When I think about my physical education philosophy now I see at something that is ever shifting. Some of the things I believed when I started my journey into becoming an educator have changed significantly. I know however that there are points within my philosophy that have solidified. The best way I can explain this is by mentioning Gordon Husband, a longtime educator who visited us in EPE 489 this semester. Gordon introduced his ideas surrounding “educational rocks” these are the ideologies you have as a teacher that you always fall back on as the foundation for the way you teach. I’ve come to the point that I’ve realized that my teaching methods, my classroom management, my assessment are things that will all evolve with time and experimentation. However the core tenants of how I justify my reasoning for teaching the way I do will stay the same. Those rocks are what I want to speak to here, I want to demonstrate what I believe about physical education after my eight years of study.
As physical education is my focus, that is where the roots of my teaching philosophy are grounded. Much of what I have learned about professionalism and teaching practice comes from that background. This brings me to my first “rock”, relationship building. One key player in terms of teaching philosophy who I really resonated with was Don Hellison who wrote about teaching personal and social responsibility (TPSR). Hellison’s (2011) material suggests that though physical literacy is certainly important, but the core component should be Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (TPSR). Personal responsibility refers to an individual’s capability to “gradually take responsibility for their own well-being” (p.45) whereas social responsibility is described as “their contributions to the well-being of others” (p.45). When Hellison says this, he’s really speaking to the importance of the relationships we build with others and with ourselves. Physical education is a fantastic vehicle to getting students to learn these concepts of socialization. As the great philosopher Plato once said “You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation”. When students are active together through physical activity and games, they are capable of building unbreakable bonds. I know this to be true because I’m still in contact with many of the people I used to play sports with in school. If I can create that kind of environment in my gymnasium and classroom, I know I’ll be a successful teacher.
My second philosophical rock has to do with creating a safe classroom environment. Society has changed significantly especially with the invention of the internet. Students of this generation tend to have easy access to any information with the touch of a button. In reality some of the truths that are present in our world can be challenging and even traumatizing. Society is in constant struggle with itself, fighting about race, gender, culture, politic, economics. These are things that students are faced with today that many of us never had much exposure to. Students are coming to understand themselves at younger and younger ages. The world is fighting to understand and become more accepting of one another and I want to be part of that struggle. I grew up knowing people who were bullied simply for being the person that they are. I myself struggled with bullying growing up, and as a teacher I simply won’t stand for it. I feel teachers would be doing a great disservice to them and society if we did not take it upon ourselves to address these issues. One key example of what I’m referring to is the treatment of First Nations, Metis and Inuit (FNMI) people within Canada. To this day, FNMI peoples are still struggling against white settler power within this country. The way I want to confront these issues is using what I’ve learned from The book Against Common Sense: Teaching and Learning Toward Social Justice by Kevin Kumashiro (2015). In this book Kevin talks about teaching using uncomfortable learning. This idea asks teachers to make use of truthful and revealing facts and realities that will leave students feeling conflicted and uncomfortable. This can help students begin to contemplate issues of social justice and what their role is in trying to resolve them. Uncomfortable learning comes with one big drawback, it can be traumatizing to some students if not handled correctly. As a white male of white settler descent, I understand there are perspectives that I simply cannot share with students because I haven’t lived them. I believe however that this can be prevented with the use of the proper resources and relationships. Bringing in knowledge keepers, having students participate in workshops, and incorporation ecological perspectives into my physical education is something I want to continue to strive for throughout my career!
The last Rock I feel that I need to mention, is the importance of having students learn in outdoor environments. It hasn’t been until recently that I’ve adopted this as a core belief of my physical education philosophy. This generation of students spends significantly less time outside than their parents or grandparents did. Technology has been a great advancement for our society and it has many fantastic uses, but we’ve begun to neglect the learning opportunities that come from the world around us. Nature is a fantastic teacher, and we can use physical activity, games, and the outdoors in a cross-disciplinary way that helps students learn while also being active. Time and time again research has proven that being outside and taking movement breaks helps the mind function more efficiently. So why do we continue to keep students boxed up in a room for nine hours of the day? I hope a shift from that style of teaching comes soon, but until that day, I want to use my time taking students for fresh air while they learn. I want them to appreciate the nature around them and inspire them to take a step outside on their free time. They will be more mentally and physically healthy for it.