Brent Heidorn

The Director of Physical Activity and Staff Involvement.

JOPERD • Volume 83 No. 7 • September 2012 S chool leaders, faculty and staff, parents, and other key individuals need to be invested in the Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP) in order for the program to be effective. Faculty and staff involvement begins with the Director of Physical Activity (DPA) motivating them to “buy in” to the need for a CSPAP. The DPA will need to train staff to develop and integrate physical activity throughout the school day, encourage them to be involved in the beforeand after-school activities, and create opportunities for faculty and staff to participate in activities themselves. In turn, faculty and staff should serve as effective role models in promoting physical activity and nutrition. The purpose of this article is to help the DPA in planning for and delivering the staff-oriented approaches of the CSPAP model. Because of the emphasis that classroom teachers are asked to place on core academic subject areas and academic achievement, in addition to other responsibilities, classroom teachers may not promote or offer opportunities to be physically active. It is important for the DPA to acknowledge these pressures and minimize the burden related to the delivery of physical activity. The DPA can provide professional development, activity ideas, and tactics for managing physical activity opportunities. Further, the DPA can encourage faculty and staff to participate in wellness endeavors that simultaneously improve personal health and model healthful behaviors for students. This is especially important since research demonstrates that teachers who engage in physical activity remain on the job longer and are less likely to experience burnout (Carson, Baumgartner, Matthews, & Tsouloupas, 2010). Finally, and perhaps most significant, the DPA can make an impact by convincing classroom teachers of the need for a CSPAP. For example, the DPA can inform teachers of the research linking physical activity to overall health, academic performance, the ability to concentrate in the classroom, and decreased behavioral problems among students. A limited amount of research has been conducted with teachers and worksite health promotion. However, research has shown that worksite wellness programs in other professions can improve employee job satisfaction, lower absenteeism, promote a sense of community, and improve healthful behaviors and long-term health (Chapman, 2004a, 2004b; Koffman et al., 2005; Merrill, Aldana, Ellrodt, Orsi, & Grelle-Laramee, 2009; Racette et al., 2009). Carson and colleagues (2010) determined that teachers in early childcare programs who participated in physical activity during the school day experienced positive effects related to teacher burnout. This supports the notion that teachers should be physically active during the day, not just during their leisure time outside of school or work. Research also demonstrates that physical activity is the most advantageous strategy for coping with and reducing stress (Austin, Shah, & Muncer, 2005). Therefore, it is believed that “professionals who adopt a physically active lifestyle will lead longer and happier careers” (National Association for Sport and Physical Education [NASPE], 2010, p. 3). Accordingly, this article discusses various approaches to involve faculty and staff by presenting opportunities for physical activity participation across the school curriculum. The Director of Physical Activity and Staff Involvement

Preparing Classroom Teachers to Meet Students’ Physical Activity Needs

JOPERD • Volume 82 No. 3 • March 2011 E lementary classroom teachers play a vital role in the foundation of education. They are expected to teach a range of content including reading, writing, mathematics, science, social studies, and health. Historically, elementary classroom teachers were also responsible for the delivery of art, music, and physical education instruction. Most states or districts now hire specialists in these subjects. According to the School Health Policy and Program Study of 2006 (Lee, Burgeson, Fulton, & Spain, 2007), physical education is taught by a physical education specialist in 88.7 percent of elementary schools. Although classroom teachers in most schools no longer have the responsibility of teaching physical education they still play an essential role in educating children to be physically active and healthy. The authors propose that teacher education programs revisit how classroom teachers are prepared. Classroom teachers are often required to take one class in teaching physical education. The purpose of this article is to provide both justification and suggestions for a change from the notion of preparing classroom teachers to teach physical education to preparing classroom teachers to orchestrate and promote quality physical activity among their students.

