A”! . .1. ...,. ..,. 3. 51:. _ . .2: ,z. ‘ . 5...: .3. ‘. 1.. .2. 3:39:32. . 3.! .. . . . .....:.. THESIS 2000 IIIIIIIII IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII 3 1293 02048 6571 LIBRARY Michigan State University This is to certify that the dissertation entitled PERCEPTIONS OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION TEACHERS ABOUT THE DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF lN-SERVICE TRAINING - A CASE STUDY presented by Patricia Irwin Rowe has been accepted towards fulfillment of the requirements for PhoDo degreein KineSIOIOfl Date 2274/1115 /6; '2 000 MSU is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Institution 0- 12771 —r ~1—— ~._‘ -— . PLACE IN RETURN BOX to remove this checkout from your record. To AVOID FINE return on or before date due. MAY BE RECALLED with earlier due date if requested. DATE DUE DATE DUE DATE DUE 11/00 chIRC/DuoDmpGS-p.“ bl (3 11 U PER _13 0. M II PERCEPTIONS OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION TEACHERS ABOUT THE DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF lN-SERVICE TRAINING — A CASE STUDY By Patricia Irwin Rowe A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment Of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Department Of Kinesiology 2000 pERCEF A50? The M :593' meet Mehgar's 934 ‘Io enabfe ‘32: may prvgtarr :fizxestatna Err: motor siuiis ?a3tat: 171236 b Imple' Wm 30.0 St; lime been a. Iii-2315 In M ABSTRACT PERCEPTIONs OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION TEACHERS ABOUT THE DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF lN-SERVICE TRAINING - A CASE STUDY By Patricia Irwin Rowe The Michigan Govemor’s Council on Physical Fitness, Health, and Sport initiated Michigan's Exemplary Physical Education Curriculum Project (EPEC) in 1994 ”to enable those responsible for physical education in Michigan to create exemplary programs. This requires developing and disseminating materials and procedures that result in the youth Of Michigan Obtaining the necessary fitness levels, motor skills, knowledge, and attitudes to be fit for life” (EPEC, 1997). EPEC teacher in-service training provides an essential bridge from EPEC curricula, to implementation, to the achievement of positive change in school programs and student outcomes. EPEC physical education lessons for grades K-2 have been available since the 1997-98 school year to teachers who participate in two days of in-service training. As of June 1999, 466 teachers representing 40% Of the school districts in Michigan have attended teacher in- service training sessions. With the availability of EPEC lesson materials for grades 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12, teachers from additional school districts will seek EPEC teacher in—service training. m. The purpose of this case study was to use teacher’s perspectives of their EPEC in-service training experience to provide feedback for .O- . fe 393;? of t. «”9 match sachets _—_—"— lla‘fcd's E»; safes azehdec' 151'“: 39.2! tey ELK-3395 and tr ——— Serves bat cow :I. Patricia Irwin Rowe the design Of future EPEC in-service training to meet the needs of physical education teachers. m. Eleven of fifty-five teachers who experienced EPEC K-2 teacher in-service training at three locations during 1998-99 shared their perspectives on four topics related to the training; Context, Content, Change, and Support. These teachers attended one focus group in their geographic area approximately two months after they attended EPEC in-service training. The focus groups were audio-taped and transcribed for analysis. The data provided perceptions of teachers that could be used to design future EPEC in-service training. Results. Teachers proved to be a rich source Of information about EPEC teacher in-service training. Analysis Of the data showed that issues Of Context, Content, Change, and Support all need to be considered by those who wish to design in-service training to meet the needs of teachers. Summary. While analysis Of data from the focus groups revealed specific information that could be used in the design of future EPEC in-service training, general suggestions for each Of the four main topics can also be made. The Qggtgxt Of training does contribute to teachers’ attitudes toward and receptivity to the training. _C_O_n_tgn_t Of training is critical to teachers’ preparation for implementation with multiple forms Of delivery and professionalism in presentation appreciated. Though _C_ha_ng§ is difficult for some, teachers were able to describe their needs in order to change. Molt after training, from many sources and particularly from peers, is very important to teachers. ID! the“ In as: In memory Of my Mom and Dad for their guidance and inspiration of pre-service teachers and in appreciation of their love, encouragement, and support. iv .‘we :r. a was: 5.; g‘r‘; tanks eve"! tag. 913 ackncm erm'ageme: 1,- IE”; re re The, "C as l rte t" ' 535535 appre ”figmfig The" 9353.331: Df LII-333 99736.?on Dr. JCI’m ' Emma; Dr. Sam ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I live in a world filled with kind and supportive family, friends, and colleagues. I give thanks every day for their presence in my life. It is impossible on these pages to acknowledge personally everyone who has provided help and encouragement to me as l pursued this degree. I hope those not mentioned will forgive me. Though all of you are in my heart, the following people are on my mind as I write this. With my sincere thanks to all of you: - Special appreciation to my committee: professors, advisers, and mentors who have given so much Of themselves to their students and to their profession. Their guidance and friendship has meant far more than they will ever know. Dr. Linda Anderson- for her keen insight, imagination, kindness, and generous spirit. Dr. John Haubenstricker- for providing a model of exemplary teaching, encouragement, leadership, and persistent attention to detail. Dr. Sam Reuschlein- for his courage, caring, humor, and many years of good advice. Dr. Paul Vogel- for his integrity, dedication to quality physical education, and for teaching me the weight of a single word. - The teachers who generously provided their perspectives on EPEC teacher in-service training for this study. - Michigan Fitness Foundation staff, especially Dr. Glenna DeJong for her support throughout this project. F52” EPEC C Coieagues IT‘ 5530"» 3% e": and LCD ‘1’: is“ It; dearest ice My sis‘er MOT , tings good a‘: My maven, F atsades an: sac-OP. for e; a pie mode S""E'Ii‘Pv‘Ilares; it those are W 5339519 ”32?". they Fellow EPEC Consortium members for their inspiration and friendship. Colleagues, friends, and students at Grand Valley State University, for their support and encouragement, especially Dr. Rick Albrecht for “the other vievv' and Lori Wisniewski for hours and hours Of transcription with a smile. My dearest friends, John and Sharon- for tolerance, patience, and caring. My sister Molly and brother-in-law Tom, who are the embodiment of all things good about “family'. My children, Patrick, Charles, and Caroline, for persevering to overcome Obstacles and achieve their goals while weaving a safety net Of love and support for each other and for me. Each Of them, in their own unique way, is a role model for me. They have defied the bleak predictions for children from single-parent families to become caring, successful, adults who give so much to those around them. I am indescribably proud to be their Morn. My daughters-in-law and my stepchildren for supporting me on a project which they acquired “by marriage". They have each provided loving encouragement and badly needed breaks for fun along the way. My grandchildren, who are the sunshine of my life. Though they are tOO young to understand why "Nama" seemed to always be "on the computer“, we will now try to make up for all the lost story time. Promise. My husband Pete, for everything from grocery shopping to proofreading, but especially for making our home and life together such a peaceful sanctuary. Thank you for filling my world with humor, goodness, and love. Cn—‘ETER CINE The Need Ptyss'cai I Qua‘ity P? Pitysmi l Mlcrrgarf EPEC Er Purpose Researc: Need for Rational ”EASTER n'r'i Ifism hate Offs- a: IrifQ Rem H‘ I TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION The Need for Physical Activity Physical Activity Quality Physical Education Physical Education in Michigan Michigan's Exemplary Physical Education Curriculum Project EPEC Evaluation Purpose of the Study Research Questions Need for the Study Rationale for the Study CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW The Problem Physical Activity Physical Education The Role of EPEC Teacher In-service Training Essential Elements of Teacher ln-service Training The Decision to Use Focus Groups for Data Collection Focus Groups Described CHAPTER THREE: METHODS Introduction Purpose of the Study Research Questions Case Study Design Sample Assumptions Related to the Research Plan Limitations of the Research Plan Validity lntemal Validity External Validity Threats to Validity Instrumentation Data Collection Process Organizing Evaluation lnfonnation for Analysis Information Analysis Reporting Focus Group Research Results vii JCmOthQN—B 12 13 14 15 17 19 24 26 31 31 31 32 37 40 4D 40 41 43 47 50 55 CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Context Content Change Support CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDED CRITERIA FOR TEACHER IN-SERVICE TRAINING Summary Recommendations Future Study Suggested Guidelines for EPEC ln-service Training Derived from Post-Training Teacher Perceptions Context Content Change Support APPENDIXES: Appendix A. EPEC Project description Appendix B. EPEC Consortium members Appendix C. EPEC Teacher in-service training agenda Appendix D. Communication with focus group members Participant confirmation letter Participant consent form Participant reminder letter Participant appreciation letter and NGT form 57 87 1 08 136 143 148 150 150 152 155 157 161 163 165 168 169 170 171 172 Appendix E. Communication with pilot focus group members175 Pilot confirmation letter Pilot consent form Pilot reminder letter Pilot appreciation letter and NGT form Appendix F. Focus Group Moderators Guide Moderators Tasks Moderators Agenda Moderator’s Interview Topic Outline Moderator’s Interview Script Nominal Group Technique (NGT) form Appendix G. Aggregate Focus Group Data Key to data coding system Context Content Change Support viii 1 76 1 77 1 78 1 79 182 183 185 187 190 195 197 198 1 99 21 1 237 260 Appendix RE‘ERENCES Appendix H. University Approval for Use of Human Subjects 284 Approval letter 285 REFERENCES 286 In respxs' :55 WE“ and ,r' 335: ns‘akes- a: metre Out-:0”? I 21933 550 395 useryefll NW :3 315 ha???“ t5 ray Bent-"I 55 be: 69015 1: car he nJE‘IC‘C C 90233 of train-It 3353211 be lea 339%:th nr 3-» ‘ 5. a. future CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION In response to a variety of needs and pressures, new educational curricula are written and implemented with the goal that these new programs will rectify past mistakes, achieve improvement in the educational process, and result in positive outcomes for students. Sometimes, despite the very best efforts of experts who design and write new curricula, hopes for implementation, subsequent improvement, and achievement of outcomes are not realized. Why does this happen? Could something about in-service training of the teachers be the key element in the success of new educational programs? Could it be that all the best efforts to design and control the intricacies of the educational process can be nullified by something that is yet to be discovered or defined about the process of training teachers to implement new programs? What can teachers tell us about the teacher in-service training experience and its impact on implementing new ways of teaching? What would their suggestions be for the design of future EPEC teacher in-service training? The Need for Physical Activity WItI'I its publication in 1990, Healthy People 2000 became our nation's public health agenda for this decade. The three broad goals of Healthy People 2000 encompass 300 measurable objectives within 22 priority areas. Of the 300 objectives, 192 are directed toward improving the health profile of American children and youth (McGinnis, Kanner & DeGraw, 1991). Improvii heafth c and p“; IMCGP. Reggie scents: end V 1 ‘A majority of the national health Objectives related to children and youth either directly target school programs and services or can be influenced by the programs that take place in the school setting. It is clear that improving the nation’s public health profile and achieving the year 2000 health objectives will depend greatly on the effective use of school health and physical education programming throughout the next decade“ (McGinnis, Kanner 8. DeGraw, 1991 , p.138). Physical Activity Regular physical activity is essential for health throughout the life-span. Scientific evidence of the positive relationships of physical activity to health and healthy living is enormous (McGinnis, 1992; Seefeldt [Ed.], 1986; US. Public Health Service, 1990). Although there is little evidence that childhood fitness carries over in any substantial way to adulthood (Simone-Morton, O‘Hara, Simons-Morton, & Parcel, 1987) there is some evidence that childhood activity levels carry over to adulthood (Freedson & Rowland, 1992; Sallis & McKenzie, 1991; Simons-Morton et al., 1987). The focus in physical education has moved from physical fitness to physical activity. "Schools should deliver comprehensive health and physical education programs that provide and promote physical activity at every Opportunity" (Pate et al., 1995, p.406,). It appears prudent to assume that an opportunity exists for physical education to positively influence the lifelong activity habits and health of the entire population. Central to this assumption, however, 51% D6 Wig: apex-res. 0G3"- Ci'zjd'en r' Essences to : armies to be a: target's Exam be :‘tarazens: ‘ ‘ .- ' \r Chas. . 4 V\ is that the physical education offered is of high quality with respect to goals, objectives, organizational structure, instruction, and evaluation practices. Quality Physical Education Children must be provided with high quality physical education opportunities to develop the necessary knowledge, physical fitness, skills, and attitudes to be active (and thus, remain healthy) throughout their lives. Michigan's Exemplary Physical Education Curriculum Project (EPEC) describes the characteristics of a ”quality" physical education curriculum as follows (1997): 1. Relevant and defensible goals that are properly stated. 2. Clearly stated objectives that operationally define the meaning of the goals. 3. Designation of when (K-12) and for how much time instruction on each Objective should occur. 4. Designation of what objectives should be included (and excluded) to meet resource constraints. Implementation of a "quality" curriculum depends on instruction that (EPEC, 1996): 1. implements the approved core of objectives. 2. is consistent with research on teaching and Ieaming and with knowledge of professional practice. 3. can be described well enough to be replicated. 4. is effective and efficient in facilitating student achievement of stated objectives. 5. provides flexibility for individual teachers. unity p". xz-ct'tunill‘ for cf” 53:30! Rather '. 3CD) in city’SlCE stress the lots ngfi 'quaflfy' 5t-ess motor 8" ECU“ 35C b9: 'T‘ne p37 excrement c aiia'ert Re. 53003 heal“: 5931‘)! be he Quality physical education programs must do far more than provide an opportunity for children to be physically active once or twice a week while in school. Rather than settling for the short term solution of providing physical activity in physical education classes, physical education programs need to address the long term solution of equipping children to be active for a lifetime. Through "quality" physical education programs children develop the physical fitness, motor skills, knowledge and attitudes necessary for subsequent physical activity and better health throughout their lives. “The potential impact of school physical education programs on achievement of these (Healthy People 2000) national health objectives is apparent. Research has demonstrated properly designed and implemented school health and physical education programs can be effective in promoting healthy behaviors“ (McGinnis, Kanner 8. DeGraw, 1991, p.140). Physical Education in Michigan Although 86% of schoolchildren in Michigan participate in physical education instruction one to two times per week, there is evidence that they are not being equipped with the skills needed to be physically active for a lifetime. Only 2 of 24 items were passed (achieved by 75% or more of the students) on the 1984 Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) tests of selected Fundamental Motor, Body Management, and Physical Fitness indicators (Reuschlein & Haubenstricker, 1985). In addition to failing MEAP test scores and poor public perception about {If 189C IOI physl 3:... . In M‘s“; Ref. Poore. Lu. I hit. 1 Ken, I '93} III GCYBP‘ p 00! pub-T “:W’ef‘jy 9X1 Fee 555,, CU, or ”8:6th 933336: M‘~’ v6 “Agata” m b- the need for physical education in schools, there is evidence that too many children in Michigan exhibit unhealthy effects of sedentary living (Kuntzleman, Reiff, Poore, LU, Cumberworth, 8: Arends, 1992; Kuntzleman, Reif, Poore, Lu, Drake, 8. Allen, 1991; Kuntzleman, Reiff, Poore, Lu, Kloosterhouse & Edington, 1993; MI Governor's Council fact sheet, 1996). Poor public perception of the quality and usefulness of physical education as it currently exists in Michigan is evidenced by the number of programs that have been cut or reduced. This poor perception gained further support with recently enacted legislation that allows school activities such as band and sports participation to be substituted for physical education. Michigan ’3 Exemplary Physical Education Curriculum Project In response to the growing evidence of the poor physical health of Michigan’s children, and the agenda of Healthy People 2000, The Michigan Governor's Council on Physical Fitness, Health, and Sports, through the Michigan Fitness Foundation, established the Michigan Exemplary Physical Education Curriculum Project (EPEC) (see project description, Appendix A). The EPEC mission is "to enable those responsible for physical education in Michigan to create exemplary programs. This requires developing and disseminating materials and procedures that result in the youth of Michigan obtaining the necessary fitness levels, motor skills, knowledge, and attitudes to be fit for life" (EPEC, 1997). To develop the EPEC curriculum, content experts wrote Instructional 5,555,555 Massa- fish! was dete EE'IE’IS OI Oil's TYPE-dies to 5‘ LESSOO‘S ‘ ‘M U - “D Ste 327;: sing. O .85 I 5.38 5555'; ( «a!- bet? M Resource Materials (IRMS) for high priority curricular content. High priority content was determined by obtaining ratings of the relative importance of discrete elements Of physical education content by stakeholders in 18 school districts throughout Michigan (Allen, 1998). The IRM'S were then evaluated by university/public school teacher expert pairs using extensive criteria as they tested the IRM materials in their schools. Input from these teacher evaluations was used to revise the IRM's. In the early phase of project activity, the EPEC Consortium Members (see Appendix B) determined that it was necessary to add lessons as well as procedures for correct implementation of lessons to the lRM’s provided by the project. The revised IRM’s were used to develop units and lessons for grades K- 5. Lessons were written to represent high priority content that could be accomplished in physical education programs that meet two times per week for 30 minutes per session. Lessons were designed for two day per week programs since 86% Of the school districts in Michigan have physical education one or two days per week. Materials and procedures will be developed in sequence for grades 3-5, 6-8, 9, and 10-12. Lessons for grades K-2 were implemented and evaluated during the winter and spring of 1997 by 123 teacher/evaluators representing 53 school districts. By June 1999, 466 teachers from 211 school districts in Michigan had participated in in-service training to implement lessons revised according to the recommendations of the 1997 teacher/evaluators. ErasatorI $167385. The }L l. De 8? III. De EPEC Evaluation Evaluation of EPEC K-2 lessons was driven by seven evaluation objectives. They are: VI. VII. Determine the characteristics of those involved in the EPEC lesson evaluation. Determine the extent to which conditions existed in the schools and classrooms that made it possible for the EPEC curricular materials to be appropriately taught. Determine the strengths and weaknesses Of the EPEC lessons. Determine the extent to which the EPEC curriculum was implemented as intended. Determine the effects of instruction. Determine the relationships that exist between the outcomes, context, curriculum quality and the extent to which the EPEC curriculum is being taught as intended. Identify unanticipated outcomes (positive or negative) associated with use Of the EPEC K-2 lessons. The focus of K-2 lesson evaluation was on the implementation and evaluation of the lessons by teachers. Teachers trained during the 1998-99 academic year to use EPEC K-2 lessons are a valuable resource for extending the evaluation of the in-service training. Evaluation information using perceptions about the training from teachers who participated in the 1998-99 in-service training an be used to design and implement in-service training for future users of EPEC lessons. The current study was designed to gather qualitative data from K-2 teachers about their EPEC in-service training experiences regarding the impact gaffe i'alflll'lg 0:” MOMS as “ll swag training '. Peat". prcgra'l mores' {Bur-I Staff} physics: 1 as a poster. 55258 0‘: ycungs of the training on their ability to implement the K-2 lessons as intended by the developers, as well as their suggestions for improvement of the training. "In- service training is an important component that positively influences the degree of health program implementation, program effectiveness and, ultimately, student outcomes” (Burks & Fox, 1994, p.796). The role of the teacher in delivering quality physical education programs is critical. “Physical education professionals are in a position to have a dramatic impact on the current and future health and fitness of youngsters” (McGinnis, Kanner & DeGraw, 1991, p.142). Purpose of the Study The purpose of this study was to provide suggestions for the improvement of future EPEC teacher in-service training within the four categories of Context, Content, Change, and Support. Suggestions for the design of future in-service training were constructed from the post-training perspectives of teachers who experienced EPEC K-2 teacher in-service training during the 1998-99 academic year. Research Questions The following evaluation question will be addressed: Based on their EPEC K-2 teacher in-servlce training experience and initial use of EPEC lessons, what suggestions do teachers provide for the design of EPEC teacher in-service training regarding issues of context, content, change, and support? sxtaeston 1. $.t-35eston 2 S.:~:ueston 3 Otmv‘és Inc!“ T5563 and Paihl’za! s» , .s p and 5 sac-tiers are It: Sub-question 1. Sub-question 2. Sub-question 3. What information and experiences are perceived by the teachers as most necessary or important to obtain the knowledge necessary for implementing EPEC lessons? What information and experiences are perceived by the teachers as most necessary or important to address their beliefs about teaching physical education for them to implement EPEC lessons? Are there any issues regarding EPEC in-service training in addition to Context, Content, Change, and Support which should be addressed in developing guidelines for future training? Need for the study The mission of EPEC facilitates the achievement of several core objectives included in Healthy People 2000. The EPEC project team, consortium ' members, and K-12 physiml education teachers have developed unit and lesson materials and procedures to achieve the EPEC mission. It is important that teachers are trained to implement the EPEC lessons as intended. If they are unable, or choose not to implement the lessons as designed, design criteria and evaluation feedback representing the "wisdom of practice" which have been incorporated into the lesson materials will fall to the biases and practices of individual users. EPEC teacher in-service training must be examined to determine the teachers' view of its effectiveness in preparing them to implement tr EPEC less: 33.359! Ill-$8M: 'Head' a lit “escapable 55.95 underste heist; Ir. m6? nasasensel Indtscss in say that 'P. twwydm 9793;. Guts ‘Izgazr. Were :37“ 18$ Into 5-3-3 s 555555., ”al.3553517, “Pint 0%“ 1DJO not the EPEC lessons as designed and to establish guidelines for future EPEC teacher in-service training. "Head" and "heart" issues and the need to create a feeling of "ought to" are inescapable issues to be dealt with in teacher in-service training. The ”head" issues, understanding the methods and materials; and the ”heart" issues, believing in their value, should come together through in-service training to create a sense of "ought to”, or commitment, in the teachers being trained. In discussing implementation of new health education curricula, Burks and Fox say that ”Pm-implementation in-service positively influences teacher fidelity of delivery of health education curricula as well as student outcomes” (1994, p.796). Gullickson wrote that in-service teacher training needs to be evaluated, "to gain understanding of use... It is important to know whether that in-service translates into appropriate instruction in the classroom... how much congruence there is between the materials/training provided to the teacher and the instruction actually occurring in the classroom” (letter to P. Vogel, March 14, 1996). Rich description of the strengths and weaknesses of in-service training from the teachers' point of view, especially as it relates to their implementation of EPEC lessons, is essential for design of the in-service training program to accommodate the needs of future users. Teacher in-service training must be done in such a way that high levels of implementation fidelity can be achieved by teachers with at least a moderate commitment to delivering quality physiml education services to children, the target group for EPEC lesson materials. With achievement of implementation l0 realty Subset“ I!" ' a It“; I QUEST, E-A‘fi I a, e? 53ml“. E?" w y flu-I..." sate ’ .5, ..'S I ‘ C C 3.: meters"? . .or. 8515 37 an ‘ers have 99 EPE’ ‘U’ste EPEC I Suggesto ":5 I 5:9? ' lE‘ ‘ I GTEDQ a‘ . 30‘ Effie-Psi ,. - w 2‘- 5'5 1? b. a -C fidelity; subsequent evaluative research on effects of the "program" (Gullickson group IV questions) can be attributed to the "program" (curriculum design, teacher training, and implementation of instruction). Future replicability of the EPEC curriculum depends on having a program that can be implemented by teachers in accordance with its design and training that facilitates such implementation. Rationale for the study Burks and Fox found that "training is more likely to be successful if teachers have input in planning” (1994, p.796). Input from participants in 1998-99 EPEC in-service will be used as suggested guides for the design Of future EPEC in-service training. Training that is designed using the teachers’ suggestions is likely to be perceived by other teachers as effective, leading to high levels of implementation of EPEC lessons. Another possible benefit of Ieaming about EPEC teacher in-service training is expansion of our understanding of teacher in-service training in general. This study is unlike many others in that the story of the teachers’ in-service training and subsequent implementation experience is told by the teachers in their own voices. Information from the focus group participants is used to describe their suggestions for the design of future EPEC in-service training. 11 'It IS Cleaj yea' 2330 hea'f‘. "eat‘ and phys IICGMIS Ka'“ “A h t I E'dcv'ls: .lps 0' ’cfeldt {Ed} “eat-‘4. tc the ‘55- PI... I “will 3’10 Pre ' mfiewed t 933233” DiocJ “Prev-JIM». {p See‘eij: Statements whiz *5. Ir '8!» . calapwt.’ tc‘ If”! ”Paton in The 86“ Werner: 5...} . ‘v “\ET‘ZIQE 1n- 'hrvg... .vai ”a ”k 5‘56“. CHAPTER II. LITERATURE REVIEW The Problem ”It is clear improving the nation's public health profile and achieving the year 2000 health Objectives will depend greatly on the effective use of school health and physical education programming throughout the next decade” (McGinnis, Kanner 8: DeGraw, 1991, p.138). Scientific evidence of the positive relationships of physical activity to health and healthy living is enormous (Seefeldt, [Ed.] 1986, McGinnis, 1992). After reviewing scientific evidence related to the health implications for physical activity, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American College of Sports Medicine recommended that ”Schools should deliver comprehensive health and physical education programs that provide and promote physical activity at every opportunity." (Pate, Pratt, et al., 1995, p.406). Seefeldt and Vogel present 20 broad statements and 161 more specific statements which summarize scientific evidence of the beneficial effects of physical activity, presented as outcomes, that can be "readily achieved through participation in appropriate kinds and amounts of physical activity" (1986, p.1-30). The statements represent many outcomes readily associated with school physical education programs. Efforts to improve public health should include changes in our current approach to school physical education (Sallis & McKenzie, 1991). School physical education programs should be viewed from a developmental perspective. In other words, positive early physical activity experiences provide a foundation for an ordered sequence of educational 12 essences to ‘ am as 3635‘ Althea" ' | szstrrta? we, ‘33? there IS 1 $2331 lire 9.1.1987) mill for ch. ijS-Cal 8:24 332-63 ‘3‘.an‘ “3'3. Sm T’IE'g ”53988 of n“. WEI: a. pE 3;1C::5 M.) ”We. I: 33W for . F . experiences to foster skills and enthusiasm for appropriate levels of physical activity as adults (Haywood, 1991). Physical Activity Although there is little evidence that childhood fitness carries over in any substantial way to adulthood (Simons-Morton, O'Hara, Simons-Morton 8. Parcel, 1987) there is some evidence that childhood activity levels carry over to adulthood (Freedson 8. Rowland, 1992; Sallis & McKenzie, 1991; Simons-Morton et al., 1987). Kuntzleman and others also stress the importance of physical activity for children (Kuntzleman, 1993). "To achieve the health benefits of physical activity, it is more important to prepare children for a lifetime of physical activity than to promote high levels of fitness during childhood” (Simons-Morton, O'Hara, Simons-Morton, & Parcel, 1987, p.301). There is no general agreement about the precise status Of fitness and/or unfitness of children in the USA and some evidence is contradictory (Blair, 1992; Corbin & Pangrazi, 1992; Freedson & Rowland, 1992; Simons-Morton, Parcel, et al.,1988;). The exact levels of fitness needed for optimal health are unknown however, it is generally agreed that children need to increase their levels of activity for more healthy living (Corbin & Pangrazi, 1992; Kuntzleman, 1993; Freedson & Rowland, 1992; Kuntzleman & Reiff, 1992; Pate et al., 1995; Sallis & McKenzie, 1991; Simons-Morton, O’Hara, Simons-Morton 8. Parcel, 1987;). Training at a moderate level will enable one to achieve the health benefits of physical activity, therefore the value of training for high levels of physical fimess 13 5m sc‘ool p} 9351.11I 95.1531 1 sejefial‘j lung ' es am the rcreige nee Haywood. 199‘ The etect‘re u E85835; to : 3633M 199 Q’j‘StCaiiy e: E 3 essen- within school physical education programs is questionable (Blair, 1992). School physical education programs should address the public health problem of sedentary living by providing more positive opportunities to increase activity levels and fitness. This can be accomplished by teaching the skills and knowledge needed to be more active and, consequently, more fit (EPEC, 1997; Haywood, 1991; McGinnis, Kanner & DeGraw, 1991; Sallis & McKenzie, 1991). The effective use of high quality school physical education programs is necessary to achieve the year 2000 health objectives (McGinnis, Kanner 8. DeGraw, 1991). Increasing activity levels of school children is important but physically educating them in such a way that they increase their activity levels _f_o_[ li_f_e_ is essential to our nation's public health. Physical Education It is clear that schools play a critical role in the achievement of the Healthy People 2000 Objectives. The shifting focus from physical fitness to increased lifelong physical activity makes it imperative that physical education programs teach school children the necessary skills, knowledge and attitudes to embrace a lifestyle of healthy physical activity. Physical education programs need to prepare children to live well throughout their life span knowing the why, what, when, and how much about physical activity and how to monitor their own active lifestyle. Schools are the one place where we have access to most children, therefore, in addition to providing more physical activity, school physical l4 my hat-£5 5 Theme L56 3” £331.16: mesa-“l t: be “at. 13855 35.1; self-85:5 Recog'IZIT‘IS I” jemns‘zate 6' azmrzate tc sits-n: ashes We resource Respor Pljsziai Fit-1e ts‘abizstec‘ M PEG). The fixation Ir. l. 3‘91 meme Mil-lg the I 56 it for fife" ( DPH‘. ' HIES II‘. education programs must become more effective at increasing the lifelong activity habits of children. The Role of EPE C "The challenge facing school physical education professionals is to make use of a limited amount of class time and teach the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful in a wide variety of physical activities that promote health, fitness, skill building, enjoyment of sport and recreation, general well- being, self-esteem, and confidence” (McGinnis, Kanner & DeGraw, 1991, p.141). Recognizing limited class time, physical educators need to prioritize and demonstrate effectiveness with the kinds and amounts of content that are appropriate to the resources available to them. Only by demonstrating quality student achievement from instruction will physical education programs be given more resources. Responding to the challenge for The Michigan Governor's Council on Physical Fitness, Health, and Sports, the Michigan Fitness Foundation, established Michigan’s Exemplary Physical Education Curriculum Project (EPEC). The EPEC mission is ”to enable those responsible for physical education in Michigan to create exemplary programs. This requires developing and disseminating materials and procedures that result in the youth of Michigan Obtaining the necessary fitness levels, motor skills, knowledge, and attitudes to be fit for life” (EPEC, 1997). To this end, EPEC has generated materials and procedures in the form of Instructional Resource Materials (IRM’s) using high 15 port,- content'. t :‘evelcp era" asz'aptate In: amazon wits Slit physical ‘ $3360 cog 6.3311 m In the I acmistered 55 063:5.0P 33560 on Input“ E32593 9136' WSICal erg dca '2 Elissa: 55 9:03" OfE‘raEU 'l priority content to develop units and lessons which will enable those responsible to develop exemplary programs. The materials were designed to facilitate appropriate implementation of the Michigan Model Core Curriculum for physical education which addresses 14 content standards in four curricular areas; motor skills, physical fitness, personal/sociallattitudinal character traits, and activity related cognitive concepts (EPEC, 1997). EPEC staff have also been deeply involved in the creation of an exemplary physical education awards program administered by the Michigan Fitness Foundation. Decisions on EPEC program content, sequence, and procedures were based on input from stakeholders (Allen, 1998), K-12 physical education teachers, experts in related fields, and a consortium of college and university physical education specialists. It was determined early in the project that this K- 12 physical education curriculum would be developed systematically, use the power of evaluation for refinement, and target clear description and effectiveness in facilitating student achievement in order to achieve effectiveness and replicability through consistent implementation. ”EPEC is a physical education program. It is not a physical activity program. It is designed to meet the following criteria: 1. Defensible and relevant goals. 2. Clear program, instructional, and lesson objectives. 3. Most important content prioritized by the program stakeholders. 4. Number of objectives taught matches time available for instruction. 5. Amount of instructional time needed for each lesson objective is specified. 16 Tte systematc tested In A; 6. Instructional activities are linked to specific Objectives. 7. Instructional activities are consistent with research on teaching and Ieaming and the wisdom of practice. 8. Instruction is described well enough to be replicated. 9. Instruction is evaluated in terms of student achievement Of valued outcomes. 10. Instruction can be refined to be more effective and efficient” (EPEC, 1997). The systematic process Of developing the EPEC curriculum materials is described in Appendix A., EPEC Project Description. Teacher ln-service Training EPEC was designed with the intent of improving physical education, student achievement and ultimately the lifelong health of those who participate in the program. This intention is carried on the shoulders of the physical education teachers entrusted to teach the EPEC program. If the teachers are not able to implement EPEC, the hopes for the program will not be fully realized. ”The ultimate goal of successful staff development is to bring about change which will lead to school improvement” (Knowles 8. Hord, 1981, p.24). Accordingly, in- service training is critical. Evaluation of EPEC in-service training focused on teacher identification of needed improvements in order for teachers to achieve higher levels of implementation fidelity. It was expected that information gained from evaluation of EPEC in-service teacher training would provide direction for improvement of in-service teacher training for subsequent stages of the EPEC project. 17 Lohrma' 3f wI'TICdIUm I eats-fists: bet rischool heait" S'eefiberg. 19' {1334‘}, Irrcietr. sense Emmet Etc-oi and t we taint: reflects: «pr :94. p 7'“ Cor “A. k I w .G“ 1’ «43-3 ; Lohrrnan, Gold, and JUbb call in-service training "the essential component of curriculum implementation” (Burks 8 Fox, 1994, p.784). The positive relationship between in-service training and curriculum implementation is supported by many who have studied in-service training and the implementation of school health cunicula (Connell, Turner 8 Mason, 1985; Fors 8 Doster, 1985; Greenberg, 1985; Nelson, Poehler 8 Johnson, 1988). According to Burks 8 Fox (1994), implementation was directly related to whether teachers received in- service training, the length of training, program support materials, administrative support, and teacher attitudes toward teaching health and participating in in- service training. ”Teachers who were provided with a structured pre- implementation training program that emphasized fidelity of delivery of the curriculum implemented the curriculum with a significantly higher degree of fidelity than did untrained teachers' (Ross et al., 1991, cited in Burks 8 Fox, 1994, p.785). Connell, Turner, and Mason (1985) found that the degree of effectiveness of health programs varied with level of implementation. Student outcomes are affected by appropriate implementation. Ross (1991, in Burks 8 Fox, 1994, p.785) found knowledge and attitude scores were significantly higher for classes taught by trained teachers than were scores for classes taught by untrained teachers. While training is decidedly favorable to implementation, teacher attitudes toward participating in in-service training and toward teaching the subject matter also affected their implementation (Burks 8 Lohrrnan, 1991, in Burks 8 Fox, 1994, p. 785). There is potential conflict between the interests of 18 Ir-l prcgram deve- {re DefCEF-JEG J or have to best teacher 313.3: a tan-fig can be pereptoss re; wet-l. teen:i {$92}. Teac'I a“? there‘l tl'e WSEG lee ”Ea-"Tin. . Design Those program developers for high levels of implementation fidelity (replicability) and the perceived needs Of teachers for flexibility and autonomy in making decisions on how to best serve their students. These, and other issues, may impact teacher attitudes toward in-service training. Teachers involved in in-service training can be expected to bring with them a variety of needs, attitudes, and perceptions regarding the subject matter and the training itself. It is critical that those providing in-service training are sensitive in acknowledging and addressing differences among teachers. Burks 8 Fox (1994) cite Hutson’s suggestion that "training should meet carefully identified needs, and decision making should include the teachers” (p.790). Teachers were not included on initial planning of the EPEC in-service training, therefore their input for design of in-service training for future users of the revised lessons is essential. "Teachers report that in-service training is more meaningful if it meets their needs; they therefore should be involved in identifying those needs” (Lawrenz, 1984, 8 Washton, 1985, in Burks 8 Fox, 1994, p. 786). Design criteria extracted from the literature on effective in-service training provided foundational material for investigating in-service needs perceived by EPEC teachers. Other design criteria were Obtained from the review of literature related to dissemination Of educational programs and from unique needs associated with the mission of the EPEC project. Essential Elements of Teacher ln-service Training Those who have studied teacher in-service have identified many different 19 Fax 1994‘. SJ, U m” nests t” l‘e nos: ImpC' o a o r' S r 0 f1 5 ' 6 ll ' C S ' l l H3150? s s a s e e 35485, T e :34). Sta 1:»... .. "ail 1 m‘SQr-flr components of successful in-service training. In addressing training for implementation of health education curriculum, Middleton et al. (cited in Burks 8 Fox, 1994) suggest in-service training should address all of the following components though ”modeling of strategies for effective educational processes is the most important aspect of in-service training” (p.786): a thorough review of content modeling of educational strategies and techniques appropriate for specific age groups, including adaptations for multicultural relevancy familiarization of teachers with available resource materials and speakers enhancement of teachers’ understanding of their varied roles (e.g., instructor, confidant, model) development of teachers’ confidence and acquisition of facilitating skills enhancement of the teaching skills needed to interact with parents and community Hutson (cited in Burks 8 Fox, 1994, p.786) adds these suggestions for improving in-service training. Training should: meet carefully identified needs include the teachers in decision making be supported by administrators be held at local schools involve agencies outside the school offer professional incentives Time allowed for training and the scheduling of that time are important issues. Time required for training depends on the complexity of the curriculum, the subject matter, and the comprehensiveness of the training (Burks 8 F ox, 1994). Graduate credit is a strong motivator for implementation (Burks 8 Lehman, 1991, cited in Burks 8 Fox, 1994). When graduate credits are offered for in-service training, higher education institutions will determine the number of 20 535855de for ii are for model 5:31 1994). $00.66;. _ semi army‘s: “r.“ schedules shoal day. d. been found to P’s-jsatety fc. scggested as i 3‘ administratr see-nematlc O‘HP, ~ U - I, when ' 35 more SUCH Men teacher! 'Trall'lti ‘ee the Inset tarmg, and I Cr ..7;.Was me 565536 tramir Sin-:Uium m; ‘a F W- 4"‘in. .1. _at&d v contact hours needed. Hawley found that large blocks of time were most successful for training. Since modeling of techniques is very important, adequate time for modeling must be planned (Burks 8 Fox, 1994; Middleton et al., in Burks 8 Fox, 1994). Scheduling the time needed for training is a difficult matter. Teachers, school administrators, and the persons Offering training need to agree on times and schedules that meet everyone’s needs. ln-service training at the end of the school day, during holiday vacations, and during the middle of the summer has been found to be nonproductive (Burks 8 Fox, 1994). Training during the weeks immediately following the end or just before the start of the school year are suggested as an alternative. Time should also be allowed for in-service training of administrators as commitment to new programs and teacher support for implementation usually occur at the building level (Connell, Turner 8 Mason, 1985). When administrators take time for in-service training, teachers see them as more supportive (Burks 8 Fox, 1994). Time is also an issue alter training when teachers are attempting to implement the curriculum. ”Training is more likely to be successful if teachers have input in planning, feel the in-service is worthwhile, know their school administration supports the training, and value the incentives offered“ (Burks 8 Fox, 1994, p.796). Graduate credit was mentioned earlier as an incentive for teachers to participate in in- service training. Other incentives can be stipends, travel reimbursement, curriculum materials, and credit for staff development hours which can be coordinated with the state department of education (Burks 8 Fox, 1994). 21 Interpersonal relationships is another area that must be addressed for successful in-service training. Establishing collaborative relationships between teacher educators (or other change agents) and in-service teachers is a critical element. ”The nature of the working relationship between in-service teachers and teacher educators has a crucial bearing on the outcome of the effort” (Anderson, 1982, p.15). The graduate course model with assigned authoritative (teacher-leamer) roles invites disaster. Though they are not easily established, collaborative, collegial relationships are the most conducive to success (Anderson, 1982). Peer support is another area needed for teachers attempting to implement new ways of teaching. Anderson shares the following lessons learned about in-service training at the Physical Education Program Development Center. The center is a collaborative effort Of the teacher education program in physical education at Teachers College, Columbia University and teachers and administrators of affiliated school districts (Anderson, 1982). 1. Focus on program development to avoid unspoken assumptions that the teachers have deficiencies. 2. Overcome initial estrangement and mistrust Of the teacher educator (natural reaction to a stranger) through the establishment of respect and trust a. eariy in the relationship devote time specifically to getting to know each other in an informal environment (food helps). b. the teacher educator must express respect of the ideas, the work, the problems, and the person of the teacher. C. work toward establishing mutual trust that each will be truthful and will try to do their very best. 3. Establish teacher ownership of the program. ”Studies of change in schools clearly indicate that innovations are more likely to persist and be institutionalized if the teachers have a significant role in the 22 development and implementation of the innovation" (Anderson, 1 982, p. 1 7). When teachers do not see a particular change as valuable or important, they are unlikely to implement the change or maintain implementation of it. Establish long term commitment and persistent support. Implementation of changes ”fade quickly unless a support system is established within the institution to provide continuing sustenance for the changes” (Anderson, 1982, p.18). Most teachers have an indefinite long-term commitment to teach. They should be able to expect a long-terrn commitment from the change agent to support implementation of the change. Renew professional motivation. Teachers who exhibit energy, enthusiasm, and excitement for teaching are more likely to sustain efforts to improve their programs. Their enthusiasm, if cultivated by recognition, is sometimes ”catching" and sways those who display more cynical attitudes. Recognize the diversity and uniqueness within districts, schools, and individuals. Know that changes will have a different ”look" in every setting. These ”necessary elements” suggested by the teacher in-service training literature can be grouped into the categories Of context, content, change, and support for implementation. There are several possible alternatives for gathering data from teachers relative to the ”necessary elements” of teacher in-service training and their own EPEC in-service training experience. The Decision to Use Focus Groups for Data Collection The question of the best way to gather data on EPEC teacher in-service training from the teachers suggests four possibilities: survey questionnaires, Nominal Group Technique (NGT) (Stewart 8 Shamdasani, 1990; Vaughn, 23 Schumm 8 Sinagub, 1996), individual interview, and focus groups. The use of focus groups to gather data for this case study is supported by many experts as illustrated in the following summary of focus group literature. Survey questionnaires would be efficient but more superficial in the type Of data that can be gathered. There is no Opportunity to follow up or probe the responses. In NGT the group does not actually meet as a group. They are interviewed individually and the findings are summarized as group data (Vaughn et al. 1996, p.14). This has the advantages of the individual interview but lacks the interactive advantages of the focus group. Albrect et al. (in Morgan, 1993) suggest using a form of NGT to start the focus group session. This technique may prevent some communication pitfalls such as compliance (trying to say what they think is wanted) and identification (trying to establish identity with the group by saying what others might say), which are potential problems in focus group discussion. This modified NGT used with focus group techniques creates a powerful resource for collecting very personal data. Hess’s (1968) view that the focus group interview has distinct advantages over its close relative, the individual interview, is summarized in Vaughn et al. (1996, p.14). The advantages of focus groups over individual interviews include the following points: 1. synergism- a wider bank of data emerges through group interaction 2. snowballing- statements of one respondent initiate a chain reaction of additional comments 3. stimulation- group discussion generates excitement about a topic 4. security- group provides comfort and encourages responses 24 Stews aarar.‘ gesl .se Trey a firefly wit ezessson. Vasg ’tsearzl‘. (1‘. 1. 5. spontaneity- because participants are not required to answer every question, their responses are more spontaneous and genuine. Stewart and Shamdasani (1990) echo Hess and add a few more advantages from their point of view (p.16) that are applicable to this particular use. They are: cost effectiveness, consume less time, the researcher interacts directly with the respondents for clarification and to observe nuances of individual expression, and the results are usually very easy to understand. Vaughn et al. discuss five reasons to use focus groups in social science research (1996, p.15—22). 1. Focus group interviews offer variety and versatility to both quantitative and qualitative research methods. They are effective when used alone or in combination with other methods of data collection to bring an improved depth of understanding to research. 2. Focus group interviews are compatible with the qualitative research paradigm. In the qualitative tradition, multiple realities can exist and the nature of reality is viewed as phenomenological. It is accepted that truth is influenced by perspective. ”Truth is explained by describing a particular set of issues or concepts in relationship to a particular context. The goal is not to generalize to larger populations. Rather, the goal is to describe findings within a particular situation” (Vaughn, 1996, p.16). One of the strengths of focus groups is the value placed on diverse opinions and perspectives. 3. Focus group interviews offer Opportunities for direct contact with subjects. When conducted properly, the focus group enables the researcher to elicit substantive information on the topic of interest in relatively little time. "The focus group interview is a research tool that is highly consistent with current trends in education and psychology that aim at understanding more about what key stakeholders think and feel" (Vaughn, 1996, p.16). ”Right or wrong, the information is still important to program developers” (personal communication, P.Vogel). People are valuable sources of information about themselves (Lederman, 1990; Strother, 1984) when engaged in direct extended conversafions with the 25 The R. I ”Ix-Um A Vi ‘OVEC In .. d 'a... 5"“;S tr;- AI researcher. The potential for interaction between moderator and respondents, and reactions between respondents brings depth and dimension to the knowledge gained. Perhaps Wilcox (1988) says it best, ”If we want to know how people felt, what they experienced, what they remembered, what their emotions and motives were like and the reasons for acting as they did-why not just ask them?” (p.12). 4. The group format Offers distinctive advantages for data collection. The interactive nature Of a focus group offers a forum for thinking and forming Opinions while interacting in discussion about the topic. The exchange Of perspectives may spark new opinions or strengthen present convictions (Hillebrandt, 1979; Packard 8 Dereshiwsky, 1990). This process provides a depth and richness Of data unavailable through other methods. The group format is dynamic allowing for change to accommodate the individuals. Although the moderator is guided by the research questions and works from an interview guide, the group discussion may lead to unanticipated issues and concerns relevant to the question. Sometimes the sense Of safety in a well-run focus group has a ”loosening effect" and facilitates very candid responses which are valuable to our understanding. 5. Focus group interviews Offer utility. Although preparation for focus groups takes a great deal of time and thought they are still very efficient compared to many other research methods. In a relatively short period of time a researcher can collect an abundance of specific information on selected topics from several people chosen for their ability to give valuable input about a situation. ’When used for program development or evaluation, the findings of focus group interviews can be used to initiate programmatic change" (p.21). "The hallmark of focus groups is the explicit use Of the group interaction to produce data and insights that would be less accessible without the interaction found in a group (Morgan, 1988, p.12).” The literature supports the use of focus groups to Obtain the data needed to address the research questions. Focus Groups Described A focus group is ”an informal discussion among selected individuals about 26 w;r‘fl QtODIPc} pill The} . stresses. ir- tsrg .225th Demissr re 3? 'e-reaimg “cc Ills mecca" 135583918, 2: $35 at her specific topics relevant to a situation at hand” (Beck, Trombetta 8 Share, 1986, p.73). "The goal of a focus group is to create a candid, normal conversation that addresses, in depth, the selected topic” (Vaughn et al., 1990, p.4). A major distinguishing feature of focus groups is the group discussion. ’With a permissive atmosphere that fosters a range of opinion, a more complete and revealing understanding of the issues will be Obtained” (Vaughn et al., 1996, p.4). It is important to remember the purpose of a focus group is not to build consensus, but it is used to obtain a range of opinions from people about the issues at hand (Vaughn et al., 1996, p.5). The focus group process elicits Opinion or point of view from every participant rather than using the participants to problem solve or build consensus. Bers (1989b, p.263) cautions the researcher that "the key to useful focus group research is to know how the results will be used, and what is wanted out of the group. Good focus group research is narrow in scope”. Though there are a variety of definitions of focus groups, they usually contain the following core elements (Vaughn et al., 1996, p.5): . The group is an informal assembly of target persons whose points of view are requested to address a Single topic. . The group is small and is relatively homogeneous. . A trained moderator with prepared questions and probes sets the stage and induces participants’ responses. . The goal is to elicit perceptions, feelings, attitudes, and ideas of participants about a selected topic. . Focus groups do not generate quantitative information that can be projected to a larger population. 