| Author |
Message |
James Adams (Peteacher32)
Member
Username: Peteacher32
Post Number: 21
Registered: 7-2008
| | Posted on Friday, May 22, 2009 - 5:52 pm: |       |
http://www.wnd.com/index.php?pageId=9745
The article is interesting. Is PE becoming too soft? We're involving more kids in lifelong fitness, which is great. But there are many ways it seems PE is becoming too soft. Examples...
* Dodgeball is banned in many districts, even if you use gatorballs and adapt it, make it optional, and don't eliminate people.
* Recommendations not to grade on skill, fitness, or fitness improvement. I understand sometimes not grading on skill or fitness since there's often not enough time to fully develop those skills in class, but sometimes it motivates students to at least try harder, particularly in units like dance. Students start to pay more attention - they seem to care more.
Grading on improving fitness scores can help to motivate students, as people of all abilities can improve. Those at the lower level can often improve more, but even very good athletes can improve on the pacer/push-ups, etc. Grading also keeps students accountable.
Students in every other subject are graded on knowledge. What should we grade our students on? Should it be a balance of attendance, effort, resonsibility, and participation only? Are we becoming too soft as a profession? |
Matt McCusker (Cusker58)
Junior Member
Username: Cusker58
Post Number: 5
Registered: 2-2010
| | Posted on Wednesday, February 03, 2010 - 10:24 am: | |
A great question and one that is debated in many staff meetings across the country. Best practices state that grading on fitness ability is not acceptable. Many people feel that students should be graded on their personal improvement then. The way our district grades is on whether or not the students execute the tests correctly. This keeps them accountable as to how to perform each exercise properly.
The goal of PE is to create individuals that lead active healthy lifestyles when they leave us. Your focus should be on lifelong fitness but also on lifetime activities. Exposing students to activities that they will actualy perform as an adult is key. I dont know the last time I have seen a group of adults playing dodgeball or kickball, and the amount of adults that perticipate in a team sport is less than 1% after the age of 21.
I for one love to play dodgeball. Not in my class however. Everychild deserves to have a positive experience. Without that they will not realize the goal of PE. I find that through inovative strategies and occasonaly participating my self in fitness challenges that my students are more than motivated to try and show me up.
There is no reason for PE to get soft even in the new age style. It is up to the instructor to facilitate an enviroment that breads motivation and occasional competition. |
eric spielman (Spielman67)
Junior Member
Username: Spielman67
Post Number: 5
Registered: 2-2010
| | Posted on Monday, February 22, 2010 - 9:28 am: | |
I believe that students should be tested as was said above on how they complete a test i.e. using the correct form and hitting a certain number of stated critical elements. The first step in becoming better at a skill is first doing it correctly.
If we as physical education teachers grade on participation alone than we could be reinforcing students using poor form which could become a habit that will be hard to overcome later in life. We are educators and would not be doing our job if we did not teach proper form for a variety of sports and activities.
Students will never know if they are doing a skill correctly or even if they improving on that skill without some kind of grading scale for it. I am all for positive constructive feedback but students need to be challenged and also need that concrete evidence that this is how they performed and/or improved. I believe participation is a big part of the grading process but also believe skill testing is a must especially if our profession is to be taken seriously. |
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