, 1995). The final stage of this data analysis was conclusion drawing and verification. It was during this phase that the researcher determined the meaning of the data collected. Findings The purpose of this study was to examine practitioners' perspectives on PETE program governance, curriculum, and evaluation. Data analysis revealed that the practitioners in this study felt qualified to discuss and participate in, but excluded from the governance of teacher education. They also felt that decision-making regarding the training and certification of physical education teachers not be done on the state level. The participants felt that many policies regarding the certification of physical education teachers were made by those who were far removed from the physical education classroom and that these individuals lacked the necessary knowledge to establish important policies. Regarding curriculum, the teachers perceived the knowledge of learners, content knowledge, and pedagogical content knowledge as the most important types of knowledge that undergraduates should receive in a PETE program. They also believed methods classes were the most effective courses that undergraduates could take and early field experiences to be important vehicles through which knowledge of learners, content knowledge, and pedagogical content knowledge could be gained. The practitioners surmised that early field experiences should be longer in duration, take place earlier in the career of the undergraduate, occur more often in the curriculum, and be conducted at schools of varying characteristics. Finally, the teachers believed that to evaluate a PETE program, the products of the program - the graduates- should be assessed. The participants believed teaching effectiveness and professionalism should be the criteria on which graduates should be evaluated and principal evaluations should be used to determine if the graduates exhibit these characteristics. They also recognized that effective evaluation is time-consuming and should occur on a continual basis. The participants indicated that they would be able to provide help with this problem, but have yet to be asked. Significance of the Study This study is significant for two reasons. First, the data provide teacher educators with insight in regards to how teachers understand PETE governance, curriculum, and evaluation. From the answers given it appears that teachers feel that they have much to offer teacher educators. More specifically they feel that they should be included in the governance and evaluation of PETE programs because of their connection to the "real world" of teaching. It also seems that teachers regard real life experience as the best way to gain the essential knowledge about content, presentation, and students that is needed for teaching physical education in the public schools. Second, this study gives voice to those who teach physical education and those who will have the most impact upon (socialize) the next generation of teachers. Recent calls for public school teacher and university faculty member collaboration have been made (Locke & Siedentop, 1997) and this study supports this call. It allowed teachers to voice their beliefs about training a new generation to do something with which they are intimately familiar - teaching physical education.
Objectives This paper provides a comparison of sequential feedback instruction in field-based teacher education settings versus other forms of field-based teacher education using a longitudinal design. Stemming from a series of cross-sectional studies which have focused on the short-term effects of sequential behavior feedback on teachers-in-training, the focus of this study was on determining the variable strength of teacher education effects once teacher-trainees are operating in post-certification professional settings. Study focus was felt significant given the challenge of ensuring long-term generalization of teacher-training effects post undergraduate certification. Measures are behavioral, operating on the assumption that important variables related to teacher effectiveness lie (a) in the daily practices of teachers and students, and (b) in the daily interactions among teacher and student. Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine the generalization effects of one documented successful sequential behavior approach to teacher training. Generalization was defined as the continued use of recommended teacher practices in the initial years of a teacher-trainee's first professional teaching position. Theoretical Framework Behavioral assessment of teachers-in-training has a long and productive history. Limited documentation exists, however, with respect to the long-term generalization effects of teacher education programs which include a behavior feedback component within the field-based~experience. Recent behavioral work focusing on the undergraduate education experience has provided alternative variables designed to document and analyze more specifically the sequential relationships among teacher stimuli and student responses (Sharpe, Hawkins, & Ray, 1995), and perhaps more importantly student practices and teacher responses (Sharpe & Lounsbery, 1998; Sharpe, Hawkins, & Lounsbery, 1998). A sequential approach to assessment provides behavior analytic efforts with a strong argument to counter the often cited mainstream educational criticism that behavioral approaches render teaching simplistically generic impeding long-term generalization of appropriate teacher practices in situational context once teachers are operating outside of the primary teacher education environment. Successful generalization, however, is a consistently encountered difficulty of most undergraduate teacher education programs regardless of the form and character of the undergraduate educational protocol. An important addition to this line of inquiry, therefore, is determination of the long-term effectiveness of this instructional approach once exposed undergraduates are operating in their first years of professional practice, versus undergraduates who have been exposed to other forms of teacher education experiences. Participants and Setting Eight physical education teachers in their first years of their first professional position in a metropolitan public school setting were purposefully selected according to matching criteria and assigned to two distinct groups based on (a) successful completion of an undergraduate K-12 physical education teacher education certification program within a four year time frame, (b) similarly strong letters of recommendation, (c) exposure versus non-exposure to a sequential behavior feedback approach to teacher-training, and (d) similar well equipped metropolitan middle school teaching settings. Prior exposure to the sequential behavior feedback protocol versus other field-based teacher education methods provided the primary experimental comparison. Each professional teaching setting was each participant's first paid full-time position within a public school, and was begun the immediate semester after graduation from the respective teacher education program. All public school settings were chosen for their characteristic similarity, and were held in large, well equipped middle school gymnasiums. Methods A multiple-baseline plus treatment prompt design across participants was used to compare (a) prior exposure versus nonexposure to sequential behavior feedback on teaching practice, and (b) current exposure to sequential behavior feedback across previously exposed versus non-exposed participants. Maintenance phases of variable lengths were implemented to determine the relative strength of maintenance of the sequential feedback treatment prompts across previously exposed versus non-exposed groups. A social validation measure was also included for the previously non-exposed participants to assess their receptivity to the sequential behavior feedback protocol. Measures This study used measures of the incidence of Appropriate Instructional Actions (AIA) and Appropriate Organizational Actions (AOA) in the context of Instructional Opportunities (10) and Organizational Opportunities (00) (Sharpe & Lounsbery, 1998). A second set of dependent measures included classroom percentage changes in student behaviors of activity engagement and off-task. General Procedures Data collection began with the first semester of professional practice and occurred for one complete class period twice per month over the course of four professional semesters of teaching practice. The sequential behavior feedback protocol was administered as a treatment prompt in multiple baseline format over the course of the experimental period. Social validation data were collected from the previously non-exposed participants at the end of semester two and four of the experiment. Criterion tape standard development, training to that standard, and interobserver agreement checks were performed at appropriate times throughout the study with all data collectors and sequential behavior feedback providers. Results Data first show that the effects of the sequential behavior feedback within the undergraduate teacher training program consistently generalized for those previously exposed, however, these same instructional and organizational skills were not initially evident for the previously non-exposed group. Second, non-exposed participants benefited from repeated exposure to the sequential behavior feedback treatment with regard to rapid and reliable increases in instructional and organizational interactions. Those previously exposed to sequential behavior feedback also benefited from intermittent exposure to treatment prompts throughout their first four semesters of their first professional position. Additionally important, student practices held important as indicators of the relative effectiveness of a physical education setting were successfully generalized for the exposed group, but were often not in evidence for the non-exposed group. Last, the sequential behavior feedback treatment was socially validated by the previously non-exposed teacher group. Scientific Importance This study was driven by the views that teacher education is a scientific enterprise requiring a data-base in support of particular training methods, and that focusing on the sequential characteristics of teacher and student behavior when providing feedback on teaching should improve in generalized ways to the long-term improvement of that teaching practice. This study is also predicated on a burgeoning line of inquiry which proposes that merely training a teacher to criterion use of particular behaviors without clearly specifying the sequential and ecological connections among student practices will do little to ensure that particular teacher behaviors are used at appropriate times and to the most effective result with regard to challenging pupil behaviors. Documenting the positive generalization effects of a sequential behavior feedback protocol, and the positive effects on teacher professionals not previously exposed, provides important evidence for the contributions which sequential behavior analysis may make to teacher training.