Teaching Affective Qualities in Physical Education

May/June 2010 Teaching physical education is exciting! It is important that we teach more than just knowledge, skills, and strategies. According to Rink (2006), “Affective objectives describe student feelings, attitudes, values, and social behaviors...Unless teachers address affective goals in their programs, students may be skilled and may even be knowledgeable but may choose not to participate” (pp. 6-7). In addition, teaching to the affective domain directly aligns with two of the National Standards for Physical Education (NASPE, 2004, p. 11). • Standard 5: Exhibits responsible personal and social behavior that respects self and others in physical activity settings. • Standard 6: Values physical activity for health, enjoyment, challenge, self-expression, and/or social interaction.

Theory into Practice: Comprehensive School-based Physical Activity Program

What is a CSPAP? A Comprehensive School-based Physical Activity. Program (CSPAP) represents a commitment to support the health and well-being of students, faculty, staff, and the community. Considering the obesity epidemic alone, one can quickly recognize the need for increased levels of physical activity among youth and adolescents. In addition, increasing ones physical activity provides multiple benefits including, but not limited to, increased mental concentration, stress management, weight loss or maintenance goals, social interaction, and improvements in physical fitness. Quickly efforts have turned to finding ways to enhance the health and wellness of youth in school, such as a Coordinated School Health Program (CDC, 2004). A CSPAP is a similar approach that specifically focuses on incorporating additional physical activity opportunities for youth within the school day and beyond physical education classes. The goal of a CSPAP is clearto ensure children at least meet the physical activity recommendation for school-aged youth of 60 minutes or more on most days ofthe week (Office of Disease Prevention

Physical Activity and Physical Education: A Combined Approach

There has been much debate related to whether physical education should focus on promoting physical activity during class or place most of its emphasis on teaching skills. This article offers a third viewpoint: that both sides are correct.

Preparing the Next Generation of Physical Education Teachers

The way in which teacher candidates are prepared to enter the profession with the knowledge, skills, and confidence needed to provide appropriate instruction is not so consistent across physical education teacher education (PETE) programs. Therefore, the purpose of this Viewpoint is to provide an overview of what the author considers to be the essential ingredients of a PETE program.

Sharing Insights and Strategies from the University of West Georgia.

Teacher candidates need real-world experience in planning, delivering and assessing a comprehensive school physical activity program (CSPAP) so they can be prepared and confident to assist with a CSPAP in whichever school employs them after earning their degree. Physical education teacher education (PETE) programs play a significant role in helping new teachers prepare for school-wide physical activity promotion. This article describes one approach used to assist preservice health and physical education teacher candidates with the development and implementation of specific CSPAP components in a real-world setting. PETE program faculty at the University of West Georgia worked closely with teacher candidates enrolled in the student teaching internship and developed and implemented a series of lectures for teacher candidates related to the successful implementation of a CSPAP in a local school, prior to the student teaching internship. All teacher education candidates in the student teaching internship were asked to assess the needs and opportunities for a CSPAP, develop a proposal for implementation, receive approval from program faculty, implement a CSPAP component, maintain the program, and keep and submit accurate records.

Conducting a Hiring Fair Simulation for Teacher Education Candidates

The purpose of this article is to provide a basic review of a hiring simulation fair, and to describe strategies for successfully implementing a similar organized event in a college/university teacher education program in order to better prepare students for the interview process.

Exploring Role Modeling in Sport and Physical Education

Our profession is not consistently demonstrating effective modeling in skill and fitness development among our students and athletes. This article provides an overview of role modeling in the psychomotor and fitness domains.

Every Shot Counts: Rallying Around Traditional Practice Strategies

Individuals of practically all ages can benefi t from recreational and/or competitive play. Although playing tennis provides many wellness opportunities, learning to play the game and playing consistently can be a challenge, regardless of one’s age (for the purpose of this article, the authors recommend content applicable to upper-elementary students through adults). Tennis is an easily accessible sport for most individuals as there are many public (and private) courts available. However, it takes time and consistent practice to become a confi dent and/or profi cient player, which typically leads to more enjoyment of the sport. A traditional physical education curriculum often provides very little time each year (or throughout a program) to teach tennis basics to individuals. Certainly, developing the skills and strategies to become skillful through a physical education program alone is nearly impossible. By Claire M. Mowling and Brent Heidorn Every Shot Counts: