Writing in the Discipline - Physical Education

HPE 301 Principles of Teaching Activity 

HPE 302 Practicum in Team Activities 

HPE 413 Practicum in Creative movement and Dance 

HPE 414 Practicum in Individual and Dual Activities 

HPE 425 Student Teaching in Physical Education 

Teacher candidates in the physical education department complete a series of methodology courses. Mastering the art of lesson plan writing is one example of disciplinary writing that takes place in all practicum and student teaching courses. Teacher candidates are introduced to different ways of structuring lesson plans and the components that need to be included to form a comprehensive plan. From there, teacher candidates are taught how to apply the PAR (Planning, Action and Reflection) model of teaching. 

During the planning step, teacher candidates are required to create a lesson plan that is part of an assigned unit based on a specific grade level and content area, which will be implemented in a PK-12 classroom setting. This plan is reviewed by the instructor and, if necessary, revised. Next step is the action step, which is teaching the lesson (based on the plan) to a group of children. The final step is reflection. Teacher candidates are required to complete a written reflection for each lesson plan taught not only about the results of the lesson, but also about the content planned. This reflection process allows the teacher candidate to begin to make connections about the importance of the lesson planning process in achieving objectives and assuring that learning takes place within a lesson. Teacher candidates follow this process for all practicum and student teaching experiences. Typically the process is repeated five or more times by each teacher candidate for each unit, with a total of two units per practicum and student teaching experience.