27 ‘Focus $495 p.21. 11. ".tctssed ante» arteries ‘ g Statuasani. ! V8,; “Focus group research is experiencing a boom in use” (Vaughn et al., 1996, p.2). Having been used for over thirty years in marketing and business as ”focussed interviews" (Stewart 8 Shamdasani, 1996, p.9), the focus group has experienced recent expansion of use in the social sciences (Stewart 8 Shamdasani, 1990; Vaughn et al., 1996). Vaughn et al. (1996), discuss many reasons for widespread growth in the use of focus groups for research: 1. 2. There is quick turnaround time from implementation to findings. Enables the researcher to personally witness the dynamic of the interview experience and to use probes for depth of information. lnforrnation provided by focus groups is unique (Vaughn, from Baker, 1985) and expanded compared to information from sources such as surveys. Focus groups offer the opportunity to find out w_l_1_y people think as they do- useful to gain perspective of stakeholders. Vaughn's reasons for expanded use are reflected in Stewart and Shamdasanis’ (1990) discussion of advantages of focus groups relative to other types of research: 1. Provide data from a group of people more quickly and at less cost than interviews. Groups can be assembled with relatively short notice. The researcher interacts directly with the respondents. This provides Opportunities for clarification of responses, for follow-up questions, and for probing of responses. Respondents can qualify responses and give contingent answers to questions. In addition, it is possible for the researcher to observe non-verbal responses such as gestures, smiles, frowns, which may carry information that supplements or contradicts verbal responses. The format allows for large amounts of rich data in the respondents own words. The researcher can obtain deeper levels of meaning, make important connections, and identify subtle nuances in 28 expression and meaning. 4. Focus groups allow members to react and build upon the responses of other group members. This synergistic effect of the group setting may result in the production of data or ideas that might otherwise not have been uncovered in individual interviews or surveys. 5. A focus group is flexible and can be used to examine a wide range of topics with a variety Of individuals. 6. Focus groups may be one of few research tools available for obtaining data from children or from individuals who are illiterate. (Not applicable in this case!) 7. The results of a focus group are easy to understand. Researchers and decision makers can readily understand the responses of most respondents. This is not always the case with more sophisticated survey research that employs complex statistical analyses. Focus groups are versatile. A focus group ”can unravel fairly complex problems to be pursued through further research and can address fairly simple issues” (Vaughn et al., 1996, p.6). Focus groups are often used as a preliminary stage in a larger research program, there are also cases where focus groups alone provide sufficient basis for decision making. “One example in an applied research setting would be the idenfification of flaws or serious problems with a new product or program that would necessitate redesign” (Stewart 8 Shamdasani, 1990, p. 16). “When used for program development or evaluation, the findings of focus group interviews can be used to initiate programmatic change” (Vaughn et al., 1990, p.20). Despite the advantages, there are also limitations to focus groups (Stewart 8 Shamdasani, 1990; Vaughn et al., 1996). One common limitation is the difficulty which can exist when recruiting group participants. Another limitation 29 ’55 the high CC asd’or scphls not a 50:35:32 the necessar conference r observers. s Ssé'ed 10' Wen ”(he 4; 5034.5 grog :Tfesston hSWGrafiu‘ is the high cost of focus groups in situations where a professional moderator and/or sophisticated facilities are necessary. Neither a professional moderator nor a sophisticated facility are needed for the current study. The researcher has the necessary familiarity with the subject and will serve as moderator. A simple conference room with large table and audio recorder will be sufficient; hidden observers, special lighting, and sophisticated recording equipment are not required for this study. Another limitation is that focus groups can become costly when the group participants require large honorariums for their participation. The focus group participants in this study will not need to be compensated for lost professional time and/or professional fees. They will receive a very small honorarium and a light snack. None Of the suggested limitations of focus groups are relevant to this study. When all advantages and disadvantages are considered, focus groups appear to be very appropriate for gathering data directly from teachers to inform the design Of future EPEC teacher in-service training. 30 ‘lhptt a-rganzers o‘ -' L t3”: l‘PECI p CELT-Pg the w? €123.1de 2: Cal Power 3:35.119 SEE E3358! Ir Ch‘a’ge a In-semge Z’taye Ex; 3:338:55 In‘56r4,C£ CHAPTER III. METHODS Introduction "Improvement information is typically requested by the creators and organizers of a still-developing program" (Fink & Kosecoff, 1978, p.1). The staff from EPEC provided teacher in-service training to several groups of teachers during the winter of 1999. ln-service training will continue to be provided for additional groups of teachers in subsequent years as the EPEC program is expanded to include grade levels beyond K-2. The data from this case study may provide useful information for the design of future EPEC teacher in-service training sessions. Purpose of the Study The purpose of this study was to describe teacher perceptions of EPEC teacher in-service training within the four categories of Context, Content, Change, and Support. From such data, suggested guidelines for future in-service training could be constructed from the perspectives of teachers who have experienced EPEC K-2 teacher in—service training during the 1998-99 academic year. An extension of this purpose is to inform the design of teacher in-service processes for other instructional programs that may have similar intents. Research Questions The following evaluation question will be addressed: Based on their EPEC K-2 teacher in-service training experience and initial use of 31 team rise,1 54:90.1? Sat-quests" SJMuestori SéHJest’c EPEC lessons, what suggestions do teachers provide for the design of EPEC teacher in-service training regarding issues of Context, Content, Change, and Support? Sub-question 1. What information and experiences are perceived by the teachers as most necessary or important to obtain the knowledge necessary for implementing EPEC lessons? Sub-question 2. What information and experiences are perceived by the teachers as most necessary or important to address their beliefs about teaching physical education for them to implement EPEC lessons? Sub-question 3. Are there any issues regarding EPEC in—service training in addition to Context, Content, Change, and Support which should be addressed in developing guidelines for future training? Case Study Design A case study design was used to evaluate EPEC K-2 teacher in-service training. "Questions about new or exemplary programs for which comparisons are not yet available almost always require case designs" (Fink 8. Kosecoff, 1978, p.15). Focus groups of K-2 physical education teachers who participated in EPEC K-2 teacher in-service training were used for data collection. Selected teachers who participated in winter 1999 EPEC K—2 teacher in-service training were utilized as informants to determine suggestions for the design of future EPEC in-service training. Stewart and Shamdasani (1990) say that focus groups 32 ate valuable l mmxemw certified T- im g'oups A‘A 6:3: R “'a‘f'Er': \ a. are valuable when trying "to identify flaws or serious problems with a new product or program" (p.16). In addition to flaws or problems, strengths may also be identified. 'What focus groups do best is produce an opportunity to collect data from groups discussing topics of interest to the researcher (Morgan, 1988, p.21 )." Sample "A case design is used to examine a single cohesive group" (Fink, 1978, p.15). In this case, the "cohesive group" consisted of the teachers who participated in K-2 EPEC teacher in-service training during the winter of 1999 in Lansing, Grand Rapids, and Kalamazoo, Michigan. K-2 physical education teachers who participated in both sessions of in-service training at any of these three sites met the criteria for focus group participation. An attempt was made to invite every in-service participant who met the criteria to participate in a focus group. Some participants in the in-service training were undergraduate students or were not employed as K-2 physical education teachers and therefore did not meet the criteria for participation. A target was set to recruit nine willing participants for each regional group (Vaughn et al., 1996, p.58). Many eligible teachers could not be reached and/or did not return repeated telephone messages regarding the invitation to participate. 0f the 54 teachers who met the criteria for the focus groups, 15 (28%) agreed to participate and 11 (20%) actually did participate in one of the four focus groups. According to a market research professional, of those who agree to participate in focus groups, a no—show rate of 30% is common (personal 33 comersator Races. M! .' eachtccusg 9058:5591 l a:.af?y shes Was not 3536 conversation with Michael Skinner of Grant, Skinner, and Associates, Grand Rapids, MI, Summer, 1998). Given a target of nine recruited participants for each focus group and a predicted “no-show“ rate of 30%, it was predicted that possibly six but, as few as four or five of the nine recruited teachers would actually show up to participate in each group. The reality was that the researcher was not able to recruit the target of nine recruited parb'cipants for any of the groups. From the lists of eligible in-service participants, every third teacher was called and invited to participate in a focus group in the area where they received in-service training. Additional names on the list were then called until all had been contacted in person or via messages in an attempt to recruit at least nine participants for each of the three focus group locations. Teachers declined to participate for a variety of reasons, some of the reasons were related to travel distance or time, but most of them related to coaching commitments and family responsibilities. Despite the difficulty in recruiting teachers for the focus groups, those who agreed to participate had a high rate of actual participation. In Grand Rapids, the eight who agreed to participate ultimately were scheduled to one of two small groups of four in order to accommodate their busy schedules. For each of the Grand Rapids focus groups, three of the four recruited participants actually participated (75%). It was more difficult to recruit willing participants for the Lansing and Kalamazoo focus groups. Many of the teachers who participated in the in-service training in Lansing and Kalamazoo had traveled a 34 wsderat-ée agar. for a .‘: shamed up -3 stewed up '~. The . emfiences teaching ex; considerable distance for the in-service and were not interested in traveling again for a focus group. Three teachers agreed to meet in Lansing and two showed up (66%). Four teachers agreed to meet in Kalamazoo and three showed up (75%). The focus group participants represented a variety of teaching experiences, educational backgrounds, and teaching sites. The years of teaching experience ranged from one to twenty-five years in elementary physical education. A few of the teachers had taught in a middle school or elementary school classroom before their current assignment to elementary school physical educab'on. The teachers represented urban, suburban, rural, and parochial school districts. There were ten teachers with majors in physical education, and one with a minor in physical education. Nine had bachelors degrees, and two had masters degrees. Though the number of willing participants was lower than targeted, small focus groups are not necessarily bad if the needed information can be gathered from those who do participate. The adequacy of the number of participants is determined by the saturation and redundancy of the focus group responses (Krueger, 1994). The number that was selected for a recruitment target (9) and the projected group size (4-6) was determined by recommendations that: 1. focus groups have approximately 5-12 participants depending on their purpose and familiarity with the topic of discussion (Krueger, 1994; Morgan, 1993; Stewart & Shamdasani, 1990; Vaughn et al., 1996;) and 2. that smaller groups of 4-5 participants work well when participants are familiar with the topic and more depth of discussion is desired (Krueger, 1994). 35 Although the focus groups were small, saturation of the discussion topics and redundancy within and between groups can be observed when reviewing the transcribed data. Four logistical tasks were addressed before the participants were recruited. 1. Reserve a meeting piece, set the date. 2 Arrange for securing and operating audio recording equipment. 3. Arrange for transcription of the audio-tapes. 4 Recruit an assistant for the focus group session to set up and tend recording equipment. The first three tasks were accomplished with minimal effort. People were very helpful in arranging suitably quiet places for the focus groups to meet. The researcher’s department secretary is experienced at transcription. A tape recorder and auxiliary microphone were purchased to assure availability of dependable equipment. After using an assistant with the pilot group, the researcher decided to work without an assistant for the rest of the groups. The presence of an assistant in the small pilot group seemed distracting (especially to the researcher), and the researcher was not able to find one person who could be trained and serve as assistant for all four focus groups. In lieu of an assistant, the researcher allowed extra time to set up before a session and to make written notes immediately following each session. Written communication is an essential part of recruiting and motivating teacher participation. Following the recruitment by telephone, a letter (Appendix 36 [)3 las 56”? mp $855“ mafiifig Site 51293383 Scienntencl We ('31?! ““3!“ 385$: 33 auiioqa: miraw ff pampate aCC'CXima We 9303p With. a foil: W 53:1 93. Two t -ai‘-:e to ”9‘ "9 l ”flatly D) was sent to the teachers confirming their agreement to participate in a focus group session approximately two hours long at a location in or near their EPEC training site. Incentives for participation in a focus group were $10.00 for mileage, a light snack during the session, acknowledgement in presentations and publiwtions, and letters of appreciation to their school principal and district superintendent acknowledging the teacher's contribution to fiiture EPEC in- service training. Participants were asked to sign a consent form (Appendix D) which described the procedures and purpose of the study, obtained permission to audio-tape their responses, ensured confidentiality, and allowed for them to withdraw from the study at any time without penalty. Those who agreed to participate were sent a "reminder" letter including date, time, and place, approximately one week before the focus group was to meet (Appendix D). After the group met, participants were sent a "thank you" letter (Appendix D.) along with a follow-up form similar to the Nominal Group Technique form for them to send. back with any additional input on the four categories discussed (Appendix D). Two teachers chose to do this additional task. It did offer them one more chance to be heard on the subject, an outlet for the "after- thoughts" one inevitably has following such a discussion. Comments received were added to the transcribed data for analysis. Assumptions Related to the Research Plan Four assumptions have been made: 1. Conditions of confidentiality in reporting results of the study, and 37 moderator support and encouragement in a non-threatening environment will result in honest and forthright responses. The sample will represent actual EPEC users. Time between in-service training and data collection for this study was adequate for the teachers to attempt to implement some lessons, but short enough that they still had good recall of the in- service training. Data collected from the focus group teachers' experiences with EPEC in-service training will be useful in developing criteria for designing EPEC in-service training for other teachers in the future. Limitations of the Research Plan Three limitations specific to this plan have been identified: 1. Not all of the K-2 teachers who experienced EPEC K-2 in-service training participated in the focus groups due to constraints of time, money, and effective group size. Stewart refutes the limitation that data collected through the use of focus groups is often not thought to be generalizable to a greater population. When "there is reason to believe that a group of people- or population- of interest is relatively homogeneous, at least with respect to the issue at hand...in such cases a small number of respondents is all that is needed to generalize to a larger population” (Stewart & Shamdasani, 1990, p.16). 38 2. Those who voluntarily accepted the invitation to participate may have a greater level of commitment to their profession or to EPEC than those who did not accept the invitation, or they simply were available at the time. 3. Teachers in the focus groups had only had a few weeks to try implementing the EPEC lessons following their training and prior to the focus group session. They had not experienced the process of implementing the EPEC lessons throughout an entire school year. Krueger (1994) cites other limitations for focus groups in general which may be relevant to this group. First, the researcher has less control over the course of discussion in a focus group which is due in part to the interaction between participants (this is also an advantage) and the influence of participants on each other. Second, the data are more difficult to analyze due to the social nature of the environment. Third, the technique requires carefully trained moderators though Krueger acknowledges that untrained moderators sometimes "can achieve remarkable results' (p.36). Although this moderator was 'untrained", Krueger's traits of a good moderator appeared to fit. Krueger describes focus groups as seductive for the following reasons: the results are understandable, participants typically enjoy the opportunity, and the process creates an impression that the sponsoring organization cares enough to listen (p.238). He cautions that focus groups should be selected for use carefully. 39 tam the . graups an: questonna confidence trrc source! Validity lntemal validfiy’ . It is always a concern that the results of one's research be valid. "Typically, focus groups have high face validity, which is due in large part to the believability of comments from participants. People open up in focus groups and share insights that may not be available from individual interviews, questionnaires, or other data sources“ (Krueger, 1994, p.32). Can one have confidence in the truth of the findings of this research? Confidence comes from two sources. 1. The advantages and limitations of this form of research are understood and acceptable for the purpose of this study (Krueger, 1994; Morgan, 1993; Stewart & Shamdasani, 1990; Vaughn et al., 1996). 2. The design is appropriate for obtaining the information needed to answer the research questions (Krueger, 1994; Morgan, 1993; Stewart, 1990; Vaughn, 1996). External validity. Generalizability is seldom the goal of focus groups. Returning to the definitions of focus groups, Beck et al. (1986) describe the focus group as "an informal discussion among selected individuals about specific topics relevant to the situation at hand" (p. 73). Because samples for focus groups are rarely randomly selected, it usually is not possible to make inferences from focus group data to a larger population due to the bias of sample selection. Threats to validity. The receptivity of this voluntary group of teachers to 40 iii-service t' been bete' tiring for develop Si. in EPEC, t“ involved is The if. having iii 17078 Val. he he: teach; 1:538! ma} than some Extent. Th #53003“ Ur E350. no. W"Wall in-service training and subsequent attempts at lesson implementation may have been better than those of teachers who would not choose to be involved in training for a new program of instruction. However, the interest of this study is to develop criteria for in-service training of teachers who do choose to be involved in EPEC, therefore concern about its validity for people who would not be involved is irrelevant. The interest (as exhibited by paying for EPEC training) of a school district in having its teachers involved the EPEC project may be construed as placing more value on physical education in their district than districts who do not support their teachers' involvement in EPEC. If so, one might think that a participating district may have higher standards in selecting its teachers of physical education than some other districts who do not value physical education to the same extent. This view does not account for "high interest" districts that are hoping to "re-tool" under-committed teachers who may not be particularly excited about EPEC, nor does it account for “extraordinarily-committed' teachers who paid their own way (at least two of the sample) due to lack of district support. Instrumentation After reviewing the options, the focus group was selected as the mode for communicating with participants in the study. Focus group data generally are more richly descriptive than data obtained through techniques such as surveys, questionnaires, or interviews. Focus groups "provide a special type of information...tap into the real-life interactions of people and allow the researcher 41 to gel in t2. otter prose grout. tea: wanton: experience heinous gt 1956. lej neaswfh‘ 065mm; 93an fit: 373! new, SIEf‘ynge LY Tr th- t Lie USU! 1 4 i I 6 Pill" d‘n.‘ 5:: to get in touch with participants' perceptions, attitudes, and opinions in a way that other procedures do not allow" (Krueger, 1994, p.238). While in their focus group, teachers were able to communicate with the researcher in an environment that encouraged thoughtful reflection and candid feedback on their in-service experience. "... because of the participant-defined nature of group interaction, the focus group setting is less controlled than individual interviewing” (Morgan, 1988, p.21 ). The interaction in this type of setting allowed for the extension of ideas with follow-up questioning designed to obtain rich information and description of the teachers’ perspectives on in-service training. By listening and sharing their views with the others, the teachers were stimulated to provide data that richly reflected their personal ideas of what effective EPEC teacher in- service training should provide. The Moderators Guide was the instrument used for collecting data from the focus group. The Moderator's Guide (Appendix F) consists of, 1. a list of tasks the moderator should complete in preparing for and conducting the focus group, such as room set up, recording equipment, name plates, etc. 2. an agenda for the focus group session, and 3. a Moderator's interview Guide, or script, of carefully designed open- ended questions within each topic category along with subtopics and probes used to elicit discussion. The Moderator‘s Interview Guide is a series of topics and leading questions designed to elicit focus group discussion. Subtopics and possible probes for 42 addressmg :0th categ: lite-same or an: Suppoi crafted A pf. hastily c Rapids. rr. 6:37.59 the 53566 or. {Lee for ”1836 bag addressing the main questions in greater depth are included in the guide. The topic categories for the Moderator's Interview Guide were developed from the literature on in-service training. These categories of Context, Content, Change, and Support provide the structure from which the discussion questions were crafted. Data Collection Process A pilot focus group was conducted and recorded to determine the feasibility of the focus group process as designed. Teachers from the Grand Rapids, MI area who attended an earlier version of EPEC K-2 in-service training during the winter of 1998 were invited to participate in the pilot focus group. Based on the pilot focus group, minor adjustments were made to the Moderator's Guide for leading the group, and to the recording process. Adjustments were made based on answers to the following questions: 1. In what ways should the Moderator's Interview Guide be adjusted? Was the time available sufficient for the number of topics? Did the questions result in appropriate participation? Did the questions lead participants to the research question? Which questions need to be adjusted? 2. In what ways should the data recording process be adjusted? Is the volume adequate? Is it sufficient to use audio-tape only? Are additional data recording sources needed? 3. After trying the review, tagging, and sorting process on a sample of key questions in the transcribed data; does it appear that the process will work on this data? 43 Once the ? research it De attuned if: majar‘rninc district Tr. roup part. The W‘versatc veer tcprc wfiVErsat-C ”3&0 tone ”flames Wiles-55 w: ”Piste j se-"v'lice tie Fo: W:. The r‘. flame Car W9? » "9 Diac A 8‘9” b‘n Ti.- Once the pilot focus group was conducted and adjustments were made, the research focus groups were held in Grand Rapids, Lansing and Kalamazoo, MI. Demographic data on the in-service participants and their schools was obtained from EPEC. Data included age, years of teaching physical education, major/minor, highest educational degree achieved, and name of the school district. These data were aggregated to form a descriptive picture of the focus group participants. The data were not used in the analysis of focus group input. The Moderator’s Interview Guide was used to direct the focus group conversation toward issues of teacher in-service training encompassed by the major topics of context, content, change, and support. Although the focus group conversation was guided toward addressing the research question relative to the major topics of context, content, change, and support, additional subtopics sometimes emerged in response to the moderator's open-ended questions. The process was designed to be inductive rather than deductive; to seek the complete range of teachers’ thinking on criteria for future EPEC teacher in- service training rather than to build consensus. For the focus group sessions, participants sat around a conference table with the moderator. Participants were given the option of placing a tent-folded name card at their place with their name printed on both sides. The name cards were placed in front of, and perpendicular to the participant so the name could be seen by the moderator and by the other group members. The focus group participants were given copies of the and other visual materials from the in-service training sessions to use as a reference during the focus gro. tassel it have tree“ I has gel. To consumed convenient aC‘rlZsed, ic- focus group meeting agenda (Appendix C). The intention was for these materials to assist the participants in recalling details of the training process, which may have been forgotten due to the time delay between the training sessions and the focus group meeting. To set a tone of relaxed congeniality, light refreshments which could be consumed quietly so as not to interfere with tape recording were placed conveniently within reach on the table (Vaughn et al., 1996). Participants were advised to help themselves to refreshments during the session. Participants were also advised that they could take a brief restroom break, if necessary, although we would not “break” as a group (the sessions did not go longer than two hours). At the moderator's discretion, a short break as a group would be taken if the focus group participants appeared to need one. Taking a break is a judgment call. A pooriy timed break can interrupt the flow of discussion; a well timed break can refresh participants and stimulate new ideas. All three groups met without the need for individual or group breaks and maintained their enthusiasm for discussion throughout the session. Teacher input during the focus groups was audio-taped. An audio-tape recorder and auxiliary microphone were placed in the center of the table. The placement and volume settings of the recording instruments was checked before participants arrived to make sure the sound would be adequately recorded. The audio-tape was transcribed verbatim by a professional transcriber. Although focus group research gives the appearance of being quite simple and easy, a conversation within a small group of people, there is a significant 45 amount of Tne prepa mama‘s: tiSt‘aSSuml 505.5536! a 5.29 Of the 3538 to m; GOES 33 amount of unseen preparation involved in order to collect data in this manner. The preparation, if done well, should not be glaringly evident to the participants. A well prepared focus group meeting should take place as a very informal, smoothly organized gathering (see Moderator’s Task List, Appendix F). The moderator made brief written notes on me script during each focus group session. The moderator initially planned to make tape recorded notes immediately following the focus group session describing particular lines of discussion, thoughts, responses, reactions or incidents, which might be useful to consider and insert as notes when reviewing the transcripts. Due to the small size of the groups with a manageable pace of discussion, the moderator was able to make brief notes on the script during the focus groups and to add to those notes as needed after the groups concluded. The focus group script was useful in guiding this process. "Notable items" would be behaviors or situations that would not be evident from the transcribed tapes. Examples of notable items include a participant exhibiting a strong need to be a "pleaser"- agreeing with everything, or to be ”contrary"- if a participant was contradictory without providing support for his/her thoughts, or was hesitant to express an opinion, or was brimming over with non-verbal language. Sometimes there were nuances of interpersonal interaction or attitude which needed to be noted for recall during later analysis of transcripts. Situations like these may not be readily apparent when reviewing written transcripts and could be forgotten, if not noted immediately after the focus group session. 46 AUC‘ f0! WING 0V» pages of ‘: 13‘s.}. Alli me was $98 ”1871! any public 350' $3100 The The prose Several S: p'3tess pp p) «mrxnnflrm?m“)mgg’ Audio-tapes from the focus group were transcribed verbatim using Word for Windows. One two-hour focus group usually yields approximately 50-70 pages of transcript (Krueger, 1994; Stewart 8 Shamdasani, 1990; Vaughn et al., 1996). Audio-tapes were transcribed with the participant's names included if the name was used as part of the conversational flow. Any names of others which were mentioned by focus group participants were omitted from the transcript. In any public use of transcribed text, pseudonyms, will be substituted for personal and school names. Organizing Evaluation lnfonnation for Analysis The following process for organizing and managing the data was used. The process was developed by applying data handling recommendations from several sources (Krueger, 1994; Morgan, 1993; Seidman, 1991). Process: Data Or anizationlMana ement to Anal sis 1. 2. 3. pearls»?! Collect data from each focus group on audio-tape. Listen to the audio-tapes for a sense of teacher perspectives. Transcribe whole data from audio-tapes to Microsoft Word for Windows assigning each focus group a different font or font style for tracking group comments if needed when the data have been aggregated. Read and re-read transcribed manuscripts of whole data from each focus group making preliminary marks as comments, which may be useful in answering the research questions are found. Mark hard copies of each focus group manuscript with pencil (add colors after group #1) to label applicable materials. Using the hard copies of manuscripts as a guide, delete unmarked material from each manuscript and save the remaining data. Color the remaining data for each focus group according to the topic color code. Aggregate color-coded data from each of the focus groups by topic and label subtopics. Review aggregated data and develop additional subtopic categories as needed. 47 10. Re: 11. Use leac F of? in the 308: Particular ; the groups 597878? hr each of tn 05335333 Quest“ ”Vii TI. SSE-SEC Rdl’nn; Wen. 10. Repeat the review of aggregate data to re—categorize data as necessary. 11. Use the sorted and categorized data to address the research questions on teacher in-service training by topic and subtopics. Following completion of each focus group session, the researcher listened to the audio-tapes for general themes and ideas expressed by the teachers. Particular attention was given to similarities and differences within and between the groups. Then the tapes were transcribed. The transcribed texts were read several times in order to become familiar with the flow of the conversation around each of the major topics while looking for themes, ideas, similarities and differences within and between group participants. According to Seidman (1991), "There is no substitute for total immersion in the data” (p.101). She says to read and re-read the text until you begin to "know it" and learn the difficult task of trusting your own judgment in identifying pieces that are important to the question (p.89). The next review of the transcribed texts was to search for and to identify specific material related to the major discussion categories, making notes on recurring themes and big ideas. The initial identification of the categories of context, content, change, and support was noted with pencil marks in the margins of the text as recommended by Krueger (1994). The use of colored pencils to mark text, and color coordinated “post-it notes” to mark data categories on pages, was very useful in the ensuing sorting process. The discussion categories were identified by color-coded marks and topics/sub—topics were labeled using descriptive titles from the moderator’s interview script. On subsequent reviews of the transcripts, specific comments within the categories 48 were marked and sorted/labeled by topics and sub-topics with additional sub- topics added as their usefulness became evident (Krueger, 1994). It is common for data categories to change or evolve during the reviewing process (Krueger, 1988; Morgan, 1993). The original topic categories did not change though some of the topics were subsequently divided into subtopics. The moderator's interview script provided a dependable structure for organizing the participants’ comments. Seidman (1991) cautions to be "open to new categories" when sorting and "not to lock in categories too soon" allowing for "flexibility that will be needed to work inductively while reducing text (p.99)". The hard copy of the complete text for each of the four categories, for each of the four focus groups, was color-coded and labeled. The next step was to transfer the color codes to the text on the word processing program. The key for color codes and fonts is located at the beginning of the aggregated data in Appendix G. The major topics and sub-topics were maintained in the order they appeared on the moderator’s interview script for ease in re-locating them on the computer while sorting the color-coded material. When color-coding the text by categories, the researcher also assigned a different font or font style to identify text from each of the four focus groups. This was done in anticipation that, during analysis, the researcher might want to know which group had been the source of a particular sequence of comments. Vaughn et al. (1996) warn, "Computer programs are a tool that may be useful in assembling and locating information, but computers have yet to provide assistance in the interpretation of findings and the identification of significant 49 themes l0t rear it? that: er ca “Clint of 3"“ Otgan 33339815 3f famma: was time by ha'v'ir‘: themes (other than those most frequently identified). Furthermore, they cannot interpret the emotional tone which is so critical to understanding” (p.114). Whether categorical sorting is done on a computer or by physically "cutting and pasting" or "piling and filing", the comments that address the research questions must be sorted and categorized into meaningful units that address the purpose of the research and the research question (Krueger, 1994; Morgan, 1988; Stewart 8 Shamdasani, 1990; Vaughn et al., 1996). The process of tagging, sorting, and categorizing is time intensive whether it is done by hand or through the use of a computer program, or both. There are no shortcuts. The researcher decided to manually sort the coded data using the computer functions rather than using a program that does the sorting automatically. This decision was based on four issues; the relatively small amount of data, the usability of the structure that had been designed to collect and organize the data, a sense that manually sorting through the text to aggregate the data allowed for greater immersion in it, and the researcher's lack of familiarity and comfort with computer programs for data sorting. The process was time consuming but rewarding in the familiarity with the data that developed by having to sort and manipulate the text manually. Information Analysis Krueger’s principles for conducting focus group research were followed throughout the analysis process (1994, Ch.7). 1. Analysis must be systematic, following a prescribed, sequential process that is deliberate and planned. 50 Sequence questions by first allowing time for participants to develop familiarity with the topic by talking and listening to each other express views on the topic, in general, before asking key questions. Use recording techniques to capture data. Use labels and codes to sort and categorize data. Have a method for participant verification of the data. Debriefing between the moderator and assistant moderator should be recorded for first impressions and contrasts to other groups. (In the absence of an assistant moderator, the moderator wrote notes about the sessions immediately following the focus groups.) Share preliminary and later reports with the research team for review, verification, and comments. Analysis must be verifiable-another researcher would arrive at similar conclusions using the same data. Analysis must be focused. Not all questions deserve analysis at the same level; some are just meant to set the stage for the key questions. Concentrate attention on the questions that are key to the study. Select an appropriate level of interpretation somewhere along a continuum from raw data to descriptive to interpretation of data. Descriptive statements must be selected to reflect the purpose of the study (range/diversity or the common denominators). Specify the means of selection. Analysis must be practical, appropriate to the situation. The evidence presented may cause a change in approach. Decide whether to work directly with transcripts or to use a computer in finding and connecting categories. Avoid rigid, inflexible analysis plans. Issues of time and money cannot be overlooked. 51 10. 11. 12. Analysis requires time-more than novice researchers are usually prepared for, because it begins earlier and lasts longer than quantitative analysis. Analysis is jeopardized by delay. Analysis can move to progressively higher levels. Analysis should seek to enlighten. How the study is framed, who are the participants, and the nature of the questions all impact the level of understanding achieved. Present results in the different forms (topology, continuum, diagram, metaphor) for better understanding of how participants view the topic. Analysis should entertain alternative explanations. Attempt to find disconfirrning evidence. Do not commit prematurely to a certain interpretation. Analysis is improved with feedback from multiple sources. Provide an opportunity for participants to give feedback at the end of the group work in the form of summary recommendations for in- service. Co—researchers (EPEC team and dissertation director) are a good source of feedback. Analysis takes special skills, much of it related to the mental make- up of the analyst. Open to new ideas? Able to express ideas from the vantage point of others? Secure enough to encourage divergent views? First rate memory? Written and oral communications skills are essential. 52 Se. begins wr. Item, anc _ £1958; ca this cast question rs: been col-e tenewec f EPEC tea 032 were of taste Seidman (1991) says interpreting and analyzing the material actually begins with the sorting process. "Marking passages that are of interest, labeling them, and grouping them, is interpretive and analytic work (p.101)." Krueger (1988) calls the analysis process "...like detective work. One looks for clues, but in this case, the clues are trends and patterns...“ (in Vaughn et al., p.109). The question is, how does one most effectively apply analysis to the data which have been collected, tagged, and sorted? All sorted units of data were critically reviewed to identify strong, recurring themes relating to suggestions for designing EPEC teacher in-service training. The conclusions drawn from these units of data were used to answer the research questions by considering the suggestions of teachers for designing future EPEC in-service training. 'With few exceptions, there has been surprisingly little attention to the analysis procedures and the validity of these procedures when applied to focus group interviews” (Nelson & Frontzak cited in Vaughn, 1996; p.103). This is supported by the following review which illustrates the diversity and in some cases polarity of opinions resulting from analysis of focus group data. Morgan (1988) describes two different approaches to analyzing data. They are not mutually exclusive. The first is the strictly qualitative or ethnographic summary approach. The second is systematic coding via content analysis-usually simple "counts". Morgan makes the argument that "a largely ethnographic approach may benefit from a systematic tallying of one or two key topics" if some quantitative treatment seems appropriate (p.64). Krueger (1988 cited in Vaughn et al., 1996) supports the ethnographic treatment stating that one 53 arrears '.’ frequenc- . r must identify the big issues; distinguishing strong, significant themes from less significant ones. This "requires an awareness of extent of emotion attached more than how often it occurs” (Vaughn et al., 1996, p.105). Krueger's statement appears to be a caution against assigning strength to responses based solely on frequency or "counts" rather than by noting frequency and than seeking to understand meaning and the "why" of teacher perspectives. Krueger’s point of view does not seem to preclude the use of both approaches as suggested by Morgan. In describing a roundtable discussion at a research conference on focus groups, Morgan (1993) reports there was "consensus that the content of the group discussions is what we really want and that simple transcription gives us most of what we need. Based on our experience, we saw current qualitative analysis programs replacing things like colored pencils, self-stick notes, scissors and file folders. In other words, they are helpful indexing and cross referencing systems, but making sense of the items in the indexing system is still totally up to the analyst" (p.240). This discussion group expressed concern that using software packages for analysis of focus group data will "encourage the counting of predetermined codes by making these analytic procedures not just easy but powerful" which would limit the depth of analysis gained by reading and re- reading transcripts. Quantification is seen as useful for capturing patterns but the more important goal is to get at "why things are said, to understand why people have the experiences and feelings that they do' (Morgan, 1993, p.241 ). "As always, the issue is the research question" (Morgan, 1988, p.68). 54 Analyses questions research ' p ‘06). Se usedas; t§l§91.; Th U53310 31 Co”Street essence (' in x . ~3Jler rr Analyses must be done in the ways that make sense for addressing the questions. "If the information does not meet the criteria of better informing the research question, it is not relevant-even if it is interesting” (Vaughn et al., 1996, p.106). Seidman's analysis questions (similar to Krueger et al., 1994, p.136) were used as guidelines while thinking through the data and seeking understanding of it (1991, p.102): 1. What connections are there among the experiences of the participants? What do you understand now that you didn't understand before? What surprises have there been? What confirmation of previous instincts? How have your "interviews" been consistent with the literature? How inconsistent? NP’SflPP’N How have they gone beyond? The sorted, categorized, and labeled data from the focus groups were used to address the research questions. This required great care to conscientiously analyze the data provided by the teachers and to deliver the essence of their views to the EPEC team in the form of suggestions for EPEC teacher in-service training. Reporting Focus Group Research Results Data that were sorted, categorized, and analyzed for content, were used 55 time lufifiont: rel'i’s'en HM” TI Sutton c she‘d? mag-"Sta teacher r1997? 3 *6 51° te Sm A, c" to provide a descriptive report to the EPEC team addressing the research question(s). The report was presented in narrative form, with visual representations incorporated where they would aid the reader (Miles & Hubennan, 1984). The “teacher's voice" was heard by providing quotations as illustrations to support discussion of results” (Krueger, 1994; Morgan, 1988; Stewart & Shamdasani, 1990; Vaughn et al., 1996). When necessary to enhance understanding, demographic data was used in description of teacher input, e.g. "teacher with 10 years experience in a large urban district said...". Seidman (1991) also suggests the usefulness of crafting a profile (big picture) or vignettes (little stories) of participants’ experiences which are sometimes useful in telling the story (p.91). The report concludes with guidelines for the design of in-service training based on the perspectives of the EPEC K-2 teachers who were focus group participants. The guidelines were organized and presented following the framework of the four discussion categories of Context, Content, Change, and Support. Some of the recommended guidelines are linked to the current literature on teacher in-service training in any of three possible ways: 1. Teacher perspectives which reflected the literature. 2. Teacher perspectives Mitch contradicted the literature. 3. Teacher perspectives which supplemented the literature. 56 teat-e" VII Gates! 4! an 33.. r.r a leacter 3335-” 0.. m V Slug l ,, . ua°“~ L.’ "‘I H ,v. ”1!. , 3 v.55 CHAPTER IV. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION OF RESULTS The purpose of the study was to seek teachers’ perspectives on EPEC teacher in-service training and to describe those perspectives relative to Context, Content, change, and Support to aid in the design of future EPEC in-service training. Meeting in two-hour focus groups, teachers who participated in EPEC teacher in-service training provided input on four major categories of training. The categories were Context, Content, Change, and Support. Each of the four major categories was divided into topics and subtopics. The aggregate research data from all the focus groups, sorted by category, topic, and subtopic, including the data coding system, are located in Appendix G. The results are presented by category in the same order as the categories appear in the Focus Group Moderator's Interview Script in (Appendix F). Topics and subtopics within categories may appear in a different sequence than they appear in the Focus Group Moderator’s Interview Script. Category 1: Context The category of context examined the in-service training environment. Context included the topics of time (schedule), physical environment, and social environment with accompanying subtopics related to each of the topics. The perspectives of focus group members are represented by quotations of comments made by teachers while discussing the topics and subtopics within the category. The quotations were selected to reflect consensus within or between groups, as well as to describe the range of opinion within and across the groups. 57 Time. The topic of time addresses the time schedule for the in-service session, the amount of time between sessions, the number of sessions, and the best time of year to provide training. Time schedule. It is easy to make the time schedule good for teachers by keeping it close to their “normal” day-or less. Many teachers have responsibilities beyond their teaching schedule. They need to be able to work within their usual arrangements whether it is for coaching, other jobs, or childcare. Making the schedule “known” up front, staying on schedule, and getting out a little earlier than expected were all appreciated by teachers. ‘T hey had a time frame and that’s important to teachers, too, because we’re always working with a clock and that answered those questions of how much longer, are we ahead, behind, and I really liked that." “The time schedule was kept.” “A lot of PE teachers are coaches, and I think you need to get out of there by 2:00 or 2:30 to get them back to their school.” 'I have another job and l have two kids that I have to pick up after school before I report to my next job to teach.” “They didn’t keep you there till you were brain dead." ‘The first day we got out a little early which was nice.” “We got home early, it was so nice! It was a real treat.” Number of sessions. The thoughts of teachers on the number of days needed for training ranged from one to three days. Those who wanted only one day thought there was not enough content to warrant more time. This point of view was modified somewhat to include a second meeting, much later, after teachers had time to implement the EPEC materials. This was the first of many 58 times that the issue of a follow-up session appeared. There is definite sentiment for getting together again when some time has lapsed after training. The issue of a follow-up session was explored in more depth within the category of support. While two teachers thought one day of training was enough, four teachers wanted a third day. None of the other teachers spoke out specifically to support or to criticize having two days of training. The issue of how much training is optimal (1-2-3 days) may be linked to the degree of implementation the individual teacher was seeking for his or her program. There was not enough information from the available data to follow up on this line of inquiry. One day only: “I didn’t think the second one was needed as much, didn’t get much out of it.” “Maybe I didn’t want to come the second time- I’m not sure.” “I was excited but it wasn’t as informative to me.” “I thought it was over the same thing, basically.“ Third day needed: “I actually would have liked one more day...when we were writing some of the lessons down and practicing the lessons...more time would have been better.” “I could have used another day because they were asking you to do so much and so many things they did not cover...” “I, like you, would like to see a third day but maybe toward... the end of the year, ...a little more follow-up.” One day for grades 3-5 lessons: “need a one day in-service on 3-5, we have already gone over...” “One day on 3—5 and a push on the administrators for the value of it.” 59 '85. as 54' Time Ewen segions. Although it did not work out well for everyone’s schedule, all teachers indicated that spreading the two in-service training sessions apart by one week plus one day was a very good idea and recommended it for future training. “...that was better than having two consecutive days. I thought it was good to have a little field practice and then come back and report on it.“ “...they alternated days...so you wouldn’t miss the same classes two weeks in a row.” “I liked that they had time in between where you can actually try it out on your classes, see what the kids’ responses were.” Best time of the year to hold training sessions. The optimal time of year to conduct training proved to be a complex topic. The teachers wrestled with the pro’s and con's of training in the summer vs. during the school year with early fall or late spring of the school year ultimately receiving their support. The biggest issue was having the opportunity to try out the lessons on children between the two training sessions. Summer training would prepare teachers to start their year using the EPEC materials, but the difficulty of getting teachers there in the summer and the lack of opportunity to try out the lessons on children were seen as very negative issues. Several teachers expressed frustration at the disruption caused by attempting to implement the materials once their year had already started. They used the lessons minimally, if at all, this year and looked fonrvard to using this summer to prepare for implementing the EPEC lessons the next school year. Without some sort of follow-up the researcher wonders whether the teachers who wait until the next year might lose some familiarity with the 60 materials, their momentum, and their good intentions to implement the EPEC materials. Fall was considered a good time to offer in-service training if teachers were going to implement EPEC lessons into their current years’ program. Spring was noted as a good time to train and prepare for the following year. Given these perspectives, EPEC staff should consider providing in-services during early fall for teachers who want to implement EPEC lessons for the current year, and during late spring to target those who desire to wait until the following school year to implement the lessons. Summer in-service training: “I wouldn’t have come... I have things going on... I’m a basketball coach too.“ “I work at camps and clinics and to me, that’s my life. lwouldn’t have come in the summer.“ No children available for trying lessons: “You’re not going to be able to try it out on kids unless it’s during the school year.“ “If they trained in the summer, you wouldn’t have kids to try things out on, in between." Fall in-service training: “I thanked them for having an in-service in the fall because of the budget. it wasn’t all used up in the fall.“ the five teacher in-service days being added to our calendar... we have those before school starts...that would be an ideal time..." (no one countered with the fact that no children would be available then) “the earlier in the year the better. I’d really like to start off the year rather than change the direction mid-way...“ 61 ‘m- #fiwu x...- p‘ffi'ca K Must be IEaChers i5 hem {39m 8 and pets miller Ll exCEEEen Wit; flea V 'T 9 “In the middle of my teaching year, I can’t just sit down and really go in depth (to make changes)... which I would love to do this summer.” “For me, if it had been at the start of the year, it would have been a lot better because I started it and now my kids are trying. I'm trying to get my kids to use it as much as we can and it's really kind of made a jumble of my class. Spring in-service training: “April would be a good time...getting ready for next year.” “To get things started next year.” “I’m looking forward to next year and starting from day one doing the EPEC program as opposed to starting in ...December.’ Physical environment. The physical environment provided for in-service training must be selected to support all the training activities that will take place. Since teachers have made an effort to be there, convenience and comfort are important to them. Within the topic of physical environment, the subtopics of location, facility, and food/breaks were addressed. The subtopics of room temperature and personal physical comfort were also proposed but there were no concerns or comments from the teachers on these topics. m. No matter where in-service is held it is important to provide excellent directions (map) to relieve anxiety about finding new places. A Iomtion with free parking and easy access from highways is desirable. “The directions, they gave me great directions for not knowing where I was going.” “Easy to find, you didn't have to worry a lot about that” “l was a little nervous about going downtown before hand because I had never been down there.” 62 “I would rather not go downtown. I don't like going downtown when the traffic, in the morning and all that.” “Parking to be accessible, obviously, without having to pay for it, that was good.