Transcript *Lets Go Girls!*: Increasing Female Participation in Physical Education

“LETS GO GIRLS!”
INCREASING FEMALE PARTICIPATION IN
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
By: Erica Hope
Overview of the Class
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Mar Lee School in Marshall
I taught K-12 P.E. and 6-8 Health
7/8th graders
Girls only class
36 Students
My focus questions
Why do some girls choose not to
participate?
 How can I increase participation?
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Why I chose this topic
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At the beginning of the school year I noticed more
girls sat out during class compared to boys
I remember this being a problem at my middle
school
I would like as many students participating daily as
possible!
What I learned from research
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Physical activity levels decline during
preteen years and continue to decline into
adulthood
-TAAG Guidebook
What I learned from research
Positive
P.E.
Experience
Willingness
to participate
in physical
activity
-Baggett,Barr-Anderson, Conway, Lytle, Neumark-Sztainer, Pate
Possible Reasons Why…
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Lack of enjoyment
Lack of choices
Lower self-esteem,
physical strength and
self-efficacy
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More conscious about
body shape and
appearance
Societal issues
Stereotypical games in
P.E. class
-Girls in Physical Education: Increasing Participation and Success
What I learned from research
When certain girls
participate, others
will follow
-Physical Educator D.L. Patton
You can’t change every
single student and if you
stress out about it too
much… you will get
burnt out
What I learned from research
Choices had a significant and immediate
effect on student motivation
 Allows students to examine their own
motives for participation and gives them
more responsibility
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-Prusak, Treasure, Darst, Pangrazi
What I learned from research
Factors that affect Motivation
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Competition
Self-determination
Pleasing teachers or
parents
Peer groups
Supportive family and
teachers
-Chiang, Liam
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Social influences
Wanting to increase
physical fitness and
overall health
Prizes
What I learned from research
P.E. needs to be a comfortable,
enjoyable, and reinforcing
environment for all students,
regardless of their size, physical
fitness, or competence levels
-Baggett,Barr-Anderson, Conway, Lytle, Neumark-Sztainer, Pate
What I did in the classroom
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Gave the students
choices
Built relationships with
everyone
Encouraged
participation
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Incorporated gender
specific activities
When certain girls
participated, others
followed
Tried to incorporate
what they wanted to
do
Class Survey
Things I would want to do in gym…
Volleyball
Archery Baseball
Basketball
Tag
Capture the Flag
Circuit
Soccer
Dodgeball
Scooters
Parachute
Obstacle Course
Kickball
Free Time
Field Trip
Floor Hockey
Analyzing the data
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Already had a volleyball and basketball unit
Can’t have free time all the time
Free day choices: basketball, volleyball, or scooters
Use tag games as a warm up
Next unit would be floor hockey or dodgeball
Activities
Circuits
Just Dance 2
Ethical Awareness
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Anonymous class survey
Sources are correctly cited and not plagiarized
Students knew they were being photographed and I
told them about my inquiry project
I kept the privacy of the students by not including
their names
Variables
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It isn’t possible to make every student happy
There are many other factors that contribute to
students not participating besides gender that I
need to continue researching
This investigation may have been too vague and
focused on stereotypes
The schedule is going to change back to coed
classes next week
In Conclusion…
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The facts show that girls tend to participate less in
physical education BUT there are many ways to
increase participation.
By giving a variety of choices and building self
esteem, more students are likely to participate
My goal is for my students to have fun, be active,
and learn important physical and social skills