The bell rings and students begin to filter into the change room. They
take off their street clothes and slip into their gym stuff. It can be an
intimidating experience for those who are shy, overweight or don't dress like
the others.
"This is one of the hardest things about teaching PE," says Jonathan Brady.
He is a physical education teacher.
"Physical education is a personal course," he says. "You have to come in
and change in front of everyone. You can't get much more personal than that."
He says despite a teacher's best efforts, students can be found teasing
each other about their differences.
Once the students are out on the field or in the gym, Brady says it's a
wonderful job. "You get to play with kids all day," he says. "In essence,
you're paid to play. You couldn't get a much better job than that."
But it's also a lot of hard work. "This is a very physical, very demanding
job," says Lydia Crain. She is a physical education instructor at the University
of Arizona. "You have to be active all the time. A good instructor is an active
instructor."
Brady says that his aim in the gym is to make sport fun. "You have to play
with them," he says. "You have to adjust your teaching methods so that you
tap into something fun."
For example, nobody wants to run laps. "But if I get a tag game organized,
the students will be running for 15 minutes and not even notice," he says.
"This is all about disguising physical activity through games."
In the past, many physical education programs have focused on learning
and playing sports. But Crain says that very few adults actually play sports.
"Most people don't participate in sport but do fitness activities such as
going to the gym or walking."
She says this realization has spurred a new type of physical education.
"We need physical education programs that are more health-based and less sport-based,"
she says.
"We need to bridge that gap. The new PE is less about athletic success.
It is a new PE. A PE that is for everyone."
One of the goals of physical education is giving students the tools they
need to lead a physically active life beyond school.
Brady adds that in recent years, he's noticed that it's more difficult
to get students moving. It's a trend that is seen throughout all ages of the
population. We're leading more sedentary lives.
"There's no doubt that there's a slowdown among kids," he says. "We have
more kids that don't want to participate. More kids saying, 'I'm sick.' Or,
'I don't have my gym strip.'"
He says that his school district is looking at ways to improve student
health and fitness. "We have a nutrition and health policy looking at the
foods offered in our school, and we're also looking at making physical education
mandatory in Grades 11 and 12."
Many people are pushing to make PE a more important aspect of a child's
education. "There's a trend to reverse the reduction of physical education
in school," says Crain.
"Many groups are trying to counteract this by saying PE is preventative
medicine. The tide hasn't turned but there is more awareness."
Mark Manross is a former PE teacher. He is also the executive director
of an educational resource for PE teachers. "There are tons of initiatives
right now to get kids active," he says. "It's a huge issue right now."
Although some students don't like being physically active because they're
used to watching TV and playing computer games, some find it difficult because
of poverty issues. In some inner-city areas, there aren't many safe areas
for students to play sports. Others simply can't afford the equipment needed.
"Gym can be a stumbling block for students of a low socio-economic class,"
says Brady. "You need to have a different set of clothes for PE. It's a part
of learning hygiene. But some students just don't have that."
As much as Brady wants to help out, it can be hard to keep the playing
field level. "You have one kid come in with $130 shoes and another who has
his toes hanging out of the edges. And somehow they are going to have to try
and compete at the same level."
But it can be rewarding to help students overcome these hurdles and learn
to love sports, games and general fitness.
"Teaching PE isn't just about being a good athlete," says Manross. "What
comes first is being a caregiver and an educator. You will be around kids
all day. If you can't handle that, then PE won't be any fun for you."
But if you can, the job can be wonderful. "I don't think there is anything
better than going out and playing games, and seeing students having fun while
they're being active," says Brady.