“ “Easy to get to. Off the expressway, it was very easy.” “...something that is directly off the highway.“ “Easy access on, easy access off.” Facility/space. Having appropriate space for various types of training activities is important. The Grand Rapids group was very positive about the beautiful facility and its location (the new public museum), but they were not happy with the hallway area used for the active portions of the training. In contrast, the Kalamazoo group was very happy with its space for the active portion of training, which was a gymnasium. The spaces in Lansing (large rooms) were fine but within the space there was a distraction of window blinds blowing and “banging” which was apparently irritating to participants. “But the space was limited (at the museum). If we’d had more room to spread out, I think it could have been more effective.(the activities)” “To give a demonstration, it was done in a hallway, and we were crowded, you couldn't really do things, there were also people taking tours and so you had to contend with that.” “if you're going to do something like that, you need it in a space you can move.” “The actual meeting itself, was very nice, the room was small enough but not so big that you were lost in the space.” Teachers appreciated holding the “lecture” portions of the training in classroom-like settings that were not too large. The groups that sat at large 63 round tables were very complimentary about the set-up for presentations and for lunch. (See related comments on social environment, p. 74). “It was arranged quite nicely in groupings which is nice because then you can talk to people. You can share ideas.” “Instead of sitting in rows, there were round tables (positive).” “They were big tables so you had space to spread your manuals out on as opposed to just one little individual desk. You got to know the people at your table quite well and then of course, the second day we came back and we all sat at the same tables. " iced. As minor as it may seem, the issue of food/breaks really matters to teachers. The only negative comment about refreshments (one person) was that there wasn’t any coffee in the morning. The teachers appreciated the mid- moming break but they thought a break in the afternoon was unnecessary due to the activities, which allowed for movement, and the shorter afternoon sessions. The teachers all appreciated having lunch provided on site, especially when it was set up in the meeting room. The quality of the food was a source of surprise and pleasure. Good food does add to the cost of in-service but there appears to be a big payback in teachers feeling secure, comfortable, and appreciated. Teachers commented on the convenience and the positive social aspects of eating together. The lunches typically were a catered buffet of deli sandwich ingredients, two kinds of salad, beverages, and dessert. “But the food, I thought, was way above and beyond what you'd ever expect.“ “Urefood was great. ” The food was good. The food was deliciousII by the way." “The breaks and the food was set up there right on the counter. It was very nice and I felt very comfortable there. I felt very relaxed.” “It was kind of nice that we had lunch right there. It was served right on the counter, we could go and get our lunch and come right back to our tables. And at that time, we could have moved around but we had a tendency, all of our stuff was there so we went back to the tables and ate.” “Th twas the nice thin about is situation. The food was served in the r_gom p_ut we could roam ____anvwhere we wa__nted to. In here we could sit with the group of people that we knew or if we wanted to meet ones we could do that too. So, it was designed to really meet the needs of several different kinds of @ple,” “I thought it was nice to have the food provided because then you didn't [Lave to mess with, how much does t_his cost and, where am I going, the gfeteria stuff, I thought it was a more efficient use of our time. “ “Nothing worse than going to an in-service and then they have on there, ‘lunch on your own’. It is much nicer to be with the people that you are there with and so that you can share ideas.” “Especially if you go there by yourself and no one else from your area is there and then you're like ‘hcllo’. You're clueless, and that doesn’t give you a very warm feeling.” At one site, the teachers went to another area in the same building to get their lunch. They did not mind moving to another place but It was obvious they would have liked more structure to that process-felt too much “on their own” as far as where and with whom to sit for lunch. “I didp't like that you could leavg if you wantfl to. You could eat here or you could go somewhere, here's the time you could be back.“ Say, here’s where you guys are going to have your seating area and we'll serve at this...“ “I would have preferred that we all sat down tggether and ate. Because I didn't really talk to nobody during lunch. Only somebody I knew. I wo_ulg, have preferred to have sat down with some people I gi_dn't know.” 65 (I has explore bereft enrrrcr Staci: g asp'e Ila-set it “I woglg have preferred it if we had all fit over there tggether. apt we could have gone more debating and negative things about it.“ Social environment. Within the topic of social environment, the subtopics of group size, EPEC personnel, and social comfort in the in-service setting were explored. Feeling socially comfortable contributes to the teachers’ ability to benefit fully from the training. According to the focus group comments, the social environment of in-service training does matter to teachers and is something that should receive the attention of those who plan in-service training. §rpup size. Some teachers commented that their group was smaller (22 ) than they expected. It seemed more personal with a smaller group and they appreciated that Comments suggest that 20 to 30 participants is a good size for in-service training. “But, I think it was a small enough group where you were able to talk to people and you felt free to roam around and visit with a number of people. So, I thought it was a really inviting... I would like to see them leave it that way, too. ” “Much more personal contact with this size group. ” “Because if you'd have had to omn it up to the next classroom, people would have been a little more distant and not as actively participating mntally at that distance.“ “And I mink that is also a gag number gr the active parts thet they did in the gym. It would have been hard for adults to have more man that, I think, for the space.” EPEC arsonnel. The people who presented the in-service sessions won high marks for their personal contributions to the social environment. They behaved in the manner that good hosts should; mingling, using names, and 66 making their guests feel welcome and comfortable. Many teachers commented on the willingness of MI-EPEC personnel to initiate social interactions and respond to teachers’ needs. An area they need to work on is to project neutrality rather than defensiveness when questioned about certain aspects of the program (games). Positive: “Using names, that helps a lot.” “I thought they really tried to involve us by using our names, which is a vegy difficult thing to do when you've walked into e room full of adults and you're t_gying to team names. I thought that was amazing.” (speaking of negative experiences with other in-service providers) “Some people, you don’t feel quite so comfortable, it seems like they've got other things on their minds or other things they want to do. ” Here I got to ask guestions. Personal.” “They would come over and talk to me, most places they don't have someone sitting around. They leave after thev’vrflone a whole spiel and then, at least they sat, well, I sat in a good spot right next to them, so I could ask them.” (small group +) “If you had any questions about anything, they would answer them, and you didn't feel like it wasn't a problem to question them about things. " They came up to me and had to show me some things. And it was open enough that people felt comfortable to do that. Negative: “The only thing I will say, negative, is that one of our phys. ed. teachers brought up the use of games and they did not want to hear them, they did not want to really talk to them about that. ” “Well, I guess they should address, if there are concerns by an individual or group that maybe they shouldn ’t just stay on their agenda, to incorporate and see if they can solve that person's concerns. ” 67 opp: impc In‘cr pets. cert Social meort of participants. The participants enjoyed having the opportunity to introduce themselves to the group to start the first day. An important point was made that introducing yourselves in the group provided quick information about others but really didn’t help you to get acquainted or to make personal contact. One teacher suggested a way to make all people more comfortable, especially those who had come to the in-service alone. Her idea made good sense and was well received by others; “I'm big on ice-breakers because I know that it is, once you get into a group like that, if you don't talk with somebody, it's a long day. I think if they had each person go up to someone they never knew... and just one on one, just sit with them and just talk to them... you’re always real friendly when it's just your... easier instead of going ‘l'm from, I teach...’ so I think if I were to come up to you, I think we could sit and talk a little bit and we'd get off on these tangents and I'd feel like I knew you. I feet... then that just sets the tone and then I feel like I know somebody in that room. You kind of can chum up with them for the day. Then, even to do that for 5 minutes and then switch. I just think to start in any type of a group setting like that with some more knowledge of, or intimacy, I think the whole day is, because then you just know them all day and you just feel like you can...” Category 2: Content The category of Content examined the substance of the in-service training presentations and experiences. This category did not include content of the actual EPEC lessons. The teachers fiequently attempted to talk about the content of the EPEC lessons but that topic was not within the scope of this research. In selected cases, teachers’ comments on lesson content were included in the data when they were relevant to the research topic. The category of Content did include the topics of presentations, teacher training and knowledge, professional development and commitment, EPEC materials, and 68 the sp Instai dSCUS time spent on training tasks, with subtopics related to each topic. Quotations illustrate representative teacher comments made during the focus group discussions of these topics and subtopics. Presentations. Within the topic of presentations the teachers discussed the presenters. the content of the presentations, the demonstrations, the learning, experiences, the knowledge gained from the presentations and demonstrations, and the commitment to and belief in EPEC resulting from in-service sessions. Presenters. The in-servioe was conducted by three people. Presenter A has a Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology and has been in a leadership role with EPEC from its earliest days. Presenter A provided the supporting research and rationale for the EPEC program. Presenter A also taught the teachers how to use the EPEC lessons and notebooks. She conducted the “lecture” components of the in-service training. Presenter B was a former physical education teacher who was new to the EPEC program. Presenter B did not take a prominent role in the presentations although he worked with teachers individually and provided support to them in their groups. Presenter C was a retired physical education teacher who lead the teachers through demonstrations of sample lessons. The teachers described all three presenters as “knowledgeable” and “well educated”. The teachers were especially enthusiastic in their support of presenter A. They seemed almost awed at her knowledge of the subject area, particularly the research base of factual information and rationale supporting the program. Many teachers commented on the “solid nature’ of the information she presented. The 69 teachers also appreciated her manner of presentation. According to the teachers, person A was well-dressed, had an interesting, enthusiastic speaking style, a good sense of humor, exhibited high energy and enthusiasm for the subject, and she was apparenfly confident of her materials. “Her voice, her everything, the way she delivered, it was not monotone, it was, I just listened to every word she said and I never got bored, I never tuned out, never anything, she was not demeaning, she didn't talk down to us, she spoke to us, she kept it rolling. Just everything, her sense of humor. Just her whole delivery and approach.” Credibil'ny of presenters. It is important to teachers that the presenters are authentic, believable, and truly know their subject in a practical way. The teachers thought that all of the presenters had taught physical education, which gave the presenters credibility. The teachers were adamant that presenters must stay connected to the work in the trenches, either by doing some teaching themselves or at least getting “out there” and watching teachers and talking to them in their schools. “As long as they stay in the classroom. Don‘t let them get away from the classroom... make sure that they are in the trenches. Because I cannot stand people who stand up in front of me telling me how I should do something when they lmve been out of the classroom for a ‘bizillion’ years. I have a real hard time with that.” Method of presentation. ln-service training materials were presented in four ways: lecture, hands-on work with written materials, demonstration, and teacher application/demonstration. The background, research base, and rationale for the program were presented through lecture format with power point presentations. The instructional materials and lessons in the teacher’s 7O notebooks were presented through a combination of power point and guided discovery teaching techniques. The teachers were impressed with the power point presentations and the way in which this allowed them to focus on limited amounts of material as it was being presented. The competent use of power point by presenter A created a positive impression on several teachers. Teachers liked having the power point presentation to look at while having copies of the slides to follow and for note taking. “To have things zip in there as she spoke and instead of giving you a whole handout where you sat there and you looked at the whole thing, she could bring in one thing at a time which makes you focus in on that so, it's just a very nice way of doing it.” “I thought one of the great strengths was seeing the power-point on the overhead and also having our own copy. I thogght this is a great teaching technigue.” (Two people interacting) “She had it up on the screen. We went over it. And she just went over it to introduce it.” “And then we had to do some writing too, remember?“ “Yeah. I was lost at that point, completely lost. Yeah.” “And she had us fill in so we understood how to read the sub-headings and that, which I thought was a good idea. You know, that little hands-on, some people need hands-on.” “And instead of just a visual. So, that was a good thing to do.“ “Some people might have thought it was tedious who, that don't need that hands on, but it helped the ones that do need it.” “I thought that was a good idea.” Although they understood the reasons for the guided discovery teaching style used for Ieaming the structure of the lesson books and the parts of the lesson format, a few teachers expressed impatience with it. “The only thing that bothers me sometimes is when I have to write stfl in _b_l_.lt I know tha_t's to create ownershjgof the stuff. I guess it's fgn to ha_v_e_ things there and not have to write. At least I understand whyI because we have to do that in classI too. They give you part of the outline, you fill in the rest.” 71 r_ — j They all agreed it was a good way to teach the material. The value of this approach was supported by their agreement that they all felt they knew the materials and could find their way through it easily to use it. “I thought what they did was good for an orientation, you look in the notebook and you do, it’s laid everything out there, this is equipment you need, this is how you need to lay out your classroom and then they, what they call a ‘pepper ’, prepare, explain, demonstrate, I lost the other P, practice, practice and then review. I felt really comfortable with it. I had no problem taking that back into my school and implementing the program. I felt better about that than probably just about anything I 've ever done in the past. I just felt like I could jump right in. That 's what I did, I took it back and I jumped right into it and that's what I've been doing since. ” Demonstrations of model EPEC lessons. Presenter C demonstrated a model lesson. The teachers agreed that demonstrations were essential to the in- service training process. A big problem for the teachers was the way in which presenter C performed the demonstration. The written EPEC lessons include teacher dialog scripts for the lesson instruction. Apparently presenter C held the script or cue cards and appeared to depend on them for presenting the demonstration lesson. The teachers thought someone who modeled for them should not have to read the script, and they were put off by the implication that they also were to read and follow the lesson scripts verbatim. “The scripts are an issue ” “They wanted us, verbatim, now, whoever did our demonstration. She had 3 X 5 cards, would drive me nuts! I'm kind of a nut to my kids in the classroom, and if my children, my own family, would see me, they might be a little embarrassed. But I’ve got my kids right where I want them, and they're with me and there's times when I act a little nuts in the classroom I couldn‘t follow the script. When she was telling us these things, too, it was so writ, so. . . you know. And she kept looking at her 3 X 5 cards and I was just, throw them away, ad lib...” “ Well, as far as the staffing goes, the only thing that I didn’t like was during the activity periods, I thought they were too scripted. She was just reading everything 72 right from her cue cards and I just went out of there thinking, I can 't teach that way. This takes all your personality out of it, even with us, maybe she needed to do it that way but I couldn't see how anybody could teach that way just because you 're not very warm, you just come across as just reading this all from the card, from the script, it was just kind of impersonal, I guess is what it boils down to. ” Apparently teachers received contradictory messages about whether they were expected to use the lesson dialog verbatim or as a guide. Teachers needed clarification about whether they are, or are not, expected to follow the scripts verbatim in their own teaching. "I talked with (Presenter B) and he said you don't have to do it this way. In fact they gave us sheets that said, you can use this sheet or you can use index cards or you can just do whatever you see fit. Whatever works best for you.“ “You know, that’s firnny because I went with two other people from (school district) and we all came away with just the opposite. That we had to use, whatever was not italicized in the lesson, we flag to say that. ...whenever she was teaching us, and she always taught it that same way, it was always so scripted. ” “No kidding? I didn't feel that way at all. ” “The potential is there for some teachers to take with them the idea that, wow, they expect me to do it exactly that way. ” ‘They should make it really clear what their intention is, whether you can use the script as an example and either use it or work from it or do the same idea with your own words. ” Despite the criticisms of the use of a script, teachers thought the demonstrations were very useful and would have liked more of them. Some teachers who indicated they would like a third day of in-service, cited the need for more demonstrations as one reason for the third day. One teacher chose to use lessons that had been demonstrated as the first lessons she taught her students. 73 She in in the She indicated that seeing the lesson demonstrations gave her the confidence to try them. “I would like them to spend more time on the demonstrations, I would have rather sat in the gym for two hours and just been a little kid and just sat there and have her, it's just the way I learn.“ “So, if she would have said, “okay, we're going to do this and this is how you're going to teach’ and then we would have done it, and then another skill, and then another skill, and another skill, and that would have just... ." “Yeah, pulled more out instead of just giving one...because we just did one and it was wonderful and helpful and ...we went there for 15 minutes and then came back.” “I was just going to say, I wish we would have spent more of the demonstrations on activities that are new, that are different, that none of us have probably ever done before.“ “They did the whole, just like we were little kids, and then I thought, do some more, do the other ones so I can feel what it's like and then I can go and do the effective change fine, but, I've done, I was telling her, I've done all those things exactly the way I did them and I added a few little things but they gave me the base but now I wish I would have seen...had seen more.“ Teacher training. Understanding a program and feeling confident in one’s ability to use it are essential to implementation of new curricular materials. Knowledge and understanding of EPEC materials. Teaching the teachers how to locate, read, and understand the EPEC lessons was done through a combination of power point presentation and guided discovery learning tasks. Examples of the lesson plan pages were displayed in power point. The teachers were given hard copy of the same pages to use as worksheets. The teachers were directed to locate and mark various pieces of information on the sample lesson plan pages in order to learn how to read the instructional materials. The 74 teachers indicated that this style of instruction left them feeling that they understood the format and organization of the EPEC notebook and the lessons. They perceived the training as effective in preparing them to use the EPEC materials. “I even looked back at the bench-marks and what, like they have a week seguence. you should be here at that point and they went over all that. It was really good how they did that, believe me. When you left there you knew exactlv what vop were doing.“ I could go back and if someone told me to go find this, there's no doubt that I could go find it.” “And I can cross reference it with this and with that. This is where I'm supposed to be. There's no doubt they did that guite well.” “I don't have any problem going to what I need to go to and pulling out what I've been pulling out with my lessons as I go. I've been able to find everything, I haven't been lost at all.” Use/application of EPEC materials. On the first day of in-service, teachers were asked to practice using the EPEC lessons by teaching a lesson to their peers. Although the teachers understood the reasons for this assignment, most were clearly uncomfortable with it. Teachers eagerly talked about this experience and provided suggestions for improvement of this application portion of the in-service training. To many teachers, it was an uncomfortable experience: “That was kind of a stressful thing ...” “ to be grouped with someone you don 't know, and if you give them, what did we have 15 to 20 minutes to prepare our lesson, we didn't know which topic we were going to have ” “I thought it was stupid...” 75 “Yeah, ...I wasn't real prepared for that, l was kind of (uneasy gesture)” “It was a confidence thing to me. Especially when you have just a certain amount of time to prepare.” “There is a different anxiety level there. Oh, yes. No doubt about it. ” “I was really skeptical. And I'm gonna tell you, I was going to make sure that I did it better than the gople I was doing it with.” “I felt really stupid because I thought, I didn't know the program yet so I was trying to think, okay, I have to do it the way they want me to and I was thinking, I don't get, I don't know...” “...it just came too fast at me and I couldn't think quick enough and here I'm a teacher and I thought, oh, this is so stupid, I don’t even know what to say, l was thinking, oh, man, they want me to, it was just too quick for me and I wasn't comfortable doing that at that time, the way that was handled.” “I didn't want to do it... To my peers, I guess.” “I didn't like that part. It went well and they had evegyming that we needed, it was just that I just felt t_Incomfortable doing it with my peers.” To some, it was beneficial even though it was uncomfortable: “I thought it was a great exercise, even though I wa_syI't comfortable and it was intimidating, it was a good thing to do.” “I also think it's good practice for us. As phys. ed. teachers we tend to go to teacher's meetings and I don't know about anybody else but we just kind of sit Quietly. W5 need to be willi_ng to speak up in front of our peers.” “It was very informative to see other people and the other styles. That was good”. “probably the biggest thing that I got out of that was, I didn't have to use that great big piece ofa p_per lesson plan and I could take a 3 X 5 card a_n____d I could write my cue words down or I cou__ld write down okav. This Is my anticipatorv_ set. or whatever it was, at the top of the thing they have there and key words for myself to remember it” (I Ieamedj “how guick I could make my notes and be prepared, veg guickly.” “Yeah. Because, I '1] tell you, the group I was with, by the time we were done and got to know those other people, and you learn from them, so it was worthwhile. ” 76 least y . .3"! I “(.1 “I think teaching your peers is one of the most intimidating things a teacher can go through. I sort of looked at it as. if I can teach these teachers this curriculum, I can go back and I can teach those kids.” They gave us the proper materials or manipulatives that we would need in order to teach that lesson and they broke it into pregy good groups.” “I'll never forget it, it taught me... It gave us an idea of how to do it instead of watching it, it gave us that chance.” “Yeah, you always remember seeing things, you read something, you forget it. But when you're in there, I'll never forget doing it and anybody else's presentation, I remember everybody else in my group doing it” The primary suggestions for improving the experience were to give teachers more “advanced warning” that they would be teaching their peers and to provide time to prepare and practice for the presentation. “Spur of the moment thing, it would have been much better if you would have had time to take it home and go into the lesson and really Ieam it before you just. .. Before you're on the spot to do it. ” “Yes, homework would be to prepare a lesson and that would give you that week's time knowing that you're going to teach it to colleagues not to children.” “Have them teach it when they come back to their next day of in-service or whatever. I agree. ” “Maybe that first day, that, “think about , because you're going to be presenting in little groups’ instead of just throwing it at us...” “maybe, give, say, this is what you're going to do on day two. You can go home, you've got a week, ...practice it.” “I'd keep it in but I'd tell people that, maybe after day one, give them the agenda for day two? And then maybe emphasize, I want you to start thinking about , because we're going to do that.” Professional development. Belief in a program and commitment to it are essential products of professional development. Teachers must believe in the value of EPEC and commit to using it, in order to pursue the tasks of 77 Pia-15in In?! dire 973‘} COP. rid dd implementation. Though it was difficult to get teachers to address these topics directly, some of their comments provide evidence of their developing belief and commitment and hint at possible sources for it. Belief in the value of EPEC. What must be addressed to create belief in a program? The use of researched-based information in the presentations was convincing and seemed to inspire belief in the need for the EPEC materials. In addition, the scope and preparation of the program materials and the idea that EPEC focuses on educational objectives rather than on recreation fit the teachers' needs. Teachers could see that EPEC fit their desire to educate students and to be accountable and productive in their work. “And just the fact that it's more research based and it seemed like they had a lot of good selling points. ” “The idea of starting off with what's happened in the past with physical education and where kids in Michigan are at physically, from a health standpoint and just convincing us that we needed to sell physical education to the people of Michigan. I thought it had a lot of good selling points.” “ When I switched fi'om the classroom to the phys. ed. position, I was told, ‘you can do anything you want ’. Well, that's QQLhOW it is in the classroom, you know, I'm accountable by all these MEAP tests and you name it and I thought, I professionally cannot lower myself to that standard of ‘anything I want’. So I was than/girl to have something to start with. As long as there is a warm body there to come to pick up the classes, the administration doesn’t really care. ” “I went to a similar one last year, at the time I thought it was great and wonderful and I do use a lot of those activities, but, at the same time, I didn't feel as ifl was gaining a knowledge to really educate kids, I have been teaching games and things like this but with EPE C, I feel like I'm a little more focused, I feel that I'm working more as an educator as opposed to a games leader. ” 78 The EPEC workshop was clearly and specifically labeled as to its content and purpose. One teacher made an important point that before she ever signed up, she knew what she was getting into and that it would fit her needs. “Occasionally, I’ll attend a workshop that really doesn’t have materials specific to the grade levels that I teach, this one, of course was labeled already. I knew it would be applicable to my level.” “We have an outdated curriculum... so I guess the need of having something updated in place is the reason I went for this.” "I went to an orientation program the previous year. So I kind of knew that it was ceming. I knew it was down the road and I was kind of sold on it at that time. " Commitment to implementing EPEC. What is it that inspires teacher commitment to a new program? A sense of purpose and professionalism seem to be at the core of commitment. Teachers were not able to provide specific evidence of their commitment however, as one reads their comments, illustrations of their commitment to EPEC are found. “All I had to do was have them tell me what this curriculum means what it looks like and it convincaa me. This is good. I think as the teachers get into it more and more, as they open it up and they get into it. I know there will always be some strong-holds...” “So, now I'm not resistant, I just haven't had the time to sit down and really, really hash every single plan over. But I am going to. I'm going to pull, just bring some different things out and start doing, then in the fall I'm going to try my hardest to start and just go right through it. I'm not promising that I'll do every lesson as is but at least I'm certainly willing to use it.” “I feel like I want to be an educator and I guess that's what I like about EPEC, I feel like there 's steps involved here that we're working fiom one thing to another, there 's just a little more continuity in my program when I 'm using EPEC and I guess that 's why they really sold me. ” 79 “All I know is that it fits so well with what I do, anyway, it gives me the spaces to do a few of the real particular things I do with my classes. And it comes back as that spiral. I've him in the coaple of years that my second graders don't know as much as yop wish they would. They need this re-training, the prpgressions. I like that you don't have to do a whole like a baseball unit, you can do some throwing, later on you do the batting, somewhere else you're working on the catching. Evepming is broken gown. wt there is some logic to it. There really is logic to t_his. It kind_af almost sugprises me how logical it is and how you can go back and forth between things and that was what I wanted to see. That's what I've paap waiting to see, that I couldn't get into my own head, to put on pagr. I have to do a unit instead of picking and pulling.” when we go to our buildings, we need to go to the staff meeting... but make it a point to be there and say, this is what I'm presenting, I'm asking from you, I need those kids in there, I can't have them coming in 20 minutes late from team room. I need them there at that time. It's important that they get there to learn these skills. It's not a dumping ground.” “And that makes me feel a whole lot better, as an educator, too. Knowing that I 'm educating the whole class, I’m not just educating the skilled participants of the class. ” “I feel like I want to be an educator and I guess that's what I like about EPEC, I feel like there '3 steps involved here that we're working from one thing to another, there 's just a little more continuity in my program when I'm using EPIC and I guess that's why they really sold me.” “I feel like I 'm more of a valued educator now than I was before because I've got something solid that I 'm working with. There is a continuum in my program, or there will be fi'om one year to the next. I think this is going to make me a better educator than what I was. ” “l have been teaching... I begged for something and found this when l was starting up with this new position of phys. ed. “ “Because I know they (classroom teachers) bring those kids to me and they think it's recess... because this is tha first ti_me theWefiever done it in our school, basically, and I went back and told them, this is not their recess. If you want have recess, then take them outside and don't bring them at all.” “That's what I was pumped about is that these special little words that, you know, ‘kid-tested, teacher-approved”, really helped me.” 8O Materials. The materials used for EPEC in-service training were discussed relative to the quality and amount of printed matter and visual presentations. Printed instructional materials notebooks and handouts. Teachers acknowledged the necessity of in-service training for them to be able to effectively use such an abundance of material. The “Users Manual” and in- service instruction on using the notebooks were important for effectively implementing the materials. The use of “hands-on” training helped teachers become familiar with the organization of the material (see also “teacher training”, p. 73). The large notebooks were clearly and consistently labeled so that materials were easy to find and use. Teachers liked having each grade level in a separate notebook. The organization and labeling of the lessons and instruction was consistent within each grade, and from one grade to the next. The key words and illustrations were appreciated and used almost immediately by the teachers. Mall. it's a_lort of material. Just a ton.” “They gave you so much material, I had no idea we were going to get a curriculum like this.” It would take you a long, long time to figure out how to look through that ypprself. I k_now there were people that were a little bit confused and they were asking guestions and the instructors were going right up to them and pointing to their manuals right at their tables an_d they were showing, “this is what I'm talking about right here, see how that means this?’ Likegtha italicized words are the things that the teacher says, and, all the cue words are to the side.” “You could take their curriculum and with this user guide, and then take the K through, what was it, 2? Take that curriculum and if you had any knowledge of education, you could teach that, or very little knowledge of education and you had to be a PE teacher, you could take that curriculum and go into that classroom and you could do it word for word if you wanted to.” 81 w;—..nu‘m P . “And they left you feeling like you knew how to use it so that you could build on it, there '3 room for notes on the pages... they're along the margins you have room here to write notes to yourself for the next time” “I think they did a really nice job in putting these materials together. Everything word for word for word A new teacher who hasn‘t had years of experience presenting would, you know, help them show the progression through a lesson. Personally, I can take the concept and go with it, a lot easier. I'm not one of those people tint can read from a clipboard or a card.” “Most of the gople, I think, understood those manuals.” “I especially liked, we were talking earlier about the little key words, you know, the T-position, twist, you know, scratch your knee, I mean, the kids, they still do that now. And those key words really helped the kids Ieam.” “Everything was there that you needed to know to teach this particular skill or concept and I love the key words, too. I use them, there are a few key words that I had just picked out and I have not gone over all the curriculum yet.” “The key words, ‘READY FEET”, my kids know exactly what to do when I say “READY FEET”. “ VIsual presentations. Teachers are very aware of the teaching techniques used by others to accommodate differences in learning styles. Teachers enjoyed having the visuals presented with power point, especially when they had their own print copy of the same materials. The skilled use of power point created a sense that the presenters were in control of the material and the training. One suggestion was that more use of color in the visuals might have helped some learners. “You were in awe because it was extremely professionally done.” “There was no hesitation, they knew exactly. It just flowed really well with how they had this and they had the screen and they explained it well.“ “The handouts are ‘to the nines”. ' They have the logo. I They have everything highlighted that should draw your attention. ' She used the computer. 82 ' The way she brought things in and took things away.” “The (presentation) technology was great. To have things zip in there as she spoke and instead of giving you a whole handout where you sat there and you looked at the whole thing, she could bring in one thing at a time which makes you focus in on that so, it's just a very nice way of doing it.” “I thought one of the great strengths was seeing the power-point on the overhead and also having our own copy. I thopght this is a great teaching technigue.’ “I'm a visual learner, I like to see what there is and I had it in front of me, but I also had it up on the screen and they also said it. ” “You always knew where they @resenters) were at. ” “The handout let me pay attention to what the presenter was saying instead of me always taking notes. ” “They used the handouts as a worksheet which I thought was very good. If you were sitting where it was hard to see, you had no problem following along and you always have exactly what the presenter said for a reference. ” “Having it written also helps because sometimes presenters just go too fast. ” “Good handouts show that the presenter is organized and has put some thought into their materials. It also shows they don ’t mind sharing their materials.” “I really liked the visual aids, the overhead projector there, they always let us know what page we were on if we were using the lessons, following along there so you could look at it in a couple of difi'erent places, we had handouts. ” “If they wanted to change anything, you know, they could go to color. You know, with their graphs and stum that might have been more helpful for some people to have some things more colorful.” “I like power-point. ” Learning issues related to the content of training. Like all learners, teachers do not want to be rushed, nor do they appreciate training that drags on or is redundant. Striking a balance with the pace of training, the variety of training 83 exp] lea: WE mid da‘, oil ‘.‘? (If experiences, and providing time to practice new teaching skills, is important to teachers. Pace of training. The lecture sessions were not too long and there was good balance between lecture and hands-on learning. Apparently, the expectations for the amount of material teachers could Ieam and the rate at which they could assimilate new material were reasonable. “For me it's 45 or 50 minutes (time limit). If you can't say it in that amount of time, I'm mentally and physically removed.” “ when you're working with teachers, too, I think sometimes they think that because you're a teacher you can automatically catch on and get it or whatever and I think it helps to treat us like you treat students.” “I have to Ieam the same way a kid learns, step by step. Especially something new.“ “They went slow enough that I could keep up. “ Variey of training experiences. Alternating the types of Ieaming experiences seemed to work well for teachers who are typically on the move all day long in their physical education classrooms. By frequently changing the type of learning experiences, teachers felt the time spent was well balanced. “It seemed like evegytping was really well balanced. Just about the time, prior to getting tired of sitting, then it was time to go down to the gym, tgy some the ideas out didn't overdo that. Went t_hroagh it gaickly. rap Mopgh it to see how it wow work. Came pack. talked about it a little bit. Went on with the next topic. I thought there was a really good balance.” Time to practiceybatwyeen in-service t_raining segssionay Teachers were given one week plus one day between training sessions to try out some sample lessons with their students and to bring questions or problems about these lessons to the next group meeting. Reaction to the amount of time scheduled 84 between these sessions was mixed. Although some teachers would have preferred training sessions closer together to keep their ideas fresh, the practicalities of class and teaching schedules make a more compressed training schedule difficult for others. “...do this lesson tomorrow and the next day or do three lessons in a row, we're going to come back and then we're going to discuss it. Because it was more fresh in my mind.” “I liked the spacing of the workshop days because, for one reason, I work part-time so I probably need a few extra days in oraer to even be able to taach the lessons inpatween workshop days. Secondly, as far as getting a substitute yog're not mjssing_t_he sapne classes then. Andyl think that was obviously a thought in setting it up that way and I appreciated that.” “I had plenty of time to give them practice and I don't think I would have gone any shorter. I could see where you could, I suppose.” Subsguent training for higher grade levels. The issue of learning to use EPEC materials lead one focus group to discuss what kind of time commitment would be required for subsequent training to implement grade 3-5 EPEC materials. Teacher comments indicate that one day of additional training for the grades 3-5 EPEC lessons would be enough for teachers who had already trained to use K-2 lessons. Teachers suggested that additional training should be different for those who had already trained for using K-2 materials. There were a few teachers who did not feel that any additional training would be needed. Would retrain but it should be “different"; “Well, I think you could have training on the same day. But you could separate people who have had it and people who have not. Even if there's just a handful of people. .. These other people can share the "make it, take it" share idea thing. . .. The swap shop. Just sitting down, just talking about it. I go back with more things that way than the other, and not that the other isn't important, but I think 85 they could do it that way. . . People would probably be more willing to come back a second time, knowing that they don't have to go through the same thing again.” “I wouldn't think twice about going and getting the training for the next level as long as it's not real repetitive. Don't be doing the same...” “It wouldn't hurt to get together with other people.” “Maybe a one-day seminar.” “Just touch base.” “. .. should be on sharing kind of a. . .Like you are getting us to talk about particular topics today, that could be in a round-table discussion sort of thing.” “Getting together around a table of maybe 6 or 8 people who have all started using this bit by bit, some more than others, it sounds to me like it would be a really valuable time, whether it's an hour or two hours.” No need for additional training; “Right now I'm thinking, send me the 3-5 material, I can handle it on my own. Now, if there's a different way of approaching it...” “I feel that... when the material, 3-5 comes out, they could just send it to me and I could go on from there.” “That's true. Unless there's something that we really need to know about presenting.” “I have also heard the comment made and I don't know if they've actually followed through this, but that it would be set up so that once you're trained for K- 2, you could take the materials and use them all the way. But it's a matter of just getting the additional material, that once you use one, you can use any of them. That's how Glenna put it. If you can use one, you can use them all. So, I suspect that that's how it's going to be but I don't know.” Category 3: Change For the category of change, focus group members examined issues related to teachers changing what they teach and/or how they teach in order to 86 implement the EPEC materials. This category included discussion of factors that cause resistance to change, factors which enable teachers to change, and teacher’s suggestions of ways to overcome resistance. Additionally, teachers provided comments on the in-service experiences that helped establish the value of EPEC and the need for EPEC. They also provided their perspectives on the usefulness of EPEC and evidence of their commitment to EPEC. factors which cause resistance to change. Resistance to change can be rooted in personal issues, professional issues, or both. Personal reasons for resisgnce. Teachers indicated the greatest personal issues causing resistance to change were negative attitudes, preparation time/effort, and fear. Negative attitudes: “When they first presented this EPEC program in , they called all the PE teachers in, and they called administrators to come to this little meeting. I ...almost crawled under the table, because one of our high school/middle school teachers said, What’s in it for me? What am I going to get out of it?’ The speaker turned and looked at him and said, “your job'.” “They're too negative about their job. Period.” “(some are) hanging around with a group of negative teachers.” Preparafion time and work: “I thought, there's no way, I'm not going to sit down and read 20 pages tonight on how to dribble, l was just totally... “ “they don't want to teach and so they've gotten themselves into a position where they don't really have to do much and to do this EPEC, that means really teaching and producing and so then it's easier to just say, I'm not doing it.” 87 “Yep. They've gotten away with it” “they're getting away with teaching the way they are now and their principal doesn't know any better.” Fean “So, if they try something new, they're really going out on a limb.” “I think they're fearful, I think all that is, is just...” “It's fearful because they're insecure about it, they don't know that they can do it.“ “Comfort is probably the biggest thing. Most people would rather stay within their own comfort level. ” Profeasional reasons for resistance. Some teachers are resistant because they already have a curriculum that is a product of their own effort. They are comfortable with it and do not see any reason to go through more work. Others are more comfortable with what they have “always done” even when they acknowledge that EPEC is positive in many ways. A few teachers are convinced their students could/would not adjust to change in the way they teach although other teachers provided evidence that their students easily changed along with them. There are also teachers who are afraid of the professional accountability they perceive might come with implementing this curriculum. They already have a curriculum and/or prefer “status quo”: “Because our curriculum that we wrote and spent so many hours on, it gives us what we need to do but we can do it whenever we want to do it. We don't have a base time that this is when it has to be done. These are Shatthings that you need to get accomplished throughout the school year, “We have a great curriculum at school already in place. It's not like I'm ready to just throw out that curriculum and start all over new with this.” 88 “sat next to a guy and he reallyaraalhr ha_d_gone to alot of work. almost the same work to set pp his own curriculum. I wondered at one time why was he here. Why d__id he or h_is school d_i_strict go into smnding the money on this because he ha_d his from what he' 1______ said he had a checklist and he'd done all the preliminary work the task analysis and all this stuff,e he had it ready to go and it was done here for him. So I (_lon't know. He didn't intend to change much. He said he didn't inteng to change because he'd done the work already.” “We go through undergraduate work and we think that what we 've been taught is the way to do it. And that that’s right and we've been trained that way.” “I wouldn't enjoy teaching it the way they have it laid out here, compared to how I am teaching it.” “You've always worked for so long and whatever, and you just think this is fine, I'm doing a great job. I don't want to change mine.” Teachers think students cannot change: “The kids have already gotten used to my format. And so that means a complete change and that really screws the kids up.” “If I don't give them their ten minutes of flee time, for kindergartners at the end of gym class, I might as well jump off a cliff.” “They, because of thaprior k_powledge thexve had over the last two years or few years, are totally against it because it's not going out and just playing soccer or playing this tag or getting on these things and just scooting and going wheraver you want and they've really had a hard time adjusting to that.” “I tried to explain to t_h_am (4“ graders), you need to understand how to do this skill properly to go to the nex1l_evel to play a team sport or an individual sport. Thfiat's haLd for tltiem to comprehend because they already think they're so darn good. So, that's kind of hard for them to make that change.” The perceived threat of a mandate and accountability: “. . .I can also feel threatened by this because I'm wondering if the state goes along with this with the way they're talking curriculums now, that if you don't buy into this, are you losing state funding?” “That was the one thing that my superintendent wanted to know, she says, if we don't buy into this does this mean that we're going to lose funds?” 89 “The only thing that I had said before was the degree that they need to buy into this. That bothers me a little bit, is it going to be connected to funding? Not that I'm so worried about it but my superintendent is.” Factors that motivate teachers to change. The factors motivating change are as varied as the individual teachers involved in the training. Personal perspectives. For some teachers, their professional situation, teaching experiences, or personal convictions about teaching physical education provided the impetus to Ieam about and implement EPEC. I don't know about anyone else at the instruction, but I was trained in movement ed_u_____cation and went into teaching tpjing to do that, realizing that it wasn't working, and have slowly mova_d toward using skill. So what thia did was sell me on it even more and reinforaa my own taaching $1er and content and evamping.” These teachers did not need to be “convinced” of the value, need, or usefulness of EPEC. They were seeking change for their own reasons and EPEC fit their needs. Many teachers came to EPEC in-service training because of vague or specific dissatisfaction with their current situation, and a few were curious about something new. “ have to tell you that I was skeptical. Because you know. I was involved a_tpne point. pefore it was dropped at Western. thjs whole proja' ct. I came thinkipg, hmmm, I'm going to find out if thjs really wgrkea; Sometimes, a teacher’s need to learn about and implement a new program is driven by others, such as school administrators. “I know our principal is totally trying to push this big-time.” Focus group members agreed that by providing rationale supporting the need for the program, the value of the program, and by demonstrating its usefulness, most teachers who are adequately trained will try it. Teachers' 90 / M '_ ‘ I. I '. comments indicate that they were “sold on it” once they tried it, and they think that will be the case with other teachers. Getting teachers to accept EPEC lessons and try them seems to be one of the biggest hurdles to overcome. “No, the only thing, again, that intimidated me when I first looked at it was the length. I don't have time, I am so busy, as everybody is, but my first thing was I cannot read four pages on skipping, that's ridiculous. Until I did it, but again...“ “But, yes, the more I use the EPEC lessons, I'd like to think that’s part of why I like it. Because there's a lot of good information in there for the kids, there really is. ” “Once you delve into it, it is comforting. It's something that you can always fall back on and once you've done a certain activity a couple of times, you have a set path, you know what you want to do.” “Yes. Just come and see it. All it really takes is just really seeing it. And then you go the barrier is down because you go... wow, look at how successful those kids are. How easy, that was easy, gosh she didn't even have to, her plans were all set for her, it took her 20 minutes to do that whole thing, that was great.” “I think I've got more kids more interested in physical education than in the past because in the past it seemed like they were always the dominant students and now it's more individualized where everybody’s working on in-step kick or everybody’s working on vertical jump or everyone is working on leaping. It‘s more individual, it's not competing against other students in class, it seems like the y're getting more out of it because of it and they're more interested in physical education. " Need for EPEC. Teachers said they were convinced of the need for EPEC by providing health statistics, and evidence that physical educators need to be just as accountable for student achievement as other teachers. The percentages and things from the Health Department were great. thl think it was vent necessary (to establish need).“ “I liked what was said about, if you want gople to be involved in fitness, lifelong fitness. then they need to have skills in order to feel comfortable to do that. I agree 100%.” 