Purpose of the Study The study of expert teachers has become a growing line of inquiry, particularly in the field of sport and physical education. This work has been influenced by theories from cognitive psychology (Berliner, 1994; Ericsson & Smith, 1991). Much of this research has focused on the thinking and decision making of expert teachers (Leinhardt & Greeno, 1986; Livingston & Borko, 1989). While there have been several initial and promising studies of expert teachers' behavior, particularly in physical education (Griffey & Housner, 1991; Siedentop & Eldar, 1989), this line of inquiry has remained largely absent from the body of knowledge on instructional. Understanding the behavioral patterns of elite instructors holds the potential for providing insights into the principles of pedagogical expertise as well as guidance for those who aspire to become expert teachers (Dodds, 1994). Further, a descriptive account of the behavior of expert teachers stands as a contribution to existing literature presently steeped in a cognitive perspective. Perspective This study stands within the scholarly domain of pedagogical expertise. The characteristics of expertise identified through theory and research were used in subject selection (Berliner, 1994). The particular perspective adopted for this study is in the category that Shulman (1986) described as "exemplars of practice". These studies "...are presented as instances or exemplars, documenting how education was accomplished by a particular group of teachers and students in a particular place" (Shulman, 1986, p. 27). In the present study, the group of teachers were experts, the students novices, and the place was a physical activity environment. Method Expert Teachers. Identifying expert teachers is always a difficult task as individuals and theoretical perspectives conceptualize experts differently. The expert teachers in this study were all recognized by a professional organization (the Ladies Professional Golf Association) as Teachers of the Year. These teachers all possessed the following characteristics: (a) 10 or more years of teaching experience, (b) LPGA certification, (c) received formal recognition for the quality of their instruction (i.e., regional or national teacher of the year), (d) their students had established records of success at state, regional, or national tournaments. Golf instructors were selected because the subject content of golf instruction is traditionally restricted to a single skill¾ the golf swing¾ making comparisons between instructors more meaningful. Videotaped lesson. The instructors were transported from around the nation to the researchers' university and asked to teach a one-hour, full swing lesson to a novice student. The students were college-age women (range in years 19-28) volunteers who had participated in one high school varsity sport, but had no previous golf experience. The teachers were allowed access to golf balls, and could select the type and number of clubs from a selection of top-line irons and woods. The instructors were also allowed to use any training aid they chose to bring with them. The instructor had up to 60 minutes in which to conduct the lesson. A video camera was located approximately 20 yards from the point of instruction. While the cameras were mounted on tripods for improved picture stability, the instructor was free to move about the instructional site. After the instructor was fitted with a cordless microphone, she was brought to the instructional location and familiarized with the equipment available. The assigned student was then brought to her so that the first and the last words between the student and teacher were captured on tape. Data Sources The videotapes (N=23) were coded using Cheffers Adaptation of Flanders Interaction Analysis System (CAFIAS) (Cheffers & Mancini, 1989). CAFIAS is an observational instrument that quantifies verbal and non-verbal instructional behaviors and is one of the most widely used systems for analyzing teaching behavior in physical activity environments. The five researchers each coded 4 or 5 tapes. To insure reliable data, the coders met on several occasions to review the protocol and category structure prior to coding. After several weeks of practice, the researchers each coded one tape twice with a one-week lag-time between codings. From these data, intracoder reliability estimates were calculated. These estimates ranged from r=.86 to r=.98. Once intracoder reliability was achieved, the researchers all coded the same tape. From these data, intercoder reliability estimates were calculated. Intercoder reliability ranged from r=.90 to r=.98. Results Descriptive statistics identified several differences in the behavior patterns of expert sport instructors over traditional physical education instruction (Anderson & Barrette, 1976). The experts used more demonstrations to explain concepts and praised the students far more frequently. Further, these expert teachers appeared to use a greater number of questions, acceptance of student ideas, and less criticism than was found than with physical education teachers. The students in the studied lessons also talked more, and revealed more analytic and independent thinking than was noted in traditional physical education classes. The dominant interaction pattern of the 23 instructors was 5-15-6-18-2. This indicated that the fundamental teaching behavior of these expert teachers included explanations and demonstrations, followed by verbal directions to the student for skill practice. The student was then praised for their practice. Stepwise regression analyses were used to identify the instructional behaviors that were predictive of student behavior. Student practice (teacher dependent) was associated with teachers' nonverbal directions and verbal praise (FZ,i9=34.06, p<.001). Student talk (teacher dependent) was significantly related to teachers' questions and demonstrations (F2,,9=93.62, p<.001). Student talk (analytic) was associated with student talk (teacher dependent) and teachers' acceptance of students' ideas (Fz,,9=16.18, p<.001). Based on these analyses, the following conclusions were reached. First, the expert teachers display behaviors that are associated with creating friendly, accepting, positive instructional environments. That is, they ask meaningful questions, accept students' responses, praise student practice, and seldom criticized. Second, teachers who are physically more active in class (i.e., use nonverbal directions, and demonstrations) are more likely to get students both talking about and practicing the subject at hand. Third, getting students to practice appears significantly related to the amount of praise they receive from their teacher. Fourth, getting students to engage in analytic discussions about the subject appears depend on first getting the students to talk (teacher dependent), and then having the teacher accept the students ideas once they begin talking. Educational Significance This study is educationally significant in that it represents one of the first studies of expert sport instructors. These teachers were deemed expert by their reputation within their profession, years of successful teaching, and the success of their students. This was, however, a single study. Generalizations from one investigation, one population of teachers, or a single instructional environment must be made tentatively. The results of this study do, however, provide researchers, teachers and teacher educators will several useful insights regarding expert teaching. Those seeking to emulate expert physical activity instructors may find the behavior patterns and practices of these teachers helpful. Further, this study suggests that studying expert teachers may lead to significant insights into exemplary teaching. References Anderson, W., & Barrette, G. (1976). What's going on in gym? Motor Skills: Theory into Practice Monograph. Berliner, D. C. (1994). Expertise: The wonder of exemplary performance. In J. Mangieri, & C. Block (Eds.), Advanced educational psychology: Creating effective schools and powerful thinkers. Niles, IL: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. Cheffers, J. & Mancini, V. (1989). Cheffers Adaptation of Flanders Interaction Analysis System. In P. Darst, D. Zakrajsek, & V. Mancini (Eds.). Analyzing Physical Education and Sport Instruction (pp. 119-135). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. Dodds, P. (1994). Cognitive and behavioral components of expertise in teaching physical education. Quest, 46, 153-163. Ericsson, K.A., & Smith, J. (Eds.). (1991). Toward a general theory of expertise. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press. Griffey, D., & Housner, L. (1991). Differences between experienced and inexperienced teachers= planning decisions, interactions, student engagement and instructional climate. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 62, 196-204. Leinhardt, G., & Greeno, J.G. (1986). The cognitive skill of teaching. Journal of Educational Psychology, 78, 75-95. Livingston, C., & Borko, H. (1989). Expert-novice differences in teaching: A cognitive analysis and implications for teacher education. Journal of Teacher Education, 40(4), 36-42. Shulman, L. (1986). Paradigms and research programs in the study of teaching (pp. 3-36). In M. C. Wittrock (Ed.). Handbook of Research on Teaching (3rd ed.), New York: Macmillan. Siedentop, D., & Eldar, E. (1989). Expertise, experience, and effectiveness. Journal of Teaching in Physical Education,8(3), 254-260. Note: This study was funded by a grant from the Ladies Professional Golf Association, Daytona Beach, FL.
Objectives The purpose of this study was to critically examine the assumptions about 'childhood' and 'development' that inform the nature and conduct of school physical education. The two primary objectives were, to identify the disciplinary and cultural discourses about 'the child' and 'development' that physical education curriculum writers draw on to construct syllabi, and; to critically examine the consequences of' developmentalism' for students and teachers/learning and teaching in school physical education Theoretical framework The role of schooling in 'child development' is popularly conceived in benevolent humanitarian terms as one of providing 'building blocks' (knowledge) 'stepping stones' (skills and aptitudes) and 'pathways' (attitudes and values) which will enable the evolving child to move progressively along an educational highway toward the fulfillment of his/her potential. As a compulsory school subject, Physical Education has been traditionally accorded some role in the development of this potential with its place in the curriculum being justified with claims about what children 'need' and 'what is good for them.' Current legitimations for the compulsory inclusion of physical education in the school curriculum tend to centre around its instrumental value in fostering qualities like self-esteem, confidence and team building (Crum, 1995), yet precisely how and why physical education should benefit children's development in these ways has never been clearly enunciated. This project takes up the challenge of critically analysing notions of the child and child development which inform many physical education practices and claims. Drawing on recent insights from poststructuralist social theory (Foucault, 1977, 1981; Gore, 1993, 1995; Weedon, 1987) and 'critical psychological perspectives' (Broughton, 1987; Burman, 1994; Morss. 1996; Parker, 1992) the study questions the particular views of 'the child' and his/her development that have been adopted and promulgated in physical education academia and professional practice over time. Within Physical Education, the study contributes to what Kirk (1997) has referred to as a critical branch of sociocultural research. It responds to appeals from critical commentators in physical education sport sociology for more research which examines what physical educators do and why they do it rather than an exclusive focus on technical questions of 'how to teach better'(Kirk, 1992; Tinning, 1991). It is also a response to calls from scholars like Sparkes (1992) and Wright (1995) for use of alternative methodologies in physical education research. Method Discourse analytic methods, informed by Foucauldian social theory (Gore, 1995; Lupton, 1992; Parker, 1992; Potter & Wetherell, 1987), are used to investigate the developmental themes embedded in two New Zealand physical education curriculum texts: 1) `The 1987 Physical Education Syllabus for Junior Classes to Form 7' (final year of senior schooling) and the 1999 `Health and Physical Education in the New Zealand Curriculum document'. Underpinning use of these methods is a commitment to examining the internal systems of truth' that competing discourses create and to emphasizing the interrelationships between knowledge, power and subjectivity implied within the texts. A series of questions are used to examine the constructions of 'the child' and 'development' present within each of the texts. Specific questions used to examine each text included (but were not limited to) the following: What picture of school physical education is represented in the text? Who and what are reinforced and silenced when particular discourses are drawn upon? What relations of power are mediated by a given discourse and what are the ideological effects of dominant discourses presented as `truths' in physical education texts? How are children constituted in developmental discourses prevailing in these documents? Data sources The primary data sources (as mentioned above) comprise two contemporary physical education syllabus statements. A range of other sources are drawn on, however to contextualise the analysis of these two syllabus statements. Child development magazines, self-help books, academic journal articles and teacher education textbooks form part of this wider data archive. Results/conclusions/point of view Results of the study indicate that developmental discourses play a crucial role in both the construction of curriculum knowledge in physical education and in the conduct of professionals charged with teaching children that curriculum. The ways in which childhood needs are expressed, suggest that physical education syllabi are founded on a set of assumptions that assume children and adults think, feel and behave in particular ways at certain stages of their life course. From these initial assumptions a number of specific roles for leisure, sport and fitness in the lives of children are derived which do not necessarily achieve what they claim to achieve that is, lifelong enjoyment and participation in physical activity. Developmental discourses may appear insubstantial and transitory compared with the people, objects, and events which comprise physical education schooling, yet I argue that developmental discourses have a material life embodied in institutional practices of schools. That is, I suggest that developmental discourses are not just about ideas or beliefs but rather are concerned with practical conduct and the corporeal existence of human beings. As Gore (1993) has observed, "altering the regime of pedagogy requires more than analysing the institutions and ideologies in which and through which schooling occurs. Specific practices also require attention" (p.147). In the structure, content and directions for practice of both physical education syllabi, developmental imperatives are strongly emphasized. Children's development is demarcated into sets of milestones or stages, premised on chronological age. Developmental milestones are not merely useful devices for patterning or catering for children's growth, but rather have material effects which reach into all realms of child care and education. They structure parents' and teachers' observations of their children/students. They invite comparison between children. They set up relations of competition amongst parents/teachers. They inspire all manner of professional interventions in the name of the child and at a wider level they invoke particular models of political organisation, such as welfare provisions, family policy. Developmental understandings influence what is done in school physical education (curriculum ) when physical education takes place, how it happens and for whom. The analysis shows that physical education syllabi use developmental benchmarks to assess children's progress, to construct learning goals and design curriculum experiences. These practices position one kind of student as 'normal' and set up 'standards' against which all 'others' are measured and evaluated. The results indicate that the construction of a nonnative, hierarchical trajectory for child development categorizes, classifies and inevitably marginalised groups of children whose developmental patterns differ from those foregrounded in the syllabi. The study also shows how one of Physical Education's central aims - 'the facilitation of fundamental motor skills' - is deeply indebted to orthodox developmental principles. In both its categorisation of what is important subject matter for children to know and its recommendations for how that subject matter should be taught, fundamental motor skills provide a paradigmatic example of developmental ism at work in school physical education. Results suggest that there are conditions of possibility present in contemporary physical education syllabi and theory, which afford opportunities for thinking about physically educated children differently. The study concludes by suggesting future avenues for empirical research inquiry. Educational importance of the study The project contributes to a body of research that seeks to reassess the goals and values of the physical education profession (Kirk, 1992; Tinning, 1991; Wright, 1991, 1995). The results of this study can assist physical educators to examine both the conditions and consequences of their actions as professionals and contribute to an understanding of how certain discourses have come to be privileged over others in the practices of the discipline. Recently Rovegno & Kirk (1995) have called for socially critical curriculum work to "pay more attention to how children learn, develop and experience physical education" (p.447). In a paper entitled Articulations and silences in socially-critical work on physical education: Toward a broader agenda, they have suggested that curriculum theory should be "based on a theoretical understanding of how children learn and develop" (p.447). Specifically, they advocate an exploration of more psychologically oriented theories of learning and development as an antidote to the socially critical theorist's tendency to focus almost exclusively on the sociocultural milieu in which physical education curriculums are situated.
In light of this suggestion that a developmental dimension be added to socially critical agendas in physical education, the need for work which subjects the psychological theories themselves to critical scrutiny is especially pressing. Assuredly, it is important to understand how children learn in order to provide meaningful curriculum experiences. However, any attempts to find out about how children develop through recourse to psychological theory must proceed with an acknowledgement of the social constructedness of developmental psychological knowledge itself. I suggest that a critical re-reading of physical education texts, using insights from poststructural social theory and Foucault in particular, can help to answer questions about how developmental discourses are constructed, circulated and played out in school physical education. Such analyses may provide a backdrop to future analyses examining how these discourses have been taken up by physical educationists themselves in the practices and institutions of schooling. Furthermore, in the deconstruction of `taken-for-granted' disciplinary assumptions, alternative pedagogies and ways of thinking about the child at the centre of physical education practice can be countenanced.
Objective This study was conducted to describe the overt, interactive caring behaviors that physical education teachers exhibited towards their students during and between classes. In addition, the study determined if these behaviors were oriented to fostering the growth of students, protecting the students, or encouraging the students to develop socially acceptable behavior. Perspective Students who perceive that their teacher cares about them report enjoying school and being motivated to learn. Many teachers enter teaching because it offers opportunities for them to care for their students in the interest of being a positive influence on their development. The concept of caring teaching is multi-faceted and can be viewed from many aspects. One way to consider caring in teaching is by framing it according to behaviors that occur within interpersonal interactions between teachers and students. This consideration is particularly relevant to teaching since it is believed that interpersonal interaction between teachers and students is at the heart of the educational process. Further, this consideration is relevant to students since behaviors exhibited by teachers in this context typically are oriented towards fostering the growth of students, protecting students, or shaping students to behave in a socially acceptable manner. These orientations can enhance students' well being because they meet psycho/social needs that contribute to their development. As such, these orientations are similar to both teachers and caregivers or parents because they reflect an interest in assisting the student to develop to his /her fullest potential. This description of a manifestation of caring is regarded as a particular way for teachers to demonstrate care towards their students. Physical education is unique to the school curriculum because it is grounded in movement. It also is uniquely characterized by a high degree of interaction between teachers and students. Research suggests that physical education teachers interact with students as much as 95% of class time. Since student/teacher interaction is one perspective from which to examine the concept of caring in teaching, and considering that students' well being can be enhanced as a result of these interactions, an investigation about the phenomenon of caring can lead to valuable information about the teaching behavior of physical education teachers. Limited investigations on caring have been conducted in education and only peripheral studies on caring in physical education specifically have been conducted. Findings from research on caring in education suggest that overt, interactive caring behaviors can be framed using the dimensions of, and behavioral categories within, acknowledgment, attentiveness and responsiveness. These dimensions and categories can determine a teacher's distribution of caring behaviors. Subsequent analysis of the exhibited caring behaviors can then determine the teacher's caring orientation. Method Four physical education teachers from the northeast region of the United States participated in this study. Three of the teachers were from suburban school districts. The fourth was from an urban, independent, single-sex school. The teachers represented all grade levels. Three of the teachers were female and the fourth was male. Each teacher was recommended for the study by an expert in the field because they were recognized as caring teachers. An explanation of why the teacher was considered to be caring was included in the recommendation. The recommendations were compared to criteria generated from the literature on caring teaching behaviors to ensure that the considered participant exhibited caring behaviors consistent to what students perceive to be caring. Subsequent sample selection was corroborated by a peer review. A series of pilot studies was conducted to ensure that the outlined method for data collection generated data appropriate to the purpose of the study. First, two physical education teachers were observed teaching and field notes were taken on the caring behaviors they exhibited. This determined that caring behaviors could be detected and noted while observing teachers during and between classes. Second, videotapes of physical education teachers were viewed to develop a guide of ground rules that defined the dimensions and categories of behaviors that were included in the framework. This resulted in the definition of the behaviors of each category of each dimension. This guide was used during data analysis to classify the noted caring behaviors according to dimensions and categories. Finally, a pilot case study was conducted to collect and analyze data and present the case according to an outline developed to display the findings. The pilot studies also determined that the prescribed number of observations was adequate in obtaining sufficient and appropriate data. Each teacher was observed teaching four classes. Data were collected by taking field notes of the overt interactive caring behaviors they exhibited. The researcher also was present 15 minutes before and after each class to collect data. The prescribed number of observations generated the notation of multiple instances of caring, enough so that the dimensions and categories became saturated. This is recognized as one guideline to consider when conducting qualitative research and knowing when sufficient data has been collected. Data Analysis The data were analyzed according to the dimensions and categories of caring behaviors used to frame this study. The field notes generated from observations noted each instance of caring that the teachers exhibited. Each instance was placed onto a separate index card. Using the guide that was developed during the pilot studies, each instance was classified according to one of the three behavioral dimensions, then categorized into a pre-determined category within each dimension. Each category of behavior, consisting of a varied number of instances of exhibits of caring, was content analyzed using constant comparison to determine its caring orientation. Trustworthiness was ensured by (a) maintaining consistent data collection procedures for each participant, (b) using a peer reviewer to corroborate that selected compiled field notes accurately reflected the teacher's exhibited caring behavior, and (c) using a peer reviewer to check the accuracy of selected pieces of analyzed data. Findings The findings are reported as case studies by systematically presenting each participant's caring behaviors according to the framework of dimensions and categories of caring behaviors, including a determination of their caring orientation and subsequent examples of exhibited behaviors. Becca's caring orientation was evenly distributed between growth, protection and acceptable behavior. Becca fostered growth by consistently structuring student's behavior (i.e., correcting motor skill patterns) and actively participating in class activities which enabled her to provide motivational prompts to various students. Becca maintained the physical and emotional safety of her students by reminding each to remove jewelry which had the potential to cause injury, be aware of their personal space while engaged in activities, and listening to their frustrations when they experienced difficulties during class activities. Becca fostered the development of acceptable behavior by reminding students of the established class rules, reminding classes to exhibit good sportspersonship, and promoting partner work with the expectation that each set of partners would work well together. Ali's caring behaviors were primarily oriented towards fostering the growth of her students. She verbally motivated students with frequent prompts, evaluated students' motor skills and offered suggestions for improvements, consistently praised the efforts the students were making, and reinforced that class activities were to be engaged in until their completion (i.e., telling students that it was not okay for them to quit an activity before it was completed). Jimmy's caring behaviors were also oriented primarily to fostering the growth of students. He consistently and enthusiastically participated in class activities alongside his classes. During his participation he also evaluated and structured students' execution of motor skills to ensure that they experienced success. Susan's caring behavior orientation was split between fostering the growth of her students and shaping her students to behave in a socially acceptable manner. She structured and evaluated her students' execution of motor skills to ensure their success and help them improve. She also participated in class activities alongside her students and guided their actions as they were engaged in games. Susan immediately addressed instances where the students exhibited inappropriate behavior and consistently reiterated her behavioral expectations. Importance of the Study These four physical education teachers, selected for this investigation because of their distinction of being a caring teacher, exhibited caring behaviors that most often were oriented towards fostering the growth of their students. This was most often in the form of helping and ensuring that their students learned the class objectives. Current educational reform efforts are emphasizing outcomes based education. In physical education it no longer is acceptable to justify programs by the listing or number of activities that are engaged in, rather by the learning that students achieve. Based on the teachers in this study, the findings illuminate particular overt ways that physical education teachers can foster the growth of their students during classes.
Objective The objectives of this study were twofold: (a) to examine physical education teachers' experiences with and perceptions of Mosston's spectrum of teaching styles and (b) to compare and contrast teachers' and students' perceptions and experiences of Mosston's spectrum. Perspective Mosston's spectrum of teaching styles continues to play a major role in the conceptualization of teaching in physical education. It represents a continuum of decisions that are made in the teaching-learning process from teacher to student centered. Even though it has been widely adopted in our field, there is a paucity of data available on teachers' perceptions of and experiences with the spectrum of teaching styles. There also are very little data available that compares students' and teachers' perceptions and experiences with a variety of teaching styles. It is important to learn more about teachers' experiences with and perceptions of teaching styles due to their impact on teaching and ultimately student learning. Understanding more about teachers experiences and perceptions in this area also will lead information that can be used to help teachers continue to use successful teaching styles as well as to add new styles to their teaching repertoire. The same teaching-learning experiences may be perceived differently by teachers and students. Discrepancies between the meaning assigned to the same class event by teachers and students have been shown at all levels of teaching. Students also may react differently to teaching styles than how they were intended by teachers. Comparing and contrasting teachers' and students' perceptions will lead to an increased understanding of how teaching styles affect the teaching-learning process and may lead to information that can be used to decrease the incongruencies between teachers' and students' perspectives. Method Participants for the current study were 209 physical education teachers from Indiana (n=58) and Michigan (n=151). All of the participants were employed as physical education teachers at one or more levels, including 117 elementary, 57 middle/junior high and 52 high school teachers. Both genders were well represented (112 female and 96 males) in the sample. There also was a balance among years of teaching experience with teachers reporting 0-3 years (n=41), 4-10 years (n=63), 11-20 years (n=47) or over 20 years (n=55) of experience. The majority of the participants reported their ethnicity as European American (87%), with a small number of participants indicating African-American, Hispanic, Multiracial or other. Participants for this study were recruited through inservice meetings, state level conferences, and through mailings to teachers involved in state organizations. Participants completed the "Teachers' Perceptions of Teaching Styles" instrument designed to examine teachers' experience with and perceptions (i.e., fun, effectiveness, motivation) of the 11 teaching styles. The instrument includes a scenario for each of the 11 teaching styles followed by four statements: (a) I have used this way to teach physical education, (b) I think this way of teaching would make class fun for my students, (c) I think this way of teaching would help students learn skills and concepts, and (d) I think this way of teaching would motivate students to learn. Teacher data also were combined with student data from an earlier phase of the study in order to compare and contrast teachers' and students' experiences with and perceptions of the spectrum of teaching styles. The wording of the items for students reflected their own K-12 physical education experiences rather than teaching experiences (e.g., I had a physical education teacher that taught this way). The participants for the earlier phase of the study were 438 college students. Data Analysis Teachers. Tests were performed to determine if the teaching styles instrument could produce reliable and valid scores in this population. Reliability was estimated using Cronbach's alpha. Construct validity was examined through cross comparisons by self-rated level of teaching ability using ANOVA and Scheffe post-hoc tests. Repeated measures ANOVA tests were used to investigate significant differences among teachers' experiences with and perceptions of the teaching styles. Four separate MANOVA tests were performed to determine if differences were present between genders, or among self-reported teaching ability (i.e., very good, good, and average to not good at using teaching styles), years of teaching experience, or length of class sessions. Significant MANOVA tests were followed by discriminant analysis, ANOVA and ANCOVA tests. Teachers and students. MANOVA also was used to investigate differences between teachers' and students' perceptions of the benefits of the teaching styles related to fun, effectiveness and motivation, as well as their experiences with the teaching styles. Results and Conclusions Teachers. Reliability scores (Cronbach's alpha) for teachers' perceptions of the individual teaching styles ranged from .81-.93 and for the overall instrument was .89. Significant differences were found among teaching ability groups. According to a significant ANOVA (F[22, 270] = 1.66, p<.05), there was a trend that as teachers became more confident using a variety of teaching styles, their perceptions of the styles became more favorable supporting the construct validity of the instrument.Repeated measures ANOVA results indicated that differences were present among teachers' experiences with teaching styles (F[10, 194] = 142.81, p<.Ol) and their perceptions of teaching styles (F[10, 197] = 61.99, p<.O1). Their perceptions were the most favorable for the practice (b), reciprocal (c), inclusion (e), and divergent production (h) teaching styles. In an earlier study, students also showed significant differences in their experiences with and perceptions of the 11 teaching styles, favoring the practice (b), inclusion (e), learner's individual designed program (i), and reciprocal (c) teaching styles. Results from the MANOVA tests revealed significant differences for teachers' perceptions of the 11 teaching styles among self-rated teaching ability groups, i.e., very good, good, and average to not good at using teaching styles (F[22, 270] = 1.66, p<.05) and for teachers with different class lengths, i.e., 10-30 minutes, 31-40 minutes, or 41 minutes or more (F[22, 282] =1.84, p<.05). Follow-up tests suggested that the differences observed between teaching ability groups were related to the command (a) and guided discovery (f) teaching styles and differences among the class length groups were related to the command (a) and self check (d) teaching styles. In an earlier study, differences also were found among students who rated themselves as learners in physical education in their perceptions of styles A and D. Teachers and students. MANOVA results comparing teachers and students suggest that significant differences were present between teachers' and students' experiences (F[11, 619] = 21.43, p<.O1) and perceptions of the teaching styles. There were significant findings related to perceptions of fun (F[11, 624] = 11.29, p<.01), effectiveness (F[11, 631] = 9.37, p<.01), and motivation (F[11, 626] = 9.45, p<.O1) of the teaching styles between teachers and students. Follow-up tests suggest that seven of the teaching styles contributed to the observed differences in overall perceptions of teaching styles between teachers and students (i.e., styles H, F, J, C, D, E, 1). Importance of the Study It is important to extend our knowledge and understanding related to teachers' and students' perceptions of the teaching-learning environment. Considering the differences and similarities between teachers' and students' perceptions of teaching styles is one step in this process. This study also may lead to information that can be used to decrease the incongruities between teachers' and students' perspectives. In addition, by understanding how teachers are using the spectrum of styles in physical education programs, educators can improve the design of teacher inservice programs to support currently used styles as well as to promote the use of different styles.
