Video Analysis #2-Middle Level P.E.
During my time last year as an Instructional Aid, I provided support during a period of P.E. for the students in my self-contained classroom. For this reason, I chose to watch the video on P.E. instruction. This video was a training video targeted for P.E. teachers. The instructors overall goal was to help teachers elevate P.E. instruction in order to ensure students leave the room each day feeling more “confident and competent”.
There were four objectives that the conference was highlighting for all teachers. The teacher was also asking the participants to think about them as he was instructing them: model respect, setting expectations, opportunities for success, and fostering social interactions. All schools have some set of rules or expectations that they are trying to include building wide. It was great to see these also be incorporated into the P.E. department.
One of the first instructional strategies we learned about was setting objectives. The teacher in this video was very clear about the importance of doing this for the students for each activity. In addition to the purpose/objective being clearly defined, the teacher also linked this together with formative assessment. There was a form that he would use to assess students for a given activity. For one of the activities that we watched, the teacher was having the other teachers participate in an activity in which providing support was the objective and area of assessment. There was a rubric that was provided for this activity that could be used to assess the students and give them feedback. This is an excellent way of utilizing a strategy from our text of; “Provide students with an explicit guidance about what it means to expend effort” (p25). Students will know exactly what is expected of them, how they performed, and how they can improve.
The teacher did an excellent job in this video of stopping play and requesting, “high five opponents and say well done”. On another occasion, the teacher asked the participants to acknowledge their teammates for doing good work. This was a great way to strengthen the community, foster positive social interactions, and keep things positive. This acted to provide feedback, reinforce effort, and also provide recognition. I thought it was great to have the students do this for each other in addition to the teacher. The teacher also stopped the play at one point and commented on the effectiveness of a participant’s ability to provide support, the objective, through hand waving. This was a great way to provide quick formative positive feedback specific to the objective.
Cooperative learning is necessary in P.E. in almost all activities. This teacher placed a great emphasis on how he grouped the students together. The groups were established with the intent of making sure that each student would have “opportunities for success”. This was also how the teacher would be able to differentiate the instruction for the students. Depending on the activity and purpose, different rules could be set for the different groups that would allow everyone to succeed. I really liked the idea of taking the time to group students together. Groups could be made that would also ensure that the whole class would end up interacting with one another that would serve the purpose of fostering good social interactions.
In conclusion, I thought the instructional recommendations within this video would be great assets to any P.E. program. From our text Classroom Instruction That Works, there are several strategies that are used in the video. The most visible of these are setting objectives, providing feedback, reinforcing effort, providing recognition, and cooperative learning. P.E. can be a place where only the athletic will leave having a boost in self-esteem. I love that the instructor’s goal of ensuring that every student leaves his gym feeling more “confident and competent”.
Dean, C. B., Hubble, E. R., Pitler, H. and Stone, B. (20012). Classroom Instruction That Works.
2nd edition. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Developing Competency in Teaching 