91 “For Glenna to get up there and share, statewide or national goals for phys. ed. was fuel for me. And also to share some of the ideas where we've got the backing of the medical commu_nitv. You've got the backing of health community.” “It sounded, at that in-service like this is the future, we better get prepared because we are going to become accountable in our department where it never has been so before. ” “What we need is to get the education communig behind us, okay? That slicks so fresh in my mind because here we're tyyi_ng to convince oar own pe_e_rs that this is important and why? We've got a big job ahead of us and I thought that if we d_ian't haye the kind of background that she gave us, statistics, it wouldn't give us guite as much support for change as if, the way she did give those to us and I thoaght it was vegy important to do that. And I think that means a lot for change, causing change.” “And, if we want to feel like educators, then we should be accountable for something. ” “And (presenter A) talked very much about being credible. That we have to fit within the PE curriculum, in the curriculum of the whole school. This whole wheel of education, we'll be credible in PE so that we don't cause that wheel to be lumpy because we're missing out on things in our PE curriculum. But they don't have to be jocks and social skills and that's why I like the compassion that we taught, all those things are so much a part of life. Why teach any other subject but PE, we've got it all right there in the gym?” “I think that this brings us some accountability. I think accountabilin is important. too. That regires change. If you knew you were accountable, you'd have to change.” “Really emphasize the statistics, bringing someone in or taking them to see someone that...” “But this is good for kids right now. This is good for kids. And that's what they need to be convincep of.” “I don ’t think there 's any fear factor in being accountable because if the program works, the kids are learning quicker, why not do it? Yeah. That 's what I say. ” Value of EPEC. In addition to its educational value for students, 92 - film ‘0‘ EPEC has significant value for bringing veteran teachers up to date in their profession and for helping new teachers to get started. Focus group participants expressed a feeling that they felt more “legitimate" as teachers using EPEC materials. Brings veteran teachers up to date: “...but. for ma. I ha_cL not seen that list of benchmarks. I graduated 20 years ago. okay? So I haven't seen a lot of this stuff. I thought that was extremely valuable.” “I was trained in Movament Education, I probably had a blend but it was heavy on Movement Education and having tried that and realized that, these kids really don't know any more a_pout lumping than they did last year about this time. Personal experience, I can see whe_re we need to do skill...” “That's whatlwas sa in too. kids the 'ust don't 951w a_nymo_r_e_. The 're not ettin outsidee erience ifldon't ive it to them who is going to?” “Like with this group, we were all classroom teachers and then what you were taught in college methods class, PE, try to remember back 20 years what you were taught and to try to implement it, this gives you something up to date that you can use. I was in the classroom, also, for 16 years, before I even taught my first phys. ed. class.” “I even wondered when I went back into physical education, is this, do I have enough background or am lcunent enough to teach it still?” Helps new teachers get started: “That's one thing that I came back with and was able to say to administrators as we were in the process of hiring someone new. We need someone that we're not going to keep training and babysitting and so forth, we have a program here that we really need to really get going underway because it's going to sta y. ” “I know the guy there, has had the book, he hasn't come to any of the curriculums because he's already got, they just bought it and he went from there. He has just pulled out and he's the one that told me, he goes, man, the things about skills are great. You always wonder, how am I going to 93 teach them to do that and then, wow. There it is. The breakdown is there. You know, the breakdown was great, so he pulled that out.” Helps teachers feel more legitimate as an educator: “This is what I feel like I was trained to teach. This sort of thing, where you catch the whole child, not just the skill child. Anyway, this gave something solid to work with.” ' —- mentioned that when he started using this that he felt more like an educator and you do. You do have clear, concise steps for skills for these kids to do and it's not just being a games facilitator” “I feel like I'm more of a valued educator now than I was before because I've got something solid that I 'm working with. There is a continuum in my program, or there will be from one year to the next. I think this is going to make me a better educator than what I was. ” Usefulness of EPEC. Focus group participants offered many examples of the usefulness of the EPEC lessons. Teachers felt that testimony from teachers who have used EPEC materials would be a good way to convince the more resistant teachers to give the lessons a try. The curriculum and daily lessons are all set up for you: "lhere was a lot of discemtbrt last year not knowing what the next week was going to bring. ” "7hat’s right and if you have to come up with your own cum’cu/um, if every week, you have to come up with something new, that is, that's hard to do week alter week throughout the whole year. ” “ l was making it up myself and I didn't know if that was what was best. ” “Yeah, I think this actually gives you more comfort if anything, I think with this, I feel a lot more comfortable, I think well, this is it here and I'm going to do this, and I'm going to do this, and on down the read this is where I'm going and I feel like I have a lot more direction than lever did in the past. ” 94 The lessons really work: “They tell me, ”I feel stronger” and this is the winter when they 're talking about their playstations and nintendos and, there isn 't a whole lot to do outside but it's exciting for me to see their excitement, to see their enthusiasm. ” “...even the veteran teachers were saying, wow, this part of the lesson, especially the affective realm, the best effort lessons or the other ones like that, my kids really responded to that.” “I thiri. t_og. whan you teach skills. you give the kids a goal. And, if they don't have a goal in front of them. they're kind of just shooting into nowhare. l aon't k_now.am I meeting the standard or a_ren't I?” “But I think the lessons present them in an exciting enough way that it's almost like a game, why do you need a game because the lessons- vat! know, they give it to mix I remember throwing the balls at the bleachers gown thaga. The kids love that, first and second graders and kindergartners, all love that.” “. . .it's more individual, it's not competing against other students in class, it seems like they're getting more out of it because of it and they're more interested in physical education.” “And I'm doing a better job now preparing kids, I 'm doing a better job with my explanations and demonstrations. ” “And nobody slips through the net on all those skills because you've taught everyone the same way. Whereas before, I thought I was teaching them great but probably not exact, like now, they're all exactly, boom, boom, everything is, I mean they're perfect. Every hand is... from here to here...” “My kids really responded to that. I've never done anything like that, l was really surprised how they responded, so that part was very valuable.” “I think I've got more kids more interested in physical education than in the past because in the past it seemed like they were always the dominant students and now it's more individualized where everybody's working on in-step kick or everybody's working on vertical jump or everyone is working on leaping. ” “That way “you can just focus on everybody’. I think that's how it needs to be presented to the veteran teachers, and then it's not going to scare them.” 95 *‘Ml‘ ~m‘ The illustrations are helpful: “I like the idea of going one picture at a time. I don't necessarily agree with evthing that's on t_here and the way it's done but I like, okay, we're going to do this one, this one and this one today.” “I think, most definitely that kids are improving individually and I think it has a lot to do with the cue words, it has to do with the visual aids, I just think the kids, rather than just seeing me do it, seeing me explain it and do it, you know, I've got visual aids. There's the cue words and there's just more for the kids to focus on.” “I think it's change to me that I'm using a lot more visual aids than I have in the past. In the past I didn't really spend too much time using visual aids but now, Ifeel like I'm better able to teach my lessons with visual aids and I think it's made me more conscious of what I'm teaching, too and how I'm teaching it. ” It is quick and easy to prepare lessons: “That's another thing. Your lesson plans are done for you. Done. For the whole year.” “You don't have to think. “ “Yeah, I don't have to think anymore, I don't have to sit down and decide how I'm going to do it. Yeah, so in that respect, I have, I'm making the change and I, really, I didn't think I would be this easily swayed but...” “It's your lesson plan, that's such a nice feeling.” “Say, here, we've done all this work for you to make it better for you.” “I think that it needs to be stressed that this doesn't have to take an hour to prep. It just doesn't ha_ya to. Don't tprn it into a thesis in your prep. You read it through and you glean what you can from it and you go with the things that stand out to you. It can be done in a short time. It can be done in short order, it doesn't mean you spend an hour for each 15 minute prep. “Basically, these @ple know this stuff already. It's just a matter of using it. They just neeg to maybe change your cue word. That's not going to take an hour, to change a cue word, or that they don't have to change a gag word, they don't have to if they don't want to. Jpst replace their cue word for what's there.” 96 Homework is provided: “The homework aspect is something that I didn't really stress too much in the past and now I'm trying to get the kids, make them more conscious that it’s important to practice what we're doing in class on their own at home and giving them some ideas on things that they can do at home. ” “I sent some homework home for the kids about that compassion thing.” Students can change with their teacher: “But even the veteran teachers were saying, wow, this part of the lesson, especially the affective realm the best efformssons or the other ones like that. My kids really responded to that. I've never gone anything like that. I was really surprised how they responded, so that part was veg valuable.” “I was amazed at how well they accepted some of these changes, I mean, I didn't come right out and tell them that I'm changing the curriculum now, but I just started teaching dijferently and I was surprised that they really seemed to handle it. ” Evidence of commitment to EPEC. Teachers were not able to directly provide evidence of their commitment, but their comments unwittingly provide examples which illustrate their developing commitment to EPEC. “All I had to do was have them tall ma what this curriculum means what it looks like and it convinced me. This is good. I t_hink as the tgchers g_e_t into it more, as they open it up and they get into it, I know there will always be some strong-holds...” “So now I’m not resistant, I just haven’t had the time to sit down and really, really hash every single plan over. But I am going to. I'm going to pull, just bring some different things out and start doing, then in the fall I'm going to try my hardest to start and just go right through it. I’m not promising that I'll do every lesson as is but at least I'm certainly willing to use it.” “I feel like I want to be an educator and I guess that ’s what I like about EPEC. I feel like there ’s steps involved here that we ’re working fi'om one thing to another, there ’s just a little more continuity in my program when I 'm using EPEC and I guess that’s what really sold me. ” 97 “All I know is that it fits so well with what I do, anmy, it gjves me the spaces to do a few of the real particular items I (_IO with my classes. And it comes back as that spiral. I’ve found in the copple of years that my second graders don’t know as much as you wish they world. They naag this re-training, the prpgressiona. I like that you don’t have to do a whole like a baseball unit, you can do some throwing, later on you do the batting, somewhere else yog ‘re working on catching. Evemmng is broken down, pat thare la some logic to it. Thare rea_lly is logic to th_is. It kind of almost s_urprises me how logical it is and how you can go back and forth petweap things and that was what I wanted to sag. That’s what I’ve been waiting to see, that I couldn’t get into my own head, to put on pagr. l have to do a unit instead of picking and pulling.” “...when we go to our buildings, we need to go to the staff meeting...but make it a point to be there and say, this is what I’m presenting, I’m asking from you, I need those kids in there, I can’t have them coming in 20 minutes late from team room. I need them there at that time. It’s important that they get there to Ieam these skills. It's not a dumping ground.” “ and that makes me feel a whole lot better as an educator, too. Knowing that I’m educating the whole class, I’m not just educating the skilled participants of the class. ” Suggestions for garcoming resistance to change. Focus group participants were eager to provide ideas and suggestions for helping other teachers to overcome their resistance to implementing EPEC lessons. Participants agree that providing a rationale for EPEC, showing evidence of the need for exemplary programs, and delivering effective instruction in the use of the materials are needs that are already being met in the in-service training as it currently exists. In addition, teachers indicated that resistance to change could be addressed by; hearing the positive results and success stories of others observing and participating in demonstrations of a variety of lessons seeing lessons taught by other teachers in authentic situations teaching lessons to their own students 98 W“.-_~n‘ addressing their boredom with teaching knowing they can implement very small pieces of it at their own pace Ieaming ways to adjust EPEC materials to fit their own situation. Hearing about positive outcomes and success stories: “And you're probably going to have resistance until you get a number of schools that have kept some kirfi of evaluation from year to year to se_a the prpgression of how this kindeggarten. t_h_is first grade class, whatever, has progressed to t_he fifth gage. Ang how t_hey're doing in sixth grade, you're going to t_ake 4 or 5 years for phose kids to go through and then another foar or five years to measure them against ot_hers so you're going to have a long_time Ignore youL're really going to be able to evaluate and change people's minds that are resistant.” “Information on the effectiveness of it, that would help in the future, say afier we've had some teachers using this for a little while. . .I think that would be a great thing.” “I was happy to hear other educators, after they had taught a lesson, come back and have their comments, to see what they had to say. So hearing the other people comment was helpful. ..” “Because now I see how it can take up my whole day or my whole class period and how valuable it is to teach the way they showed us and how important it is to do it the right way. It's lesson plans, that really is, that was what was nice, all of the sudden I went ‘wow' I don't even have to, it's my lesson plan, I don't have to do it, it's done.” “I think I've improved and usually people aren't too quick to change but I think I wanted to change and I 've been willing to change and so it's been easier for me but for somebody who maybe is a little more established in their ways, they wouldn't be as willing to change but for me it's been a welcomed change and something that I wanted to do and so I've had no problem in implementing the program. ” “And then if you do pull one of your old games out, you look at it a whole different way, now you're looking at the kids, are they doing this when they play? Clean out your backyard and And then I say, use you're I-T throws. And it's Iike...all of the sudden everything clicks and all of the sudden you see everybody and it's like wow...” “I have taught four or five of the different lessons that have helped me immensely, it was wonderful.” 99 Observing and participating in many lesson demonstrations: “Very important...very important for resisters to have more experiences... “(more demo lessons) would have gotten my ball rolling... that's what it did.” “then I remembered one other lesson she showed us, so I used that one, at first, that's what got me doing it.” “When they demonstrated and after going over that and I saw it in a different perspective and I thought, okay, to put it that way and to help me get through, it really isn't that hard to teach, it isn't that overwhelming.” “So we've done it. So when we go to do it, we've already done it.” “Yeah. Again, if you can show them.” “When I saw it and did it, then I changed my mind.” (after the demonstration) “I went, okay, fine, I like it I guess, I waited a couple of days and then I did it.” Seeing lessons taught by other teachers in authentic situations: “...at least (show) video tape of real classes being taught by real teachers with real kids...it's more than what we have (in in-sarvice) right now.” “...see a video and then I can...” “(start) with a video tape. Yeah, because that's so easy and short. And it looks so simple and then it makes you want to do it. Trying to pump up with that, and then go to the...” Teaching lessons with their own students: “Let them tg a lesson, send them out and tell taam tg try thia for a week. Try thisgcuyriculgrm for a week. E_sptiia_lly sometgipg like when yogic doing your overhand throw, make a T. Use those key words and I'll bet you they'll be sold by the end of that week.” “and the minute I went in and I taught all those I-T and then the other hand, I'm going, gosh, this is not all that hard. They gave me something to teach, it was great.” 100 “I think it’s valuable to try them on children especially if you’re talking a first or second year teacher.” “If you read it, you don't know if you're doing it, but by doing it (at in- service) and then going and doing (on your own)... it was wonderful. That's what did it for me, that was my crossing point.” “I think the confidence is gained when you implement it in with your kids. Later, when you actually try it out. ” “What I mean is that once you’ve actually tried this with your kids, it's like hey, this works. The kids like it. I really thought I would hear the kids say this is boring, I don ’t want to do it. I really did. ” “For some that resist change, another thing that they could do, possibly, is when they get this is try a few lessons, say try three or four lessons the initial year and then expand after that.” Appeal to their boredom with teaching: “I don't know how many teachers are out there that just throw out the ball and go this is what we're going to do. There's no skill development or whatever, if they (EPEC staff) say “hey, are you bored with your game?” “I really think, you know, “Are you bored with what you have?', you feel like you're going in and, “Now what do I do today?’ ...I have no clue. Well, you don't have to worry about it.” “I was starting to get bored. I had bought books and books because I was getting bored with myself.” “Me too. See, that was me, I was thinking, me too.” “I used to play this one game at least once a month and I got so sick of it I quit it this year (since implementing EPEC). And you know what? The kids have never asked. They have never asked, let's play this, how come we can't play that? They've never asked, I'm amazed.” Assurance that they can implement small pieces of it at their own pace: “I think the concepts are absolutely fabulous, the progressions that take you through the steps are wonderful. I would say let's try to make sure that all the schools in Michigan cover all these concepts in Elementary Physical Education and then give people professional lee-way as to how to present it.” “I don't want to resent it, I want to enjoy it and like it and feel it and it might take me three or four years to get right, totally, you know.” 101 WW): “I'm glad that I'm not doing K-5 right now, because I'd really be overwhelmed. I think it's good for me that they're doing K-2 this year and again 3-5 next year, maybe I'll have a large enough head start for K-2 where I'll be able to jump into 3-5 next year. I almost think that you should almost try one grade level a year. ” “I've not taught all of the skills from their point of View because we are, like I said, to just change mid-stream, and I agree that I would like to start with my kindergarten curriculum and work them through.” Learning how to adjust EPEC to fit their situation: “I'm thinking, I'm not going to spend 15 minutes on compassion, I teach them that everyday. So, that's my resistance, now, the social part of it, because, again, I do it so much, and they know, and again, it's my relationship from them, what I expect from them and how they behave in my class that it's hard for me to say, okay, now sit down and we're going to talk about, if Johnny can't play, how do you think that makes him feel, or whatever, I just feel silly, almost, because I do it so much.” “There were some things I've got some concerns about with some of the fundamental skills, teaching skipping, already this late in the school year, I've got a problem with that. But see, I can pull that skipping out and put it where I want to put it.” I think it's important you let them know, look, you don't have to follow this s_eguence. You can take out lessonL 21 or whatever it starts with and start th_are or_ start wit__h some of the other themes. I think ___________t_____he theme we did was compassion. R jhi” If you could start with that one, compassion and I don't remember what the skill was at that time, underhand throwing or something. And you could start there and come back to the other themes and the other skills.” “I ...struggle with that part, Starting right there where they want me to start with following directions on...” “I'm saying for someone who might be against it, you could, you know, you d_on't have to. I don't think any school would honestly say, you have to start on lesson 1.’ “I was very turned off when I, one of these aerobic fitness activities was, jog in place for four minutes. Yeah, right. I don ’t want to do that. Jogging can be very boring. ” “I don't think teaching the curriculum differently fi'om how they made it out was addressed.” 102 Cf) Teacher’s storias of resistapce and change. The issues of change are different for every teacher. The complexity of addressing the needs of all teachers through in-service training can be illustrated by the stories of four teachers who participated in the focus groups. The teacher's attitudes toward change are an outgrowth of a broad range of factors which make up the realities of their individual teaching situations. Teacher 1. “Frustrated veteran teacher” is employed by an urban district where he has six years left until retirement. He sees each group of children one time per week for a 20—25 minute class. He is very positive about EPEC but his school does not have the basic equipment for him to teach the lessons. With a budget of $125.00 per year to spend on equipment, he says its “just not worth the fight” to try to get started. One can understand why he is feeling frustrated. He is not resistant to change, he sees adopting EPEC as an unreachable goal. Would he change if he had support? Even this late in his career, this researcher thinks he would, absolutely, he would. Teacher 2. “Satisfied” is a mid-career teacher employed in a suburban school district. She has “nice facilities and pretty good equipment”, and sees her students for two, 30-minute classes per week. She really enjoys her job, is obviously excited about teaching, and brings a lot of energy to her work. She cannot see any advantage to using EPEC over her games-oriented curriculum which “exposes them to lots of things”. No matter what topic the focus group conversation addressed, she had a reason for not changing at her school. Skills? Her students Ieam “lots of skills” and “it doesn’t take as long to do it as it 103 does with Ml-EPEC lessons”. Assessment? No way, too much work to see the reports dropped by students on the floor outside the gym and it “Takes too much time.” Personal-social lessons? “I teach it as it comes up, sooner or later we hit everything.” Skill practice and no games? “My kids would kill me if they didn’t get to play genres and have 10 minutes of free time every day.” Will adjustments to the design of EPEC in-service convince her to try a new way of teaching? Probably not, she loves what she does and how she does it. “It's just not that I wouldn't buy into it, and I could get real fired up about this but, you know, unfortunately, I'm pretty opinionated and now that I've been around the block for 25 years. I like what I do. . .” “I have some strong feelings about bandwagons and this is possibly a bandwagon. Our school is famous for jumping on every possible bandwagon there is and before it's been mother-tested, kid-approved and all that stuff, however you want to say it, we're into it, up to our eyeballs. But I hate these bandwagons and I don't think that this is a passing fancy but I can also feel threatened by this... Not that new ideas aren't good, I just think that, keep your basic thoughts and have basics and make sure everybody is getting all those basics and how you present it is really up to you because you may not feel comfortable with the way I present and she might not like the way you do it and that's okay but as long as they've said that that's the basics, that's good.” “Don't tell me that I have to teach in those 15 minute blocks.” I got through the lesson plans when I did it my own way and when I did it their way, I didn't get finished in a Inlf an hour.” “If you sit and talk all the time you've lost the, it's like, come on, Mrs. _, let's get going. You know, I get that all the time. Can you stop talking now? Can we just play? So I think the pictures are excellent, the key words are excellent, the lesson plans, if you just take me through that progression, what you want me to do. . . I looked through how they had things laid out and (asked myself) am I doing it? Have I missed anything?” “Maybe the first grade curriculum might be a little bit juvenile for the kids that I am teaching right now, for somebody else, it might be quite advanced. I just felt my kids were more advanced than that.” 104 “ I haven't completely jumped into it because, unfortunately, I'm not set in my ways but I'm set in my ways, not that change isn't good, it's just that, I'm already in the groove, I guess, I don't know...” Teacher 3. “Classroom conscience” taught twelve years, first in middle school and then in elementary classrooms before switching to teach in her original major, elementary physical education, at the same elementary school. She sees her students two times per week for 40—minute classes. She teaches in a well-equipped, fast-growing, rural school district. Once she became the “gym teacher”, she was surprised and outraged at the “It doesn't really matter- keep ‘em busy- do whatever you want” attitude of administrators and colleagues toward her role as physical education teacher. This conscientious teacher didn’t teach in her classroom without any accountability and that was definitely not what she had in mind for teaching physical education. She sought EPEC training because she wanted curriculum materials to truly “physically educate“ her students and she wasn’t sure whether she was up to date after so many years out of the gymnasium. This teacher is a totally willing participant in the change process, seeking to grow in every possible way and relishing the opportunities. She even came to the focus group prepared to share a bag of learning aids she had developed to go along with the EPEC lessons. As long as in-service training provides knowledge and understanding of the materials, she is on her way! Teacher 4. “Resister-convert” is the “poster child for change”. She readily identified herself as “negative-probably the most resistant teacher at the in-service”. She teaches in a middle-class, suburban school district where she sees each class for thirty minutes two times per week. She also teaches dance 105 and aerobic classes at night. The whole EPEC experience started off on the wrong foot for this teacher when she came into work one morning to find four EPEC notebooks sitting on her desk with a note saying when the training would be. Her principal made it known he “assumed“ she was going to immediately start teaching EPEC and was not allowing much latitude for easing into it. This person who “does not respond well to being told what to do,” tells the story best as she describes coming into the in-service training with an “I don’t care how good it is, I'm not giving them the satisfaction of doing this” chip on her shoulder. Needless to say, this resister became a true “EPEC convert“ and had wonderful suggestions for how to deal with resisters. The following comments provide a sense of this teachers’ initial negative reaction at her “indoctrination” and how her resistance was eventually ovefcome. “You know what would make me be the biggest one (resister)? To hand them the books and say here you have to do this. You have to teach this whole thing exactly... It was like my principal said to me, and he's cool, he said, “are you doing the Michigan EPEC?’ And I said well, I'm trying. Well, you know you have to do it’. And just that, before...l thought, wait a minute, right away, I got mad about that. I thought wait a minute, I don't know if I'm going to, you know, chill. To tell me, to give me these books and say, you have to teach this, but if you would have said to me, these are really helpful in your lessons, look through this, they give it to you, and said, you don't have to do every single little thing, I probably would have even looked at it differently and then done it all. It's just kind of the way, when you've been doing teaching and you're doing it your own way and you think it's working and you feel that you're a successful teacher and then someone says, here you have to do this right now. Every page. What lesson are you on? You've got to be on 13 today. All of the sudden you're going, yeah, I'm not doing any of it. Forget it. So, I think that’s what happens. “ “But when you send those books, that's what did it. When I walked into my office and saw four books sitting on my desk, it was like, what are these? I didn't touch them for two weeks, I never even picked them off my desk, I finally moved them to the shelf because I kept going, I'm not 106 looking at those. There was that total, but that's what happens to folks that are, I'm thinking, I know what I'm teaching today, I'm not, forget it. I already know what I'm doing. You think I'm going to go digging through that big pile? I'm not doing this. There's no way.” “Oh, yeah, looking at them I just went, what am I supposed...and I didn't even know how to read them and what? And then there's the users manual and I'm thinking, no way, I'm not spending six hours a night trying to figure out what I'm going to teach tomorrow. So when you do that and you don't have anything else, you just go, uh-huh, forget it.” “I was really saying, okay, I'll do it if I have to. But I don't like this because I don't like to teach this way and I don't want to sit down and read it, I don't want to every night make these stupid cards, so I was really negative abouthf ‘Had I not seen the books but seen a video and seen the demonstrations and started liking it that way, then saw the book, then if they said, now these lessons are really long, if I just sort of eased into it, then I expected it and then I would think, oh, okay.” “If you don't just give them the books and say to do it but if you show them, I don't care videos or...” When you started trying a little of it... “Then it was awesome.” What was the trigger? “I did what we Ieamed there, that was the key.” That was what you started with? “Yes, I just took that lesson. Because, again, I was ovenrvhelmed, l was, I stuff. I wasn't going to find it myself. I thought, okay, the only way I'll do this is I'm going to go and I'll teach... They taught us, because I know how to do it and I don't have to do any studying and all that stuff and sit down and write those darn cards, so I thought, okay, so I went in there and I put things down and I taught them that and I added my own little things, which were really cool. I was having a ball with it and adding new words to theirs but did it exactly the way they said it and my kids were so good, so successful, I mean 100 percent of them did it correct, I just went, oh my gosh. It took the whole time, it took my 20 minutes allotted for that activity. So, I thought, well, this is great. I mean, mission accomplished. It was supen” 107 Category 4: Support The category of Support examined issues related to the teacher’s need for support in order to implement the EPEC lessons. Support included the topics of EPEC staff, school and community resources, and incenfives to train and implement, with subtopics related to each of these topics. Anderson (1982) says that the change agent must establish long term commitment and persistent support. Implementation of changes "fade quickly unless a support system is established within the institution to provide continuing sustenance for the changes” (p. 1 8). EPEC staff. This topic addressed what the EPEC staff did, or could do, to provide support for teachers during and following in-service training. The topics included establishing a supportive atmosphere, relating to teachers’ issues, and accessibility/ communication. Establish supportive atmosphere. The EPEC staff contributed to a supportive environment for teachers in many ways-formal and informal, intentional and unintentional. Interactions with teachers before, during, and after training can have a lasting effect on a teachers’ perception of support from the change agent. “I'll tell you my errience. I la b share and the other gal teaches some kindergarten and then the upper el. grades. And she wanted to take this training. We didn't neeg two sets of booka so I contacted them and said is it possible for har to age my set and just go? And they said sure. It's veg obvious, they just want eveg teacher to have this available. And when you pick up on that kind of attitude, you feel that support.” 108 flat. .9... i. A Formal and intentional actions to gather support from others for the teachers efforts also convey a message of support. “You know, one of the first things that caught my attention (Governor) Engler, he was behind this whole thing and it's like, what does he have to say and what does he know, but he admitted to them that he had bad experiences in phys. ed. as a child and he doesn't want to see that for his children or other children in the state and that made a big impression with me. To hear him come out and say that because we can all use him as an example. There is a friendly side to him with what we 're doing. ” Relate to teacher’s issues. Teachers need to be assured that the in-service staff really knows and understands their situation(s). If members of the in-service staff are no longer teaching in schools, then they need to be seen out in the schools working with teachers and children. The in-service participants need to feel that the EPEC staff is authentic in its practical knowledge of teaching. “Yeah, (the longer they are “out'), the harder it is to remember what it was like.” “I think they might, as long as they haven't been out of the classroom too long because it's just like an administrator that the more that they, you know what I'm talking about? The longer they're out. . . ” “They tend to isolate themselves.” “They really do need to do visits of classrooms of all different types, whether it's inner-city, urban, rural, all different types, they just need to because they can 't just teach nine different lessons with one category.” “Yeah... if they don't have one idea of what kind of child they're trying to reach, they won't reach that child... it's trying to reach the every child.” “They need to know what all the different facets we're dealing with. Just the three of us deal with completely different types of children.” “Everybody is in a different situation, I think they need to be aware of that. ” 109 Accessibilig/communication. The teachers were very positive about the time and attention given to them by the EPEC staff during in—service training. Input from the focus groups indicates that teachers would like the in-service training to be the ata_r_t of a long term professional association between them and EPEC staff members facilitated through follow-up communications. Though electronic mail would work to communicate with many teachers, it will not reach others. They were all supportive of written communication. The strongest message was, once again, for long term follow-up support and to facilitate regular ongoing communication with EPEC staff and between teachers. “I felt that they were concerned, they wanted you to get it, they wanted you to ask any questions you wanted, no I wouldn't have a problem calling up any of them, or writing them or e-mailing them or whatever it might be.” Electronic mail: “ ...ifwe need to get to them we can.” “I think it's very nice that I can e-rnail them or I can give them a call ...” “Well, (name) writes once. twice three times a week or more Seems lika it. I gon't k_now if he still is but I know I get a lot of e-mail.” Constantly, and I don't always read it all but I know where it's from and I scan it, so he answers a lot of guestions. he gives you_a lot of information and I never went searching for anfihing else other than what he's brought me.” “I'm sure they would help, I don't know, they seemed like they would help you in a heart beat.” “Okay, go to this e-mail address on this day of every month and boom, you've got a whole new... Right there, you're going to save money that way because you don't have to have all that paperwork and all that postage and all that, you've got it right there.” “Every teacher's got access to a computer because they've got them in all the buildings and a lot of them are accessible on line.” 110 “The difficulties in the web site in that not everyone has access." “I haven't gotten on line.” “I haven't either.” “I haven't either.” “No, Not at work. They're _tging to get, there's all but two or three teachers that have e-mail at work.” EPEC newsletter: “Maybe another good thing, well, then that costs money, is like a newsletter, I don't know then there would be some kind of connection...” so that we can all feel connected.” “I think just update us on any changes for the better, that we might use, maybe there '3 some, some additions or revisions that they have, just let us know if they have anything that might be beneficial to us. ” (Two person interaction) “Did you get a newsletter?” “I think I did receive one, yeah. Maybe just to continue doing that.” “Yeah, I think a newsletter is more effective actually. ” “They'll reach more educators. ” “They had already sent out a little letter, a .. . I got something in the mail and I though that was helpful. Just like, oh, they still remember that I came to that in- service and they touched base with me.” “Yeah. I thought that was really nice and...” “But at least they touched base with me and I thought that was very good.” “When you're up there as a teacher, if they found something in particular that would be really effective, just send a newsletter or something like that.” “If we could get a newsletter. . . ” “Like Great Activities? Yeah. That little magazine, I think that the Michigan MI- EPEC could go with something like that where people send their ideas in an ...” 111 to have cont initial training attempting tc delayed follo are to providi coordinate m “I get so many ideas on how to do things from those little, it's like a little newspaper magazine and I would think that that would be a wonderful way to share the. . .” “Sometimes it's better for me to have printed material because. . .. there it is and I could sit there and flip through it.” “There is some advantages to some printed material.” Provide follow-up services to sppport te_achers long term. Teachers want to have continued contact with members of the EPEC staff subsequent to the initial training sessions. Teachers also want access to other teachers who are attempting to implement EPEC materials. One suggestion is to provide a delayed follow-up session a few months after initial training. Other suggestions are to provide long term follow-up with annual “refresher” training, and to coordinate monme or bi-monthly voluntary group meetings. “Follow up -I'd say right after spring break because I don 't like to. . . you wouldn't really want to go toward June.” “Like end of April. ” “Yeah. End of April might be good.” “But then, again, too, as had said eartier, I wouldn't mind having a follow up in the spring. Maybe one in the fall and one in the spring just to kind of compare notes with some of the other teachers. Put closure on the year.” “Find other people from other districts (to meet with) because we just don 't, I don 't have that within, at my level, you just don 't have those things.” “I mean a follow up one (meeting). " “Yeah. A ‘trouble’ one.” “Well, it depends on who you've got to share things with and bounce things off of. It was so fun that day, sharing with different people.” “E van if every year you could have some kind of a. .. Sometime down the road... A renewal. 112 A renewal every year. And it (EPE C lessons) could already be implemented and you could share your concems with other educators and your successes. ” “l was more excited then gran I am now. Now (at this focus group) I'm getting back. I needed this to get me more enthusiastic again.” “There's some benefit to ettin t ether like that. Periodically. If nothing but the local ISD having people get tpgether.” How often? “I think more than once a year, certainly. I _Lhink maybe once a semester would be good I think we need to hear some success stories about how what he as been taught has brought something out In a student or has been successful. ” “Or failed.” “Even failed because how can we do that better the next time? I think all of that is helpful.” “ With a represenflve. though. To lead the discussion otherwise, I know I would just sit there.” “more (follow-up) trainings, more in-services.” “It would itch me and enthuse me. That is why I'm here, to get excited again. If I'm axcited, they're excited.” School and communig resources. In addition to support from the change agents, administrafive support leads the list of teachers’ needed support sources, closely followed by the need to feel support from colleagues. Support from parents/community, and personal support within the teacher’s family were apparent needs, but not on the same level with the support needed from administrators and colleagues. Administrative support. Exemplified by “the resister's” (teacher #4) experience, an administrator can set the tone for teachers’ attitudes toward a new program whether it is done intentionally or not. The administrator can make teachers fearful of taking risks to try something new or they can empower their 113 teachers and influence the equipment an preparation p teacher and Teachers fee the school a teachers and inspire them. Building administrators control many things that influence the teachers’ ability to implement a new program; budget (facilities, equipment and supplies, costs related to in-service), teaching schedule and preparation time. The support of the school faculty toward the physical education teacher and his or her curriculum can be influenced by the building administrator. Teachers feel that EPEC staff members are the key to generating support from the school administrators for the physical education teachers. EPEC staff should educate school administrators. “So let Michigan EPEC staff go and lay the groundwork for the administrators. They would do it, they would get more support than just little old me.” “They (EPEC staff) need to do a major presentation themselves, if it's to a huge county wide superintendent's meeting...Or a whole district thing.” “You know those district meetings that we go to like, at least at the beginning, you know, the first day of school, those big meetings and the superintendent tells you the budget and the whole bit. Well, you know, whenever I go to those meetings they sit there and they talk about everything like reading recovery and App... and I'm sitting there going, as usual, I have no, there's no validity here.” “Yeah, why am I here?’ “I just feel that at EPEC, they gave me very good material on hitting my board with. To go to them and say, we need more PE for 3-5 because and then there's material there. The other PE teacher sent a request to the board, we should have more PE because this is really good for our kids... And now with this notebook that I prn'chased, some very good information to talk to the board about and our superintendent and our principal are 100% behind this program” “Try to convince the administrators, I know that they’re trying to work that but I'm hearing fmm some of our administrators that they're hearing it at the in-services that they go to now, they pass things along to us now.” “This has ot to be forced down the rinci al's throats. I mean of course but they have to know how it im ortant it is from someone else other than from just us.’ 114 “I think sending those cards out was a good idea, when they sent the post cards out, it was kind of a, I can 't remember the specific questions but they were all fitness and health related and I thought that was a good idea. Your Fitness l.Q., I think was the name of the card but I thought that was a good way to, I mean, it was just something short and sweet and maybe it would get that administrator’s attention and I thought that was pretty persuasive. ” “And they need to understand the value of what we 're doing.” “One other thing I thought oLtoo. We do a fairly good job in our district up through fifth grade. We have phys. ed. twice a week for forty minutes and E feel like wge're teaching three-fourths of our kids actual skills and then they go to micxIJe school anaaheyhave phys. ed. for seven weeks or six weaks opt of the year. (Art of the year! How can we get across to secondag level schools t_hat this should not be optional. We're building a life-style here. I gon't know how t_hey can go to gbat for us that way but at the state level, we need to somehow get those rguirements changed.“ “You might be able to work in conjunction with the principals association. Say, look, when you have your big meeting, we'd like to present...” Schedule of classes. Attention to schedules would help the physical education teachers due to the varying demands for lesson set up and equipment at different grade levels. “Oh, it would, when you're going from kindergarten and to fifth and back to kindergarten, it's hectic. But again, sometimes that cannot be alleviated. But I understand where the administrator is at this point, when you 're dealing with library and art and other things that you get to fit in, a lot of times you can't have certain ages in concunently (sequentially). ” “And the time when you can see the students. 'mglgcky. I'm veg veg lucn ...eveg day. 20 minutes a day.” Facility. Most teachers have adequate gymnasium space although one teacher mentioned that she didn’t have the wall space required for some of the lessons and that might also be a problem for others. Teachers with unusual teaching settings or facility configurations would appreciate opportunities to have 115 EPEC staff help them in modifying the lessons to fit their situation. Most administrators cannot change the size or configuration of a gymnasium. Supplies and guipment. The issue of supplies and equipment crosses between EPEC staff support and building administrator support. Administrators control the budget for equipment: “Yes. Administration is a big link. They need to be on board and be willing to supply us with supplies that we can implement this.” “The building principal determines how much money everyone gets... he gets $50.00 a year. ldon't get much more, I get $125.00. That's a slam. That's all those kids' health is worth?” “I think that with the administrators it is a problem. Because the one gentleman that was supposed to be here today, didn't show up, one concern he told me, today over the phone was that if our administrators, who we 're meeting with next week, won 't purchase this equipment, he doesn’t want it because you can't implement it. If you don't have the equipment you're just, you're just tied. Your hands are tied. You need that support.” The teachers appreciated the “equipment list” provided “up-front" by EPEC. They suggested that EPEC should negotiate with equipment companies to put together an EPEC equipment package for schools to purchase at a discounted rate. “We came home with an equipment list.” “To teach this curriculum, you need this equipment.” “They tell you up fiont that this is what you need in order to implement this.” “It's great because they use some things in the demonstrations, if you don't have them back at your school, you know, what good does it... what good is this?” (the agpipment list) “what they said in the in-service, is that's eveg_t_hing that you'd need. If you have that, you can teach everything in that curriculum. That was an important thing to have. I really think it's well thought out. You can take it and you can run with it.” 116 use was mat We ”help; “Then, what they need to do is go in conjunction with some manufacturer and sell those through their...” “It's too bad that they couldn't put all the materials on, I know that’s asking a lot, but all the materials that you're going to need to implement this program available to purchase (in a kit). Instead of trying to go to different places and round it up yourself. Have it all. .. (together) It's a great idea. ” (better than) “having to go out and purchase or teachers go out and get everything and it's all one package. Purchase it. Like, we 're going to implement this, it would be a lot easier for everyone.” “You need to be able to have the Quipment to do the prpgram. “That's what the ac Ie need is to be able to at that ui ment so the don't have to make stuff out of cans. They need to get that aguipment from a manufacturer so it lasts” Providing supplies such as posters and music would assure that all teachers who trained to use the lessons had the same opportunity to implement lessons supported by appropriate instructional supplies. Teachers would like EPEC to generate a packet of supporting supplies such as posters and music to use with the lessons. If these packets could be built into the cost of in-service, that would reduce the teachers burden to seek additional funds from their principal for supplies to implement the lessons. Teacher packets needed: "We need more hands-on, visual aids, we need a teacher packet to walk out the door with and make it more teacher fiiend/y so that you feel prepared. “' “Kind of some teacher packets, and we 'd go, wow, this is great, I'm glad I'm doing this now.” Posters needed: “I've put several big poster boards together where I've copied the pictures and I've put them in the sequence and then I laminated them and we 117 talked about it and I think it helps that visual learner." “Because for me, like, I worked on compassion with my kids and it seems like it's kind of forgotten now. We did that lesson, l'rn not constantly reminding them, you know, to, treat others with compassion and sol almost feel like I need something like that on the board, because otherwise I think it's just kind of a forgotten lesson with them. Again, visual, l have it up there for myself and for them.” “Get some posters made up. And maybe it's Michigan Ml-EPE C that should be in charge of making sure that's done.” “I think some posters that went along with the curriculum that you could display. other than lust the anatomical diagrarfi that they have would be really nice. Something that you could change so that you don't have the same poster up all the t_ime. Something laminated. Or, that we could get laminated.” “...have one for every time of theme and eveg type of skill. Like kicking a aoccer ball for margin-stag). You know, and mayge someone going up to apike a volleyball or block it for... this is vertical jump. With some kid doipg that Or even some role model doing a vertical jump.” “l was thinking even if they could, I don't know, put them (skills) all on one big poster or something? I find it hard to firmble through these things all the time and I hear, this one and this one and this one and. . .” Music needed: "I was very nervous about what the music, what kind of music was I supposed to come up with and beats per minute, I 'm not a music major, I don 't know this kind of thing and what are they trying to, give me some suggations or hand me some tapes that are appropriate and I know they're working on that now, so I really appreciate that and I know this program is young but those are the kind of firings that would increase comfort levels as far as people being sold on it. ” “The music. I really felt that was such a. .. Now it's no big deal to me because I have developed my own, revised it. It would have been nice if they would have done something with music and they had tapes available for those that...” “So, more supplies, if you will, to actually take with you in the kit, here are some musical selections with this number of beats per minute, here's a tape of that number. And have that ready to go.“ 118 i Wbdr then I went 3 inapp» own. ' . 7mm. many:I judge Support floor | education te | building and Profession. their teachin “You're on your own and they say, oh, anything will do. No, it doesn't and then I was told use jock jams and what‘s the other, these, well, I found, I went out and purchased with my own money and then I found inappropriate words so I can 't justify using those. 80, I've developed my own. ” ‘I think the biggest one for me, like you were saying, is the music. This so many beats per minute. I'm not a judge of that, or I'm not a very good judge of it so I wouldn't know where to start.” Support from teaching colleagues and peers in physical education. Physical education teachers need the support of colleagues in their elementary school building and their peers in the elementary school physical education teaching profession. Colleagues. Elementary physical education teachers seem to feel that their teaching responsibilities are misunderstood by their classroom teaching colleagues and also by some building administrators. They suggest that the reputation for “playing games all day” and not having any accountability for student achievement may fit a few physical education teachers, but the teachers implementing EPEC do not want to be associated with that reputation. There was a strong voice seeking support from the EPEC staff to present a rationale for physical education and to explain EPEC at all levels, from statewide administrators meetings to district/school faculty meetings. "You know, that is something else that is going to have to be done, is the classroom teacher needs to be educated more. We will be valued more.” 'Yes, this is a new phys. ed. era. We're going back to teaching skills. And, like, with me with the social skills, I think my staff needs to understand I'm doing it too.” “This has ot to be forced down the rind als' throats... the have to know how it im ortant it is from someone else other than from 'ust us.” 119 “You might be able to work in conjunction with the principals association. Say, look. when you have your big meeting, we'd like to present...” "With what Glenna did, here, I think she's so capable she could pull tpgether some statistics that would back that and that would be outstanding.” “Express the importance of the healthy lifestyle, even at the youpg age, tell them that they can do these skills and they Ieam them.” “And I'm not saying that classrpom teachers don't already believe that but I think if they have the statistics to hold that in their minds and say, wow, yeah, that supports what I already believe.” sometimes a building as a whole, principals and classroom teachers need to understand the importance of the phys. ed. prpgram.” “Then all of the sudden Michigan EPEC comes in and the folks get up there and they give a 15 minute presentation on phys. ed. and the importance of it and the curriculum and then we get fired up. We deserve to have that attention. They've talked for two hours about reading recovery and all those others which is wonderful but give us some time. Show the value. We're not going to be valued until we get that out. Until we value it and insist on having people listen.” “I think the information that Glenna stated on the last day about a possible MEAP test for phys. ed. teachers, I think that would give us a lot of credibiliy and I think that gther tejachers would then say. oh. mu have a MEAP too? Wow. It would really lend itself to helping our situation.” “And the classroom teachers were thrilled to hear that because they're accountable for everything it seems. Well, I'm sure it feels like that, I'm sure, to them. And, if we want to feel like educators, then we should be accountable for something.” I don't know if this is way out of the guestion or not but I think this would be more meaningful to classroom teachers it there was some way to correlate how valuable physical education is and how it mentplly a_ng physically prepares their students to do a better job in tlge classroom. Now, if they can go to a statewide teacher's meeting and present some of that kind of information, that would be phenomenal.” Somehow they, other than iust us as physical education teachers, it needs to be pushed to those other teachers.” “It's important that you have some support from them.” 120 "I think stating the homework while the teacher is there and the kids are lined up, they're ready to t_ake th_em. state the homework, then, that's a big thing, to get your teachers keygd in...” 'Exactly, because then they're listening, boy, they have to do homework in that class.” “...then they know what you talked about that day, too. And they know it supports what theyre doing in the classroom.” Advocacy materials needed. Teachers acknowledged that they need to be advocates for physical education. They recognized that educating others may develop more support for physical education in their school. Teachers would like to have “presentation materials” like the EPEC staff used in the in-service training so they could make presentations as an advocate for physical education, and particularly EPEC, to colleagues, parents, and community members. “That's ood because I think that ma be sometimes a buildin as a whole mncipals ang classroom te_achers need to understand the importance of the phys. ed. prpgrem.” “I sent this (description of EPEC) around. I just put FYI, and sent this paper around to all of the teachers, just kind of threw it in their mailboxes and It was kind of fun. The feedback that I had slowly come back, not a lot but some. " “I had a teacher this year ask me, what does phys. ed. and health have to do with each other? Why do they put those two together? I thought he was joking, I didn't know where to start with that. ” I think it's also important that these other teachers and I stress it to them that this is physical education class and not gym... That's one big thing that they need to understand.” ”I don't know if t_his is way opt of the guestion or not but I think this would bra more meaningf_u| to cla_ssroom teachers it there was some way tp correlate how valuable physical education is and how it mentally an_d physically prepares their students to do a better iob in the classroom.” 121 “With what Glenna did, here, I think she's so capable she could pull tpgether some statistics that would back that and that would be outstanding.“ “Express the importance of the healthy lifesyle, even at the young age...” “And I'm not saying that classroom teachers don't already believe that but Ltpink if t_hey have t_he statiitics to hold_t_hat in thir minds and say, wow, yeah, that supports what I already believe. " “...if they get their kids excited about, okay, you're going to phys. ed. $35. Yog're Qinm learn something, yop're going to do somethigg rather than, here. here's my 30 kids, take themI run them as hard as you can, get rid of all their...“ I think it still needs to be pushed, somehow these elementary teachers need to understand that these kids are going to a class for a specific pugpose for their life. Not just for t_his go mingtespgt for tLeir life; Somehow they, other than just us as physical education teachers, it needs to be pushed to those other tegchers.” “It's important that you have some support from them”. “We have in-servioes at the schools and the teachers are always scrambling, what are we going to do, what are going to do for in-service? Why not take half of that in-service, take that one hour of the in-servioe and have the phys. ed. teacher present the program?” 'Very short presentation to your staff on what you are now taking on because I think our staff just needs to be aware, too, of, because they drop them and leave, they don't know what we do and they don't even care. You want them to care, I want them to care and if they saw that it was, maybe if we had an in-service where we could speak to them and say, I'm working on blah, blah, blah with these students and presented it, I don't know, I'd think that'd be really helpful.” “The other thing, too, is when we present it to the staff, I think, too, I don't know about you but I know kids probably go back to classrooms now and, I think my kids are pretty happy, I think they really do love phys. ed., most of them, I always hear that. But then I think, you know some of them are probably going back going, ‘we didn't play any games' and then the staff, the teacher, the classroom teacher is thinking, they don't like the phys. ed. classes because... whatever. So, if we can educate our staff...” 122 'T 'Tl va “Tl Do W ‘l y Sta Education Support. F and it is 3; gets little 3 Usually ‘tht “Then they'll understand...Thats what we're doing, we're not boring. This is transition (into EPEC), we're re-training the kids...” “That plus, here, talk about our phys. ed. the whole thing in general. The value of it. Say this is what's coming in.” “They're Ieaming, why all this is important and just educate them. Do you have copies of those powerpoint, is there anywhere that you could put them...” “I wonder if part of our in-service should be on how to present it to the staff.“ “It wouldn’t take long to give you the materials for a short presentation...” Professional peers in physical education. Elementary school physical education teachers need access to other physical education teachers for support. Physical education teachers have a unique role to fulfill in their school and it is apparently quite “lonely”. This is a problem well known to them, yet it gets little attention from others. The elementary physical education teacher is usually “the only one of us" in their elementary school building, sometimes the only one in their district. “One teacher instead of six first grade teachers. . . You know, you don't have others to. ..” “I just wish there was somebody else I could sit down and bounce the ideas off of. When you're the only one, it's kind of hard to get motivated unless you, personally, are motivated about it and by the time June rolls around, sometimes, you need to take a break . .. the time you get ready to go back, school starts again and now, oops, there you go again” “Just the fact tint what we did today is so beneficial, sitting together and talking and I think that, if they can do anything that can get PE teachers together in discussion, because, many times you are the only one in a school system and there's no one else to share and no one else to bounce things off from.” 123 Teachers used emotional words such as “isolated”, and expressed feelings that they need to be able to communicate with other physical education teachers, especially those who were also using EPEC. “But, there 's such support when you talk to other educators. " Teachers are interested in any kind of link that EPEC can establish to facilitate communication between professional peers. Electronic mail would work for some but not all. There is great disparity from one district to another in computer access for teachers so electronic mail would work for some but not for all. Teachers said the EPEC web site and electronic discussion group is a good idea but the instructions for using it are overwhelming so they have not bothered to figure it out. Electronic mail for teacher to teacher communication: “It would be nice to e-mail (name) and say, so what are you doing this week?“ “Yeah, it would be nice to... To be able to keep in touch with people doing it... I just want to say, do you like it, have you done it, what are you doing? You know, it's nice to kind of share. Did you do “strike”, what did you think of it?” “Yeah, what did you do, how did you do it? Because everybody says something different and you go oh, I'll do that. If you could just do that.“ “I don't spend a lot of time on the computer, myself, so... that might be missing its mark if you don 't have time to get in on a computer and ...” “Well, if you're in a school, you usually don 't have time to use, or you better have a computer at home. I have one at home but I don't really use it all that much.” 124 EPEC website confusion: “Yeah, I never followed through on it because I couldn't quite understand what it was about.” “Was that the deal about the web-page and all that? I got that too and it confused the heck out of me. Okay, so there's a suggestion, right there.” Teachers also thought regional “user groups“ should be available for periodic informal gatherings to share problems and successes with each other. Suggested frequency for these voluntary meetings ranged from brief gatherings once a month to a retreat once a year. This idea is closely related to the suggestions (see Content) for a follow-up, or third, in-service training session involving opportunities to share with other EPEC teachers. The teachers would like to have a list of phone numbers and/or email addresses for those who want to be available for problem solving and sharing teaching tips. “That‘s what they could do for us. Not a mandatory one, but a two hour meeting at wherever, you know, whoever is using this is welcome to come for coffee and a meeting and just touch base, go over the stuff, do some demonstrations, share what you've done.“ “An EPEC user's support group? Yeah. That would work, I think. I could see that. If you knew it was going to be the third Tuesday of every month or something like that.” “That’s why it would be nice to even have, like I say, if you can't do e-mail, even just once a year or once every six months, have a meeting, everybody using Michigan EPEC, meet.” “A great in-service, but just for us to sit down and share ideas as PE teachers and give each other ideas, talk about our curriculum, it would be very worthwhile.” “Wouldn‘t hurt to have a little "let's get together in the summer time and talk." Like we were talking before how nice it is to just get together and talk.” “Yes, see, even that, just to touch base, group somewhere...you've already trained, you're all, all out there using it in one way or another... 125 “Something within a... county, that whole area would meet on some Thursday night at 6:00 to 8:00 in a ballroom or whatever, if you don't want to come, fine, no pressure, but, if you'd like to then it's a time to share and you can, you're not being put on the spot but then you can show what's been successful for you and I think you'd get tons of ideas. It would be great.” “To see what everyone else is doing. How they're presenting it.” “Maybe at MAHPERD or something.” “Yeah, see I don't go to any of those.” “Well, I think that we're going to miss people that way. “ The idea of a summer retreat: “But maybe they could do it in the summer-time, maybe they could do it in such a way to have...a retreat. Now, I don't know, I don't know. Problem with that would be that it sounds great now, but I don't know if I'd want to do it then. But if you had...” “Let's go golfing, let's make it a retreat. You could earn so many credits and go golfing, hey, sounds good to me, if you had this whole thing held at a, a resort, a facility that was a resort-type...Where they can go play golf aftenrrards...Where it would be fun and where afterwards you could get together with phys. ed. teachers and have some camaraderie and that might be a fun thing, two days.” Enlisting support from parents and community. The teachers felt that parents are generally supportive of their physical education programs but that parents would welcome information about EPEC. Teachers would like to have pre-written news and informative articles about physical education to include in school newsletters for parents and community members. The teachers would especially appreciate news and data related to health and physical activity that they could share with parents. They see their community members as supportive 126 but feel that these efforts to communicate would gain more support for their programs. “Facility wise, equipment wise, if you've got parents involved in what you're doing with this, they might be able to help along that line in putting pressure on in getting the equipment you need to do the program.” “Parents would, in our school, parents would support me in getting more PE and that's something that would be very good too.” 'Wasn’ t there a letter in the manual to send home to the parents? I _b_____elieve there was. A letter In the manual to send to the parents. There ought to be, I guess. That says t_his rs what we're doing. Something that's not from somebody that doesn't sLak very well or write very well but from s_q__meone that'sa _professional that writes something that says, you know, gigs ghgt we're gging and where we' re headed. Just a one page letter and if you have guestions th_en cont_a_ct you. It would maybe change the grentg' minds_ with a nice design where it's going to catch their eye rather than something from me.“ “I'm going to tell you, when I read this E-P-E-C... when you read what it stands fog not E-P-g—C... but Exemplagy Physical Education Curriculum might stand out more to a parent if they read the letter from someonefi letter head that said that. Thatés one way that you might change their minds, hey, this is for a healthy lifestyle. This is what they should be teaching my kids, then.” “That might be beneficial., I like to try to keep my parents informed on what we're doing and why it's important.” “You mean something that could be used as a parent letter to be sent home with. . .? Well, there's an idea, like a parent letter.” “Or, just put in that little booklet that we were talking about, and say hey, try sending this to your parents, a note to home, title it something, giving you ideas” “Like put it in your Friday flier, you know, something like that. A little note that comes from, this is from X's Gym about...” “So they just kind of put it together for you and then you just edit it and make it your own.” “Yes. Theyd go right in our... Right in the school newsletter. yeah. That would be helpful. Superintendents do that all the time. They sure do. It comes out to you and all you have to do is, even on the e-mail.... That's right. Okay. They're listening.” 127 to fully pa), Day half, at There may a tremend leachers members pr Ofessjo, iEachers. “If you had little articles to put in from time to time on why is it important to, for kids to learn to throw? For instance, something like that.” “I think I'd use them. Because I want the parents to be aware too. There (pointing to copies of in-service presentation materials), those health facts. The beginning, would all be good to. . .put in your newsletter. It's worth a try. . .” “Keep you with some current information about kids and their health? Sure. I think that would be great.” Family/personal. At least two of the eleven focus group participants had to fully pay their own way to the EPEC in-service training, a third teacher had to pay half, and a fourth had to pay for her own substitute teacher in order to go. There may have been others, this question was not intentionally pursued. This is a tremendous demonstration of personal commitment to their profession. These teachers commented on the support they felt from their partners and family members when they were willing to share resources to support the teacher’s professional growth. On the other hand, this leaves one wondering about these teachers' feelings of support from their schools! “I wouldn’t come if my district didn't pay for it. My district paid for a substitute and they paid for the workshop itself and if it hadn't been for them paying for it, I probably wouldn't have come. If you have someone on the borderline that you know if they're going to rebel or not, if it comes out of their own pocket, they're not going to show up.” “But I don't know how you reach. . .this is cost prohibitive in a lot of districts. I talked to some of the teachers that were at this workshop and they said they had to pay for it out of their own pocket. I don't know if I would have been as inclined to. . . " “It was rather expensive compared to what our school allows, so I really had to think about it, because we put in quite a bit of our own money for me to go to this, I was really hoping it would be beneficial.” “We have a major problem and it's called subs. l was very, very fortunate that they gave me my days. I think the only reason they gave me the days 128 pg reduced r also thou “eW'Slem is because I offered to pay for it myself and they paid for the sub. That's the only way I got myself to come without taking sick days or personal days. They gave me the business days since I paid for it myself.“ ldon't know why it's go easy to fig money to send teachers to reading workshops and 3-day work shops. Usually it's more than one. It's real hard sometimes to find money for the phys. ed. teacher to go.“ Incentives to train and implement EPEC: There is motivation to participate when useful items are provided as incentives. Eguipment and supplies: When included in the training fee or offered at reduced rates, equipment and supplies were seen as good incentives. Teachers also thought continuing, regular, access to informative materials for use in newsletters would be particularly welcomed. “Equipment and supplies. Equipment. Yeah, equipment. There you go, equipment. Supplies would be great. Teachers are pack-rats, they really are. “Some supplies would be a good incentive. ” “Things like the (newsletter materials and info), that would be an incentive to participate. ” Continuing Education Units (CEU) as incentives. Continuing education units are good incentive for younger teachers or those who are still seeking to climb “steps“ to higher pay. They are of little use and therefore provide no incentive to veteran teachers. “Yeah... so yes, I guess so, because we get brownie points. We have to get so many hours every five years.” “Because of subs being short and I know some people don't like to give up their summer time, but Public has a summer program that they offer to teachers to get (CEU) credits toward building up on a more higher level of a program. I think it would be really neat, I think you'd get more PE teachers to go because they never offer anything for PE teachers in 129 the summer time. It's only classroom teachers (that get summer classes)" “But the gal at (college name) wouldn't take the EPEC hours even though EPEC gave me a form that showed what we did, what was required, what we covered, how it was so professionally there; that (EPEC staff name) said to us, you might be able to get... I went to (college name) to try to get college credits and she said there's no university or no school backing you up, and I said, well, this is the Governor. (College name) didn't buy it.” “Is it important to me? I have to write a, (form) every time we go to an in-service like this, I could get (CEU) points for being here, tonight, if I would write up a report and hand it in to my superintendent, she would give me points for being here.” “And professional growth points. Perhaps that would count towards something like that." “For the young ones because they need those professional development hours. And I'll be real honest with you. I think they're the ones you need to reach first, they're going to be, their time with the kids is a longer period of time. . . " Graduate credits as incentives to participate. Graduate credits that would be specifically applicable to a masters program are good incentive for many teachers. Of the focus group participants only two had completed their masters degree but several indicated they were working on it. 'I just think it would be the very best thing in the whole wide world.” “As long as we could have some kind of credit for it or whatever...” “Yeah. Just as long as we got...something, either credit or...“ “You know, that's (graduate credits) the trade off because you need a certain emopnt of continuing ed credits anjpryey and we've gotten those.“ “For the PE teachers to get credit towards a higher level, like we have to have, I've got my master's and if I get 16 more credits, it can be college level or these classes, I'd step into another bracket which means more money. I think if they offered a summer session where the incentive was credit hours, I think that would be really helpful.“ 130 “So, but now graduate credits, that would be an interesting thought. That would be very nice if t_here was a way to go it, if we her; to pay for graduate credits, I don't know if that would help us because that's pret_ty W “Well, graduate credit? That wpuld be helpful, college credit for maybe ettending the seminar? That would be... Get your master's degree?” “If something like this was presented to a school district in the summer time for the PE teachers to get credit towards a higher level, like we have to have...” “We did a thing at the (intermediate district name) in learning in the classroom a couple of years ago and they said they would give me college credit for it if I just did this certain report. I did it, I got credit for it, that's the kind of continuing education that I think is beneficial for teacher, why should I go and take a class that is really not going to help me as much as my own career topic?” Graduate credits are not an incentive for all: “Your idea about college credit. I think if a teacher is early in their career that might be an influence on them. Ihave 6 more years left. ” Rewards. Teachers are not looking for extrinsic rewards for training and implementing new materials; feeling supported in their effort, even in very small ways, seems to be enough. Having their school pay for training is considered to be a nice reward by many teachers. Budget monies to purchase needed equipment would be considered a reward for training. Things like certificates and plaques provide little incentive. Most teachers would place their certificate in their personnel file as evidence of training and would not display it. Teachers would like a complimentary letter from the EPEC staff to their principal and superintendent-that would probably go a long way to make them feel good about what they are doing. 131 "'Cenu achlev Sort Of “It is important to me to have a personal letter written to my principal or my, yeah, I guess so because then they know I've been out there, putting forth the effort to do something good for our school.” “If Michigan EPEC let our districts know, again, it's just more and more validating us through, the higher up, if they can reinforce...” Stipends: “Our school has had different things that, if you wanted to work on curriculum, you could work the week after school got out and they would pay you a stipend for putting in the time.” “Well, I think, too, just for a principal to say we can find the money for you to attend a work-shop is a biggie” “We all like it because we get the day. The session is paid for and we go. I mean, that was such a nice... I'd hate to admit it but you're allowed two days paid...” “See, they sent us, they bought our stuff, everything... .See, that‘s nice.” “Reward, like stipend, maybe to buy equipment or something like that?” Certificates or plaques as incentives: “No. " “No probably not.” “So for (evidence of) professional goals, having a little certificate does (help). . .that was a good idea, I never thought of that.” Awards and recpgnition. The Governor's Council Awards Ladder is a big incentive for recognition. Teachers want direction and assistance from EPEC for achieving this award. They also indicated that it might be nice to provide some sort of recognition for students who have been participants in the program. The governor's council awards ladder, EPEC provides you with the curriculum in place phat helps yog move up the ladder. It provfies th_e skills instruction that you can then assess to help you move up the ladder. 132 'E E e: E 9 it e KIQI/ rm to have abOUt E And, I think this thing is cool. When I get that in the mail 'm looking at it and I'm going, man. I want ogr school to pethati “But has it made me take the time to fill out the paperwork to figure out how to do it because it is that important to me_? That's what you need, the social part of t_he deal. Get somebody to sit down and make sure you did the paperwork right.” “Yeah. How to do it. How to do it." (awards ladder application) 'What to do to help you get it done. It's a neat, well I don't know. reward or whatever it is but it's really neat, it's like being certified.” “I made my own recognition because we have a little flyer that goes out and at the bottom of this little flyer it tells about what things are going on in the school so it says, ‘hats off to...’ so, the lunch lady and I said, let's put my name in it. So, we went and we wrote, hats off to , who did the (EPEC in-service training) and we went on and explained it and the next week it was in there. Because we get no recognition. I mean, really...“ Recognition for students in EPEC programs: “A wards to put kids' names on. " “Banners. Awards for the kids. Okay, that's an idea.” Somewhere further down the line you may all want to think about, when en elementary kid graduates from 4this prpgram and there isn't any exemplagy physical ed_ucation gtgriculum in their school, maybe somehow make a deal with that teacher that those fifth graders or fourth graders can get a shirt. If they can pass a certain st__andard of the test. Give a deal to the school okay. you passed kindergarten through here, you get a good deal on these shirts. You know, but for those kids that don't get on the honor roll for other things, wouldn't t_hat be nice to be able to say to them, you've done it, you're up in that upper echelon.” EPEC clothing iteme for teachers. Most teachers thought it would be good to have wearable “logo items“ available. One teacher expressed reservation about EPEC selling wearable logo items if it appeared to be about profit rather than as a service. It seems logo items would provide some identity for teachers 133 and a sense that they are not so alone in their quest for exemplary physical education. “I thought it was good. A cogporate identmj' type thing. The goals are big. T-shirts are big to kids, too.” “And they're a nice design, that wes a nice looking shirt.” “They didn't push it down you but I'm always scared that, hey, they're Lfldn'tjiink it was e money-making thing. Until they brought up the T- shirts. That concerned me. But I understand. But it was not a hard sell. " Public relations and reggnition through promotional materials. Bringing EPEC to the public's attention would be very positive and supportive to the teachers using it. Ideas ranged from TV spots (expensive) to static stickers and bookmarks (inexpensive), to banners. Banners to hang in the gymnasium would generate curiosity and give teachers a chance to explain their program to parents, community members, and their teaching colleagues. One teacher was leery of providing banners without using vigilant evaluation to prevent disreputable teachers from discrediting the EPEC program. Television: “TV commercials would be nice, too. Physical education is important, please start doing it. Seven second spot. Thie is great for us but I'm saying that it's not going to happen.“ Bookmarks, cling stickers, and calendars: What about some of those static stickers like they have public schools? Static stickers d_on't cost a Iot_. Yofinow. yog could give those out to parents, too, at the parent-teacher meetings.” “Maybe we should get EPEC bookmarks that we could hand out, I don't mow. Jgst a ribbon, you could give them at the end of the year, one blue ten cent ribbon.” 134 “I've always wanted to come pp with a monthly calendar or something like _a_ newsletter that coMe sent home one for each childL. That they could keep track of what king of g_ctivity Lhey go at home during the week. AM suggestions for thingto go for that time of year. I'm not talking about something for evepyday because grants would be overwhelmed if they tgy to do something evenrday but just a little plug for what I do and if that came on the EPEC letter head it would be awesome.“ “Add our school name on it, maybe there would be a smt for that. Maybe sang it every other month tyt something for a stggent to keep track of the activipj they do at home and_t_hey can bring that back to me and I would initial it and they'd get a bookmark or something.” Gym banners: “Chances are they (others) won't know what it is.” “Yeah, you would have to explain what Michigan EPEC is.” “That would be great.” “That said, Michigan EPEC program being used...” “I think it would be great. I think that would be great because you'd have parents asking what that means, too.” I would be Ieegj of doing that because it would be a constant from school to school testjpg to make sure they're going these things. If I went a penner in my school and you give an assessment to start my year and an evaluation to end my year, how do you know. I get a banner but I fudged the scores, it hapgns all the time.” 135 CHAPTER V. RESEARCH SUMMARY, RECOMMENDATIONS. FUTURE STUDY, AND SUGGESTIONS FOR THE DESIGN OF lN-SERVICE TRAINING Summary The mission of EPEC is "to enable those responsible for physical education in Michigan to create exemplary programs. This requires developing and disseminating materials and procedures that result in the youth of Michigan obtaining the necessary fitness levels, motor skills, knowledge, and attitudes to be fit for life“ (EPEC, 1997). EPEC physical education lessons for grades K-2 have been available since the 1997-98 school year to teachers who participate in two days of in-service training. As of June 1999, 466 teachers representing 40% of the school districts in Michigan have attended teacher in-service training sessions. Lessons for grades 3-5 will be available in the fall of 1999 and lessons for grades 6-8 and 942 will follow. As additional lessons become available for grades 3-5, 6—8, and 942, teachers from additional school districts will seek EPEC teacher in-service training. EPEC teacher in—service training provides an essential bridge from EPEC curricula, to teacher implementation, to the accomplishment of positive change in school programs and student outcomes. The purpose of this case study was to use teacher's perspectives on their EPEC K-2 in-service training experience to provide suggestions for the design of future EPEC in-service training. F ifty-four teachers who parlicipated in two days of EPEC teacher in-service training in either Grand Rapids, Lansing, or Kalamazoo, Michigan were invited by telephone to participate in a 2-hour focus group in their local area. Of those recruited, eleven teachers participated in the 136 focus groups to share their perspectives on four major topics related to in-service training; Context, Content, Change, and Support. The two-hour focus group sessions were audio-taped and transcribed for analysis. Following analysis of the teachers' input on the topics and subtopics, the results were used to develop suggestions for the design of future EPEC in-service training. Teachers proved to be a rich source of information about EPEC in-service training which could be analyzed and used as suggestions for future EPEC teacher in-service training. Analysis of the data showed that issues of Context, Content, Change, and Support all need to be considered by those who wish to design in-servica training to meet the needs of teachers. The following research question and sub-questions were addressed. Research question: Based on their EPEC K-2 teacher in—service training experience and initial use of EPEC lessons, what suggestions do teachers provide for EPEC teacher in- service training regarding issues of Context, Content, Change, and Support? Teachers/subjects who had attended both EPEC in-service training sessions, provided post training perspectives to address the research question. To facilitate this process, teachers participated in focus group discussions on EPEC in-service training topics and subtopics related to four categories; Context, Content, Change, and Support. The perspectives of the teachers were analyzed, summarized, and assembled into a summary report. The summary report titled “Suggestions for the Design of EPEC Teacher In-Service Training Derived from Post-Training Teacher Perceptions“ follows on pages 150-159. 137 Sub-question 1. What information and experiences are perceived by teachers as most necessary or important in order to obtain the knowledge necessary for implementing EPEC lessons? Through the focus group process, the teachers offered their perspectives to answer sub-question 1. Teachers indicated that the following information and experiences are necessary and important for deveIOping knowlgge about EPEC in order to facilitate implementation of the lessons as written: Information: 0 Research-based rationale for physical activity . Rationale for physical education lessons which are focused on outcomes Rationale for the content and sequence of the lessons . Instruction for using the notebook and lesson materials Experiences: Hands-on work with the notebook materials Instruction and demonstrations of lessons by the EPEC staff Practice teaching lessons to peers in training Practice teaching lessons to their own students Sub-question 2. What information and experiences, are perceived by the teachers as most necessary or important to address their beliefs about teaching physical education in order for them to implement EPEC lessons? Through the focus group process, the teachers offered their perspectives to answer sub-question 2. Teachers indicated that the following information and experiences are necessary and important to address their beliefs about teaching physical education in order to facilitate implementation of the lessons as written: Information: . Research based rationale for physical activity - Rationale for skill-based, outcome-oriented instruction 0 Evidence of EPEC lesson effectiveness . Positive testimony from teachers who have used EPEC lessons 138 Experiences: 0 Hands on demonstrations of lessons by EPEC staff . Hands on demonstrations of lessons to peers in training 0 VIsuals showing other teachers successfully using EPEC in authentic situations . Opportunities to teach EPEC lessons to flieir own students Sub-question 3. Are there any issues regarding EPEC in-service training in addition to Context, Content, Change, and Support that should be addressed in developing guidelines for future training? Throughout the focus group process, the moderator was receptive to any in-service training issues that might need to be addressed in addition to those being discussed. There were no additional issues evident to the moderator or proposed for discussion by the participants. Analysis of the data resulted in several ideas for related study which are proposed in the section titled “Future Study“, p. 148. The following questions from Morgan (1991, p.102) have helped to promote a thorough review of the data providing insight and clarity in understanding the post in-service training perspectives of teachers. The first four questions address the findings of this study. The last three questions address the findings of this study related to the literature on in-service training in physical education. It was useful to explore the final three questions even though the literature on in-service training in physical education is very limited and has been obtained primarily through surveys and questionnaires rather than through focus groups (Conkle, 1997). 139 What connections are there among the experiences of the participants? Context: 0 Appreciation of the planning and effort put into training sessions was evident with all focus group participants, even the resisters Content: . General appreciation of the high quality of EPEC materials and in-service training personnel was evident across all groups . Most teachers shared excitement about EPEC and its promise of new respect and understanding for their profession . Teachers were enthused about the potential effects of EPEC lessons based on their training experience and initial implementation Support: . All teachers showed various degrees of frustration with administrators and colleagues who do not understand the objectives of physical education . Teacher comments indicated the need for opportunities to “connect” to their professional peers due to feelings of isolation as elementary physical education teachers What do you understand now that you didn't understand before? Context: . The power of the “little things” such as food, room/table arrangements, and seating space to create a positive training atmosphere . The importance of initiating and maintaining personal contact between presenters and trainees during training Content: . The relationship of in-service demonstrations to the initial attempts of teachers to implement lessons 0 The importance of meticulous planning and professional presentation for their impact on “teaching“ and “selling“ a new program Change: . The vast range of teachers’ needs (personal, financial, professional) which must be considered by the change agents Support: a The need for EPEC to facilitate long-term support of teachers who are attempting to implement EPEC lessons 140 What surprises have there been? Context: 0 The strong impact of contextual issues such as the seating arrangements, the friendliness of the hosts, or the lunch menu, on teachers’ attitudes toward in-service training Content: 0 Teachers’ desire to be provided with “solid“ (factual/research based) information they can use for advocacy Change: a The degree to which the prospect of change affects teachers so differently (challenged by it, defensive about it, antagonistic, cooperative) . How teachers’ reactions to the prospect of change seem to be a result of a variety of issues . The range of professionalism and enthusiasm for teaching evidenced by focus group participants and the stories teachers were willing to share from their own teaching experiences Support: 0 Elementary physical education teachers’ expressions of professional isolation o The frustration of teachers in their quest to feel respected as professionals by their colleagues and administrators . The lack of support for professional development in some school districts . Teachers’ disinterest in personal rewards/awards in contrast to the interest expressed in awards for their schools What confirmation of previous instincts? Context: 0 Ambiance, personalities, and setting do make a difference to teachers participating in in—service training 0 Teachers are tough critics of presenters- thorough preparation and professional presentation are important to teachers Content: . Teachers hunger for current, research-based information; appreciate it in short, concise formats . Teachers need variety in their training experiences . Teachers appreciate hands-on Ieaming experiences 141 Change: . Teachers implementing EPEC need long-term follow-up support from EPEC staff members . For some teachers, the desire to change to EPEC lessons is overcome by their situations and they do not see any hope for it to change (scheduling and equipment budgets) Support: . Teachers are frustrated at the lack of understanding of physical education exhibited by administrators. colleagues, and others 0 Teachers feel isolated and need support through contact with their professional peers How have your “interviews“ been consistent with the literature? Context: . “The nature of the working relationship between in-service teachers and teacher educators (or other change agents) has a crucial beefing on the outcome of the effort (Anderson, 1982, p.15).” Content: 0 The “staff developer“ is paramount; viewed as the person who has access to resources; information, materials, equipment, training, consultation, and monies, (Knowles 8. Hord, 1981, p. 25) 0 Teachers want in-service training to provide relevant, useful information and materials (Conkle, 1997, p. 54) 0 Teachers want information on equipment resources at modest prices (Conkle, 1997, p.52) Change: . Incentives for participation (Burks 8. Fox, 1994, p.794-795); college credit, professional development credit, district reimbursement for the costs of training and travel, and curriculurnlclassroom materials are effective incentives . Administrators need training in order to understand and support new teaching initiatives (Burks & Fox, 1994, p. 785, 789) . Administrators can impart concern and support for teachers through positive confidence-building interactions and administrative actions taken to support implementation (Faucette, 1987, p. 439) . The change agent (or agency) needs to invest long term commitment and persistent support (Faucette, 1987, p. 437) . Teacher perceptions echo the assertions of the Concerns Based Adoption Model (CBAM) as described by Knowles and Hord (1981, p. 24-25) 1. Change is a process, not an event. 2. Change is accomplished by individuals first, then institutions. 142 3. Change is a highly personal experience. 4. Change entails developmental growth in both feelings about and skills for using new programs. 6. How have they been inconsistent? 0 According to Conkle (1997), teachers prefer to meet within their own district, in one day seminars, once a semester, or to meet in the summer (with a stipend) 7. How have they gone beyond? 0 Teachers want assistance with obtaining quality equipment at reasonable prices to implement the lessons . Teachers' need help with music and visual aids/posters; want “kits' of materials for implementing EPEC lessons . The desire for long-term support from the EPEC staff after in- service training: Follow-up “refresher' training meetings Voluntary regional meetings of EPEC users with a facilitator Periodic newsletter and advocacy materials Electronic communications system for teachers, their peers, and the EPEC staff School visits Assistance with the Govemors' Council on Physical Fitness, Health, and Sport Awards Ladder application process Recommendations While the process of answering research questions and sub-questions may lead to greater knowledge and understanding of the topic being studied; upon reflection, we may also achieve greater understanding of the research procedures used. The “20l20 hindsight“ of reflection has provided the following insight and understanding of the procedures used to conduct this research. One way to gain additional information in this study would have been to form focus groups based on the implementation levels of the teacher participants. If one could have studied the in-service training perceptions of 143 teachers who were high (or low) in lesson implementation fidelity, and compare or contrast their perceptions, it might have provided very useful information. The effort needed to successfully complete research using focus groups should not be underestimated. Though warned by experts of the deceptive nature of focus group research, the daunting weight of the processes involved was not fully appreciated until the anticipated tasks became reality. Focus group research is deceptive because, if it is done well, it is meant to look easy. Well designed focus groups should appear to be simple, despite the complex work involved in their design and implementation. The written report of analyzed data adds to this deception with its clarity of purpose, brevity, and the intentional simplicity in its presentation. It is often said, “the devil is in the details” and so it was with this case study of EPEC in-service training. Whether or not focus groups were the optimal resource for gathering all of the desired data was one “detail“ about which hindsight provided additional information. The usefulness of focus groups for gathering data on teacher in- service training depended on the nature of the category being discussed. The predicted advantages of tapping into multiple focus group interactions were evident when the category for discussion was fairly simple to address and rather impersonal. The categories of Context and Support are examples of categories which worked very well for focus groups. With these categories, teachers were free with their interactions and eager to share their opinions because the topics were of personal interest yet not personally revealing. In contrast, with the category of Change, the teachers seemed hesitant to talk freely about teachers 144 who are not open to change. The moderator sensed that if the participant was somewhat threatened by change, it was too uncomfortable to admit it and discuss it around others. There was also a sense that some participants were reluctant to discuss the issue of Change for fear they might insult others at the table who had not yet addressed it It was common to see participant’s eyes darling around the table looking for someone to speak while they sat silent. When examining topics like Change, which require participants to reflect on their own feelings and behaviors, it might be more effective to gather data through individual interviews or on a survey which forces responses. Although individual interviews provide privacy and the advantage of following up on answers, the ability to force response choices and the anonymity of a written survey might be an even better way to gather responses that could potentially threaten the honest responders’ ego. Multiple forms of gathering teachers' perspectives should be considered. A related recommendation is to have focus group participants discuss a topic in the context of application to “others“ when it is a topic which may make focus group members uneasy if applying the issues to themselves. The difficulty is predicting which topics may cause such uneasiness so that proactive steps may be taken. The moderator noticed teachers' reluctance to talk about Change issues while conducting the first two groups, yet the moderator was not able to develop a useful strategy for addressing the problem until meeting with the third group. A participant in the third group who labeled herself a “resister“ provided a useful key word which the moderator used to address the topic within that group 145 and with subsequent focus group participants. Once the moderator asked participants to address the issues of other teachers who may be “resisters“ to change, the teachers opened up to the topic. Except for the very confident teacher who coined the term “resister“ in describing herself, the focus group participants saw “resisters“ as someone other than themselves. Addressing the . topic relative to “others“ lead to great communication about ways to help resisters accept change through the in-senrice training process. Assessing the meaning which teachers' assign to topic titles is also recommended. In one case, the category title, Content, was a problem because several teachers misinterpreted what we would be talking about and it was difficult to change their mindset. Their interpretation of “Content“ was that we would discuss content of the EPEC jeeeppe, a topic they were very eager to talk about. The moderator's intention was to discuss content of EPEC trai__g_I_pg, not nearly as interesting to the teachers. It was difficult to get teachers to change from the direction they thought the discussion was to go, lesson content, to something of less interest to them, training content Recruitment of subjects for the focus groups was another troublesome “detail”. Teachers' commitments to school and church committees, coaching, and family made it very difficult to secure the targeted minimum number (6) of willing participants for each group despite making many follow-up calls and proposing multiple options for meeting dates in each locality. The total number of focus group participants (11 participants out of 54 eligible trainees) was disappointing yet had there been more participants per group, they would not 146 have had time to so thoroughly address all the topics. One needs to find the best balance between the number of participants per group and the number of topics to be addressed. In this case, the small number participating in each group was an advantage given the large amount of information discussed. A few group members were possibly more forthcoming with their comments than they might have been had there been more participants present. Even the smallest focus group of two teachers had plenty to contribute and used the full two hours on task. Conducfing additional groups (probably small also) in other locations around the state would have been another way to gather more data had there been more time and resources available. Additional groups would not necessarily have added more data, although that possibility exists. After four small groups, there was redundancy in the data gathered on each topic and subtopic which would indicate that an adequate amount of saturation had been achieved. Would a more generous honorarium provide the necessary incentive to get more teachers to participate? The focus group members did not seem very interested in the honoraria. This may have been due to its meager amount ($10.00), or it may be that a monetary reward does not matter much unless it is very substantial. None of the recruits mentioned the small amount of the honorarium as a reason for not participating in a focus group and none of those who participated mentioned the honorarium as the reason they did. It may be more important to teachers that their participation doesn't cost them money out of 147 pocket, rather than that they receive something for it. The fact that they may be able to contribute to information on planning in-service training was mentioned by some as a good reason to participate. Some of those who declined to participate indicated a desire to have been involved as a contributor except for their other obligations. The comments of the focus group participants on EPEC in-service training were very positive and complimentary. If this positive point of view represents most of the teachers who trained, perhaps some of the potential in-service participants felt there was not much they could add to improve on an in-service training process that was already being done well. In the future, this issue could be addressed in recruiting calls. Future Study When reflecting upon the process and outcomes of this study, it is apparent that the following related areas may be worth studying in the future: . Teacher perceptions of in-service training relative to their level of EPEC implementation. . Specific interventions and/or methods for aiding the change process when teachers resist change, or when they experience difficulties while attempting to change to new ways of teaching. . The effects of structured follow-up and support for teachers as they implement EPEC. . Elementary school physical education teachers perceptions of isolation from professional peers. . The use of communication links as support systems for elementary school physical education teachers. 148 Elementary school administrators” and teachers' perceptions of the role of the elementary school physical education teacher before and after EPEC training. Elementary school administrators’ and teachers' perceptions of the goals and objectives elementary school physical education before and after EPEC training. 149 Suggestions For The Design Of EPE C Teacher ln-Service Training Derived From Post- Training Teacher Perceptions Suggestions for the design of EPEC teacher in-service training were obtained from analysis of focus group data generated by a sample of teachers who participated in EPEC teacher in-service training during the 1998-99 academic year. The data represent teacher’s post-training perceptions of EPEC in-service training experiences. The focus group participants addressed in- service training within a structure delimited by four categories; Context, Content, Change, and Support. The categories, topics, and subtopics are indicated by the headings used to present suggested guidelines in the following report. Categog 1. Context Time Time schedule: Keep time schedule close to a “normal school day“ or less Announce the schedule in advance materials Announce the schedule at the start of each day Stay on schedule Keep lectures to less than one hour Try to finish a little earlier than expected Be alert to signs of participant fatigue Number of sessions: Two days is most appropriate for initial in-service training One day of additional training for subsequent grade levels Use caution that “review” from day #1 is limited on day #2 to avoid redundancy Make sure time scheduled is appropriate for quantity and purpose of in-service content Time between sessions: Schedule one week plus one day between sessions to avoid teachers being absent from the same classes both weeks Provide sufficient time for teachers to practice selected lessons with their own students between sessions 150 Time of year: Conduct training in early fall for those intending to implement during the current school year Conduct training in spring for those intending to implement during the following school year Summer is not a good time to train due to other commitments and the need to practice selected lessons with their own students Physical Environment Location: a Free parking . Easy access from highways . Detailed map . Signs/directions inside the facility . Avoid mid-city of metropolitan areas Facility/space: Appropriate spaces for all types of training needs; lectures, activities/demonstrations, and lunch Lecture area; small enough room to easily see presentations, large round tables with room to spread out notebooks Large enough demonstration area (gymnasium preferred) Be aware of potential distractions such as blowing window blinds, mechanical noises, etc. Food and breaks: Provide coffee in the morning when teachers arrive Provide a mid-morning break unless there is activity scheduled Serve lunch in the meeting room Structure lunch so participants eat together, in the room if possible Simple buffet lunch with options for sandwiches, salads, and dessert Base lunch menu decisions on healthy choices and quality Social environment Group size: Twenty to thirty participants is ideal Avoid crowding at the tables 151 EPEC personnel/personalities: Make yourself available Initiate social interactions with participants as they arrive Introduce self to individuals Use participant names throughout training Point out refreshments and restrooms Avoid any indicators of defensiveness with teachers who question EPEC methods or materials Social comfort of participants: 0 Have teachers introduce themselves to the group . Use “ice-breaker“ activities to go beyond introducing themselves to get to know at least one other person . Use an activity to pair each participant up with someone they do not know to be their partner for the training that morning, afternoon, or for the day Catgogy 2. Content Presentations Presenters’ knowledge: - Presenters need to project personal command of the subject matter. . lnforrnation must be “solid”; concise, factual, useful, and relevant. Presentation skills: 0 Presenters need to project confidence in public speaking «I Presenters must practice using presentation technology 0 Presenters should convey professionalism and interest in the subject matter through appropriate clothing/appearance, energy, competence, enthusiasm, and a sense of humor Presenters' credibility: o Presenters need to be connected to the subject matter in a practical way; either by teaching physical education or regularly visiting schools and working with physical education teachers who use EPEC materials Method of presentation: 0 Use Power Point for lecture presentations 0 Provide paper copies of Power Point screens to keep teachers on task during lectures 152 Use of color on screens and handouts is helpful Guided discovery teaching is a useful and effective technique for Ieaming to use the notebooks and lessons Pace should allow for notes to be taken during lecture Demonstration of model lessons: Demonstrations are essential to the training process The demonstrator needs to use good presentation skills and techniques just as a lecturer would Be aware that the demonstrator is the “ideal“ used to model EPEC expectations for teaching the lessons Maintain consistency between what participants are told about using materials and what is demonstrated Err on the side of too many rather than too few teaching demonstrations Demonstrate EPEC lessons teaching less familiar skills Teacher training Knowledge and understanding of EPEC materials: The combined use of Power Point and guided discovery teaching techniques with worksheets is very effective for teaching teachers to “locate and read“ the lesson parts Use and application of EPEC materials: Teaching lessons to peers requires an advance warning that it will happen and plenty of time to prepare; Assign lessons in the morning to teach in the afternoon after providing practice time, or assign lessons on day #1, to teach on day #2 Assign selected lessons to be practiced by the teachers with their own students between session #1 and session #2 Professional development Belief in the value of EPEC: The in-service content and purpose should be clearly described so teachers may determine Whether it fits with their intentions The scope and meticulous preparation of EPEC materials conveys a positive message about their value Research based information makes the material credible Emphasize unique and desirable features of the materials: focus on educational objectives, accountability, productivity 153 Commitment to implement EPEC: Materials Appeal to the teacher’s role as a professional educator Build on the teachers’ sense of purpose for physical education Emphasize the “need and value“ of EPEC Printed instructional materials, notebooks, and handouts: The size of the notebooks can be ovenrvhelming; be aware of the daunting impact of the written materials when teachers first see them Instruction on using the notebooks is critical Separate notebooks for each grade are desirable Notebooks must be clearly and consistently organized within and between grades for ease in finding materials Key words are very helpful Illustrations are necessary and useful Vrsual presentations: Use color in visuals Use of the EPEC logo establishes a professional appearance Use consistent format Skilled use of Power Point technology creates confidence in the presenter Provide participants with paper copy of screens with abundant white space for note-taking Learning issues related to the content of training Pace of training: Maintain balance between lecture and other forms of training Limit lecture to less than one hour Provide adequate time for note-taking Balance amount of material with time available Be alert to participant fatigue Physical education teachers do not sit during their day so their tolerance for sitting is probably diminished Alternate active Ieaming with more sedentary tasks Variety of training experiences: Frequently change the type of Ieaming experience 154 Time to practice between training sessions; Training sessions held one week plus one day apart provide enough time for most (not all) teachers to practice teaching selected lessons to their students Subsequent training for additional grade levels: Training should be one day for those who have already trained with other grade levels Avoid redundancy in subsequent training for additional grades Keep it short Do not combine those who have already trained with new trainees Categogy 3. Change Consider factors which cause resistance to change Personal reasons for resistance: Negative attitudes Preparation time and effort Fear Professional reasons for resistance: Prefer their current program Do not think students will tolerate change Feel threatened about accountability Do not feel supported by administrator Fear of a mandated curriculum Consider factors that motivate teachers to chapge Personal perspectives: Boredom with teaching Curiosity about something new Recognition that students aren’t Ieaming with current program Desire to be respected as a teacher Desire to do a better job Non-specific dissatisfactions with current teaching situation Pressure from their administrator Evidence that EPEC will work for them 155 Need for EPEC: Health statistics on Michigan children Data on lifestyle and daily activity Material on decline of physical education in schools Desire to be accountable/respected Value of EPEC: Student achievement of physical education objectives Updates veteran teachers with current knowledge Assists new teachers lnvigorates veteran teachers Decreases boredom with teaching Increases legitimacy of physical education Usefulness of EPEC: The curriculum is all set up for teachers The lessons are already written for teachers The lessons are effective in achieving objectives The illustrations assist teaching and Ieaming Preparing teaching notes from plans is quick and easy Homework is provided Students think skills practice is fun. Students are able to change with their teacher’s new methods Suggestions for overcoming teacher’s resistance to change Present data on positive outcomes of EPEC instruction when it has been implemented as designed Have other teachers tell their success stories with EPEC Observe and participate in many demonstrations Observe and participate in a variety of demonstrations Show videotapes of a variety of lessons taught by other teachers in actual class settings Require teachers to teach selected lessons several times to their own students between training sessions Address teachers’ boredom with teaching Assure teachers they can implement EPEC at their own pace (year-by-year or unit-by-unit) Teach teachers how to implement lessons in small pieces Teach teachers how to flex the lessons to fit a variety of teaching schedules (more, or less than, two days per week) Explain how to use the lesson materials to assess students Provide kits of posters and music to support the lessons 156 Provide a resource for purchasing necessary equipment at a reduced price Provide support (see Category 4. Support) Categogy 4. Support EPEC staff Establish supportive atmosphere at in-service training: Be assertive about introducing themselves to individual teachers as they arrive Be proactive in making teachers comfortable when they arrive (avoid being “busy” with last minute preparations) Learn and use teacher’s names Promptly address any problems that come up prior to training, when teachers arrive, or during training Provide letters or other evidence of “official” support from recognizable pe0ple in positions of authority, e.g., Governor Engler’s letter Have EPEC staff available during presentations to work one on one with teachers who need help Be receptive to teachers’ concerns (avoid defensive responses) Relate to teacher's issues: EPEC staff should teach physical education, and/or visit EPEC schools regularly to see what it is like for teachers in their school environment Provide help/suggestions for working with unusual facilities or inadequate equipment Work with school administrators and teachers' groups to establish support for physical education and EPEC Provide advocacy materials for teachers to use in support of their own efforts Provide equipment list of materials needed to implement EPEC lessons Provide a discounted source for equipment Include kits of posters and music within the training materials/costs Accessibility/communication between EPEC staff and teachers: Place EPEC telephone numbers on all materials Provide EPEC electronic mail address on all materials Clarify directions for using the EPEC web site 157 Provide follow-up services for long term support: . Send an EPEC newsletter to teachers on a regular schedule 0 Provide assistance with Michigan Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness, Health, and Sport, Awards ladder application procedures . Establish communication between teachers who are using EPEC, ie; electronic mail addresses, names/phone numbers a Schedule a follow-up meeting several months after training Provide annual “retreats” or “refresher” training . Facilitate regional monthly or bi-monthly voluntary meetings for teachers who are using EPEC School and community resources Support from school district administrators and building principals: District administrators; 0 Attend EPEC administrator’s meetings. 