Purpose of the Study The purpose of this study was to examine perceptions of elementary students about physical education and physical education teachers. Specifically, this study asked second graders in high, average and low performance groups if and why they liked physical education, what they liked and disliked about it, what should and should not be learned there, and what makes a good physical education teacher and a bad physical education teacher. Perspective Student perceptions and feelings about what they learn and where they learn has generated the interest of scholars, practitioners, and those in positions to make decisions about schools. There has been an increased amount of research conducted on student attitudes about physical education and what should be taught in physical education, possibly because of the influence attitude may play in future participation in physical activity. Examining students by skill subgroups has also generated much more interest in recent years. Previous research indicates that, overall, students feel positive about physical education (Butcher, 1982; Coe, 1984; Rice, 1988; Scott & West, 1990; Tannehill & Zakrajsek, 1993); although some research suggests that many students like other subjects better, that it is not important, or it is irrelevant (Tannehill, Romar, O'Sullivan, England, & Rosenberg, 1994; Tinning & Fitzclarence, 1992). Other researchers have identified specific aspects of physical education that students enjoy: the variety of activities (Rice, 1988); the atmosphere of fun and freedom (Luke & Sinclair, 1991); being with friends (Tannehill & Zakrajsek, 1993); or specific outcomes, such as winning (Tannehill et al., 1994). Negative aspects of physical education that have been reported include: class periods that are too brief (Rice, 1988); clothing or changing clothes for physical education (Luke & Sinclair, 1991; Rice, 1988); methods of evaluation (Luke & Sinclair, 1991); and feeling uncomfortable or at risk in performing skills (Tannehill et al., 1994). Research has also indicated that students have differing feelings about the different content areas within physical education, and curriculum content has been found to be a very influential factor in determining positive or negative attitudes of physical education students (Figley, 1985; Luke & Sinclair, 1988). Overall, team sports and games tend to be preferred (Flohr & Williams, 1997; McKenzie, Alcaraz, & Sallis, 1994; Rice, 1988; Tannehill et al., 1994; Tannehill & Zakrajsek, 1993), fitness improvement is an important goal (Tannehill et al., 1994; Tannehill & Zakrajsek, 1994), running and fitness activities are frequently disliked (Flohr & Williams, 1997; Luke & Sinclair, 1991; McKenzie et al., 1994; Tannehill & Zakrajsek, 1993), and fitness testing is misunderstood (Flohr & Williams, 1997; Hopple & Graham, 1995). Recent research suggests that students of different ability levels have different experiences and feelings about physical education (Nugent & Faucette, 1995; Silverman, Woods, & Subramanian, 1999). In particular, low skilled students tend to view physical education as a place where isolation and humiliation are common, and success is uncommon (Carlson, 1995; Portman, 1995; Walling & Martinek, 1995). As a result, these students develop coping strategies ranging from becoming spectator to self banishment. Limited research exists on how students feel about physical education teachers. Research at the secondary level shows that students appreciate physical education teachers who are friendly (Rice, 1988), who have high expectations and are focused on learning (Luke & Sinclair, 1991), and who are sensitive and care about students (Luke & Sinclair, 1991; Stinson, 1992). By far, the majority of research on student attitudes in physical education has been conducted on secondary students. Extremely limited research exists on how elementary students of different ability levels feel about the physical education class and physical education teachers. Method and Data Sources Overview: Two classes each of two physical education teachers at two different schools in Western Washington were used for this research endeavor. The data collection involved videotaping second grade physical education classes and interviewing second graders regarding their perceptions of physical education and physical education teachers. Instruction: Classes A and B were both taught by a female teacher. Classes C and D were taught by a male teacher at another school. Teachers made all instructional decisions regarding content and methodology for each class. The content of the classes varied between the two teachers; however, both teachers presented the same content to each class they taught. Classes A and B included a tagging game and throwing/catching stations for each of the three sessions. Classes C and D included underhand serve drills and game for session 1, various stations and a cooperative game in session 2, and combatives in session 3. Videotaping Procedures: Each of the four classes was videotaped for three sessions, resulting in a total of twelve taped sessions. All class sessions were taped using a twocamera split screen video set-up so that essentially all activity in the gymnasium was captured on film. The researcher was able to clearly hear each teacher throughout the lesson via a cordless microphone or gymnasium sound system already in place. Each student wore a numbered pinafore for each session, so that he/she could be identified by number (no names used) in subsequent coding. Videotape Coding Procedures: Students who were in attendance for all three of the videotape sessions were used for coding (N=61). The researcher viewed each videotape one time for each of these students. For each viewing, the student was tracked for the entire lesson and each skill performance was coded (successful or unsuccessful). If the student correctly performed the movement goal (determined by what the teacher instructed the children to do), a successful trial was recorded on the data sheet. If the student performed incorrectly, an unsuccessful trial was recorded. For each student, data were summed across the three class sessions. The success rate (total successful attempts divided by total attempts) for each student was calculated for all skills in general. Skill Performance Subgroup Determination: Success rates, expressed in percentages, for each of the 61 students were rank ordered. The researcher identified natural breaks in the percentages. It was determined that students who had success rates of 79.2% to 93.8% (highest) were grouped into the high (H) skill performance group (n=17). Students who had success rates of 48.6% to 75.6% were categorized into the average (A) skill performance group (n=31). Students in the low (L) skill performance group had success rates of 9.7% (lowest) to 43.4% (n=13). Interview Procedures: A total of 43 students returned signed permission slips granting permission to be interviewed. Each student was interviewed individually by the researcher during a regular physical education class session, which was not being videotaped. Interviews were audiotaped while the researcher took notes on interview forms, which provided the following open ended questions/prompts: 1) "Do you like PE?" (If "yes:" "Why?" If "no:" "Why not?"); 2) "Tell me something you really like about PE."; 3) "Tell me something you dislike about PE."; 4) "What is the most important thing you should learn in PE?"; 5) "What is not very important to learn in PE?"; 6) "What makes a good PE teacher?"; and 7) "What makes a bad PE teacher?" Subjects for This Study: Sixty-one students were coded on skill performance, although not all of these students returned permission slips allowing them to be interviewed. A total of 43 students were interviewed, although only 29 of them were in attendance for all three videotape sessions. Therefore, for this study, 29 students' interview responses were used. Of this number, 7 were from the high skill performance group, 12 from the average skill performance group, and 10 were from the low skill performance group. Interview Transcription Procedures: Audiotapes were transcribed by the researcher and qualitatively analyzed. Each response to each question was reviewed and initially grouped into categories to identify emergent themes. The process of review and grouping was repeated a minimum of 10 times by the researcher to form themes and categorize with consistency. Individual student responses that contained statements which fell under more than one category were placed in each relevant theme. Responses and themes from the three skill performance groups were compared. Findings Overall: The second graders liked physical education, supporting prior research. For each of the seven questions, the most prevalent responses were provided by students from all skill performance group. However, each question had a variety of reference themes. In general, students from the high skill performance groups were more specific in their responses ("I like Ghost Buster Tag" vs. "I like all the games."). Students in low and average skill performance groups made more references to Non-PE Behaviors, Safety, and Injury in their responses. The most common responses to the individual questions were as follows: "Do you like PE?" "Why?" All students responded with a "Yes" to the initial question. Answers to the follow-up question ("Why?") revealed there were 16 references to Fun (H=4, A=6, L=6), 13 references to the General Curriculum (H=1, A=6, L--6), and 11 references to General Exercise/Activity (H=1, A=5, L=5). A total of 60 references appeared in the subjects' responses. "Tell me something you really like about PE." There were 35 references in the responses. There were 17 references to a Specific Game/Activity (H=5, A= 8, I_-4), 5 references to General Curriculum (H=1, A=2, L=2), and 4 responses to Specific Equipment (H=2, A=2, L=0). "Tell me something you dislike about PE." There were 15 references to a Specific Game/Activity (H=5, A=8, L=2), and 6 references to Non-Success (H=2, A=1, L= 3). There was a total of 34 references in the subjects' responses. "What is the most important thing you should learn in PE?" There were 37 references in the responses. These included 6 references to Listen to Teacher (H=1, A=3, L=2), 5 references to Benefits of Exercise (H=1, A=1, L--3), and 5 references to General Exercise (H=2, A=2, L=1). "What is not very important to learn in PE?" There were 11 responses of Do Not Know (H=3, A=6, L=2), 6 references to Specific Game/Activity (H=2, A=2, L=2), and 5 references to Previously Learned (H=1, A=0, L=4). There were 34 references in the responses. "What makes a good PE teacher?" There were 48 references in subject Reponses. Of those, there were 9 references to Nice (H=4, A=1, L=4). Four other categories had four responses: Fun (H=2, A=2, L=0), Knowledge (H=1, A=2, L=1), Discipline (H=2, A= 2, L=0), and General Curriculum (H=1, A=2, L=1). "What makes a bad PE teacher?" There were 6 references to Mean (H=2, A=1, Lr 3), 6 references to Too Strict (H=3, A=2, L=1), and 5 references to Gets Mad/Yells (H=0, A=2, L=3), from a total of 41 references in students' responses. Importance of the Study Silverman and Subramanian (1999) suggest that research on student attitudes in physical education can provide a more global view of the complexities of student learning. The results of this study will contribute to the limited research that has been conducted on elementary students' attitudes about physical education and physical education teachers. In particular, the study of skill subgroups allows researchers and practitioners to understand perceptions and experiences of different students as they learn in physical education.
