Shawn Ladda

Including technology in instructional programs.

The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of technology that can enhance learning in physical education and exercise science instructional programs at the K-12 level and in colleges and universities. Although technology is widely used in physical education programs, it is generally limited to software and equipment that assesses students fitness or to the Internet as a means to obtain and share information. For example, Physical Best provides software to help track students progress and generate reports, and commonly used equipment includes heart rate monitors and pedometers. While this deserves applause, many additional forms of technology are available, although usually only a t the college level. A previousTechnology Tips article, DVD Authoring for HPERD Practitioners and Students (Mikat, Barnd, & Anderson, 20031, focused on the use of DVDs and presented important information to help readers understand the equipment needed to author DVDs. But what else is being used in the field that can enhance learning?

Physical Literacy Is a Social Justice Issue

This article describes various recent initiatives that are contributing to physical literacy and social justice. The goal is to provide students with a solid foundation of movement through quality and inclusive health and physical education programs, which will increase the likelihood that individuals will be physically active throughout their lifespan.

Using Sport for Social Change: Theory into Practice

Research suggests that sport can be used for social change. Unfortunately, sexism, racism, elitism, and homophobia are still often seen in sport settings. This article offers one example of how a situation in sport can create teachable moments and really bring about social change.

Homophobia in Sport

Sport is a microcosm of society so thus mirrors what is happening in society at large (Coakley J Sport in Society: Issues and Controversies 10th edn. McGraw Hill, New York (2008). This includes homophobia which is the fear of homosexuals or homosexuality. Along with homophobia, biphobia (fear of bisexuals) and transphobia (fear of transgendered individuals) are often grouped together.

Where Are the Female Coaches

There have great participation gains in the number of female student-athletes since the enactment of Title IX 43 years ago, but we have not seen similar growth in leadership opportunities on the coaching and administrative fronts. This article analyses the current trends and reasons behind the dwindling number of female coaches.

Moving to the Beat: From Zumba to Hip-Hop Hoedown

The importance of regular moderately intense exercise for overall wellness has been well documented by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Reductions in obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and osteoporosis, and increased brain function can be achieved by being active throughout life. Quality physical education, as part of a K-12 comprehensive curriculum, can achieve important objectives and outcomes in the psychomotor, cognitive, and affective domains. Dance is an activity that can contribute toward meeting these learning goals. This article highlights a more traditional aerobic dance activity, Zumba, as well as two ideas for making traditional dance more contemporary for todays youth.

Creating Respectful and Inclusive Environments: The Role of Physical Educators and Coaches

More than ever, there is urgency for educators to provide an inclusive and respectful environment for all. This article provides practical suggestions for teachers and coaches.

The ABCs of Literacy: Interdisciplinary Is Key!

Through the use of A = “action” by increasing movement, B = “balance” in the curriculum, and C = “collaboration” through interdisciplinary approaches, teachers and students can increase literacy, increase enjoyment to learn, and be more efficient.

Where Is Our Herstory

JOPERD • Volume 82 No. 3 • March 2011 V ew pint In the past few months, I have been struck more than ever by the lack of news related to women’s sport and “herstories.” For example, the University of Connecticut women’s basketball team was on the verge of breaking (and did break) the NCAA Division I record for consecutive wins, but little to no mention was made about it in the news. Christine Brennan (2010) of USA Today also noted this lack of coverage. Interestingly, in the New York Times, Jere Longman (2010) highlighted that the “real” record of consecutive wins in all of collegiate basketball was indeed held by a small school in Texas. The Wayland Baptist women’s basketball team won 131 consecutive games in the mid-1950s. Why are sport herstories more muted than ever? Since the passage of Title IX almost 40 years ago, we have seen a tremendous increase in sport opportunities for girls and women. There are also abundant scholarship opportunities for females at the college level and in multiple professional sport leagues. Even with this great progress, news and media stories and documentation of the female sport experience is tremendously lacking. I am not the first to point this out. Krane (2010) has also noted the absence of women herstory in sport and exercise psychology. Where has all the herstory gone for the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women? The 2010 AAHPERD convention was held in Indianapolis, right down the street from the NCAA Visitor’s Center. I attended the conference with a few of my students, and we all wanted to visit the NCAA Visitor’s Center. It just so happened that we did so on the day after the NAGWS luncheon, which honored Lynette Woodard— Olympian, first woman to play on the Harlem Globetrotters, and the second all-time scoring leader in collegiate basketball (second only to “Pistol Pete” Maravich). However, in the visitor’s center, there was no mention of Lynette Woodard. The reason was that there is no herstory of the female sporting experience before 1982, when the NCAA began to oversee female collegiate athletics. Did you read anything about the Women’s Professional Soccer League this summer? It was nearly impossible for me to find anything in the New York area in print or sound media even though there are three teams within a two-hour radius. Do you know about the struggle of the U.S. Women’s National Soccer team to qualify for the next World Cup in Germany in 2011? Again, little to no coverage was present. While we have made such progress, why is it not being reported? One of my research interests has been to document women’s soccer herstory. Due to the lack thereof, some people believe women’s soccer began when Brandi Chastain bared her sports bra after winning the 1999 Women’s World Cup in the Rose Bowl. The reality is that there is rich herstory of women playing soccer. A wonderful video, It’s a Women’s Game, produced by J. Baker (1991) in England, helps to give perspective on this herstory. In the film, actual footage is shown of the Dick, Kerr Ladies FC (football club) who played from 1917 to 1965 as part of an engineering company turned munitions factory in Preston, England. A clip of an interview with one of the female players explains how the team’s popularity became so widespread that the English Football Federation banned female play at all football association complexes. This ban lasted nearly 50 years and is one of the reasons why the Women’s Soccer English National Team is only just now starting to become more competitive in the international arena. In fact, they even qualified for the 2011 World Cup. Again, why is this herstory so muted? When I searched on various collegiate women’s soccer web sites, most have little or no descriptive information about the early history of their team. Some list historical individual or team statistics, but do not contribute to an understanding of the evolution of a team. One example that is personal to me is the Penn State University (PSU) Women’s Soccer web site. As a former athlete on the team from 1979 to 1983, when it had club status but played many of the early varsity teams, I am very familiar with the early herstory. In my junior year, six players and I filed a Title IX complaint against PSU after trying to get the administration to acknowledge the lack of opportunities for women in athletics at the institution. It was not until 10 years after I graduated that PSU elevated the women’s soccer team to varsity status. There is no mention of this Where Is Our Herstory?