0 Encourage building principals to make an EPEC commitment for their school. Communicate/educate district teachers about EPEC Communicate/educate district parents about EPEC Building principals; . Provide assistance in educating teaching colleagues about physical education and EPEC . Provide assistance in communicating with parents about physical education and EPEC . Schedule classes to make implementation as smooth as possible given the range of grade levels in a building Fund expenses for teachers to attend training meetings Fund necessary equipment to implement EPEC Support from colleagues, professional peers, and others: Colleagues; - EPEC staff and school administrators need to support the efforts of teachers to educate their colleagues about physical education and EPEC 0 Provide advocacy materials for EPEC teachers to use Professional peers in physical education; . Teachers need support from their teaching peers in physical education. Effort by EPEC staff to establish communication between teachers via telephone, electronic mail, and in 158 regularIy scheduled gatherings is important to tapping this critical source of support Parents and community; 0 Provide news articles on physical activity and health issues to use in written communications from school Families and significant others; . Provide a resource for EPEC “scholarships“ so teachers do not have to personally bear the costs for in-service training when school districts do not fund it Incentives to train and implement EPEC Equipment and supplies: a Reduced cost equipment 0 Kits of posters and music Continuing Education Units: . Useful for younger teachers, not for veteran teachers Graduate credits: . Offer university credit toward graduate degrees Rewards: o A positive letter to school district superintendents and principals on behalf of the teacher who is training . Equipment . Certificate as evidence of their training Awards and recognition: 0 The Michigan Governor's Council Awards Ladder . Low cost EPEC logo clothing items Promotional materials: - Recognition of students in the program, ie: stickers, book marks, certificates, bumper stickers, etc. Television spots Gymnasium banners Low cost EPEC clothing items for teachers and students 159 APPENDICES 160 APPENDIX A EPEC PROJECT DESCRIPTION 161 APPENDIX A EPEC PROJECT DESCRIPTION ”W5: Emmi-[447 PAM WM W Pcwj'zci H l- EP EC The Need Low percentages of physically fit children in Michigan confirm the need for revitalized programs of cxccUcncc in physical education. When compared to their peers in orhcr states, the youth of Michigan exhibit several elevated health risk factors that are precursors to serious diseases (e.g., physical inacdvity, obesit , til-EPEC elevated cholesrcrol, anyd high blood pressure). Accordingly. Governor Englcr charged the Governor's Council on Physical Fitness to csrablish model physical education programs in Michigan. Project Mission The mission of the til-EPEC Project is to enable those responsible for physical education in Michigan to create exemplary programs. This requires dcchOping and disseminating materials and procedures that result in the youth of Michigan obtaining the necessary fitness levels, Frotor skills. knowledges and attitudes to be fit or life. Curriculum Materials Curricular materials for high-priority objectives currently are being developed in four content areas. Physical Fitness Developing fit children is essential to reducing their risks of disease. Lowered risks result in lowered health care costs. both now and in the future. Two examples clearly show the link: developing aerobic capacity is related to a reduced incidence of cardiovascular disease and enhanced stamina; low back pain. the number one medical complaint, largely can be prevented or treated by dcchOping adequate lower back and abdominal Strength. Motor Skills Motor skills, such as run. jump. throw and catch. constitute an essential portion of the fundamentals of movement. Skilled movement is. ~ a prerequisite in the pursuit and mainrcnancc of fitness through participation in a broad range of leisure activities. People who are unskilled tend to avoid participation in activity, thereby reducing their fitness levels. overall health. and general quality of life. Activity-Related Knowledge Wise use of physical activity requires knowledge of several key concepts. Understanding the beneficial as well as the detrimental effects of activity. and how to prevent and care for injuries, are examples of important concepts included in the curriculum. Personal/Social Attitude: The ability to follow dirccrions. cooperate. and exert a best effort are important personal/social skills. Physical education. though not alone in the responsibility to foster these skills, provides unique Opportunities for children to learn and internalize positive personal/social behaviors. Acquiring these skills also helps create an environment that enhances learning in the Other content areas. Instructional Model The model guiding the design of instructional materials emphasizes educational objectives with clearly srarcd performance criteria, sequential teaching progressions. assessment materials and teaching~lcarning activities. The model shifts the emphasis from assuming that any potential benefit of physical education is achieved merely through participation in traditional activities to designing Specific educational activities to achieve high-priority educational outcomes. Materials to extend the influence of physical education beyond the PE. classroom also are included in the instructional materials. By providing classroom teachers and orhcrs with . ideas for involvement in acrivity during recess, lunch hour, and after school, young people and their families can enter into higher levels of physical activity without adding the cost of hiring more physical education teachers. Evaluation The evaluation of student achievement and program effectiveness are necessary components of quality educational programs. The use of educational objccrivcs. clearly srared performance criteria, and repeatable insuuctional Strategies provides a structure for documenting quality, providing for mass dissemination and planning for feedback and sysrcmatic refinement. AWo‘lfiCa-M'erPWFMIMJMMJTh HWFW—Lu FM 162 APPENDIX B EPEC CONSORTIUM MEMBERS 163 Andy Anderson Gary Arbogast Mary Beno Linda Brown Mike Conlin Glenna DeJong Steve Garrison Elizabeth Coke Haller John Haubenstricker Cameron Howes Tom Johnson Candy Kokinakis Sue Kolp Joyce Krause Charles T. Kuntzleman Mike Maisner Karol Mark Bryan Masi John McPhail Steve Moyer Michael Paciorek Erik Pedersen Fred Price Jack Romine Patricia Irwin Rowe Ernie Seebeck N Vondrasek Jim Webb APPENDIX B EPEC CONSORTIUM MEMBERS University of Toronto Central Michigan University L.E.S.A. Michigan Fitness Foundation Michigan Parks and Recreation Michigan Fitness Foundation Michigan Fitness Foundation Michigan Department of Education Michigan State University Northern Michigan University Albion College Michigan Fitness Foundation Wayne State University Wayne State University University of Michigan Michigan Parks and Recreation Northview Public Schools Northville Public Schools Wisdom to Wellness, Inc. Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University Livonia Public Schools Saginaw Valley State University Grand Valley State University Midland Public Schools Saginaw Township Community Schools Coleman Community Schools 164 APPENDIX C EPEC 1998-99 TEACHER lN-SERVICE TRAINING AGENDA 165 8:30 9:00 9:25 9:45 APPENDIX C EPEC K-2 TEACHER lN-SERVICE TRAINING DAY ONE AGENDA Tog'c Registration Welcome, Overview, Introductions and Information Gathering Content of EPEC lessons EPEC Lesson Demo 1 10:20 Break 10:30 Objectives and Teaching/Learning Progressions 11:30 Lunch 12:15 EPEC K-2 Lesson Format and Special Features 1:00 1:20 1 :45 2:40 2:50 2:55 EPEC Lesson Demo 2 Commonly Asked questions About EPEC K-2 Lessons Preparing To Teach EPEC K-2 Lessons Question/Answer Period Assignment for Day 2 0 Teach lesson K-40 at least four times . Review Users Manual Summary, Day 1 Evaluation and Close 166 Presenter Steve Garrison Linda Brown Glenna DeJong Glenna DeJong Linda Brown Glenna DeJong Glenna DeJong Linda Brown Glenna DeJong Steve Garrison EPEC Staff Glenna DeJong Glenna DeJong APPENDIX C EPEC K-2 TEACHER IN-SERVICE TRAINING DAY TWO AGENDA Time Top'c 8:45 Registration 9:00 9:05 Discussion of Assignments 0 Teaching K-40 . Reviewing User’s Manual Inclusion of Students With Special Needs 9:45 Advocating for Physical Education 10:10 Break 10:20 EPEC Performance Benchmarks 10:50 Implementation of EPEC in Grade 1,2 and Beyond . Transitional Model a Full Implementation Model 11:20 Teaching EPEC Other Than Twice Weekly/30 Minutes Each . Content Reduction or Increase 11:30 Lunch 12:15 Feedback Workshop 0 Importance and Types of Feedback in EPEC . Lesson Demo (K-44): Examples of Feedback . Preparing to Teach/Give Feedback . Teaching With Feedback 2:30 Fall 1998: Implementing EPEC Welcome, Review Day One and Overview Day Two Presenter Glenna DeJong Glenna DeJong Glenna DeJong Steve Garrison Linda Brown Glenna DeJong Glenna DeJong Glenna DeJong Glenna DeJong Glenna DeJong Linda Brown Teachers All 2:45 Summary of Inservioe Training, Evaluation and Close Glenna DeJong . Presentation of Certificates and Letters 167 Steve Garrison Linda Brown APPENDIX D COMMUNICATIONS WITH FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANTS Letter of confirmation Participation agreement Reminder letter Thank you letter Post Focus Group Comment Form 168 APPENDIX D LETTER OF CONFIRMATION NAME ADDRESS DATE SALUTATION: Thank you for accepting my invitation to participate in a research study on the design of EPEC teacher in-service training. Your name was randomly selected from a pool of teachers who attended EPEC K-2 in-service training in CITY, Ml this year. My invitation is for you to participate in one small focus group discussion for up to two hours so we may gather information to guide future EPEC in-service training procedures. In exchange for participation, you will receive $10.00 to defray the costs of travel and parking. Because of your recent experience with EPEC in-service training and implementation, this is an opportunity for you to make a significant contribution to the design of in-service education for future EPEC users. A focus group is described as a “conversation with a purpose”. Our conversation will involve a very informal exchange of ideas for designing EPEC in-service training procedures. The focus group will have 3-4 participants. We will audiotape the exchange of ideas and a transcript of the tape will be used for analysis. A summary of focus group topics will be sent to you for any additional comments or clarification you wish to contribute after your group has met. All input will be kept strictly confidential. Any comments you make, oral or written, will not be attributed by name to you or your school in any report, oral or written. Your participation will require attending one focus group meeting approximately 2 hours long. Conditions of participation are listed on the reverse side. Your focus group will meet on DATE, at TIME, at PLACE, in CITY, MI. Dress is casual, light refreshments will be provided. If you need additional information or have any questions about this focus group please call me at home at NUMBER, or at Grand Valley State University, Department of Movement Science, NUMBER. Please confirm your willingness to participate by filling out the enclosed consent form and returning it in the postage paid envelope. A "reminder" will be sent to you shortly before our meeting. Thank you for your assistance on this project. I am eagerly looking forward to our focus group for this valuable exchange of ideas. Sincerely, Patricia Irwin Rowe 169 APPENDIX D INFORMED CONSENT/PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT Dissertation Research Study of EPEC Teacher ln-service Training Conditions of participation in this study: a My participation is completely voluntary. I may choose not to participate, or I may discontinue my participation at any time without penalty. I do understand that my participation is valued as it will contribute to the improvement of EPEC teacher in-service training. . Participation in this study will involve attending one meeting approximately 2 hours long. . A form with tapics from the focus group will be sent to me for any additional comments I may wish to contribute after the focus group meeting. . All information I provide will remain confidential. Data will be analyzed and reported without identification of individuals or schools. 0 I will receive an honorarium of $10.00 for participating in the focus group. I have read all of the preceding information. By completing, signing, and returning this form, I agree to participate in this study. I will be sent a "reminder" of the day, time, and place to meet with my focus group. The last four digits of my social security number are Mailing address: Name (please print) # and street City ZIP Signature Please list any teacher in-service training topics you would like the focus group to address: 1. 2. 3. 170 APPENDIX D PARTICIPANT REMINDER LETTER NAME ADDRESS DATE SALUTATION: Thank you for agreeing to participate in the focus group to discuss EPEC teacher in-service training. I am looking forward to meeting with you and the rest of your group. Your input is very important as the information obtained from this focus group will be used to improve EPEC teacher in-service training in the future. Your focus group will meet at TIME on DATE, at PLACE, in CITY. A map is enclosed. Please plan to arrive 10-15 minutes early. Those who arrive after we have begun will not be able to participate. Dress is casual, light refreshments will be served. The group will meet for approximately 2 hours. Your contribution to improvement of the EPEC teacher in- service training process is truly appreciated. Thank you for participating in this study. Sincerely, Patricia Irwin Rowe (616) PHONE (Home) (616) PHONE (School) 171 APPENDIX D THANK YOU LETTER TO PARTICIPANTS NAME ADDRESS DATE SALUTATION: Just a note to thank you for your contribution to our focus group to study the EPEC teacher in-service training process. The input gathered from your focus group is being transcribed so I may begin analysis of it very soon. This information will be used to design future EPEC teacher in-service training. I have enclosed a form and a stamped, addressed envelope for you to provide additional comments on EPEC in-service training if you wish to do so. The form is similar to the one we used at the focus group describing our focus group topics. If you choose to respond, your written comments will be added to the comments recorded during the focus group discussion. Thank you for taking time to improve future EPEC teacher in-service training. Your participation in the EPEC project and particularly in the focus group is truly valuable and appreciated. Have a great school year- Sincerely, Patricia Irwin Rowe (616) PHONE (Home) (616) PHONE (School) 172 APPENDIX D POST FOCUS GROUP COMMENT FORM Sometimes after very busy interactions, we have additional thoughts as we contemplate the discussion at a later, quieter time. This form is for you to add ideas or concerns about teacher in-service training that occurred to you after the focus group discussion. Topic 1. Context (Did the in-service training “set-up” meet your needs?) Comment on the environment for the in-service such as location, facility, schedule, breaks, food, directions, etc. Topic 2. Content (Was your need for knowledge addressed?) Comment on the content of the in-service training such as information presented, presenters, visual aids, hands-on materials, demonstrations, explanations, etc. 173 Topic 3. Change (Were your values and beliefs about teaching addressed?) Comment on your concerns about change/changing to different ways of teaching, and factors which may enable/disable your desire or ability to change. Topic 4. Support (Discuss your feelings regarding support for your efforts to teach EPEC lessons?) Comment on services or resources which were provided or you would like to have provided in order to feel adequately supported? 174 APPENDIX E COMMUNICATIONS WITH PILOT FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANTS Letter of confirmation Participation agreement Reminder letter Thank you letter Post Pilot Focus Group Comment Form 175 APPENDIX E CONFIRMATION LETTER NAME ADDRESS DATE SALUTATION: Thank you for agreeing to participate in our pilot research study on design of EPEC teacher in-service training. Because you participated in EPEC in-service training in CITY last winter you were randomly selected to participate in one meeting with a small focus group to gather information to guide future EPEC in- service training procedures. Your experience with EPEC in-service training and implementation enables you to make a significant contribution to the design of in- service training for future EPEC users. A focus group is described as a “conversation with a purpose”. Our conversation will involve a very informal exchange of ideas for designing EPEC in-service training procedures. The focus group will have approximately 7-8 participants. We will audiotape the exchange of ideas so the transcript of our focus group can be used for analysis. Your input will be kept confidential. Comments will not be identified or associated with your name or school in any report, oral or written. Your participation will require attending one focus group meeting approximately 2 hours long. Conditions of participation are listed on the reverse side. Your focus group will meet on DATE, at TIME, at PLACE, CITY. Dress is very casual, light refreshments will be provided. If you need additional information or have any questions about this focus group please call me at PHONE. Please confirm your willingness to participate by filling out the enclosed consent form and returning it in the postage paid envelope. A "reminder" will be sent to you shortly before our meeting. Thank you for your assistance on this project. I am eagerly looking toward to this valuable exchange of ideas. Sincerely, Patricia Irwin Rowe (616) PHONE (Home) (616) PHONE (School) 176 APPENDIX E INFORMED CONSENT/PARTICIPATION AGREEMENT Dissertation Research Pilot Study of EPEC Teacher In-service Training Conditions of participation in this pilot study: . My participation is completely voluntary. I may choose not to participate, or I may discontinue my participation at any time without penalty. I do understand that my participation is valued as it will contribute to the improvement of EPEC teacher in-service training. . Participation in this study will involve attending one meeting approximately 2 hours long. a A form with tapics from the focus group will be sent to me for any additional comments I may wish to contribute. o All information I provide will remain confidential. Data will be analyzed and reported without identification of individuals or schools. . I will receive an honorarium of $10.00 for participating in the focus group. I have read all of the preceding information. By completing, signing, and returning this form, I agree to participate in this pilot study. I will be sent a "reminder" of the day, time, and place to meet with my focus group. Last four digits of your social security number Mailing address: Name (please print) # and street City ZIP Signature Please address the following teacher in-service training issues: 1. 2. 3. 177 APPENDIX E EPEC TEACHER IN-SERVICE TRAINING PILOT STUDY FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANT REMINDER NAME ADDRESS DATE SALUTATION: Thank you for agreeing to parh'cipate in the EPEC teacher in-service training pilot focus group. The information obtained from this pilot group will help to design research on EPEC teacher in-service training for the future. Your group will meet at TIME, on DATE, PLACE, CITY. Please plan to arrive 10-15 minutes early. Those who arrive after we have begun will not be able to participate. Dress is very casual, light refreshments will be served. The group will meet for approximately 2 hours. Your contribution to improvement of the EPEC teacher in-service training process is truly appreciated. Thank you for contributing to this study. Sincerely, Patricia Irwin Rowe (616) PHONE (Home) (616) PHONE (School) 178 APPENDIX E EPEC TEACHER lN-SERVICE TRAINING STUDY PILOT FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANT THANK YOU LETTER NAME ADDRESS DATE SALUTATION: Thank you for participating in our pilot focus group to discuss EPEC teacher in- service training. The input gathered from your focus group is being transcribed so I may begin analysis of it very soon. Subsequent research on EPEC teacher in-service training will be designed according to what has been learned from your focus group. I have enclosed a form with our focus group topics and a stamped, addressed envelope for you to provide additional comments on our focus group discussion if you wish to do so. Thank you for taking the time to improve future EPEC teacher in-service training. Your participation in the EPEC project and particularly in fliis pilot focus group is truly appreciated. Have a great school year! Sincerely, Patricia Irwin Rowe PHONE (HOME) PHONE (SCHOOL) 179 APPENDIX E POST FOCUS GROUP COMMENT FORM Sometimes after very busy interactions, we have additional thoughts as we contemplate the discussion at a later, quieter time. This form is for you to add ideas or concerns about teacher in-service training that occurred to you after the focus group discussion. Topic 1. Context (Did the in-service training“set-up' meet your needs?) Comment on the environment for the in-service such as location, facility, schedule, breaks, food, directions, etc. Topic 2. Content (Was your need for knowledge addressed?) Comment on the content of the in-service training such as information presented, presenters, visual aids, hands-on materials, demonstrations, explanations, etc. 180 Topic 3. Change (Were your values and beliefs about teaching addressed?) Comment on your concerns about change/changing to different ways of teaching, and factors which may enable/disable your desire or ability to change. Topic 4. Support (Discuss your feelings regarding support for your efforts to teach EPEC lessons?) Comment on services or resources which were provided or you would like to have provided in order to feel adequately supported? 181 APPENDIX F FOCUS GROUP MODERATORS' GUIDE Moderator's Tasks for Conducting the Focus group Moderators Agenda for Conducting the Focus group Moderator's Interview Guide Topic Outline Moderator’s Interview Script 182 APPENDIX F FOCUS GROUP MODERATORS' TASKS Moderator's tasks for conducting the focus groups: VI. VII. VIII. IX. Reserve site Recruit participants by telephone Mail confirmation letter immediately Mail reminder letters 10 days before meeting Purchase recording equipment Test equipment and tapes Purchase long extension cord with ground Tape for securing cords Confirm site before sending reminder letters to participants Arrive at site 45 minutes before session Set up for focus group Large table with chairs Set up and test recording equipment (say place/date for the record) Refreshments/supplies Beverages Snacks Plates, napkins, and cups Locate restrooms Name plates and large marker Note paper and pens for all participants Agenda and copies of overheads from in-services for all Forms for Nominal Group Technique (NGT) for all Seating chart for moderator to fill in Greet participants as they arrive Take care of coats Point out restroom facilities Offer snacks and beverages Welcome participants per script Conduct NGT Conduct focus group conversation per script 183 X. Conduct summary conversation and review highlights XI. Thank participants Present honorarium Xll. Send letter of appreciation and follow-up form XIII. Organize transcribed data XN. Analyze and report data XV. Summarize results and recommend criteria for teacher in-service training (The Focus Group Moderator's Guide is from a model in Vaughn, 1996, p.43.) 184 APPENDIX F MODERATOR'S AGENDA FOR CONDUCTING THE FOCUS GROUP l. Greet participants individually as they arrive Point out restroom facilities (power of suggestion) Offer seating at table, reserve moderator's seat ll. Welcome to focus group participants Introductions around the table (use pseudonyms if desired) Set a safe, congenial tone to put participants at ease Appreciation for their participation Refreshments available throughout session May use restroom if necessary- only 2 hours Complete name place cards with any name you wish to use III. Conduct focus group discussion Statement of purpose for the focus group Introductory question Nominal Group Technique (NGT) Discussion focused on four main topics Summary discussion IV. Clarification of terms and procedures Establish knowledge base of key terms/tapics which will be used Provide definitions of key terms Focus group procedures Confidentiality Avoid interrupting or speaking over others Avoid "side conversations" V. Conduct Nominal Group Technique Individuals independently use NGT forms to write down initial thoughts on the four discussion categories; Context, Content, Change, and Support VI. Discuss easy, non-threatening category Topic 1. CONTEXT VII. Discuss more difficult categories Topic 2. CONTENT Topic 3. CHANGE Topic 4. SUPPORT 185 VIII. Discuss summary question Topic 5. NON-CATEGORICAUSUMMARY QUESTION Identify and organize the major themes from the participant's responses; ensure that any points not completed are addressed to the group's satisfaction. VII. Closing statement Reminders of confidentiality Provide honoraria (sign receipt list) Express appreciation to the focus group members 186 APPENDIX F MODERATORS' INTERVIEW GUIDE TOPIC OUTLINE The following outline addresses the topical path to be pursued during the focus group conversation (the interview questions are located in the Moderators’ Interview Script). TOPIC 1. CONTEXT 1.1. Time # of hours/dayslsessions Time (days/weeks) between training sessions In the future, best time to train teachers? Summer, academic year, during/after school? 1.2. Physical environment Location Facility F ood/breaks 1.3 Social Environment Group size Personnel Comfort TOPIC 2. CONTENT 2.1. Presentations (use EPEC in-service agendas for reference) Presenters Content of presentations Teacher training Knowledge/understanding of EPEC Sense of being "able to" implement EPEC Professional development Believe in, see value in EPEC Sense that one "ought to" implement EPEC 2.2. Materials used in training Print materials Format Notebooks Visuals/overheads Amount of material Types of materials Quality of material 187 2.3 Time issues Time on task Time to practice Time between sessions TOPIC 3. CHANGE 3.1. 3.2. 3.3. 3.4 3.5 3.5. 3.6 CATEGORY 4. 4.1 Need for EPEC curriculum Convincing rationale for EPEC? Adequate level of knowledge enabled by training? Belief in EPEC enabled by training? Developed sense of comittment to EPEC? Value of EPEC lessons Format Content Usefulness Effectiveness Confidence in EPEC Prior to implementation With implementation Factors that enable change Personal Professional Factors that cause resistance to change Personal Professional Changes in teacher beliefs related to PETE undergraduate experience Customary ways of teaching Children as learners Expectations for student achievement Ability of students to change with the teacher General issues to address regarding change How were your beliefs about teaching physical education challenged by EPEC? In what ways did you find that your beliefs about teaching physical education changed? Did your feelings about the EPEC curriculum/lessons change over training? In what ways will EPEC challenge the beliefs of most teachers? SUPPORT Sense of support from EPEC staff Personnel, collegial atmosphere Relate to teachers’ issues Accessibility of staff 188 4.2 4.3 CATEGORY 5. 5.1 Communication, electronic media What do teachers need from them? Support from others Colleague support Peer interaction, networking Administrator support Time to plan Facility Equipment Scheduling In-service costs Parent/community support Incentives to train and implement EPEC Continuing Education Units Graduate credit Rewards and awards Recognition and public relations SUMMARY NON-CATEGORICAL QUESTIONS Summary of positive features of training? Summary of negative features of training? What else needs to be addressed for future users of EPEC? 189 APPENDIX F MODERATORS’ INTERVIEW SCRIPT WELCOME: (establish purpose and ground rules) Before we begin, I would like to introduce myself and tell you why we are here today. My name is Patti Rowe. I am an Assistant Professor in the Movement Science Department at Grand Valley State University. My area of academic responsibility in our department is teacher preparation in K-12 Physical Education. I am a doctoral student in the Kinesiology department at Michigan State University. I am meeting with you, and others, in small focus groups to gather information for my research on teacher in-service training. I have invited you here to discuss the EPEC teacher in-service training you experienced in (month). The purpose of our focus group discussion is for you to provide honest feedback on various aspects of EPEC in-service training in order for me to better understand what teachers need from in-service training. I will use your input to develop criteria for design of in-service training that best meets the needs of teachers. REMINDERS: . I did not participate in the design of the EPEC in-service training, therefore a) you will not offend me in any way if your comments are critical, b) I am not looking for compliments. . Our conversation is being tape recorded so an accurate record of comments is available for transcription and analysis. This information will be treated confidentially. Your comments will never be associated with your name or school in reporting on this study. . Because we are being taped, you will need to take turns speaking and avoid interrupting and talking over each other on the tape. . Remember our purpose is to better understand what teachers need from in-service training. All comments are welcome- there are no “right answers” to the questions I may ask. Feel free to offer contrasting points of view so I can hear the full range of your thoughts on a topic. OPENING QUESTION (establish group identity and comfort) Lets get acquainted. Please put your first name (may use a pseudonym) on both sides of your name plate and place it in front of you.. As we go around the table, please tell us your first name, describe your teaching situation, and one of your favorite things about teaching K-2 Physical Education. INTRODUCTORY QUESTION (short discussion to get talk flowing) Think back to all the in-service training you have experienced. What are some major points that made other in-service experiences good (or bad) for you? 190 TRANSITION Now lets talk specifically about the EPEC in-service training you participated in recently. The agendas (yellow paper) from the EPEC training are in front of you to refresh your memory about what took place. Take a moment to look through them. (Wait time) MODIFIED NOMINAL GROUP TECHNIQUE You also have in front of you a blue paper with brief descriptions of the four areas of in-service training we will be talking about today. Without discussion, please take a minute to note any of your initial thoughts on the categories of context, content, change, and support. Your notes are for your personal reference during our discussion. I will not see them. (Wait time) QUESTION CATEGORY #1: CONTEXT I would like to start out discussing the context, or environment, of the EPEC training. What recommendations would you make regarding practical, contextual issues of the training environment? Timing and schedule # of hours/dayslsessions Time between sessions Best time to train teachers Physical environment Locafion Facility Food/Breaks Comfort Social environment Group size Personnel QUESTION CATEGORY #2: CONTENT Regarding content, think about what was most/least useful about the training? Please tell us what parts of the content you think were most useful and should be included in future training sessions. (change to “least useful” when they exhaust “most') - Presentations (use agendas for reference) Effective presenters Method of presentations Teacher training- did it accomplish? Knowledge/understanding of EPEC Sense of being "able to" implement Professional development — did it accomplish? Belief in I see value in EPEC Sense that one "ought to" implement 191 Materials (use copies of overheads, etc. for reference) Print materials Format Notebooks \fisuals/overheads Amount of material Quality of material Time issues relative to content Time on task Time to practice Time between in—service sessions TRANSITION Teacher in-service training is sometimes provided to help teachers adopt new or different ways of teaching. Changing what we teach, or how we teach, within our content area can be difficult. Change sometimes challenges our beliefs about what we teach or how we teach. Change in a program usually requires change in the teacher. QUESTION CATEGORY #3: CHANGE In what ways did EPEC in-service training challenge, or change, your beliefs about teaching physical education? In what ways do you think EPEC might challenge the beliefs of some teachers? Did your feelings about EPEC change from the start of training to the end? How can EPEC in-service be designed to help teachers accomplish change in what they teach or how they teach? Factors that enable change or cause resistance to change Personal Professional Teacher beliefs that may resist change Undergraduate training Customary ways of teaching Children as learners Expectations for student achievement Ability of students to change with teacher Need for EPEC Convincing rationale for EPEC Knowledge of EPEC Sense of commitment to EPEC Value of EPEC lessons Usefulness 192 Effectiveness Format Confidence in EPEC Prior to implementation With implementation QUESTION CATEGORY‘#4: SUPPORT Following EPEC in-service, what kinds of support would help you to implement the EPEC lessons? EPEC staff Collegial atmosphere Relate to issues of K-2 physical education teachers Accessibility of staff Communication, electronic media Expertise of EPEC staff Support needed/available from others? School administrators Planning time Facility/equipment Scheduling Budget Colleagues Peers in physical education Parents/community Family/personal Incentives to implement EPEC? CEU’s Rewards and awards Recognition Public relations NON-CATEGORICAL SUMMARY QUESTION: (summarize the discussion with them, make sure there are no loose ends) From what I have heard you say today, these seem to be your key points for design of teacher in-service training. (List them from notes) Is this accurate? What have I left out? CONCLUSION OF THE FOCUS GROUP: Are there any other concerns you need to express about EPEC in-service before more teachers are trained this year? Is there anything we should have talked about but didn’t? 193 APPRECIATION: Thank you for participating in our focus group today. I am confident your input will help us to understand the teachers’ view of what teachers need from in-service training. Remember that all comments made in this group are to be treated confidentially and are not to be identified with a particular person or school. These envelopes contain a small honorarium to help defray your travel expenses today. Before you leave, please take the envelope with your code number on it and initial the attached list indicating your receipt of the honorarium. I appreciate your help! Thank you! 194 APPENDIX G NOMINAL GROUP TECHNIQUE FORM Without discussion, please note your thoughts on the following topics before we begin discussion: TOPIC 1. CONTEXT (Did the in-service training ”set—up” meet your needs?) Comment on the environment for the in-service such as location, facility, schedule, breaks, food, directions, etc. TOPIC 2. CONTENT (Was your need for knowledge addressed?) Comment on the content of the in-service training such as information presented, presenters, visual aids, hands-on materials, demonstrations, explanations, etc. 195 TOPIC 3. CHANGE (Were your values and beliefs about teaching addressed?) Comment on your concerns about change/changing to different ways of teaching, and factors which may enable/disable your desire or ability to change. TOPIC 4. SUPPORT (Discuss your feelings regarding support for your efforts to teach EPEC lessons?) Comment on services or resources which were provided or you would like to have provided in order to feel adequately supported? 196 APPENDIX G AGGREGATE DATA 197 APPENDIX G AGGREGATE DATA SORTED BY TOPICS/SUBTOPICS Sorting code for transcribed materials: Red= Green= Pink= Blue= Black = Gray = Purple= Context category, issues of environment Content category, issues of materials and presentations related to the content of in-service training and procedures used for training (not EPEC curriculum content) Change category, issues that teachers or students may have about changing their program or ways of teaching/Ieaming Support category, mechanisms, materials, procedures that would support and assist teachers in program implementation and adherence tapics within a category of discussion subtopics within a topic of discussion moderator’s comments/prompts for clarity of meaning/reading Fonts used to distinguish group identity: Times: Arial= Anal= Arial= Grand Rapids focus group #1 Grand Rapids focus group #2 Lansing focus group Kalamazoo focus group Examples of sorting codes and fonts used to distinguish discussion category and group identity: A quotation in Arial font blue underlined is a comment on Support from a teacher in the Kalamazoo focus group. A quotation in Times font, red, is a comment on Context from a teacher in the Grand Rapids focus group #1. 198 TOPIC #1 CONTEXT TIME OF THE SESSIONS (start and stop times) For me the planning's never right because it's such a long drive anyhow. It takes me more than an hour to get heLe. 8:30 is fine. the time m fine. but it went fast it; first one went fag; This schedule was fine and the breaks were adequate, you got to use the restrooms and it was fine About the length of a school day so that really wasn't a problem. it was good because it was a school day. I hate, I think that's a personal thing, I hate going early, some people would like to be there at 6:00 am, I'm not a morning person, I like to start at 11:00 but that's just me. I'm a late person, the later the better, for me on anything. But, again, that's my own preference, some teachers would say, let's get there at 7:00 and get over at 2:00. I'm not like that so it's just, everybody's kind of, but as far as when they did it, they did it during the day, so, it's a day off work and so... A lot of PE teachers are coaches, and I think to get you out of there by 2:00 or 2:30 to get them back to their schools... Yeah, we got out a little bit eaiiier. That was nice. Yeah, that helped. We were done and they didn't keep us just to keep us. No, that's right when we were done, we were able to go which was helpful. Because, like me, I have another job and I have two kids that I have to pick up after school before I have to report to my next job to teach. LENGTH OF TIME IN THE SESSIONS I was just really impressed with all the organization, it seemed like, I know therve gone more before t_his by; everything just went, the time schedule was kept and all that. It was interesting, evegything seemed interesting, like said. 199 They had it nicely laid out and it wasn‘t like you were sitting there forever and ever and ever and ever so that you could hardly stand it. You did get able to get up and move around and change. And they seemed to be able to cover all the material that they wanted to cover in that amount of time. but they also had a time frame and that's important to teachers, too, because we 're always working with a clock and that answered those questions of how much longer, are we ahead, are we behind, and lreally liked that. Iappreciated how they had organized that. I still felt fiesh at the end of the day, I wasn’t dying to get out of there. I felt good going out of it. The first day we got out a little early which was nice. It was a nice surprise. I guess it was, what was it about two o'clock, I believe? we got home early, it was so nice! It was a real treat. Well, sure, when you've gone through, well, it's usually pretty intense, no matter what kind of inservice so it's kind of nice to end on a high note. they didn’t keep you there till you were brain dead. Right, exactly. They let us go early. Elev hglg my interest for the entire time, which is sugprising. So, for me the length of the day was good. And it did help to say. hey, if we can get through this, we're going to go a little early. That was helpful. They didn't keep us logger than they had to. They didn't draw it out. # OF SESSIONS 1_tl_it_ln'tt_l1ink t_he second one was needed as mpch. didn't get as much out of it. Maybe I dfln't want to come t_he second time I'm not sure. I was excited but it wasn't as informative to me, I thought it was over the same th'pg, basically. I actually would have liked to have one more day but when we were writing some of the lessons down and practicing the lessons that more time would have been better, I could have used another day because they 're asking you to do so much and so many things they did not cover, that if they could have accommodated the teachers to do one more day, I think it would have been worthwhile. I, like you, would like to see a third day but maybe toward, later on, like toward the end of the year, where we could do a little more follow up. I feel like we 're hanging now. Our inservice is done and we're on our own. I agree. 200 I almost think that you would need a one-da y inservice on the 3-5. I don 't think it should be K-2 because we 've already gone over the spiral cuniculum and we know the set-up of and the out-la y of it, just to feel more comfortable and ask more questions, be able to ask somebody else questions other than this, you have the book and you have your own questions no one is there to answer it. But I think you should have a one-day. . .And a push on the administrators for the value of it TIME BETWEEN SESSIONS Well, we had a week's time in which we were supposed to present a lesson and then come back and share how that lesson went. I don't know what it's like at other schools but I only see kids every so often so if your days didn't fall right, even thought hey gave you a week and a day, you still might not have been on the right rotation. ...you don' I really want to space it out much more than a week because then you kind of get away from it. This way it's still fresh in your mind. That was fine. That was good, as a matter of fact. Yeah. I liked that, didn't you? You didn't forget anything. Because we went in, we applied what we did. Maybe with a summer session you wouldn't be able to do that but if you probably add on another day, to that workshop, make those credit hours worth time, where maybe you would do more presenting as a group like we did in that one. I thought that was better than having two consecutive days. I thought it was good to have a little field practice and then come back and report on it. And they alternated the days, it was a Tuesday and a Wednesday so that you wouldn 't miss the same class two weeks in a row. that was a good idea also. That was well planned. I agree. I liked that they had time change in between where you can actually try it out on your classes, see what the kids' responses were. BEST TIME OF THE YEAR this fall, of course I thanked them for having an inservice in the fall because the budget, it wasn't all used up, the money wasn't all used up in the fall. Last year, the Grand Rapids session was in the spring. Orin the winter. 201 The earlier in the year, the better. I'd really like to start off the school year rather than change the direction mid-we y through the year In the middle of my teaching year, that I can't just sit down and really go in depth in that curriculum which I would love to do this summer. That's going to be one of my major projects this summer to go through this curriculum. Summer? You'd get less people. I wouldn't have came. lwopl_dLn't have come. I hate to say that because I have more things goipg on. I hate to say that I feel more important, I'm the basketball coacIL too. I work at camps and clinics and to me, that's my life. It would have been hard to be there. I wouldn't have come in the summer. I think it makes a statempnt of how important it is to go to this inservice by having to apply to take a day off from work. See, it wouldn't bother me to do something during the summer but at the same time, you're not going to be able to try it out on kids unless it's during the school-year. Say it was in the summer-time and you didn't have the children to go back to that you would use, take a lesson plan, prepare it and teach the kids in the class, of course they're. . . It's just not the same (teaching each other). The actual teaching is better with kids. You could also look at this that having it during the school year ,if it comes at just the right time, it almost invigorates you. I mean it gives you a real shot in the arm and that helps, too. You know, it's like taking a vitamin, it's really helping you out. It gives you a little shot in the arm. Like a sunshiny day. You know everybody functions better after. I felt the same way, I felt very pumped. Coming back fiem, I was so excited about it. And the material I got. I know for me, I 'm kind of looking forward to next year and starting from day one doing the EPE C program as opposed to starting in ...December What I was goipg to say is, probably as teachers, there's really no best time. You just, to start the curriculum at that bgginning, having it so that we could have started it it migm make 5%. I'm iust going to hold off until starting next year. I just went ahead anjd finished up where I was. For someone like me that likes the concept of this, and the ease of it for me as a teacher, you cou_lg have it any time, now, it would be fine. For me, if it had been at the start of the year, it would have been a lot better because I started it and 202 now my kids are film, I'm t_rying to get my kids to use it as much as we can and it's really kind of made a jumble of my class. But for pgpple who don't have it, right now (April) would be a good time. Getting ready for next year. To get things started next year. Give them a couple of weeks to look it over and pry it. I don't know how many schools are going to the kind of calendar that we have in our district but because oLthe five teacher inservice dgys peing added to the calendar through the statgiwe have two or t_hree of phase now. peforeimool ptgrts. That woulture an ideal tjme. and a great use of phys. ed. teacher time, to h_ave inservice during those few days. If we were in more of a uniform calendar, ppgnty wide. or that would be good. you had a training session and then you had a few days to pry some thims out yyilh kids if you wanted and then yod went lgck for anotheLtIaining session. If they trained in the sdmmer. yog woul_dn't necessarily have children to E! thipgs out on in between. Do you think that would hurt the _trainingprocess or do you think that the ___benefit of doing it in t_he summer or right before school would outweigh the benefit of having children to t_ry some melessons opt with_? For mer it would be a problem. I would have to t_ry it out with the kids. But, then m cou_l_d make your judgement. if I don't have any kids. I could immediately say, this isn't going to work. or I could say it's going to work. I don't think it would be beneficial in the summer. I te_afiy don'; m thought was that l have to accommodate tggching those few lessons to tpy it ppt when l glready had lessonplans set for Jthe whole veg So. I k_new whegj wanted to go so I had to try and, and it worked out, it didn't hurt anmipg but... shift away from things you already had planned to plug in the EPEC plans, try those and then go back? Right. And then go back and pick up where I left off. Whether I cogld have iudged just by seeirm I how it would work... The fact that we tried it out ourselves, helped. We got to physically... I think it's valuable to _tpy them wit_h children, esgcially if you're talking a first or second year teacher. A veteran teacher would be able to look at a lesson and say this is going to work with my ki_ds and it's not. _B_ut even the veteran tea___chers were saying, wow, this part of the lesson. especially— the affective realm the b__e__st effort lessons or the other ones like that. My k ids really responded to that. l'ev never done anflhing like that. I was really supprised how they resmnded, so that part was veg valuable. 203 PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT LOCATION Gymnasium? the place was good.(KaIamazoo) It was a way to get up and move too. It wa_rs. It waLste hi! to walk down a couple of hallways and outside a little bit _a_n_d it rea_lly wa_g nice preak. A little movement, that is good The facility, where it was at was fine (Lansing). The directions, they gave me great directions for not knowing where l was going, I thought the staff did a really good job. I was a little nervous about going downtown before hand because I had never been down there and I agree, like, at the hotel, something that is directly off the highway. Easy access on, easy access off. Easy to find, you didn't have to worry a lot about that. I thought I would prefer to be at a hotel, one of those banquet rooms in a hotel where it was more comfortable and you'd still have the area to, you wouldn't have the gym but I know that I've been in those things before, ballrooms and stuff where you could do, you could still teach the skill or whatever I would rather not go downtown. I don't like going downtown when the traffic, in the morning and all that. I said, oh, 'too bad it's not somewhere off the beaten path“ but that's just a little thing. Parking to be accessible, obviously, without having to pay for it, that was good. Easy to get to. Off the expressway, it was very easy.(grand rapids) I knew where it was FACILITY/TY PE OF Beautiful facility. Nice to go there. Very nice. (museum) Very nice to go to the museum (GR) 204 SPACE but it wasn‘t adequate space for what we needed to do there. (activities) But the space was limited (at the museum). If we'd had more room to spread out, I think it could have been more effective.(the activities) To give a demonstration, it was done in a hallway, and we were crowded, you couldn't really do things, there were also people taking tours and so you had to contend with that if you're going to do something like that, you need it in a space you can move. The actual meeting itself, was very nice, the room was small enough but not so big that you were lost in the space. I thought the facilities were great. (Grand Rapids) All except for the activity areas, they were really limited, we were kind of crowded into a small hallway whenever we were doing an activity and I just thought we were just limited and maybe they didn't have any other place to take us. It was just too small an area. I concur about everything, the only drawback was cramped surroundings during the activities, it was just too limiting. (Lansing) I just remember that the windows were open and the blinds were banging, it just, we kept saying... Distracting. Yes, it was so distracting, we just kept saying, stop it! It kept (makes noise of banging blinds). It was one of those (talking over one another). It was gorgeous but it was like, stop! FACILITY SET UPI SEATING It was arranged quite nicely in groupings which is nice because then you can talk to people. You can share ideas. Instead of sitting in rows, there were at round tables (good). they were big tables so you had space to spread your manuals out on as opposed to just one little individual desk. You got to know the people at your table quite well and then of course, the second day we came back and we all sat at the same tables. FOOD/BREAKS I thought the breaks we had (midmoming) were great. The breaks were great. The food was great I just put fifteen minute breaks with coffee, they didn't have any coffee But the food, I thought, was way above and beyond what you'd ever expect. That food, it was too good. That's where my binge started. 