Purpose The focus of this study was to investigate fourth grade students' explanations for their self-assessed ability to learn and perform the new skill of cup stacking. Perspective The investigation of how teaching transfers into learning, and the role of the student in the learning process is increasingly dominated by the cognitive paradigm (Lee, 1996; Roberts, 1992; Winne, 1991). Interest in why students are inclined or disinclined to take responsibility for their own learning has stimulated research on motivational cognitions (Solmon, 1991). Many recent investigations in physical education pedagogy are grounded in the belief that achievement strivings are mediated by cognitive, affective and value oriented constructs representing a dynamic interactive learning process (Lee & Solmon, 1992). This research, which is designed to understand the role that students play in their own learning, employs a cognitive mediational framework (Doyle, 1977). Research provides educators considerable information about what occurs in physical education classes, but there is still limited information concerning students' thoughts and feelings (Wessinger, 1994). What makes students feel they can or cannot learn? What makes them want to learn? How a student explains his or her feelings or judgements may provide insight into how those perceptions can either be maintained or manipulated. Ultimately better insight into students' perceptions is salient to our understanding of how students learn (Lee & Solmon, 1992). In particular self-perception of ability (SPA) has received ample attention in the literature. How students understand and interpret their own ability or competence to complete a task has been described as a central mediating influence on overall self-esteem and achievement related behaviors and motivations (Feltz, 1988; Nicholls, 1984, Roberts, 1992) and specific active participation (Solmon & Lee, 1996). Likert Scales are frequently given to students to establish their place on a continuum. The identified number on the continuum has then been used to classify students for further research. Knowing the meaning that students attach to their self-ratings might increase clarity in research and help teachers raise students' SPA and increase their positive involvement in physical activity classes. Method This study was directed towards an analysis of students' perceptions about their ability to learn and perform a novel task. It constitutes a portion of a larger study designed to analyze the effects of feedback on students' behavior and performance. Participants included 56 male and 47 female students from five fourth grade classes in a public school in the southern part of the United States. Classes were taught by four trained upper-level physical education majors from a nearby university. Students were asked to rate and explain in writing their self-perceptions of ability six different times. Students participated in an instructional unit involving two different skills (3x6x3 and lxlOxl) in the novel task of cupstacking. The most basic cupstack is a three cup pyramid in which two cups are placed face (open end) down side-by-side and a third cup is placed face down on top. A more difficult cupstack is a 10 cup pyramid with 4 cups on bottom, 3 on the second level, 2 on the third level, and 1 on top. A 3x6x3 cupstack refers to having three cups into one pyramid, 6 in another, and 3 in a final pyramid while a more complex 1xlOxI cupstack means having 1 cup in the first stack, 10 in the middle pyramid, and 1 cup in the last stack. As the size of a single pyramid increases so, too, does the difficulty of the task (Cupstack Information and Instruction Brochure, 1988). On day one, students watched a short instructional video on the novel task of cupstacking and participated in a brief discussion about the values and purposes of cupstacking. Using a Likert Scale from 1 (not at all) to 10 (perfect) students were asked to indicate their SPA to learn (SPAL) the general skill of cupstacking. Then they were asked to explain why they chose the number they did. They were reminded that perceptions were neither right nor wrong, but rather a matter of their feelings, and they were challenged throughout the study to be honest and to provide as detailed explanations as possible. Students present for day one were divided into four separate physical education classes with approximately 26 students per class. Students within each of these four separate classes were randomly assigned by gender into four learning groups of 5 to 9 students. At the start of the instruction, each separate class of four small groups attended a different 30-minute class. During a given 30-minute session, each of the four groups were directed to a corner of the gym where they received one of the four predetermined feedback conditions by their specific university instructor. Over the course of two hours, each instructor taught a different treatment to four different groups, one from each of the four physical education classes. Prior to the first session, the 3x6x3 cupstacking skill was demonstrated. Students were asked to indicate on a Likert Scale from 1 (not at all) to 10 (perfect) their SPA to perform (SPAP) the specific demonstrated skill and their reason for selecting that number. In the first feedback sessions, instructors were introduced and terms and procedures were reviewed. At a given signal, the instructors began to teach the 3x6x3 and to provide a predetermined feedback condition. Following instructional time, students were timed (scores were not revealed) and asked to rate and explain their SPAP for the 3x6x3 cupstacking skill. Procedures were repeated while students under the same instructor and same feedback condition practiced the more difficult Ix10x1 skill. On the last day, students were requested to record their final SPAL the general skill of cupstacking and to explain their rating. Data Analysis Inductive analysis was used to describe students' perceptions of their SPA (Bogdan & Biklen, 1992; Lincoln & Guba, 1985; Patton, 1980). A content analysis of the students' explanations for their ability rankings was used to gain an understanding of their cognitive understandings. After reading the list of comments several times, two researchers unitized statements used by students to explain their ability perceptions. Statements were organized into similar groupings or categories. These categories were discussed and eventually collapsed into five themes. Sample statements were written to help define each theme. Using the list of comments, three researchers independently categorized each of the responses by gender into one of the themes. A 98.7 per cent agreement between the coders was achieved. A repeated measures ANOVA was used to determine differences in the following dependent variables within and between treatment groups: (a) SPAL the skill of cupstacking, and (b) SPAP for the 3x6x3 and the 1 x 1 Ox 1 skills. Results SPAL. The following themes emerged from the inductive analysis: Global Self-Assessment Theme - refers to nonspecific comments about abilities in general ("I'm no good", " I'm good") and to comments related to humility ("I hate to brag", " I'm not perfect", or "I am perfect"). Basically comments in this theme refer to general self-esteem or self-confidence rather than to specific skills or abilities. Specific Ability Theme - refers to positive or negative comments about specific physical abilities (" I'm coordinated; I have quick hands, I'm clumsy"). Effort Theme - refers to a willingness to work hard, to try, to practice as much as possible. No negative comments concerning effort were made. Interest Theme - refers to the perception that cupstacking is fun, challenging, interesting, worthy of learning, or uninteresting. Task Theme - refers to comments concerning the specific task of cupstacking and include uncertainty about this novel task or perceptions that the task is easy or hard. Before practicing the skill, 49% of the girls used the global self-assessment them to explain their SPAL ranking. After practicing the skill, the girls explained SPAL rankings based on effort (29%); specific abilities (26%); and global self-assessments (20%). Before practicing the skill, 33% boys ranked their SPAL according to how they viewed the challenge of the task (33%) or according to their interest in the task (22%). After completing the lessons, the boys explained their SPAL on the basis of effort (36%); specific abilities (31 %); and global self-assessments (15%). Similar explanations produced variation in numerical scores. For example, "I'm good" received rankings from 4-10 (M=7.35); "I'm no good" received rankings from 1-8 (M=3.5). Students unsure of the task difficulty ranked themselves between 1-5 (M=4.4); while those who viewed the task as "hard" ranked themselves between 1-6 (M=3.46). Girls (n=4) ranked themselves from 5-9 because they didn't want to brag or act as if they were perfect. One area produced less scoring variance. Five females and one male perceived themselves as average and scored themselves between 5-7 (M= 6.0) Girls and boys who ranked themselves 5 or less gave both positive and negative explanations. For example, negative explanations (n=24, M= 3.03) claimed "I'm no good", "I haven't done this before", or "It looks hard" while positive explanations (n=22, M=4.64) indicated "I'm interested", "I'm good", "I'll try", or "I hate to brag". With the exception of 4 students, rankings of 6 or greater (n=77) were explained in a positive fashion. The analysis of variance showed a significant difference between treatment groups for SPAL, F (3, 6) = 5.77, p < .05 indicating that when collapsed across time, the four feedback groups' means were different. This finding is not difficult to explain since groups were randomly formed. There was also a significant time effect, F (1, 6) = 51.61, p < .O1 indicating that in general students strengthened their perceptions about their ability to learn the general skill of cupstacking regardless of the treatment group they were assigned. SPAR Inductive analysis of SPAP produced the same themes though the definition of some themes changed slightly. The Specific Ability Theme was broadened to include comparative explanations ("I'm faster", "Slower"). The Task Theme was broadened to include comments pertaining to task knowledge ("I know how to stack the cups so they won't fall"). Results were similar to the SPAL findings, except students begin to rank themselves according to their perception about how fast they were performing the skills though no times were revealed. The analysis of perceptions of ability to perform indicates no significant difference between treatment groups for either the 3x6x3 or the 1x10x1 skill. Significant time effects were evident for SPAP on the 3x6x3 skill, F (1, 6) = 55.75, p < .01, as well as the lxlOxl skill _F (1, 6) = 87.14, p < .O1. While the interaction of time and treatment was not significant for either skill at the .05 level, the finding for 1 x l Ox 1 SPAP, F (3, 6) = 4.19, p < .06, indicates a possible trend. The mean SPAP scores for students in the task and motivational feedback treatment group show an increase from pre to post of more than two, while the other treatment groups increased slightly more than one point. In light of the low power associated with using the class as the unit of analysis, the finding that this interaction approaches significance merits its reporting. Conclusions and educational significance In general girls explain initial perceptions on the basis of their global self-worth or self-confidence. Boys' initial SPAL reflect their perception of task difficulty and appeal. Boys with low global self-worth may still perceive that they can achieve a task if it appears interesting or manageable. After completing the lessons, girls and boys abandoned negative global explanations and referred to more specific qualities such as work ethic or eye-hand coordination. Understanding the initial source of self-perceptions might help teachers to better motivate students for the task at hand. Perceptions during the lessons were often based on students' understandings of their times which were never revealed. Physical educators who make efforts to eliminate competition or scoring cannot ignore the fact that observable physical activities tend to solicit social comparison and to impact students' perceptions. Students are often asked to complete Likert Scales that indicate how they feel about their competence. The fact that students employ a wide range of numbers to explain the same basic belief indicates a need for precise scales which identify exactly what each number represents. In addition care must be taken to label numbers in light of the child's understanding rather than the researcher's. Perhaps elementary age children should be provided with a short continuum of 4 to 5 numbers so that they can more precisely pinpoint their perceptions.
Purpose The purposes of this presentation are: 1. To outline how and why students modify instructional tasks. 2. To explain those facts through the concept of "didactic contract" (Brousseau, 1986, Amade Escot, 1999). 3. To contribute to the debate between two theoretical perspectives in PE classroom research: "the didactic perspective" (Amade-Escot, 1996; Loquet, Refuggi & Amade-Escot, 1999) and "the ecological perspective" (Hastie, 1996; Hastie & Siedentop, 1999). Theoretical framework The didactic paradigm examines the relationships between teachers, students and the content embedded in the tasks during academic work. This research perspective stresses that students and teacher have a specific relation to the content taught which determines the evolution of the academic work during classroom interactions. Many researchers have stated that physical education is achieved through a rather subtle and tacit process of negotiations. The concept of "didactic contract" (Brousseau, 1986, 1997) is used to specify the part of the negotiations which are related to the academic work. These negotiations, more often than not implicit between teacher and students, concern the content to be taught and learned in a given task and cannot be considered as the same as other negotiations related with class management, or the social relationships. At first glance, the didactic approach appears to have some similarity with the ecological perspective: (a) researchers are concerned with the implementation of academic goals and content in the PE classroom; (b) they study the continual, inevitable changes observed during the teaching-learning process in classroom life. The main results in the ecological perspective state that the ecology of physical education focuses on cooperation rather than on academic work. Teachers maintain cooperation by reducing the demands in the instructional system (for a review: Hastie & Siedentop, 1999). These findings have been confirmed by many studies but a question remains. Why do students who participate consistently in the academic work modify the stated task? The didactic perspective focuses exactly on this question by studying the negotiation and trading-off in the instructional system itself. There is some evidence that the tasks are continuously modified during the academic work (i.e. in the instructional system), while students' involvement in the managerial system or the student social system is congruent with the demands of the task. Why? Students' response depends on the way they understand or are related to the content taught, which is embedded in the stated task. In other words, the didactic perspective confirms that "there is accountability intrinsic to the manner in which the activities develop and the goals are to be achieved" (Hastie & Siedentop, 1999, 16), but stresses that this "content-embedded accountability" is fragile even when the managerial and the student social systems are not critical. The purpose of this paper is to point out how students' relationship to the content taught: (a) determines the modification of the task, (b) has an influence on the work students do, and (c) has some consequences on their academic achievement. Along the way, we will try to be more specific about the concept of "didactic contract" and state in which cases this concept can be helpful to the understanding of classroom interactions. Methods and data sources The study followed guidelines for qualitative research using standard non-participant observation methods. The author made field observations of a volleyball unit in a middle school (students' age: 11 to 12, girls and boys, experienced PE teacher). The data were collected through field notes, informal interviews with the teacher, and videotapes of the lessons. The presentation will emphasize the cases in which the students slightly modified the stated task with no reason regarding their activity in the managerial or the social systems (students were listening, they were involved in the task, they did not try to avoid the demands of the task). In such tasks, there is an adequate level of "skill-activity match" (Tousignant & Siedentop, 1983), but the outcome of the situation is poor effectiveness. Students do not achieve what they are supposed to learn. Data analysis was conducted by comparing the demands of the task (teacher's explicitness recorded and interviews after the lessons) and observed student behavior (field notes and videotape). Findings Most of the time, students modify the stated task. Continual, inevitable changes in the content taught are observed when it is brought into play in the instructional system (case studies will be addressed in detail). This result is congruent with those stated in the ecological perspective but happens although no real dysfunction appears in the other two systems (managerial and student social). How and why do the students modify the stated task? They "stretch" the didactic contract (i.e. the set of negotiations regarding the content embedded in the task). In doing so, they modify the task, not because they are not engaged consistently in the stated task or behave as "competent bystanders" (Tousignant & Siedentop, 1983) but because they test their capabilities in the air n of achieving the goal of the task. These implicit negotiations are achieved by: (a) changing the initial conditions of the stated task, (b) slackening off what is called the "control variable of the task" (i.e. the variable that commands the structure of the instructional task), (c) asking the teacher about points that are not related to what they have to do, (d) planning how to use the routines they have prior to finding new motor skill. All of these are "breaches in the didactic contract" (Brousseau, 1986, 1997, Amade-Escot, 1999). They lessen the students' level of mastery of the task. Modifications appear through subtle and tacit student behavior, which transforms the stated task in some slight details that the teacher does not even notice (Amade-Escot, 1999). The consequences of these subtle changes within the task are a transformation of the content to be learnt. This is one of the major findings of the didactic perspective, which maintains that there is a gap between the content supposed to be taught and the "content really taught". The second major finding is that breaches in the didactic contract are not the result of poor accountability but belong to the teaching-learning process itself. Some of the breaches are pertinent some are critical. This is related to the fact that teaching and learning are situated, contingency-managed action. So, the right concept in the didactic perspective is not to search for a "good" didactic contract but to bring some conditions into play so that the constructivist learning process can occur. Scientific Significance 1. Our intent was to point out the need for a new concept to analyze classroom life in certain cases when the ecology of the classroom is task-oriented and the accountability contentembedded. In a way, from a didactic point of view, the typology of "in-task and off-task students' engagement" and its sub-categories of "students engaged in a modified-task" or "competent bystanders" (Tousignant & Siedentop, 1983) must be foregrounded to explain the trade-off within the instructional system. The concept of didactic contract and its breaches will give some theoretical opportunities for deepening the analysis of classroom interactions. 2. Moreover this paper tends to point out some convergence between two research programs. Negotiations are at the core of the interpretation of classroom life in both perspectives: in terms of "accountability" in the ecological perspective, and in terms of "didactic contract" in the didactic perspective. We defend the idea that the two approaches are complementary: while the ecological perspective studies a broad range of social interactions, the didactic one focus on the interactions that are specific to the content taught. Each sheds light on classroom life in physical education from its own point of view. Insights from multiple perspectives can provide mutual information and give a glimpse of the prospects for dialog and for closer contact or even joint work, which, in our opinion, would be fruitful for future PE research.
Purpose The purpose of this study was to explore the meaning of becoming bodily competent through physical activity as experienced during girlhood. Childhood remembrances of the lived experience of bodily competent women were the source of the text for this phenomenological study. Through the voices of the participants, the phenomenon of female bodily competence was explored and resulting themes were interpreted for their meaning. The research question addressed the following: What is the lived experience of developing a sense of bodily competence during girlhood through physical activity? Theoretical Framework Phenomenological research seeks to describe experience from the point of view of the one who is experiencing (Barritt, et al., 1984). It is the study of lived experience, which is the immediate, pre-reflective consciousness of life (van Marten, 1990). The aim is to transform lived experience, derived from rich descriptions and depth of experiences, into a meaningful textual expression of its essence. Through dialogue and interpretation of text, a deeper understanding of the meaning of lived experience is possible through common themes that point toward an understanding of the phenomenon (Heidegger, 1962). Plausible insights are offered that have the potential of drawing us closer to direct contact with the world and others in our culturally embedded way of existing. The manner in which our cultural embeddedness impacts the development of bodily competence of girls through gender role training follows. During childhood, it is common to experience success in performing physical activities, only to be told that one cannot continue certain activities because they are not right for our body, that "girls don't do that" (Burke, 1996). This early gender role training results in a break in the flow of the child's moving and thinking, realizing that who we are and what we are allowed to do is determined by our sex, not by our bodily competence. This incongruous message begins to shape the meaning that the young girthas of her body. She may begin to choose among activities based not upon her competence, but upon pleasing others and fitting the imposed expectations. She may deny her body opportunities to learn and perform certain activities that require strength and speed, ascribed as "male" (Kollen, 1983). Instead of empowering girls through physical activity, girls are often denied the opportunities to develop or display strength, speed, and other dimensions of bodily competence, even in physical education. Because the gender role training is so ingrained in our culture, the young girl may not remember or notice such impositions (Burke, 1996). The gender role restrictions on physical activity become so embedded into her identity that they may feel as if they are natural, reinforced by messages from the patriarchal culture that they are natural. Patriarchal consciousness is perceiving differences between males and females in dualistic terms of superiority/inferiority (Lorde, 1984). Being male conveys a status of presumed superiority that is not competency based. An alternative view of understanding lived experience is the body in alliance with the natural world, not distinguishable from it (Merleau-Ponty, 1962). Rather than viewing the body as an object, which is consistent with Cartesian philosophy of man-as-machine, the body always functions as a "subject-side" of a subject/object world. With each movement and perception, we are in touch with the primary pact between the body and the world. The body as a subject of being, rather than as an object in the world, can be expressed as "body-subject." Relating the Heideggerian approach to the phenomenon of interest, I am attempting to uncover what it meant to women to develop a sense of bodily competence through physical activity during girlhood. Since physical activity is culturally constructed and socially accepted as a male-identified way of developing a sense of bodily competence, the lived experience of girls who derive meaning from such activity is usually the story and the voice of the silenced. The role of females has been socially constructed such that their bodies are objects, pressuring them to be externally focused. This penomenological study will ask women to focus internally and explore their lived experiences of developing a sense of bodily competence through physical activity during girlhood. Methods and Data Sources Hermeneutic phenomenological research is understood through the dynamic interaction among six research activities (van Manen,1990). These non-linear activities include a turning to the phenomenon that interests us and connects us to the world, investigating experience as it is lived rather than as we conceptualize it, reflecting on the essential themes which characterize the phenomenon, describing the phenomenon through the art of writing and rewriting, maintaining a strong and oriented pedagogical relation to the phenomenon, and balancing the research context by considering parts and whole. This hermeneutic phenomenological research study of developing bodily competence in girlhood is explained in terms of the following research activities, which are dynamic and interconnected. The process of conducting this study included: a turning to and opening of the phenomenon by using the personal experience of the primary author as a starting point; exploring etymological sources of bodily competence; reviewing other literary works; deriving meaning from the lived experience of the participants; reflecting on the emerging themes through conversations that led to resulting essential themes that characterize the phenomenon; and describing the phenomenon through the art of writing and re-writing. Participants for this study were eight female kinesiology students at a large, urban university who self-identified as having developed bodily competence through physical activity during girlhood. All names are pseudonyms. The conversational interview method was utilized to collect lived experience text in the form of stories, anecdotes, and recollections, with opportunities for reflection. Participants were informed initially that sharing childhood experiences of participation in physical activities that included developing a sense of bodily competence in any setting were welcome. Initial conversations were from 30-40 minutes in length, with subsequent conversations of 20-30 minutes in length. The research method was interpretive. Through phenomenological reflection and hermeneutic analysis, common meanings and understandings in the form of themes were revealed regarding bodily competence. Results and Discussion Developing a sense of bodily competence occurred for these women in a variety of settings, including but not limited to physical education classes. The effort to continually challenge oneself in activities that were self-initiated was a primary theme of the study. All of the women said that they were intrinsically motivated as young girls to sustain effort in refining skills or expend effort in learning new skills. This self-challenging mode occurred in both individual and group activities, regardless of adult presence. They recalled having always been self-motivated, dating from their earliest memories of physical activity. This desire to actively and independently pursue feats that enhance bodily competence is not consistent with a common portrayal of females as the "weaker sex." The theme of participation in high levels of motor activity in outdoor settings was also very prevalent. The women spoke of moving continuously, reluctantly returning home for meals, when parent(s) called, or when it became dark. Playing in wooded areas, often creatively inventing activities with playmates involving exploration, was mentioned frequently. Being highly active physically is usually described in a patriarchal society as characteristic of boys, not girls, in a sweeping statement reflecting homogeneity of gender. The strong and positive influence and active involvement of an adult, most frequently the father and infrequently the mother or physical education teacher, was shared as a recurring theme among the participants. An adult, who distinguished him/herself in the memories of the women as being caring and pedagogical during their physical activity relationship, was usually described with affection. Instances of providing equipment and facilities, directly teaching skills and coaching, encouraging improvement, and intervening when threatened were mentioned. The rigid gender role training of patriarchal consciousness in regard to physical activities was not imposed on these girls by a significant adult. Rather, acknowledgment of their developing sense of bodily competence was nurtured. The women recalled having self-affirming views of their bodies when they were young, expressed in terms of successfully performing a favorite activity or in terms of possession of a capability of their body, such as having strength or speed. They participated in various activities, which they perceived to be gender-neutral, with boys and girls. Due to the bodily competence of the girls, they were included as welcome and contributing participants in the activities. They recall a sense of pride in being able to successfully handle the challenges that other bodily competent children, especially boys, presented. The women did not experience incidents of gender bias in physical activity until adolescence, continuing their preferred activities anyway. Educational Significance This study provides insight into the phenomenon of developing a sense of bodily competence from women who shared their lived experience of girlhood participation in physical activities. Developing a sense of bodily competence during girlhood meant challenging themselves to learn and to improve in physical endeavors, being extremely physically active, having the direct influence of an actively involved and supportive adult, and expressing self-affirming views of their bodies in terms of physical performance. All of these ways of developing a sense of bodily competence could be experienced through quality physical education programs that provide opportunities for girls to be active, challenged, and nurtured in a gender-neutral and body-affirming environment. The results of this study suggest that physical educators can enhance the development of bodily competence in girls, which is consistent with the mandate of Title IX, by providing an atmosphere that values the body-subject, holistic view of lived experience as embodied, rather than a dichotomous view of body-as-object.
Purpose This paper presents one of the unexpected results that surfaced during the research undertaken to complete my Ph. D. - resistance to physical education was a key component of resistance to schooling. The purposes of this paper are: 1. To describe the phenomenon of resistance to physical education as it is experienced by adolescent girls, 2. To discuss how resistant behaviors in physical education are related to a larger phenomenon of resistance to schooling, and 3. To suggest curricular implication arising from the theoretical frame. Theoretical Framework I was interested in adolescent girls in grades seven and eight and the ways in which they made sense of the experience of resistance to schooling. Contemporary scholarship on resistance categorizes and classifies resistance by the appearance of certain behaviors. For example, skipping school, cutting classes, making fun of their teachers, or goofing off in class are instances of students engaging in resistant behavior at school (Sun, 1995, p. 843). Avoidance of school work is also considered to be one of the central features of student resistance (Contenta, 1993; Everhart, 1983; Kohl, 1994; Willis, 1977). These conceptions of resistance are essentially structuralist in nature; that is, students from subordinated positions engage in oppositional behaviors and anti-school tactics in order to win what Willis (1977) calls physical and symbolic space from the institution and the dominant school culture. In other words, it is the institutional and bureaucratic nature of schooling that is solely responsible for creating the conditions that give rise to student resistance. In this paper, I argue that in addition to the institutional context of schooling, cultural and social pressures at school create the conditions for resistance, and that student resistance is not simply resistance to schooling. Rather, students= resistant behaviors, such as skipping physical education, can be in response to: 1. the official curriculum and instruction of physical education (institutional imperatives that structure obstacles to participation in physical education) 2. intolerable peer relations that are played out in physical education classes (social pressures), and/or, 3. the ways in which gender identity and dominant messages of femininity are constructed (cultural pressures). I used aspects of Foucault, s work as theoretical lenses through which to view the ways that resistance is constructed in schools. Insights from Foucault, s conception of resistance restores resistance to it original complexity, revealing what Nicholson (1999) calls multiple meanings in the present. That is, a single act of resistance, such as skipping physical education can have multiple meanings. Using Foucauldian insights permits the exploration of the relationship between power and resistance; that is, the notion that resistance is intimately connected to the play of power. In fact, there are no relations of power without resistances (Foucault, 1980). Within the vast network of power relationships in the school (between teachers and students and between students), multiple forms of resistance are possible. Forms of resistance emerge against different forms of power (Foucault, 1982). Resistance at school, then, can be in response to the asymmetrical power relationship between teacher and student. Resistance can also emerge as students define themselves and others as belonging to particular social groups: the power of peers to affix labels that determine social acceptability means that girls (as well as boys) are subject to continual assessment by their peers@ (Currie, 1999, p. 244). According to Kirk (1993) physical education has been a key site in which the body is schooled. Not only is the body schooled through the use of institutional power, as many theorists have discussed, the body is also schooled culturally and socially within physical education classes. Schools are located within the machinery of cultural and social regulation (Gore, 1993), and the school integrates specific techniques and practices and dominant discourses. In this paper, I demonstrate that physical education classes seem to be sites where competing discourses and practices provide multiple layers of contradictory meaning (Davies, 1993), and that multiple forms of resistance to physical education emerge in response to these conditions. Methods and Data Sources The research was conducted in two classrooms at two different schools during the 1997-1998 and 1998-1999 school years and involved ten participants. Classroom teachers recommended potential participants because they appeared to exhibit many of the classic signs of resistance to schooling, and seven of these students (and their parents) consented to be a part of this study. As I developed a more complex understanding of resistance, I expanded the study to include participants were not overtly resistant to schooling and three more students volunteered to participate. Multiple, in-depth interviewing of the participants (Reinharz, 1992) was the primary data-collection activity. In all, I conducted 46 individual interviews that were audio-taped and subsequently transcribed. In addition to the individual interviews, I conducted three focus groups that were also taped and transcribed. Results Unexpectedly, physical education emerged as a common theme with all participants even though there were no questions specifically about physical education included in the interviews. The students repeatedly expressed their dislike for physical education and discussed the strategies they developed for avoiding phys. ed. including skipping class, disappearing into the change room after attendance had been taken, refusing to change into gym clothes, getting their parents to write notes excusing them from class, and not participating. It would be easy to assume that these students simply did not enjoy physical education, or that they were engaging in power struggles with their teachers. But the participants in this study skipped physical education not only to avoid the official curriculum of phys. ed. but also to avoid displaying their bodies and what they perceived to be potentially harmful peer relationships. Some of the instances of resistance to physical education were certainly attempts to resist the notion of having one=s body controlled and defined in particular ways by the institutional authority of the teacher. The institutional games of physical education, the military-style form of exercise, and the focus on traditional sports were also problematic for many of the girls in this study. Negative perceptions regarding physical education were also associated with particular teaching practices. Particularly troublesome for these participants was the practice of demonstrations - those times when an individual is selected by the teacher to demonstrate her competence in a particular skill in front of the class. Not only is the student being assessed by the teacher, she is also being scrutinized by her peer group. These gazes are integrated at the site of the school, leading to what Foucault (1975) describes by using Bentham's idea of the Panopticon, in which inspections functions ceaselessly. The gaze is alert everywhere (p. 195). At the school, forms of institutional, cultural and social surveillance occur, and one cannot escape from the network of simultaneous gazes:" Everyone's always watching", said one participant. Another obstacle to physical activity in school cited by these participants was the way they felt about their bodies: AI avoid certain activities at school because of the way I feel about my body. Playing basketball with the boys - no thanks. I don't want to be pushed around and watched by them. This is an example of what I mean by cultural pressures in physical education - the cultural imperative to maintain and to display a perfect body was an impossible goal for many of these students, and they responded by skipping phys. ed. Educational Importance I make suggestions for incorporating into physical education the ideas presented by the participants as conditions that would make this school subject area more palatable. For example, sex-segregated classes were mentioned by many of the participants as an intervention that would possibly increase their attendance and enjoyment of physical education. Within same-sex classes, male discourses that define female bodies as objects and that sexually harass these bodies would be interrupted. The participants believed that the element of choice could remove one of the obstacles to physical education. A curriculum that responds to the needs and interests of students, and students being actively involved in structuring the curriculum, might increase interest and enjoyment in physical education. According to Ennis (1995), teachers and students need to -negotiate a shared vision in which both groups contribute to an educational approach to physical education" (p. 456). With a range of choices and a curriculum based on a model other than the European, male, middleclass model, students could enter into the games of physical education on terms more of their own making. Many educational theorists have pointed to the ways in which schooling practices discipline the body (Kelly, 1997). The focus of this work has been on describing how institutional power regulates and disciplines what Foucault (1975) calls the %Ndocile body.' Less attention has been paid to the ways in which cultural and social pressures discipline the bodies of adolescent girls, creating, in may cases, conditions that lead adolescent girls to choose to resist physical education. I argue that physical educators need to become more aware of these conditions in which resistance is constructed.