205 The breaks and the food was set up there right on the counter. It was very nice and I felt very comfortable there. I felt very relaxed. It was kind of nice that we had lunch right there. It was served right on the counter, we could go and get our lunch and come right back to our tables. And at that time, we could have moved around but we had a tendency, all of our stuff was there so we went back to the tables and ate. So we had a social time there and before—hand we all introduced ourselves, talked to each other and the, at the beginning of the inservice we went around and kind of introduced each other, too, and I remember where most of the people were from, where they were sitting. Nothing worse than going to an inservice and then they have on there, "lunch on your own". It is much nicer to be with the people that you are there with and so that you can share ideas. I agree. Especially if you go there by yourself and no one else from your area is there and then you're like "hello." You're clueless. And that doesn’t give you a very warm feeling. They did have a break, in the morning, in the afternoon, we were through by like 2:30 We didn't take a break but with the activities you had, it allowed you to, you know if you needed to take a break, you could. Getting up and moving around instead of just sitting. The food was great. The food was good. The foodrwas @icious, by the way. That was the nice thing about this situation. Thg food was served in the room but we could roam anywhere we wanted to. In here we could sit wit_h the group_f people that we knew or if we wanted to meet ones. we could do that too. So. it was designed to really meet the needs of several different kinds of peOpIe, I thought, that wa_ypand I thought it was nice to have the food_provided because then you didn't have to mess with, how mpg does this cost and. where pm I going, the cafeteria stuff, I thought it was a more efficient use of our time. (k zoo) Ididn't like that you could leave if you wanted to. Yod could eat here or you could go somewhere. here's the time you could be back. (kzoo) I would have preferred that we all sat down tpgether and ate. Because I fldn't really talk to nobgdy during lunch. Only somemdy I knew. I would have preferred to ha_yg satdrwn wiph some people I didn't know. That means --- and I would never have talked in odr lives I would have preferred it if we had all sat over there t_pgetherfiuj we; could have done more debating and n_egative things about it. that might have been good if they put you together? 206 Say, here's where you gas are going to have your seating area and we'll serve at this SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT GROUP SIZE It was actually smaller than I expected. That's the same thing I thought, too. I thought that since it was being held in Grand Rapids, I was expecting a large number there. But, I think it was a small enough group where you were able to talk to people and you felt free to roam around and visit with a number of people. So, I thought it was a really inviting... I would like to see them leave it that way, too. I was pleasantly surprised as well. Much more personal contact with this size group. Since I didn't have anybody else there from my school, I happened to know Debby Drake so that made it comfortable for me. I talked on the phone to a couple of people so that was kind of helpful. That they made some contact over the phone so you don't go in there and didn't know anything, but, I thought it was fine. I thought it was friendly. but did they do any type of an icebreaker where everybody felt part of the group? Yeah, they went around. I can't remember. We went around and Introduced ourselves and told about what we do and that. Okay. I couldn't remember if we did that. But that always, obviously, always help you feel a little bit... the group was small. It was small, it was a nice size (29?). I thought it was really good. Yeah, it was a good size, you don't want to get too big. Uh-uh. It was comfortable. 207 How many people were there? 18? 28 maybe? Was there? No there weren't 23 or 24. If there were, where were they, under the table? It was pretty, it seemed small. It was a small group. What would you say would be the ideal for a size? 20 Yeah. No more than 20. What about the group size Therg was 30. Was there 30? I was going to say 25 to 30. It was full. Seemed fine to me. I think it was good. We had a small enough grogp that we could fit in one classroom. Because if you'd have ha_d to 0pm it up to the next classroom, mple would have been a little more distant and not as actively participating mentally at that distance. So, from that, would yog s_gy not to go over 30? I would. I dpn't knpv_v how many there was but it seemed like that many. Almost evegy row was filled. There was 3 to 5 rows I didn't think so. And I think that is also g 9203 pumber for the active parts that they did in the gym. It would have been hard for adults to have more than that, I think, for the space. 208 EPEC PERSONNEL (social interactions) What about the Michigan EPEC people- your social comfort with them? Approachability and all that? I thought they really tried to involve us by using our names, which is a veg difficulg thing to do when you've walked into g room full of adults and you're _tginLto Leg names. I thought that was amazing. using names, that helps a lot. They 're veg pprsonable peOpIe, veg interested and interesting. Here I got to ask guestions. Personal. They would come over and talk to me, most places they don't have someone sitting around. They leave after theyve done a whole spiel and then, at least they sat, fill, I sat in a good spot right next to th_e_m. so I could ask them. Yeah, I would say they were very approachable and I talked to them before we started the second day of the conference and I felt very comfortable talking to them, I thought they were very open. Some people you don't feel quite so comfortable, it seems like they've got other things on their minds or other things they want to do. But they were willing to take the time to talk to you and discuss whatever your concerns were. No, I thought they did an excellent job that way. If you had any questions about anything, they would answer them. And you didn't feel like it wasn't a problem to question them about things The only thing I will say, negative, is that one of our phys. ed. teachers brought up the use of games and they did not want to hear them, they did not want to really talk to them about that. But that was it. - your suggestion would be- Well, I guess they should address, if there are concerns by an individual or group that maybe they shouldn 't just stay on their agenda, to incorporate and see If they can solve that person's concerns. COMFORT IN THE ENVIRONMENT Most of them, I've been to, they're not veg social. Or, maybe I'm not pocial and they are. I didn't feel in place in most of them. Most places I don't so, maybe that’s... 209 I think it's nice when you can provide little snacks and the little comforts in life at a conference, you know, you're there to learn but at the same time you're getting flooded with so many ideas that it's nice to have that break but don't have to worry about having to go somewhere. Socially, I thought that when we had to teach our lessons to people we did not know, it was uneasy. But, I enjoyed it afterwards. It was nice to share, have people share their ideas and I got to share mine. If in the beginning, I'm big on ice-breakers because I know that it is, once you get into a group like that, if you don't talk with somebody, it's a long day. I think if they had each person go up to someone they never knew so that way I couldn't speak with my own group, and just one on one, just sit with them and just talk to them, because you're always real friendly when it's just your, you're much easier instead of going I'm from, I teach, then it's just, its almost, yeah, so I think if I were to come up to you, I think we could sit and talk a little bit and we'd get off on these tangents and I'd feel like I knew you. I feel, I like, then that just sets the tone and then I feel like I know somebody in that room. You kind of can chum up with them in the day. Then, even to do that for 5 minutes and then switch. I just think to start in any type of a group setting like that with some more knowledge of, or intimacy, I think the whole day is, because then you just know them all day and you just feel like you can... I can see, particularly, when you went there by yourself...Yeah. That would have been nice to start right out meeting somebody. And I think the students felt a little intimidated by the professionals that were there. Yep. I'm sure they did and that would have been real nice for them, also, to have been able to do a one on one, maybe with a professional person. Right, take those students away from each other and maybe set them with, say, hey, we're going to team, or even do that, as you come in this is who you need to sit with, that you're going to be teaming with this person today as we go on. 210 TOPIC #2 CONTENT PRESENTATIONS PRESENTERS Any advice? hands on with the games or the activity or the skill. Not to overdo. After a point, when you've heard it and heard it and heard it. Did you feel that they could relate to the issues...? As long as they stay in the classroom. Don't let them get away from the classroom. They have to rely on us to tell them how the lessons went or them, themselves, make sure that theyareinthetrenches. Becauselcannotstandpeoplewhostandupinfi'ontofme telling me how I should do something when they have been out of the classroom for a bizillion years. I have a real hard time with that. Did you feel like they were credible and related to your world... I thought they did. Steve has been a teacher and has only recently joined EPEC. And Linda... She just retired. But she had been for a long time. And so did Glenna And Linda Brown, even when she did that, taught us how to constantly reinforce. Just little words here and there which I'm trying to teach my student teacher to do, you know you don't have to hit every single individual, do it as a group whole, we do that When we teach aerobics, do it as a group whole. You don't go and single somebody out, you just tell everybody the same thing. And you'll catch, and if that person still doesn’t understand... They wanted us, verbatim, now, whoever did our demonstration. She had 3 X 5 cards, would drive me nuts! I'm kind of a nut to my kids in the classroom, and if my children, my own family, would see me, they might be a little embarrassed. But I've got my kids right where I want them, and they're with me and there's times when I act a little nuts in the classroom. I couldn't follow the script. When she was telling us these things, too, it wassowrit,so...youknow. Andshekeptlookingather3 XScardsandeasjust, throw them away, ad lib... The scripts are an issue Well, as far as the stafi‘ing goes, the only thing that I didn't like was during the activity periods, I thought they were too scripted. She was just reading everything right fi'om her cue cards and I just went out of there thinking, I can't teach that way. This takes all your personality out of it, even with us, maybe she needed to do it that way but I couldn't see how anyboay could teach that way just because you 're not very warm, you just come 211 across as just reading this all fi'om the card, from the script, it was just kind of impersonal. I guess is what it boils down to Yeah, that's not me. No, that's not me. So, I think that they were credible but don't let them get away fi'om being around classrooms. Even by just working with us, I think it helps. I really do. I think you need to be around people that you're trying to present, it's got to be new and flesh, it's got to be something that you just try. It's easier to accept ideas from people who have tried the, right now, not forty years ago.. . Glenna DeJonge, she knew her material backwards and forward and she presented it and she was excited about it and I caught her excitement. Steve Garrison, nice guy, but he's a younger teacher and I think he, he was willing to try a whole lot ofdifferent stuffandlthinkthereasonthathebuys into it isbccause hewas young and of course he had ideas at stake and because he's. . I thought the pygsenters were veg, veg knowledgeable. Glenna was just dynamite. She was, to me, a fabulous speaker, I never lost interest one second listening to her. What did she do that kept you interested? Her energy. Her voice, her everything, the way she delivered, it was not monotone, it was, I just listened to every word she said and I never got bored, I never tuned out, never anything, she was not demeaning, she didn't talk down to us, she spoke to us, she kept it rolling. Just everything, her sense of humor. Just her whole delivery and approach. You can tell how much she loves this program, too. Yes, yes. She was just dedicated. Glenna presented all the material that's in these handouts. I thought she did a super job. Her enthusiasm, and the knowledge of the material itself, those were really big. . . She knew her material very well and she was excited about what she was presenting. That's part of it. You have to be thoroughly convinced you absolutely think this program is the greatest and you want to share it with everybody else because otherwise you're not a good presenter. She was excited, she got you excited about it. 212 I thought she had a very good grasp of all the material that, and there was a lot of it. But she knew her material very well. She, it was, it couldn't have done better. The things she presented, the facts, where she started out, why we should be doing this. All the different reasons, where it came from. I tho ht Ienna was amazin how she held our interest. She was the veg well-dressed woman? Shg was the one with the glasses. shg was so knowledggaple that you couldn't help but want to listen tp her. There was no doubt she was knowledgeable. Veg knowledgeable. I don't how pgrsonable she was at times. Of course, I sit in the back. I know I m intimidated to g_sk her questions. I didn't have any problems with any of the presenters, digit appgarance or the way they talked. Anflping, while they ggre up f_rpn§, not a single bit. They're very well educated. Very well educated I thought the presenters did a wonderful job. Yeah. you knew specifically where they were at and what direction they were heading. CONTENT OF PRESENTATIONS (KzoojThere were song others that handed out materials that, really, I don' t know if they had anyfling to do with EPEC or not, but it had to do with the thipgs ---- and I was talkipg about, the recess runnir_rg pggram and there was a few other prmrams, well, here's you're handouts pg' ht here. I understood nong of thg stuff they were laying out on the tables. It was veg guick and there were some thipgs there that were really interesting tg me. I wanted to know more about it, I just don't have the time, I hate to say it but, gt time, during the day or at night to gall and get explanations. I refuse to talk pn the phone half the time, gnyhow. I really had a hard tigg understgnding some of m stuff they were doing with the handofi. One of the most important things about a good inservice is that it's specific to what you do. It's hard to be on target and have a good inservice. 213 TEACHER TRAINING (KNOWLEDGE GAINED, ENABLING TO IMPLEMENT) Did the presentations create a comfortable understanding of the material? Yes. For me it did. Yes. Now, it's a matter of exploring the “able to” and in a perfect way and how am I going to make this fit, how will I teach it? She had it up on the screen. We went over it. And she just went over it to introduce it. And then we had to do some writing, too remember? Yeah. lwas lost at that point. Completely lost. Yeah. And she had us fill in so we understood how to read the sub-headings and that. Which I thought was a good idea. You know, that little hands on, some people need hands on. And instead of a visual. So, that was a good thing to do. Some people might have thought it was tedious who, that don't need that hands on, but it helped the ones that do need it. I thought that was a good idea. Did the inservice training address your need for knowledge of how to use the material. When you left did you feel able to take the books and use them? I haven't Le_a_lly went back and looked through it. The onjy thing I really used in that, other than the lesson plan manuals is the pictures. I even looked back at the bench-marks and what, like they have a week seguence, you should be here at that point and they went over all that. It mas really good how they did that, believe me. When you left there you knew exactly what you were doing. Oh, yeah. I think you did. I could go back and if someone told me to go find this, there's no doubt that I could go find it. And I can cross reference it with this and with that. This is where I'm supposed to be. There's no doubt they did that guite well. I'm glad that I'm not doing K—5 right now, because I'd molly be overwhelmed. I think it's good for me that they're doing K-2 this year and again 3-5 next year, maybe I'll have a large enough head start for K—2 where I'll be able to jump into 3- 5 next year. I almost think that you should almost try one grade level a year. You mean start with kindergarten? Yeah, and then next year get a taste of the kindergarten and first. 214 I think they kind of suggested that, too, that if that's what works for you then... , should not have told us to jump into it. I thought what they did was good for an orientation, you look in the notebook and you do, it’s laid everything out there, this Is equipment you need, this is how you need to lay out your classroom and dren they, what they call a pepper, prepare, explain, demonstrate, I lost the other P, practice, practice and then review. I felt really comfortable with it. I had no problem taking that back into my school and implementing the program. I felt better about that than probably just about anydring I've ever done in the past: I just felt like I could jump right in. That’s what I did, I took it back and I jumped nght into it and that’s what I 've been doing since. They've given an awful lot of thought to this, they've, the thought and the preparation and what you need and what you have to have and, I mean, you couldn't ask for anything laid out better, it's just not my style. What I got from the inservice was if you followed this word for word, verbatim. . . You won't have any problems. I'd have to see it to believe it. Right now my own personal experience of being at it 10 years is that it's not going to happen. I especially liked, we were talking earlier about the little key words, you know, the T- position, twist, you know, scratch your knee, I mean, the kids, they still do that now. And those key words really helped the kids learn. That's what I was pumped about is that these special little words tlmt, you know, kid- tested teacher-approved, really helped me. It made it like, why didn‘t I think of that? Wouldn't I be a millionaire if I'd have thought of that. But I didn't and that's okay. I agree. You could take their curriculum and with this user guide, and then take the K through, wlurt was it, 2? Take that curriculum and if you had any knowledge of education, you could teach that, or very little knowledge of education and you had to be a PE teacher, you could take that curriculum and go into that classroom and you could do it 215 word for word if you wanted to. Everything was there that you needed to know to teach this particular skill or concept and I love the key words, too. I use them, there are a few key words that I had just picked out and I have not gone over all the curriculum yet. The key words, READY FEET, many my kids know exactly what to do when I say "READY FEET". I think they did a really nice job in putting these rmterials together. Everything word for word for word. A new teacher who hasn't had years of experience presenting would, you know, help them show the progression through a lesson. Personally, I can take the concept and go with it, a lot easier. I'm not one of those people that can read from a clipboard or a card. Do you feel like you have access to what you need in the book? I feel that I do not teach this way. I still kind of like my volleyball unit and soccer unit and that's not the way to teach elementary PE, it's not. Usually each lesson plan has two concepts or two skills and a concept or whatever, that they want to teach. I might not use those two together, I might not even put that back to back or use this one day and then this the next day, I might do something just a little bit different. But I don't think that's a problem. You might not take this and use it exactly like it's laid out here but there's plenty of things you could use... Did you all understand how to use the books and the lessons? it would take you a long, long time to figure out how to look throggh that yourself. I know there were geogle that were a little bit confused and they were asking guestions and the inst_r_uctors were going right ug to them and pointing to their manuals right at their tables and they were showing, this is what I'm talking about right here, see how that means this? Like, the italicized words are thg things that the teacher says. And, all the cue words are to the side. T e me u to me and had to show me some in 3. And it was can enough that mle felt comfortable to do that. Most of the @gle, I think, understood those manuals. Yeah. I think, when they left, they did. Well, it's a lgt of material. Just a tgn. You're going to have to sit with it anmy. Really, really get familiar with it. 216 I think so. When I go to them, I don't have any problem going to what l need to go to and pulling out what I've been pulling out with my lessons as I go. I've been able to find everything, I haven't been lost at all. You knew how to use them? Yeah. And they left you feeling like you knew how to use it so that you could build on it. there's room for notes on the pages... they're along the margins. That almost suggests that the y're saying to you, go ahead and do whatever changing and flexing you 're going to do and you have room here to write notes to yourself for the next time and... I like graphics, too. The graphics are very important. Um-hum. Yes. I use them all the time. I have them in my, so lcan use them over and over. It’s vbual for the kids, they can see what they're going to do before they do it. About the demonstrations... We could spend more time on demonstration. Because we were saying we wish we had more of that. I would like to have them do more, again, I keep saying that but, like, the gal that was showing us the overhand throw, or whatever, I would like them to spend more time on the demonstrations, I would have rather sat in the gym for two hours and just been a little kid and just sat there and have her, it's just the way I Ieam. So, if she would have said, okay, we're going to do this and this is how you're going to teach and then we would have done it and then another skill and then another skill and another skill and that would have just... Yeah, pulled more out instead of just giving one... Because we just did one and it was wonderful and helpful and We went there for 15 minutes and then came back. That, and then we had someone come in and demonstrate on how you might present... The demonstrations, to me, again, that's howl learn everything. When they took us in there and stood us there like we were first graders, I thought, this is weird... I think they could have done more with that, myself. I was just going to say, I wish we would have spent more of the demonstrations on activities that are new, that are different, that none of us have probably ever done before. 217 Yeah, that was, I agree, too. I thought that after we did the first one, you know, step kick, I thought this is great. They did the whole, just like we were little kids, and then I thought, do some more, do the other ones so I can feel what it's like and then I can go and do the effective change fine, but, I've done, I was telling her, I've done all those things exactly the way I did them and I added a few little things but they gave me the base but now I wish I would have seen...Had seen more. Some more of the, yeah, I mean we'd have to be there for weeks to have her do them all, but just a few more... Teaching each other- Do you think it was un-nerving but still worthwhile, should they stay with it? Well, when we had to teach, I was glad I already knew that lesson quite well because It was only a 15 minute prep time. Yeah. I would agree with that. More time? Have them teach it when they come back to their day of inservice or whatever. I agree. That was kind of a stressful thing for... Spur of the moment thing, it would have been much better if you would have had time to take it home and go into the lesson and really Ieam it before you just. .. Before you're on the spot to do it. But it was also humbling that there were other people in the same boat as yourself and people were not threatened. It was very informative to see other people and the other styles. That was good. But it is under, to be grouped with someone you don't know, and if you give them, what did we have 15 to 20 minutes to prepare our lesson, we didn't know which topic we were going to have when you presented lessons I thought it was stupid... Yeah, I did... lwasn't real prepared for that, I was kind of...(uneasy gesture) I think if we would have been told, maybe... Yeah.... 218 Maybe that first day, that, think about, because you're going to be presenting in little groups instead of just throwing it at us... I was really bad... Did you have one of the college students in yours? They were nervous as all get out. No, but I felt really stupid because I thought, I didn't know the program yet so I was trying to think, okay, I have to do it the way they want me to and l was thinking, I don't get, I don't know, it just came too fast at me and I couldn't think quick enough and here I'm a teacher and I thought, oh, this is so stupid, I don’t even know what to say, it seemed too simple. Now, I understand. It is simple. All I had to do was sit down and put my legs out. I was thinking, oh, man, they want me to, it was just too quick for me and I wasn't comfortable doing that at that time. The way that was handled. And you're suggestion, , was that maybe they somehow prep you ahead? Yeah. Even that morning, just give you time to, like you're going to do it so, I don't know, maybe the first day and then the next day you teach, the week later, so you've had a chance to, now I can go and I have all neat ideas, now, from them, so I can go and do a whole bunch of them and I'd feel good but then, I'd never done it. despite its negative side, anxiety and all that, was it still a good thing to do? Yeah, because it, yeah. I'll never forget it, it taught me... It gave us an idea of how to do it instead of watching it, it gave us that chance. Yeah, you always remember seeing things, you read something, you forget it. But when you're in there, I'll never forget doing it and anybody elses presentation, I remember everybody else in my group doing it. I'd keep it in but I'd people the, maybe after day one, give them the agenda for day two? And then maybe emphasize, I want you to start thinking about, because we're going to do that. You're going to teach this. You're going to teach this, so start to think about it. You can at least get 10 minutes at home in bed to go... Yeah. Yeah. Okay, that makes sense. 219 Or maybe, give, say, this is what you're going to do on day two. You can go home, you've got a week. Practice it. Practice it, take a chance to get used to it, feel, like I said, I remember those college students, remember we were all in the gym and we said, where are the students at? And they were just... Yeah, they had never taught anything. Yeah, they hadn't even done their student teaching yet, if anything, they had done their, whatever they call it, their cadet teaching. Yeah. Yeah. Because, I'll tell you, the group I was with, by the time we were done and got to lmow those other people, and you Ieam from them, so it was worthwhile. There is a different anxiety level there. Oh, yes. No doubt about it. What about the fact that they had you actually take something and teach it to your peers? I was really skeptical. And I'm gonna tell you, I was goigg to make sure that I did it better than the Eagle I was doing it with. I didn't want to do it... To my peers, I guess. If I want to do it, I'll make sure that I'm, and I will say it, I think I did it better. I was a little disappointed in the way they taught it. I was hoping that they wouldn't teach my kids But, they gave us plenty of time to prepare to teach that lesson. And they gave us the groggr materials or manipulatives that we would need in order to teach that lesson and they hmke it into grettv good groups. I didn't like that part. It went well and they had evegyming that we needed, it was just that I just felt uncomfortable doingfit with my figs. I had to be better. It was easier to go it with kids to see if its really workigg. They all knew what I wanted. I hope to goodness, and they didn‘t for megthev weren't goingtihrough, when you did this flexibilig thing, they weren't going to mess around, they were goigg to do it. 89, you didn't really ggt the same thing, I thought, that you would want. 220 I just know I get better the more times that I do it and that one-shot thing, you know, and again, in front of your peers. well. it went fine. It was interesting to watch and to listen when you could listen to some of the other pgople. how they did it, how Lhev inteflreteg how wg were supposed to present this material. Nobody was exactly alike. Some people left this out or that out or added something maybe that waan't even in there. I think teaching your m is one of the most intimidating mings a teacher can go through. I sort of looked at it gs, if I can teach these teachers this curriculum I can go back and I can teach those kids. It was a pgnfidence thing to me. Esmcially when you have just a certain amount of time to prepare. I thought it was a great exercise, even though lwasn't comfortable and it was intimidating, it was a good thing to do. probably the biggest thing that I got out of that was, I didn't have to use that gregt big piece of paper, lesson plan am! I could take a 3 X 5 card and I could write my cue words down or I could write down, okay. This is my anticipatopy set, or whatever it was, at the top of the thing they have there and key words for myself to remember it I didn't have to have this lesson plan in front of me like that It was so easy to sit in the discussion part, or the lecture part and just go, man, I'm going to hayegthpis thing in my hands the wholgg'me a_ng l cgnnot see those little workers. But if I had it on a note card, it made it easier, like you were saying, how guick I could make my notes and be prepared, vm guigg. what I'm hearing from you is that it was tough, it had a certain level of intimidation to it but it's worth putting teachers through that in the future. I think it is. Oh, you bet. If we hadn't had some of the instruction that told how to use those kind of thipgs or whatever, that certainly helps. I also think it's good practice for gs. As phys. ed. teachers we tend to go to teachers meetings and I don't k_now about anybody else but we just kind of sit guietly. We need to be willigg to sgak up in front of our grs. Muse I know they brim those kids to me and they think it's recess... because this is the first time they've ever done it in (Air school. basically. ang I went back and told them, this is not their recess. If you want have recess, then take them outside and don't bring them at all. 221 So, it was worth that little uneasiness? Yes.. . . homework would be to prepare a lesson and that would give you that week's time knowing that you're going to teach it to colleagues not to children. Well, and that gives you that time to develop your own style. There's no way that I'm going to stand there with those papers and read that script. There's definitely a means to personalize it. Well, I felt that they really encouraged you to develop your own style. Write up your plan how you feel comfortable with it. Write it up and deal with it and do your own thing. ( If you don 't feel comfortable with it, take it out.) ??? The only thing I didn't like, I agree with is the scripted, being told what to say was too robotic. It just did not give you any creativity. I don't do it, I 'll be really honest with you. I look at the lesson and I pick what I want to use from it and I implement it. But, I do not use, I 'm not going to walk around with 3 by 5 cards and j us! read it. I feel they (EPEC) could be a little more flexible and yet, are you as effective, I though Would the inservice be as effective, and yet I feel there should have been a little flexibility there. A little room for personal differences. Yeah. You have to do that because, after all, we're not in the service. Scripting and that sort of robotic feeling that you mentioned about it. In the in- service did they encourage you to think that that was sort of an example of one way to say it and do it and that you could personalize it and say, do the same things but in your own way? Or, was it really like, this is what we want you to say and in this way? No, I don 't think the y did. But, I guess it's just the impression that it left with me I talked with Steve and Steve said you don't have to do it this way. In fact they gave us sheets that said, you can use this sheet or you can use index cards or you can just do whatever you see fit. Whatever works best for you. They didn't leave that impression but it's just the idea, whenever she was teaching us, and she always taught it that same way, it was always so scripted. And the example, then, was, ends up being like a scripted... Yeah... 222 You know, that's funny because I went with two other people from --- and we all came away with just the opposite. That we had to use, whatever was not italicized in the lesson, we had to say that. No kidding? I didn't feel that way at all. The potential is there for some teachers to take with them the idea that, wow, they expect me to do it exactly that way, new teachers might really get that impression. they should make it really clear what their intention is, whether you can use the script as an example and either use it or work item it or do the same idea with your own words 80, our suggestion to them might be to make that more clear. If it's okay with them and if their intention is to provide that as perhaps an example of what you could say that maybe they need to make sure that you understand as a group that that‘s an example of a way to say it but you can personalize it your own way. Or, if they don‘t intend that, they need to make it very clear. I thought the cue words were helpful but if I were to come up with something diflerent, why not? the results are the same. That issue was brought up and I think that Glenna had pretty much reinforced, in myself, anyway, that at the end of the year they're going to do the best that they physically can, at that time, with their galloping skills, with their whatever different skills we're working on. The end goal is the same, however you get there, whatever route you go as far as if you don‘t want to do galloping, I've already done it, I'm not doing it when he tells me to do it. I might review for a little bit but I've been working on it all year with these kids. I don 't want to wait until this point in the year to start that. Did they help you with how to be flexible with it? Oh, no. I got the feeling that they did not want anything changed fiom what they laid out here. Yeah, theyprettymuchhad itthewaytheywanted it. I remember Steve garrison saying, very distinctly, keep using, it. Keep using it. You will get used to it. They don‘t want you to really change how this is done. I get that feeling. 223 I think they have to understand that each school is different and that if they can expose as many people as possible to these concepts, that you, no matter what, you're not going to get 100% buy-in completely. No matter what you do in life, people just don't function that way. Teachers are very independent people. I really think so. I came from a secondary teaching where I think the teachers are even omery—er. Yeah. I think you're right. But then they're not as willing to give and to change They didn't leave a lot of room for going to the left or right of it. But then remember, now, I'm a Western graduate, sometimes we have a different thought about things, too. I like the movement concept and all that stuff, first There are some thipge I would like to see hapgn. I'd like to see some type of tumblipg thir_rg hamn that I haven't seen yet Right the other 25% of the year is for your choice. And I would guess that Glenna's response would be, then do tumbling. Right, exactly, I know that's what her resmnse would be. And whatever the other things are. _B_glike. . said too, you said they need to find more time on showing pegple how you can flex it, change the order and that kind of thing. So, lguees you're saying the same thing. PeOpIe need to understand that it's not carved in stone. That they can move things around. You're saying that you'd like more options? Optional, if this doesn't work, try this. Along with those different ideas, I think they need to also offer, this is going into the program, but options of different ways to present it I have no walls, everything they did was on a wall. I don't have that option on walls. I'm going to have to use partners, kind of thing. So, I think they need to look at that. I know you're going to talk about it later. The only thing that I would have liked more of as far as the material wa_s_t_he exceptions. When mu didn't fit the time schedule. I think we sgnt some time on it the second day, but I would have liked to sand a little more time to see how yggcould break things apart a little bit better. That's a good point. Not evgyone's going to fit the mold. [t_hink most of us don't fit the mold in some way. 224 Right. Sp, more help in seeing the ways that you can adjust it and the ways to make it flexible to fit your schedule, your kids, your number of days, whatever. Right. I don't [mow if you want to bring that up, it brings up another thing. How they said the program is a spiraling program and not to pick and choose areas of what you want to cover. I guess I have a problem with that. I like to pick and choose. And see, I walked away without that feeling, I felt like, nope, I did cover that, the end result, they all have had that, but actually, I think they are almost better of with what I'm doing because they, and I have 40 minute classes so I have the little extra flexibility where I can work in more time with the galloping early on and continue through the year. I can do more aerobic fitness, 1 can do it every class like I like to because I have that time. Like, what if you don't get to all of the skills by the end of the year? But there will _b_e schools in fithat situation. Especially those that only have PE once a week. Maybe for 20 or 30 minptes. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT (COMMITMENT, BELIEF IN EPEC) POSITIVE COMMENTS: The idea of starting off with what's happened in the past with physical education and where kids in Michigan are at physically, from a health standpoint and just convincing us that we needed to sell physical education to the people of Michigan. I thought it had a lot of good selling points. I went to a similar one last year, at the time I thought it was great and wonderful and I do use a lot of those activities. But, at the same time, Ididn't feel as ifl was gaining a knowledge to really educate kids, I have been teaching games and things like this but with EPE C, I feel like I'm a little more focused, I feel that I'm working more as an educator as opposed to a games leader. I feel like I want to be an educator and lguess that's what I like about EPE C, I feel like there 's steps involved here that we 're working from one thing to another, there '3 just a little more continuity in my program when l'rn using EPIC and I guess that‘s why they really sold me. I feel like I 'm more of a valued educator now than I was before because I 've got something solid that I 'm working with. There is a continuum in my program, or there will be fi'om one year to the next. I think this is going to make me a better educator than what I was What did they do to help you see the value of this? 225 I don't feel like I have a good answer for that because I have been teaching it and lbegged for something and found this when l was starting up with this new position of phys. ad. I had someone that I really respected telling me that it was a solid program so that's what I needed to start with it. I went to an orientation program the previous year. So I kind of knew that it was coming. I knew it was down the road and I was kind of sold on it at that time. And just the fact that it's more research based and it seemed like they had a lot of good selling points. we have an outdated cum‘culum and we're looking for something so I guess the need of having something updated in place can be used as the reason I went. When I switched fiom the ciassroom to the phys. ed. position, I was told, you can do anything you want. Well, that’s not how it is in the classroom, you know, I'm accountable by all these MEAP tests and you name it and I thought. I professionally cannot lower myself to that standard of anything I want. So I was thankful to have something to start with. As long as there is a warm body there to come to pick up the dasses, the administration doesn't really care. Why they didn't want us to change is because they want these skills taught. If we're going to be credible as PE teachers and we want people to say, yes PE is so important so that when kids graduate they know that if they've gone through his program they know all these skills. Right through the beginning to a mature skill. And so they want to make sure that you don't miss any part of it. Want it done exactly like it's presented here. I agree with the progression. Everything that I have looked at in the line of manipulative skills and all of that type of thing, I loved the progression. Once again, the concepts are absolutely fabulous. It made me feel good about this, it gave me some new ideas on how to teach the progressions but like you said, to teach a kid how to skip, you may have to do more than just what's here. You have to pull something else out of the sky. They have to understand that, the overall concepts, I'll buy into it. But make me teach like that, I might have a hard time doing that. But, I will back up them 100% because I think they put their heart, soul, everything into it. If I had to buy this myself, I'd probably do it... Our superintendent was real fired up about this. I went, at first I didn't want to go because hate to be away from my classroom but when I got there it was good. Then, I didn‘t feel bad being out of my classroom. 226 If I can come back with one idea or if I buy one book, it doesn't matter, 30 bucks, if I got one idea out of it, I can use that time and time and time again. I'm interested but, you know, Glenna, God bless her soul because she has really put her heart and soul into this, you can tell by the way she presents and I think she buys into this hook, line and sinker, everything's there. She's been around for a long time, she isn't new to this concept at all. I think that she's talked to enough physical educators over the years that she feels that this is the way to go and maybe K-2, that's the way it needs to be it sounds like they accomplished having you feel like you ought to. Yes, definitely. NEGATNE COMMENTS: I bed a lot of guestions in my mind about a lot of things that they were doing and why they were poingfiiem in that orgep All right, I just, I had one comment in here but I don't know if this applies to this or not. But I guess because of my experience in teaching this social behavior, it shouldn't be just presented the beginning of the class. Go to the skill, you need to take it from there, you take it to the skill, you take it to the end of the class. The next week, you constantly build, and I'm finding that out since I've been doing the cooperation. I constantly build through the skill development. Especially if right now, if we're doing something like they did the thing with the bean-bags or the volley with the beach balls, we have to share, you have to take your turn, implementing, cooperation, constantly reinforcing. Not just saying okay, here's your social skill and go on. I think it needs to be... And you build on it but you can't leave it, it's got to be continual, constantly. yep, when we went down to the, we watched, they showed us a lesson plan, we went through one, and they showedpone, I don't remember exactly, on the overhead, up there. Then we went down to the gym. They d_i_dp't teach it exactly the way the lesson plan was, t_he way I read the lesson plan when they did it, there was a little bit of differences t_h_ere. It worked really well for gs as adults as teachers we knew. I really struggled, is this going to work? This much sitting time with kigg? This mgch discussion with kids? The studen§ rather than more active stuff. So, it didn't really motivate me that much. It motivated me because it's really a neat prggram but that scared me off guite a b'r_t, when we sat around a lg, Not a lot, maybe a minute gr two minutes but to me that gemed like an awful lot More than you thought might be right? For the kids? I struggled with that too, believe me, you have them sit a lot more than... 227 See, I have a problem with the pcfluence of the whole thing. I have g real problem with that andLl coglg see where, not a real problempgt I could see where some other mgple could have a problem with the gguence runs. I think someone needs to sit down end talk about why, t_he eguence of it. Is it epsier for me to leetn to kick before catch? Okay, then that's why the curriculum is written in that order. Need it explained to me. And I'm slowly, again, we were talking, too, and I teach, not really fast-paced, but I teach, what am I saying, it's real hard to teach jumping, to me, obviously, most of us, it's hard to teach that and then I have to remember that that's an important basic skill but to spend 15 minutes on jumping is rather boring and tedious and I'm not so sure that that's that important. So I'm, that's where I am and I'm trying, I'm feeling the waters and I'm not... And I'm slowly, again, we were talking, too, and I teach, not really fast-paced, but I teach, what am I saying, it's real hard to teach jumping, to me, obviously, most of us, it's hard to teach that and then I have to remember that that's an important basic skill but to spend 15 minutes on jumping is rather boring and tedious and I'm not so sure that that's that important. So I'm, that's where I am and I'm trying, I'm feeling the waters and I'm not... The concept or the whole overhand throw, the progression that they go through but I wouldn't take three or four days to do it, the different steps. It seem like there's an awful lot of drill. I like to get to an activity right away. A lot of instruction. A lot of instruction. Yeah, I feel a lot of it is instruction, where they're sitting, listening to me give the instruction and it's good instruction. By golly, it is. But it needs to go a little, get them moving faster. I would hope that maybe in the third, fourth and fifth grade levels, that they would change to concepts instead of breaking them up like they did this. Ijustthinkit's gotto beawholething. Youcanbreakitdownpartbypartbutdo itallin one day. You know, don't do it one day and then see them next week. I think it really depends on the content. Some things you can do in a 15-minute period. Then, what the content is should determine the amount of time, not an arbitrary (limit). The progression. The steps that you took to teach it, yes, but how they laid it out in each lesson, time blocks, no. 228 I don't like to wait. You know, you're doing one thing one day and then you're doing something the next. But, I liked how it goes, they key words. I happen to like to teach a skill and play a game that uses what I have just been teaching using that skill and then playing a game with it and that perhaps takes a whole half hour. But I think that the kids retain tlmt a little bit more; plus, they have more fun. And I have more fiin as a teacher. In fact, I love it. I don't want this to become so skill oriented that it wrecks it for little kids. I've had so many people before say I hated PE when I was a kid because all we did was skill, skill, skill... etc. So, don't get mad at me, but I do the concepts almost just enough to bet by and not to perfection, because people aren't, people who are perfect go into being coach or super— athlete and that's not what everybody is about to be and I don't mean to be that way but I found it to be quite successful because I think you frustrate children who don't have those abilities and then that's how they end up hating PE. People make fim of them because they can't. . . MATERIALS PRINT MATERIALS I EPEC NOTEBOOKS It's very clear and concise. It's easy to work with. So by the time you finished their training you felt like the books were yours to use. I knew right where I wanted to do a certain skill and read it really easy. ...very reinforcing to what I had been implementing. Ihey're always at on the same page, almost. Right. Yeah. It's real simplistic that way. It’s great the way they've got kindergarten, first and second grade, all the same lessons. It would have helped with me, if I would have gone to the inservice and they handed me the books, maybe, instead of there sitting on my desk one morning because Jim delivered them and said, start doing this program and I went, what program? What in the world? Yeah, and then I'm reading four pages on... Now I understand it but then I thought, what? That's what did it and I'm that way anyway and I thought, uh-huh, you're not going to, no way, I'm not doing this. And so it was all the way up until the day I went there, I thought... The first thing that attracted me to how they set this up is that it was very organized. 229 Ihese are well planned as far as each grade level and the lesson number and I ‘ve taken these out and made copies and put them back in and sometimes I have my notebook with me, sometimes I don’t but I never have a problem finding where they need to go because they put enough infomratr'on on each sheet that I can double check myself You can find key words and all of that Very nicely done. I used the pictures. The pictures are very helpful. I find that those are more helpful than the actual script part of it. Progression and I think that the kids can visually see the key word plus what the body is doing and I think that is very helpful to show that. separate notebooks for each grade? Yeah. I do (like them) Definitely, the evaluation edition came in one big fat notebook and the first thing I did, before school even started that year, was break that down into three or four of the smaller ones and I still have those but I couldn't believe that that’s how they handed it to us though, so this is much better. PRESENTATION VISUALS There was no hesitation, they knew exactly. It just flowed really well with how they had this and they had the screen and they explained it well. If they wanted to change anything, you know, they could go to color. You know, with their graphs and stuff, that might have been more helpful for some people to have some things more colorful. I really liked the visual aids, the overhead projector there, they always let us brow what page we were on if we were using the lessons, following along there so you could look at it in a couple of diflerent places, we had handouts. The handouts are "to the nines". They have the logo. They have everything highlighted that should draw your attention. She used the computer. The way she brought things in and took things away. You were in awe because it was extremely professionally done. It was very visual. 230 I'm a visual learner, llike to see what there is and I had it in front of me, but I also had it up on the screen and they also said it. The handout let me pay attention to what the presenter was saying instead of me always taking notes. They used the handouts as a worksheet which I thought was very good. If you were sitting where it was hard to see, you had no problem following along and you always have exactly what the presenter said for a reference. You always knew where they (presenters) were at. And if you didn’t you could raise your hand and someone was right there, right away Having it written also helps because sometimes presenters just go too fast. Good handouts show that the presenter is organized and has put some thought into their materials. It also shows they don ’t mind sharing their materials Did the met-Mm, work tpr you? Yes. Yes. The technology was great (presentation). To have things zip in there as she spoke and instead of giving you a whole handout where you sat there and you looked at the whole thing, she could bring in one thing at a time which makes you focus in on that so, it's just a very nice way of doing it. I thought one of the great strengths was seeing the power-point on the overhead and also having our own copy. I thought this is a great teaching technigue. The only thing that bothers me sometimes is when I have to write stuff in but I knowtpgt's to creete ownerflrtp of the stuff. I guess it's fun to have things there and not have to write. At least I understand why, because we have to do that in class, too. They give you part of the gutline, you fill in the rest. Makes you get connected to it. It does. Yeah. It does. I like power-point 231 AMOUNT OF MATERIAL Tint gave you so much material, I had no idea we were going to get a curriculum like this. Just explaining the curriculum to us so that we knew how to work with it was great. They knew their material forward and backward and it came through very clear. the amount of material that they presented at in-service- an okay amount for you to digest? Yeah, I thought it was. Yeah, it was reasonable. QUALITY OF EPEC MATERIAL oegsionally, I'll attend a workshop that really doesn't have materiels speg'fic tp the grade levels th_et I leech. this one, of Qurse was labeled already. I knew it would be applicable to my level. But for someone that first saw this ever and even first time, the only time I ever saw these letters EPEC was when you sent the little post cares. I hep no clpe what those six post cards were trying to say. th_ey had these little guestions on them. I'm goiryg, what is this? Is this something I should be doing because, I man, it says Michigan Exemplag Physical Education and I'm thinking, man, I don't know what I'm doing here It is good, the way they have it going from year to year to year. And building, that is good. it is a very good core curriculum. There is always something to fall back on and you can add to it, you can have it meet your own needs. I think that this is excellent exposure for the undergraduate who's just about ready to go into their student teaching. It gives it very nicely laid out how a lesson should be presented. Some concepts on how to do it, and the more they work with kids, the easier it will be for them. But the information that they sent me was very good. When I read the information and so forth, I thought, this looks good It looked like it would be a very worthwhile program to go into. Practical tools. It’s not just for the athlete in this class, everyone is benefiting from it. 232 I've always had a question, though, with the choice of batting. Being inner-city, kids do not play baseball, they don't care about baseball. Their thing is basketball. That 's just the way it is. It's just not available. And, it's hard to get everybody involved when you've got only six batting tees, if you have that? One? Yeah, I ordered some last week, knowing that I had this program. But the kids are really not interested in baseball game, even though it is the national past-time. There are certain areas in the country that it just is not. We need to recognize that TIME ISSUES PACE OF PRESENTATION They went slow enough that I could keep up. I think when you're working with teachers, too, I think sometimes they think that because you're a teacher you can automatically catch on and get it or whatever and I think it helps to treat us like you treat students. For me it does. I have to Ieam the same way a kid learns. Sure, we all do. Step by step. Especially something new. TIME ON TASK Limig? For m it's 45 or 50 minutes. If you can't say it in that amount of time, I'm mentally and physically removed. 