Purpose "We're really concerned with our physical education program benefiting those students who really don't feel good with their bodies." This sentiment was shared with the investigators by two elementary physical educators which led to the development of this project. The teachers were interested in the activity profile of children who possessed low physical self-worth. Additionally, they expressed an interest in the types of activities these students enjoyed participating in during class. Moreover, the teachers wanted to identify methods that encourage activity and promote a positive physical self-worth in these students. Perspectives In addition to the teachers' sentiment others raise concerns about the benefits of increasing activity levels among all children. Healthy People 2000 (U.S. Dept. Health and Human Services, 1991) contains specific goals for the type and amount of physical activity that children should engage in to maintain optimal health. The objective for children calls for an increase in the amount of physical activity in physical education, and in the proportion of overweight children who are physically active (U.S Dept. Health and Human Services, i99i). A report from the U.S Department of Health and Human Services (1994) recommends that school physical education programs promote skill acquisition and enjoyable experiences for children to develop confidence in their physical abilities and increases levels of activity. Its no secret that inadequate amounts of physical activity have been associated with a variety of physically related health problems. Regular physical activity is associated with lower levels of body fat in children (Robers 1993). In addition, children who are obese seem to respond positively to exercise as a therapeutic treatment for lowering percentage of body fat (Sasaki, Shindo, Tanaka, Ando, & Arakawa, 1987). Furthermore, researchers have reported that a lack of regular physical activity during childhood may predispose an individual to elevated levels of blood lipids, blood pressure, and body fat of which are known risk factors for coronary heart disease (CHD) (Kuntzleman & Reiff, 1992; Sallis & McKenzie, 1991). Researchers reported that if children are to realize the health benefits from physical activity it must become an integral part of their lifestyle (Rowland & Freedson, 1994). Studies have indicated that maintaining regular physical activity or integrating it into the lifestyle are in part related to the level of enjoyment (Freedson & Rowland, 1992; Rowland, 199o; Rowland & Freedson, 1994). However, it may be more complex since body size and weight have an impact on physical self-worth which may indirectly affect activity levels in children (Bither, Magnotti, & Yew, 1994; Folsom-Meek, 1991). This is especially true with preadolescent children. As the peer group becomes increasingly important to the individual, much of the social activity revolves around physical activity; recess games, sport teams, dance classes, gymnastics, and martial arts. One's physical self-worth at the preadolescent level may have a strong influence on global selfworth and physical activity levels. However, few researchers have examined the factors that contribute to a child's enjoyment of physical activity. Thus, it is imperative that physical educators possess the knowledge and skills necessary to design and implement programs that promote physical activity for all children and become aware of the factors that affect a child's enjoyment of physical activity. Methods In collaboration with two physical education specialists, the students from four intact fourth grade physical education classes were selected from one elementary school. Parental approval and informed consent were obtained from 54 students (26 females and 24 males). In an effort to determine a child's activity profile during class, the participants of the study were required to wear a Polar heart rate monitor during three different physical education classes. At the conclusion of each class the students wearing the monitors completed a brief questionnaire related to their level of enjoyment during class. Once the heart rate data were collected each student completed the Children's Physical Self-Perception Profile (C-PSPP) (Whitehead, 1995) in three sessions during their regularly scheduled physical education classes. The C-PSPP allows the analysis of an individual's self-rating of five elements from the physical domain of global selfworth: sports competence, physical condition, body attractiveness, and physical strength. Finally, each student's body composition was estimated using skin-fold calipers. Data Sources Data from the heart rate monitors were downloaded into individual files using a serial port interface connected to a PC. The heart rate data were used to assess the intensity of physical activity during the class. The questionnaire consisted of three questions. The students shared their perceptions about the events of the class and assessed their performance in comparison with other students in the class. Total mean scores for the C-PSPP were determined and categorized and compared by gender and activity intensity. The body composition scores were classified as low, optimal and high levels of body fat. Results The results are somewhat surprising. To begin the majority of students fell in the optimal level for body composition, while over 30 % were discovered to be in the high level of body fat. In relation to the mean heart rate data, there was no significant difference between those students in low, optimal and high levels of body fat. Those students who possessed low C-PSPP scores were not significantly different in their levels of physical activity during their physical education classes. What did stand out for us was the significant difference between the C-PSPP scores for females and males. The mean total scores for females were significantly lower than the mean total scores for the males. The majority of females by fourth grade possessed a low physical self-perceptions, while the males possessed an almost inflated view of themselves. What stood out for the researchers was that the C-PSPP scores and percentages of body fat had no influence on the intensity of activity during the physical education class. Those students apparently found the environment of the physical education class to be inclusive and felt either about the same as most people in the class or better. No one recorded that they believed their classmates to be better than themselves. Educational Importance of the Study It has been previously shown that physical activity can positively impact an individual's evaluation of their physical image and condition (Sonstrem, Harlow, & Josephs, 1994). It is imperative that elementary physical educators strive to meet the activity needs of those children who possess less than average physical self-worth scores. The involvement in activity can not only help their physical health but also impact positively on their mental and emotional well being. Possessing a low physical self-worth is not always associated with those children who are overweight, and can impact all children, male and female. Given an appropriate educational setting, a low physical self-worth and a high level of body fat may not necessarily impact activity intensities. This paper will encourage further discussion of the pedagogical methods of the teachers that encourage activity for all students and promote a positive attitude toward activity.
Objective The objective of this study was to determine the influence of gender and grade level on student attitude toward physical education utilizing a two-component construct of attitude as the guiding theoretical framework. Perspective Student attitude has been investigated as a dependent variable with several independent variables (e.g., physical education teacher and curricular content, gender, age and grade level) in physical education pedagogy. On closer examination, it was found that most attitude instruments either lacked the characteristics of instrument validation or the use of attitude theory as a guiding framework in assessing the construct (Silverman & Subramaniam, 1999). Mixed findings in attitude research could possibly be attributed to utilizing instruments that fail to adhere to the tenets of attitude theory and instrument validation. Attitude has been viewed as a single-component, two-component or multi-component construct by attitude researchers. Most attitude researchers in physical education tend to view attitude as a single-component. This view of attitude restricts the use of the term only to the affective component and, therefore, could result in measuring only part of an attitude (Bagozzi & Burnkrant, 1979; Mohsin, 1990; Oppenheim, 1992). Proponents of the two-component construct posit that attitudes involve the cognitive and affective aspects (Gonzalez, 1992; Mohsin, 1990; Oppenheim, 1992). The multiple-component view of attitude includes the cognition, affect, and conation (Ajzen, 1993; Reddy & LaBarbera, 1985). There is evidence, however, to suggest a lack of consistent relationship between overt behavior and the measured attitude thereby casting doubts about the efficacy of the tripartite view of attitude (McGuire, 1989; Seeman, 1993). The two-component view of attitude was used as the theoretical framework for this investigation. According to this framework, the affective component measures the degree of emotional attraction or feeling toward an attitude object, and the cognitive component accounts for the beliefs about the characteristics of the attitude object (Gonzalez, 1992). Students' beliefs about physical education influence their feelings toward the subject matter, which subsequently determines the formation of attitude (Ajzen, 1993; Eagly & Chaiken, 1993). Operating from this framework allows researchers to develop a greater understanding of attitude. Most attitude researchers in physical education have either used the Children's Attitude Toward Physical Activity (CATPA) inventory or self-developed instruments to investigate the influence of grade level and gender on student attitude toward physical education. Silverman and Subramaniam (1999) highlighted several limitations in using these inventories. Using affect and cognition as dependent variables representing attitude with grade level and gender as the independent variables permits researchers to draw sound conclusions based on theory. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to explore the influence of grade level and gender on student attitude using attitude theory as the guiding framework. Method This study was part of a larger study that utilized both qualitative and quantitative approaches to instrument development. Middle school students' (n=I 10) responses to open ended questions about their feelings (affect) and beliefs (cognition) toward physical education were used as a means to identify common factors impacting student attitude. Enjoyment and Usefulness emerged as two primary factors influencing attitude. Based on these findings, items were constructed to reflect the affective (Enjoyment) and cognitive (Usefulness) components of attitude (Bagozzi & Burnkrant, 1979; Gonzalez, 1992) using a Likert-type scoring method. The preliminary instrument was pilot tested with several items being rewritten based on the results of psychometric analyses. High levels of construct-related and content-related validity have been previously established with this instrument (Subramaniam & Silverman, 1999). Two sources of data were collected for this portion of the study. Demographic data (e.g., gender and grade level) and scores from the attitude instrument were obtained. The attitude instrument was administered to middle school students during physical education class in a noninvasive environment. Students in grades 6, 7, and 8 from three middle schools in two Midwest school districts participated in this study (N=995). The sample was recruited by contacting schools to agree to participate, therefore, it was not a random sample. The approximate percentage of participants from each grade level were as follows: (a) Grade 6 (36%), (b) Grade 7 (30%), and (c) Grade 8 (34%). Of the total participants, 46% were females and 54% were males. The majority of participants were Caucasians (63%) followed by African-Americans (26%) and others (11 %). Participants ranged from 12 to 14 years of age. Informed consent was obtained from the parents and students prior to beginning the study. All three participating schools offered daily physical education. Data Analysis Means and standard deviations were calculated for all students and subgroups of students. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to examine attitude scores (Enjoyment or Usefulness) as the dependent variables with gender and grade level as the independent variables. A significant MANOVA was followed by discriminant analysis, ANOVA, and the Student-Newman-Kuels test to determine differences. Results and Conclusions Overall, both males and females had relatively positive attitudes toward physical education.. Means for Enjoyment and Usefulness for males were 35.8 (s.d.=9.01) and 34.5 (s.d.=8.74), and for females were 36.1 (s.d.=8.91) and 35.2 (s.d.=8.19), respectively. Means reported are from a score of 50 for each component of attitude. A significant multivariate difference was found for grade level (Wilks' lambda = .975, (F(4, 1976) = 6.41, p<.0001). There were no significant multivariate differences for gender or gender by grade. Follow-up discriminant analysis indicated a significant Enjoyment (Wilks' lambda = .975, (F(2, 992) _ 12.51, p<.0001) effect. Student-Newman-Keuls test for group differences revealed significant differences between grades 6 (M = 37.47, s.d.=9.01) and 7 (M=36.15, s.d.=8.66), and grade 8 (M=34.13, s.d.=8.85) with regard to the affective dimension of attitude. As grade level increased, the affective dimension (Enjoyment) of attitude decreased regardless of student gender. Gender of students has been shown to influence student attitude in previous research (Folsom-Meek, 1992; Oliver, 1982; Smoll & Schutz, 1980; Wersch, Trew, & Turner, 1992). Gender, however, was not found to influence student attitude in this study. A series of studies by Hastie (1996,1998a,1998b) also found gender to playa minimal role in impacting students' liking of the subject matter. Studies that reported gender to influence student attitude toward physical education used the CATPA inventory or self-designed instruments that lacked a guiding theoretical framework. The utilization of such instruments in investigating student attitude with the independent variables may be a plausible reason for such findings. Other studies (Butcher & Hall, 1983; Haladyna & Thomas, 1979; Schempp, Cheffers, & Zaichkowsky, 1983) that have investigated grade level influences on student attitude also have reported a similar finding. For example, Haladyna and Thomas (1979) reported that attitude declines as a function of age. As grade level increases, student attitude toward physical education decreases. One plausible explanation for this phenomenon could be the physical and emotional changes that adolescents go through at this stage in their lives. A supportive environment can be go a long way in alleviating some of these concerns. Portman (1995) reported that creating an environment that enables students to be successful heightens students' enjoyment of physical education. Importance of the Study This study provides valuable information about grade level and gender influences on student attitude toward physical education. The existence of grade level influences on student attitude toward the subject matter could possibly create an awareness among physical educators of the importance of incorporating student attitude when making curricular decisions. The notion that gender influences student attitude held by some physical education teachers needs to be reevaluated in light of the results from this study. Results from this study also reveal the importance of investigating attitude with grade level and gender using attitude theory as the underlying framework. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||