16:2 It seemed like evegyt_hing was really well balanced. Just about the time, prior to getting tired of sitting, then it was time to go down to the gym. try some the ideas out didn't overdo that. Wenghroggh it quickly. ran Jthroggh it to eee how it wpgjg Lark. g_emefiback. telked about it a little bit. Went on with the next topic. I thought there was a really good balance. I was kind of amazed, almost, with the group. A lot of times you get adults tmether, we're as bad as the kids we can __stretch our breaks out and our lunches out but for whatever reason. it didn't ha a.an Things got going again. Why mat ha apgned, who knows? I guess maybe it was just the intereet in this. TIME TO PRACTICE (see comments on peer teaching and need for time to practice) 233 TIME BETWEEN SESSIONS They gave you seven days of time in between one session to the next to gy some things out to displace your regular curriculum and tpy a few sample lessons out. Would you have liked more time to do that in between two sessions? I would probably want less. Yeah. I would like to go heme and say, look evepybody agree, we're going to do this lesson tomorrow and the next day or do three lessons in e row. We're going to come back and then we're going to discuss it. Because it was more fresh in my mind. All in the same week then? Yeah. So it's fresh because I forget things vety guickly, a lot of times, and then they can help me more with whet I might have gone wrong or give them comments of what I think (Ldn't work fer me; I liked the spacing of the workshop days because, for one reason, I work part- tirne so I probably need a few extra days in order to even be able to teach t_h_e lessons In between workshop days. Secondly, as far as gettipg a substitute, you' re not missing the same classes then. And, I think that was obviogslya thought In setting it up that way and I appreciated that. I had ptenty of time to give them practice and I don't think I would have gone any shofir. I could see where you could, I suppose. GRADES 3-5 TRAINING you've been through the first part, let's talk about what they should do for those of you who are the veterans at using some of this and you've already been trained. I wouldn't think twice about going and getting the training for the next level as long as it's not real repetitive. Don't be doing the same... But of course there's going to have to be a little bit of repetitiveness because especially if people don't teach that element. . . K-3 or K-2 and they just do 3-5, there's got to be some, a little bit. Well, I think you could have training on the same day. But you could separate people who have had it and people who have not. Even if there's just a handful of people. They can get the hill-fledged training at. . . These other people can share the "make it, take it" share idea thing. The swap shop. Just sitting down, just talking about it. I go back withmorethingsthat waytlnntheother, andnotthatthe other isn't important, butlthink they could do it that way. . . People would probably be more willing to come back a second time, knowing that hey don't have to go through the same thing again. 234 Right now I'm thinking, send me the 3-5 material, I can handle it on my own. Now, if there's a different way of approaching it... then they had us do lesson plans, work through that and look at where you should be and I feel that if they, when the material, 3-5 comes out , they could just send it to me and I could go on fi'om there. That's true. Unless there's something that we really need to know about presenting. I don't approach my first and second graders the same way I do my 3-5 and so therefore that, that could be a little. .. I have also heard the comment made and I don't know if they've actually followed through this, but that it should be set up so that once you're trained for K-2, you could take the materials and use them all the way. But it's a matter of just getting the additional material, that once you use one, you can use any of them. That's how Glenna put it. If you can use one, you can use them all. So, I suspect that that's how it's going to be but I don't know. It wouldn't hurt to get together with other people. Maybe a one-day seminar. Yeah, right. Just touch base. And maybe some of that, as you said, should be on sharing kind of a... Like you are getting us to talk about particular topics today, that could be in a round-table discussion sort of thing. Getting together around a table of maybe 6 or 8 people who have all started using this bit by hit, some more than others, it sounds to me like it would be a really valuable time, whether it's an hour or two hours. ASSESSMENT Would you like Michigan EPEC, in the in-service, to address assessment of the skills that are taught in this curriculum and how should they address it? Testing. . . Assessment. . . Testing, the assessment. If they write it right. If we had help giving it, giving the test and getting the data because I think one person trying to do all that would be really hard. I'm not talking about all the 235 smcifics but if that could be done, it really would help give credibilig to phys. ed. prgrams in the state. That would feedback Lo whet you had eeid earlier about beipg able to show, after kids have been in this mgramLfigt, second third, fogrthyfijth. maybe be able to have assessment data to show after a certain three years, four years in the system. what t_h_ey've p_een a_ble to leggy I haven't really looked through that entire manual but I'm pretg sure there's no assessment or evaluation in there at all. We don't grade our kige very hard or veg well in physical education wh_e__re I'm pt. I would have a hard time, myself, writing an evaluation or an assessment of where they are at now in the evaluation according to this plan. That would be veg helpful. And then I eguld s_e__e, am I @ing any good. am I going it wrong and they're not Ieaming this why? Is it me? Or is it... That would be helpful, pgn you could at least start to see if there is improvement frpm year to veep I have an idea, until there's the intensig that the MEAP test scores have generated, physical education. gent know, we're just beating our heads against a brick wall, until something generates that, you know, it's going to have to be legislated, I would assume. And what if they tapm some kind of financial amount on top of it, like they did with the MEAP test? Sure enough. If it's doable. They wanted you to do it by video and you could check it ofl‘ and see how the kids were doing. The evaluation thing, holy cow. I have nine classes a day, when can I do all this? Am I getting so much into the technical part of it, this assessment thing scares me. Our governor likes to assess everyone. I'm worried that, is he going to hold me accountable because I got one kid that doesn't know how to skip? I will expose my children to as many of these skills as I possibly can and provide them with as many opportunities as they possibly can and provide them with as many opportunities as they possibly can have but holy cow, don't make me hand out a report card... I kind of believe in assessment. I do report cards twice a year. I'm at the end of the semester and I do spend time check-listing the kids... parents appreciate it but it's overwhelming. I have 350 kids. Well, when I saw 50 of them on the hallway the last day of school, after I spent, hours, hours checking these off and monitoring, that's when I stopped doing it. 236 That's another thing that would be good, just to talk about assessment as teachers. . . wondering how much, how important is assessment to the credibility of physical education? If you want a real credible program that people are going to believe in and thatthis is very importantandhow do I assessthese kids so thattheparents knowthis is as important as the reading and the math and... Well, are you not assessing them every time you watch them and then you're correcting themfor something that they're not doing quite right? Basically you are but are you talking about formal assessment? I would like more input on that, on assessment. I can't remember a lot of it. Is there real value to that, though? Because I'm sorry, I just went through weeks of, it was awfiil at our school, with, you know they did the testing, the... Ithasto be done inawaythat it does not stress outthekidsand I have a lot ofqualrns about it and I feel I'm responsible in how I do assess the kids. But I would like input on it. TOPIC #3 CHANGE NEED FOR EPEC CURRICULUM CONVINCING RATIONALE PROVIDED ? And Glenna DeYoung talked very much about being credible. That we have to fit within the PE curriculum, in the curriculum of the whole school. This whole wheel of education, we'll be credible in PE so that we don't cause that wheel to be lumpy because we're missing out on things in our PE curriculum. But they don't have to be jocks and social skills and that's why I like the compassion that we taught, all those things are so much a part of life. Why teach any other subject but PE, we've got it all right there in the gym All I had to do was have them tell me what this curriculum means what it looks like and it convinced me. This is good. I think as the teachers get into it more and more, as they can it up and they get into it. I know there will always be some strong-holes... It sounded, at mat inservice like this is the future, we better get prepared because we are going to become accountable in our department where it never has been so before. That's one thing that I came back with and was able to say to administrators as we were in the process of hiring someone new and, we need someone that we're 237 not going to keep training and babysitting and so forth, we have a program here that we really need to really get going underway because it's not going to sta y. And the classroom teachers were thrilled to hear that because the We accountable for everything it seems. Well, I'm sure it feels like that, I'm sure, to them. And, if we want to feel like educators, then we should be accountable for something. I don’t think therels any fear factor In being accountable because if the program works, the kr'ats are Ieaming quicker, why not do it? Yeah. That's what I say. but for me I had not seen that list of b_ehchmarks. I graduated 20 years ego, p_lpay? So I hafiven'tfi seen a lot of t_his stuff. I thought that was extremely valuable. For Glenne to get up there anq share. statewide or na_tional goals for phys. ed. was fuel for me. And also to share some of the ideas where we've got the backipg of the medical community. You've got the backing of health community. What we [M e‘ to get the education Qmmunig behind ue, okay? That sg'cks so fresh in my mind because here we're trying to convince opr own mrs that this is important and why? We've got a big job ahead of us and I thought that if we didn't have the kind of background that she gave us, statistics, it wouldn't give us guite as much support for change as if, the way she did give those to us and I thought it was veg important to do that. And I think that means a lot for change, causipg chapge. I think that this pripgs us some eccountapilig. I think accoungbility is immrtant, too. That rguires change. If you knew you were accountable, you'd have to change. The greenteges and things from the Health Depart_rpent was greet. Oh, I think it was veg necessag. Qh, yeah. PROVIDED ADEQUATE LEVEL OF KNOWLEDGE 7 Confident in teaching this myself? I think I could teach this myself. It's all there to teach it. It's laid out. I'm not, I wouldn't enjoy teaching it the way they have it laid out here, compared to howl am teaching it, but I am confident I could teach this. Yes. I agree. And, to have to sit down and look at the dumb books, I thought, okay, but then I did and then I remembered one other lesson she showed us, so I used that one, at first, that's what got me doing it. you said earlier, that you thought they needed to do more... Yes, because then I would have... Have you do more lessons... Yes, that would have gotten my ball rolling and that's what it did. 238 Very important... Very important for resisters. to have more experiences... So we've done it. So when we go to do it, we've already done it. We don't have to go study it and just learn it. If you read it, you don't know if you're doing it but by doing it and then going and doing... it was wonderful. That's what did it for me, that was my crossing point. So, now I'm not resistant, I just haven't had the time to sit down and really, really hash every single plan over. But I am going to. I'm going to pull, just bring some different things out and start doing, then in the fall I'm going to try my hardest to start and just go right through it. I'm not promising that I'll do every lesson as is but at least I'm certainly willing to use it. DEVELOPED YOUR BELIEF IN EPEC ? Like with this group, we were all classroom teachers and then what you were taught in college methods class, PE, try to remember back 20 years what you were taught and to try to implement it, this gives you something up to date that you can use. I was in the classroom, also, for 16 years, before I even taught my first phys. ed. class. I even wondered when I went back into physical education, is this, do I have enough background or am I cunent enough to teach it still? Sadly enough, it seems like things haven't changed a whole lot. This is what I feel like I was trained to teach. This sort of thing, where you catch the whole child, not just the skill child. Anyway, this gave something solid to work with I feel like I want to be an educator and I guess that’s what I like about EPEC, I feel like there's steps involved here that we’re working from one thing to another; there is just a littie more continuity in my program when I ’m using EPIC and I guess that’s why they really sold me. mentioned that when he started using this that he felt more like an educator and you do. You do have clear, concise steps for skills for these kids to do and it's not just being a games facilitator I feel like I 'rn more of a valued educator now than I was before because I 've got something solid that I'm working with. There is a continuum in my program, or there will be from one year to the nut. I think this is going to make me a better educator than what I was You know, I think maybe one thing that EPEC could do, is, (ask) what are your goals as a PE teacher? Talk about our goals as PE teacher. We can't all have the same goals, but I like your goal and my goal is also not to make jocks out of every child that comes through the gym door. I want them to feel good about themselves and I want them to feel 239 good about physical activity and enjoy it. I want to get them excited about an active lifestyle. I have some strong feelings about bandwagons and this is possibly a bandwagon. Our school is famous for jumping on every possible bandwagon there is and before it's been mother-tested kid-approved and all that stuff, however you want to say it, we're into it, up to our eyeballs. But I hate these bandwagons and I don't think that this is a passing fancy but I can also feel threatened by this because I'm wondering if the state goes along with this with the way they're talking curriculums now, that if you don't buy into this, are you losing state fimding? That was the one thing that my superintendent wanted to know, she says, if we don‘t buy into this does this mean that we're going to lose fimds? Not that new ideas aren't good, I just think that, keep your basic thoughts and have basics and make sure everybody is getting all those basics and how you present it is really up to you because you may not feel comfortable with the way I present and she might not like the way you do it and that's okay but as long as they've said that that's the basics, that's good. And Glenna DeYoung talked very much about being credible. That we have to fit within the PE curriculum, in the curriculum of the whole school. This whole wheel of education, we'll be credible in PE so that we don't cause that wheel to be lumpy because we're missing out on things in our PE curriculum. But they don't have to be jocks and social skills and that's why I like the compassion that we taught, all those things are so much a part of life. Why teach any other subject but PE, we've got it all right there in the gym A suggestion that might be helpful, I don't know, is finisomeone that teaches this curriculum guite well and there are kids that have been doigg it for a vearp_r_ so aantheprsicalIv. or maybe someone who is just starting it and done it for a year and do vopr seminar t_here at that place and then have people that maybe are skeptical or aren'quing to change, go to that class and sit and watch how that class is taught and what they're doipg... And you're probably goipg to have resistance until you get a number of schools that have kept some kind of evaluation from year to year to see the prpgression of how this kindergarten, this first grade class, whatever, has progressed to the fifth grade. Am how they're doing in sixth grade. you're going to take 4 or 5 years for those kids to go through and then another fopr or five years to measure them against others so vog're going to have a long time before vog're rea_Hy going to be able to evaluate and change people's minds that are resistant But this is good for kids right now. This is good for kids. And that's what they neesttm convinceg of. Really emphasize the statistics, bringing someone in or taking them to see someone. t_hat. .. If that doesn't work, at least video tag of real classes being taught by real 395th real kids. Maybe that's not as effective b_pt at Iggst it's more than what we have right now. 240 I would make sure I had two different kinds of teachers. Some days I feel pret_ty good about myself and I reallv like it and I'm really enthused. lt_rv my best to do .You might want to show a couple of different kinds of cla_____sses. The Isocial-economics can make a lot of difference In how this Is taught, let me tell you. Yeah. I believe it is worth it Yeah. If you're committed to this it will work by; It won't happgn over night but it will... DEVELOPED YOUR SENSE OF COMMITMENT TO EPEC ? (I think it's good but don’t rush me-) I don't want to resent it, I want to enjoy it and like it and feel it and it might take me three or four years to get right, totally, you know. I think the concepts are absolutely fabulous, the progressions that take you through the steps is wonderful. I would say let's try to make sure that all the schools in Michigan cover all these concepts in Elementary Physical Education and then give people professional lee-way as to how to present it. Evidence of commitment: And I think, well, I guess that is our point too, that when we go to our buildings, we need to go to the staff meeting, I don't hit staff meetings very often because they have them on the days when I'm not in their buildings but make it a point to be there and say, this is what I'm presenting, I'm asking from you, like Steve said when he first introduced it an how he left it for the teachers, I need those kids in there, I can't have them coming in 20 minutes late from team room. I need them there at that time. It's important that they get there to learn these skills. It's not a dumping ground. VALUE OF EPEC LESSONS FORMAT About two preps... I think that it needs to be stressed that this doesn't have to take an hour to prep. It just doesn't have to. Don't tprn it into a thesis in your prep. You read it through and you glean what you can from it and you go with the things that stand out to M It can be done in a short time. It can be done in short order, it doesn't mean you spend an hour for each 15 minute prep. 241 Basically, these mph know this stuff already. It's just a matter of using it. They jdst need to maybe change your cue word. That's not going to take an hour, to change a cue word. Or that they don't have to change a cue word. They don't have to if they don't want to. Just replace their cu_g word for what's merry, I'm vegy new at teaching so it's easy for me to make changes or for me to want to tg_different things but for traditionalist or someone that's been doing it for a number of years isn't goingto want to see t_hese. they're not going to want to do it. They're probably not even goipg to sit down and make notes of what that lesson plan says. CONTENT I like the idea of going one picture at a time. @n' necessarily agree with evegdhing that's on t_here and the way it's done but I like. okgy. we're going to do this one, this one and this one today. I liked what was said about, if you want people to be involved in fitneg, lifelong fitness, then they need to have skills in order to feel comfortable to do that. I agree 100%. All I know is that it fits so well with what I do, anmy, it gives me the spaces to do a few of the real particular things I do with my classes. And it comes back §.§ that spiral. I've found in the couple of years that my florid graders don't know as mdchfi yod wish they wou_Id. They need_this re-training, the progressions. I like that you don't have to do a whole, like a baseball unit, you can do some throwing, later on you do the batting. somewhere else yod're working on Illa catchin . Eve in is t_JLoken down. pdt the_re is some logic to it. There really is ngic to this. It kind of almost surprises me how logi_cgl it is aan how vorLcangp back and forth between things and that was what I wanted to see. That's what I've been waiting to see, that I couldn't get into my own head, to put on pggr. l have to do a unit instead of picking and pulling. Yeah. And nobody slips through the net on all those skills because you've taught everyone the same way. Whereas before, I thought I was teaching them great but probably not exact, like now, they're all exactly, boom, boom, everything is, I mean they're perfect. Every hand is... from here to here... That way you can just focus on everybody. I think that's how it needs to be presented to the veteran teachers. And then it's not going to scare them. 242 I'm thinking, I'm not going to spend 15 minutes on compassion, I teach them that everyday. So, that's my resistance, now, the social part of it, because, again, I do it so much, and they know, and again, it‘s my relationship from them, what I expect from them and how they behave in my class that it's hard for me to say, okay, now sit down and we're going to talk about, if Johnny can't play, how do you think that makes him feel, or whatever, I just feel silly, almost, because I do it so much. but, I have to say, I was very turned off when I, one of these aerobic fitness activities was, jog in place for four minutes. Yeah, right. I don ’t want to do that. Jogging can be very boring There were some things I've got some concerns about with some of the fundamental skills, teaching skipping, already this late in the school year, I've got a problem with that. But see, I can pull that skipping out and put it where I want to put it. But, yes, the more I use the MIEPE C lesson, I'd like to think that's part of why I like it. Because there 's a lot of good infonnatrbn in there for the kids, there really rs. I think I've got more kids more interested in physical education than in the past because in the past it seemed like they were always the dominant students and now it's more individualized where everybody’s working on in-step kick or everybody's working on vertical jump or everyone is working on leaping. it’s more individual, it's not competing against other students in class, it seems like they're getting more out of it because of it and they're more interested in physical education. And that makes me feel a whole lot better, as an educator; too. Knowing that I ’m educating the whole class, I ’m not just educating dre ski/led participants of the class. I think, most definitely that kids are improving individually and I think it has a lot to do with the cue words, it has to do with the visual aides, I just think the kids, rather than just seeing me do it, seeing me explain it and do it, you know, I've got visual aides. There 's the cue words and there '3 just more for the kids to focus on. think it’s change to me that I'm using a lot more visual aids than I have in the past. In the past I didn't really spend too much time using visual aids but now, I feel like I'm better able to teach my lessons with visual aides and I think it's made me more conscious of what l'rn teaching, too and how I'm teaching it. And I'm doing a better job now preparing kids, I 'm doing a better job with my explanations and demonsUations. 243 even the homework aspect is something that I didn't really stress too much in the past and now I'm trying to get the kids, make them more conscious that it's important to practice what we're doing in class on their own at home and giving them some ideas on things that they can do at home. (Personal SOCial Skills...) You know a systematic way whereas I don't do it very systematically, maybe it would be really good. The other teachers were quite, really liked that. I sent some homework home for the kids about that compassion thing. I just feel the research that was done in this was excellent. And so I feel they have, they did very good research but they had to kind of make it where it would fit across the board statewide. A statewide program and it's okay. you could take the material and handle it your way to fit your teaching in your school. Yes. And make my curriculum better than what it is, perhaps. I definitely think there are some good things in here that I could get out of it. USEFULNESS Say, here, we've done all this work for you to make it better for you. I don't think teaching the curriculum differently from how they made it out was addressed. I don't know how many teachers are out there that just throw out the ball and this is what we're going to do. There's no skill development or whatever, if they (EPEC staff) say, “hey, are you bored with your game?” Because now I see how it can take up my whole day or my whole class period and how valuable it is to teach the way they showed us and how important it is to do it the right way, it's lesson plans, that really is, that was what was nice, all of the sudden I went wow I don't even have to, it's my lesson plan, I don't have to do it, it's done. You don't have to think. Yeah, I don't have to think anymore, I don't have to sit down and decide how I'm going to do it. Yeah, so in that respect, I have, I'm making the change and I, really, I didn't think I would be this easily swayed but... It's your lesson plan, that's such a nice feeling. That's another thing. You're lesson plans are done for you. Done. For the whole year. 244 I'd love to talk with these people about that. I was pumped when I came back but then once I sat back and looked at it I had questions, why didn't I think about that when I was there and I could have asked them I got through the lesson plans when I did it my own way and when I did it their way, I didn't get finished in a half an hour. I really think, you know, “are you bored with what you have, you feel like you're going in and, now what do I do today? What do I do, I have no clue. Well, you don't have to worry about it.” and l was kind of happy because I was starting to get bored. I had bought books and books because I was getting bored with myself. With yourself. Me too. See, that was me, I was thinking, me too. EFF ECTNENESS Information on the effectiveness of it, would that help in the fiiture, say after we've had some teachers using this for a little while... I think so. I think tlmt would be a great thing. CONFIDENCE IN EPEC CONFIDENCE PRIOR TO IMPLEMENTATION I have to tell you that I was skeptical. Because you know, I was involved at one point, before it was dropped at Western. this whole project. I came thinking, hmmm. I'm goiryq to find out if this rejafly worked. when they demonstrated and after going over that and I saw it in a different perspective and I thought, okay, to put it that way and to help me get through, it really isn't that hard to teach, it isn't that overwhelming. When you left training, were you feeling confident? Yeah. It took me a while, I was still thinking, I might do it. Okay. Then, when you started trying a little of it... Then it was awesome. Then what was the trigger? I did what we learned there, that was the key. That was what you started with? Yes, I just took that lesson. Because, again, I was overwhelmed, I was, I don't want to say I was intimidated like I couldn't do it, but like, just too much stuff. I 245 wasn't going to find it myself. I thought, okay, the only way I'll do this is I'm going to go and I'll teach... They taught us, because I know how to do it and I don't have to do any studying and all that stuff and sit down and write those darn cards, so I thought, okay, so I went in there and I put things down and I taught them that and I added my own little things, which were really cool. I was having a ball with it and adding new words to theirs but did it exactly the way they said it and my kids were so good, so successful, I mean 100 percent of them did it correct, I just went, oh my gosh. It took the whole time, it took my 20 minutes allotted for that activity. So, I thought, well, this is great. I mean, mission accomplished. It was super. Then, I thought, okay, that's what we Ieamed there and now I have to go home and study. Because now I have to go read and see what they, so that was again, it was hard for me to have to go home and, because I don't get home until 10:00 every nightBut, again, I wish they'd shown us dribbling. Even though it says it right in the book, I wish we'd had a demonstration so that it was already known. 0r seen a video and then I can... Yeah. Yeah. Because then I'd go do it and, yeah. At least some of the whole thing... A little. CONFIDENCE WITH IMPLEMENTATION And the minute I went in and I taught all those I-T and then the other hand, I'm going, gosh, this is not all that hard. They gave me something to teach, it was great. And then if you do pull one of your old games out, you look at it a whole different way, now you're looking at the kids, are they doing this when they play? Clean out your backyard and Yep. And then I say, use you're l-T throws. And it's like... All of the sudden everything clicks and all of the sudden you see everybody and it's like wow... I have to kind of start at the beginning. I'm too scatter brained, I'm doing a million different things and so I have referred to that, I have taught four or five of the different lessons that have helped me immensely, it was wonderful 7hey tell me, ’7 feel stronger” and this is the winter when they’re talking about 246 their playstations and nintendos 30¢ there isn ’t a whole lot to do outside but it's exciting for me to see their excitement; to see their enthusiasm. I think the confidence is gained when you implement it in with your kids. Later, when you actually try it out. Yeah. Because you get something new thrown at you, you 're rebellious, orl don 't know what it is. What I mean is that once you've actually tried this with your kids, it's like he y, this works. The kids like it. I really thought I would hear the kids say this is boring, I don 't want to do it. I really did I'd do it again. I‘d go again. I'd recommend anybody else to go too. Definitely. I think I've got more kids more interested in physical education than in the past because in the past it seemed like they were always the dominant students and now it's more individualized where everybody's working on in-step kick or everybody's working on vertical jump or everyone is working on leaping. it's more individual, it's not competing against other students in class, it seems like they’re getting more out of it because of it and they're more interested in physical education. And that makes me feel a whole lot better, as an educator, too. Knowing that I ’m educating the whole class, I 'rn not just educating the skilled participants of the class. I think, most definitely that kids are improving individually and I think it has a lot to do with the cue words, it has to do with the visual aides, I just think the kids, rather than just seeing me do it, seeing me explain it and do it, you know, I've got visual aides. There 's the cue words and there's just more for the kids to focus on. FACTORS THAT ENABLE CHANGE PERSONAL What are personal issuesl factors that might cause people to resist this? They're too negative about their job. Period. How can the inservice overcome that? Demonstrations or show them how simple it can be. Yeah. Again, if you can show them. When I saw it and did it, then I changed my mind. Iwent, okay, fine. Ilike it I guess. And then lwent right back in two days later, I waited a couple of days and then I did it. I would have told you, I'm not doing this. There's no way. But, I think that's what happens, people are so negative. Then there are the ones that, you know... 247 if you don't just give them the books and say to do it but if you show them, I don't care videos or go in like an in—service like that. Videos. Just show them, some peOple... People using that. Go to your school and videotape you... Yes. Just come and see it. All it really takes is just really seeing it. And then you go the barrier is down because you go... wow, look at how successful those kids are. How easy, that was easy, gosh she didn't even have to, her plans were all set for her, it took her 20 minutes to do that whole thing, that was great. That is a good idea. When they first presented this EPEC program in Jackson, they called all the PE teachers in, they called administrators to come to this little meeting and I sat down and almost crawled under the table. Because one of our high school/middle school teachers said, what is in it for me? What am I going to get out of it? The guy turned and looked at him and said, yourjob. your job is on the line. Look at the budget. Uh-huh. There you go. Do you want your job, then go (some just are) hanging around with a group of negative teachers. Or, they're getting away with teaching the way they are now and their principal who doesn't know any better. So, if they try something new, they're really going out on a limb. I think they're fearful, I think all that is, is just... I think they'd enjoy their job more. Well, yeah, but they don't want to teach and so they've gotten themselves into a position where they don't really have to do much and to do this EPEC, that means really teaching and producing and so then it's easier to just say, I'm not doing it. It's fearful because they're insecure about it, they don't know that they can do it. Yep. They've gotten away with it. unless you see it in action and see that it's really not hard, very valuable. And successful. And I think that's something that has to be presented in that way, like how we are, we're excited because it’s enhanced out teaching. 248 Thinking about it, if they could hear some others talk about it... maybe... I think the veteran teachers need to be told, you don't have to change anything, just pull the bits and pieces out that's going to make it better, That work for you. Yeah. And if you want to do skipping in October or September, do it then. I think it would be more user friendly for those veterans that are going to put up walls. When I saw this program, it was like, well, gee, I'm pretty much, I'm doing this anyway, it just makes me refine it a little bit better, I think the veteran teachers need to be told, I don't want you to change totally, I want you to take and implement this and this and how can you refine it and make it a better program. They think they're going to come in there and oh my gosh, you want me to change everything I've done. But I like what I've done, NAME even said to me, she said, you know you're a seasoned teacher, how are you going to do this? You're probably going to pull bits and pieces. And exactly. I've seen it work. Everything's going fine. Just let them know. SCHOOL NAME, I know the guy there, has had the book, he hasn't come to any of the curriculums because he's already got, they just bought it and he went from there. He has just pulled out and he's the one that told me, he goes, man, the things about skills are great. You always wonder, how am I going to teach them to do that and then, wow. There it is. The breakdown is there. You know, the breakdown was great, so he pulled that out. If you thought what you did was the very best, you wouldn't have been at this inservice. That's true. I'm always looking for new ways, so it's not like I'm not open to new ideas. No. Me either. I think there are ways that I could have improved. I think I 've improved and usually people aren't too quick to change but I think I wanted to change and I 've been willing to change and so it 's been easier for me but for somebody who maybe is a little more established in their ways, they wouldn't be as willing to change but for me it's been a welcomed change and something that I wanted to do and so I've had no problem in stipulating the program. 249 l was happy to hear other educators, after they had taught a lesson, come back and have their comments, to see what they had to say. So hearing the other peOple comment was helpfirl. .. PROFESSIONAL FACTORS THAT ENABLE CHANGE A need to rally their colleagues around this effort- Well, you know you do have to breed out that stuff, that whole mentality, because phys. ed. in the past, by no fault of our own, has always been playing. Kids all say, well, what are we going to play today? Well, it's going to take some generations of time and new teaching methods to get through, get those kids past that they are not coming to phys. ed. anymore to go play round and around the bases, something. You know, that is something else that is going to have to be done, is the classroom teacher needs to be educated more. We will be valued more. Oh, yeah. We will be valued more once they, once this is all... Could you use materials that they could provide for you through the inservice that would help you with that part of it? we have inservices at the schools and the teachers are always scrambling, what are we going to do, what are going to do for inservice? Why not take half of that inservice, take that one hour of the inservice and have the phys. ed. teacher present the program. That would be a great idea. That plus, here, talk about our phys. ed. the whole thing in general. The value of it. Say this is what's coming in. They're Ieaming, why all this is important and just educate them. Do you have copies of those powerpoint, is there anywhere that you could put them... I wonder if part of our inservice should be on how to present it to the staff. Right. Yeah. And then some really interesting things too is... It wouldn’t take long to give you the materials for a short presentation... Short, yes. Very short presentation to your staff on what you are now taking on. 250 because I think our staff just needs to be aware, too, of, because they drop them and leave, they don't know what to do and they don't even care. You want them to care, I want them to care and if they saw that it was, maybe if we had an inservice where we could speak to them and say, I'm working on blah, blah, blah with these students and presented it, I don't know, I'd think that'd be really helpful. The other thing, too, is when we present it to the staff, I think, too, I don't know about you but I know kids probably go back to classrooms now and, I think my kids are pretty happy, I think they really do love phys. ed., most of them, I always hear that. But then I think, you know some of them are probably going back going, we didn't play any games and then the staff, the teacher, the classroom teacher is thinking, they don't like the phys. ed. classes because... whatever. So, if we can educate our staff... Then they'll understand... That's what we're doing, we're not boring... This is transition, we're re-training the kids... Yes, this is a new phys. ed. era. We're going back to teaching skills. And, like, with me with the social skills, I think my staff needs to understand I'm doing it too. Comfort in having it all done for you- lhere was a lot of discomfort last year not knowing what the next week was going to bring. That’s nght and if you have to come up with your own cum‘cu/um, if every week, you have to come up with something new, that is, that’s hard to do week after week throughout the whole year. Yeah, I think this actually gives you more comfort if anything, And I think with this, I feel a lot more comfortable, I think well, this is it here and I'm going to do this and I'm going to do this and on down the road this is where I'm going and I feel like Ihave a lot more direction than lever did in the past, before, because I guess just the idea that l was making it up myself and I didn't know if that was what was best. And you really are on your own. You don 't have an administrator saying you've got this criteria to, they might give you that book that we all get, but, they, from what I can see, they have not changed the scope of sequence or the cum'culum. 251 Once you delve into it is comforting. It's something that you can always fallback on and once you've done a certain activity a couple of time, you have a set path, you know what you want to do. One other thought, I've had sick kids for the last two weeks, going on three weeks now, I've missed a lot of school and one comment to me, before I started teaching, was teaching this program was, oh, 3 sub could just come in and take it. Yeah. No big deal, it's all there, the y just have to follow this whole, these papers. Just implementing one grade (or k-2) at a time helps- I'm glad that I'm not doing K-5 right now, because I'd really be overwhelmed. I think it's good for me that they're doing K-2 this year and again 3—5 next year, maybe I'll have a large enough head start for K-2 where I'll be able to jump into 3- 5 next year. I almost think that you should almost try one grade level a year. FACTORS THAT INHIBIT CHANGE PERSONAL ISSUES THAT INHIBIT ABILITY TO CHANGE You know what would make me be'the biggest one (RESISTER)? I mean, being the one that's always like that? To hand them the books and say here you have to do this. You have to teach this whole thing exactly... It was like my principal said to me, and he's cool, he said, are you doing the Michigan EPEC? And I said well, I'm trying. Well, you know you have to do it. And just that, before... I thought, wait a minute, right away, I got mad about that. I thought wait a minute, I don't know if I'm going to, you know, chill. To tell me, to give me these books and say, you have to teach this, but if you would have said to me, these are really helpful in your lessons, look through this, this give you, and said, you don't have to do every single little thing, I probably would have even looked at it differently and then done it all. It's just kind of the way, when you've been doing teaching and you're doing it your own way and you think it's working and you feel that you're a successful teacher and then someone says, here you have to do this right now. Every page. What lesson are you on? You've got to be on 13 today. All of the sudden you're going, yeah, I'm not doing any of it. Forget it. So, I think that happens. I know some of our staff has said the same think, like, geez...You don't force the change totally. Just build onto it. I thought, there's no way, I'm not going to sit down and read 20 pages tonight on how to dribble, I was just totally... Then, I'd look at them (the books) again and then I had to go to the in-service and then I really, for the first time, really looked through it. 252 I was really saying, okay, I'll do it ifl have to. But I don't like this because I don't like to teach this way and I don't want to sit down and read it, I don't want to every night make these stupid cards, so I was really negative about it. I can see with the books it you got them before hand, man, that would blow you out of the water. Oh, yeah, looking at them I just went, what am I supposed and I didn't even know how to read them and what? And then there's the users manual and I'm drinking, no way, I'm not spending six hours a night trying to figure out what I'm going to teach tomorrow. So when you do that and you don't have anything else, you just go, uh-huh, forget it. Do you think it would be to not have people see the materials (beforehand)? Yeah, that's my own (ISSUE), I've got to, I'm gonna just have to do it. I haven't done any of the social things because I teach social things everyday, and I know we all do, but, so what I do is I get in there and oh my gosh, I've got 30 minutes and I'm trying to teach a buzillion things and my kids are so well behaved, they're like little soldiers, I have very well-behaved kids because they don't event dare breathe in my class, they're very well, they do what they're supposed to do, they're nice to each other, and I don't mean, not all the time, I don't mean perfect, I don't want to sound, but what I mean is, from day one, I've always done my cooperation and my compassion and all that, just as human beings, so when it comes to teaching that, I feel funny because, to start, and again, I haven't sat down and looked at it so I need to do that and I will do that and then I will probably see it differenlly and do it. But it, just so far, And just everyday interactions with them. And again, we all do that, so I know that I need to do it but I just haven't yet. So I can't really, I'm not going to say I'll never do that. I got these books and I'm going, too much, I can't do this, forget it. And I put the books away No, the only thing, again, that intimidated me when I first looked at it was the length. I don't have time, I am so busy, as everybody is, but my first thing was I cannot read four pages on skipping, that's ridiculous. Until I did it, but again... Yeah. It goes back to what you said about not seeing them (the books) until you're there at the training. Yeah. Yeah. Had I not seen the books but seen a video and seen the demonstrations and started liking It that way, then saw the book, then if they said, now these lessons are really long, if I just sort of eased into it, then I expected it and then I would think, oh, okay. With a video tape Yeah, because that's so easy and short. And it looks so simple and then it makes you want to do it. 253 Trying to pump up with that, and then go to the... But when you send those books, that's what did it. When I walked into my office and saw four books sitting on my desk, it was like, what are these? I didn't touch them for two weeks, I never even picked them off my desk, I finally moved them to the shelf because I kept going, I'm not looking at those. There was that total, but that's what happens to folks that are, I'm thinking, I know what I'm teaching today, I'm not, forget it. I already know what I'm doing. You think I'm going to go digging through that big pile? Yes, exactly, I'm not studying. Comfort is probably the biggest thing. Most people would rather stay within their own comfort level. well, and not having it so scripted, the lessons taught, that was very... we did not like the scriptedness. .. I could see right past that; too, you know that’s not me and I don't teach it that way but the content is there. I did not like the scriptedness of some of the lessons and I use what I want of it, personally It's just not that I wouldn't buy into it, and I could get real fired up about this but, you know, unfortunately, I'm pretty opinionated and now that I've been around the block for 25 years. I like what I do and if people are going to continue to supply me with things like this, I will be willing to go to inservices. I will do it and if you want me to come back again and sit down and share, I'll do that too...(BUT... I’m not really going to change) You've always worked for so long and whatever, and you just think this is fine, I'm doing a great job. I don't want to change mine. PROFESSIONAL ISSUES THAT INHIBIT ABILITY TO CHANGE I know our principal is totally trying to push this big-time The only thing that I had said before was the degree, that they need to buy into this. That bothers me a little bit, is it going to be connected to fimding? Not that I'm so worried about it but my superintendent is. I will buy into the concepts. To implement this program in K-2, it's pretty good because I have them twice a week for 35 minutes, twice a week. 3-5, if it's base don the same program, I would have a problem because I only have PE once for 35 minutes. 254 you've done what you do for so long, is that an issue about changing? Because I haven't completely jumped into it because, unfortunately, I'm not set in my ways but I'm set in my ways and so I mentioned before that it would be better to start out with the kindergarten class and take them all the way through instead of jumping in half way into the year, not that change isn't good, it's just that, I'm already in the groove, I guess, I don't know... I've not taught all of the skills from their point of view because we are, like I said, to just change mid-stream, and I agree that I would like to start with my kindergarten curriculum and work them through. We have a great curriculum at school already in place. It's not like I'm ready to just throw out that curriculum and start all over new with this. I sat next to a guy and he-really, really had gone to a lot of workgalmost the same work to set pp his own curriculum. I wondered at one time why was he here. Why di_d he or his school d__istn'ct go into apending the moryy on this because he ha__d his. from what he' d said he had_ a checklist and he'd done all the preliminagy work. the task analysis and all this stuff he had it ready to go and it was done pare for him. So, I don't know. He didn't intend to change much. He said he didn't intend to change because he'd done the work already. CHANGES IN TEACHER BELIEFS UNDERGRADUATE EXPERIENCE l was trained fin Movement Education, I probably had a blend but it was heayy on Movement Education and having tried that and realized that, these kids really don't lgIowany more about jumping than they did last year about this time. Personal emn’ence, I can see where we need to do skill... That's what I was saying too. My kids, they just don't grow anymore. Theirs not getting outside emenenca¢fl dgn't give it to tham, who is going to? l dpn't know about anyone else at the instruction, but I was trained in mpvemagt education and went into teaching dying to do that, realizing that it w_aan't workmg, And have slowly moved toward using skill. So, what this did was sell me on it even more and reinforce my own teaching sale and content and evegdhing. We go through undergraduate work and we think that what we 've been taught is the way to do it. And that that's right and we 've been trained that way, Again, it 's the comfort level. If they feel comfortable with it, they 're going to use it. So, the more they do to make us comfortable with it, the more we '11 be able to... How many people out there are still teaching exactly the way they were taught 2 or 3 decades ago. 255 Does there need to be some acknowledgement of the fact that this is different? Yeah. From their(undergrad) training People will not resist change if it... If it makes sense. Right. And they don't feel threatened. CUSTOMARY WAYS OF TEACHING There will be mple who will be caught up in this, not because they want to be but becagse t_hey have been told that they will. There has been some concern about how to provide training for Lhem. I think it's important you let them know, look, you don't have to follow this saguence. YoL can take odt lesson y or whatever it starts with and start there or __s_tart with some of the ot_her t_hemes. I think the theme we did was compass ion. Right? If you could start with that one, compassion___ and I don't remember what __t_he skill was at that time underhand throwing or something. And ypgcofl start there Ed come back to t_he ot_her t_hemes and the othker sk_ills. I have to struggle with that part. Starting right there where they want me to start with following directions on... Day 1. Yeah. pr. ha_re. yeah, I like that, start on day 43, but I'm saying for aomeone who might be against it, you could. yod know. yogdon't haye to. I don't Mk am scho_ol would honestly say, you have to start on lesson 1. They might, don't let me say that. Yes, they would. Our school would. I'm predy sure of that. Let them g a lesson, send them out and tell them to t_ry this for a week. Tgy this grficrflm for a week. Especially something Iika when you're doing your overhand throw, make a T. Use those key words and I'll bet you they'll be sold b_y_Lhe end of Mt waek. you might want to start by pulling out some things. Just some here, some there. For some that resist change, another thing that they could do, possibly, is when they get this is try a few lessons, say try three or four lessons the initial year and then expand after that. Yeah. Just say, this is helpful. And the next thing you know, they might be doing... Then they're doing it all. And that's what I'm going to be doing because I know me. I'm seeing now, well, in my own time, and every now an then I look through 256 that and I go hmm, I'm going to do this one and I will. Eventually, I'll be doing the whole thing. But if you throw all these four books at you at one time, they're going to say, wait a minute, this is too overwhelming, but if they would just say try a certain number of lessons. Because our curriculum that we wrote and spent so many hours on, it gives them what they need to do but they can do It whenever they want to do it. We don't have a base time that this is when it has to be done. These are the things that you need to get accomplished throughout the school year. Do it. I know they were concerned about that because we had to fill out that survey and they wanted to know how receptive we were to change. Boy, I was real nervous about answering those questions because I thought, oh my God, if I say I don't want to change, are they going to say, sorry! Not that I would get punished, but at the same time, I am a very traditionalist person and I just, wow. Okay. Given the license saying okay, we know you don't want to do the 15 minute deals but... I would make sure I would hit every topic. I was checking with myself to see, like, do I do all this like they, and yes, I do, you know I might not do it like the way they like to do it and I don't do the life skills that much, however, I have life skills up in my gym and when it's appropriate we stop and talk about it. Like I told you, my curriculum is to expose the children to as many different skills of all the different types of activities that you can do at least once a month so that they can keep up with tint. Don't tell me that I have to teach in those 15 minute blocks. The concepts are great. I would use the concepts, I will not use the plans that are laid out. As the two 15, I was comfortable with that, the way they had presented it in a particular lesson but I would rather take the concept of overhand throw or in step kick, that I would, I'll definitely use those, but how they break them up. . . Did they convince you at all that maybe you should try it the other way? I guess (my) intention wouldn't be to ignore things that come up in a classroom situation, say, time out here, remember what we talked about two weeks ago or six weeks ago? I'm seeing evidence that this didn't come through, this lesson didn't really come through here. Let's talk about this now CHILDREN AS LEARNERS If you sit and talk all the time you've lost the, it's like, come on, Mrs. _, let's get going. You know, I get that all the time. Can you stop talking now? Can we just play? So I 257 think the pictures are excellent, the key words are excellent, the lesson plans, if you just take me through that progression, what you want me to do... one of the things that I did look, when I first got there, I looked through how they had things laid out and am I doing it? Have I missed anything? If you have a school district that lives in a rural area, you're not going to have the same types of skills that, me being a city school, who have all the kids take summer tennis lessons, I'm not kidding you, most of the kids in my school take summer lessons at the local tennis courts by most of the teachers are the tennis coaches that teach there, so those kids do have those striking skills, so my kids are probably more advanced than somebody who lives rurally. Maybe the first grade curriculum might be a little bit juvenile for the kids that I am teaching right now, for somebody else, it might be quite advanced. It just depends on what kind of things they have at pre-school. Have they had pro-school experience, all that kind of stuff comes into play. Did they have brothers and sisters that they can play catch with. It just depends on what they're exposed to. EXPECTATIONS FOR STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT I just felt my kids were more advanced than that. I think, too, when you teach skills, you give the kids a goal. And, if they don't have a goal in front ofgrem. they're kind of just shooting into nowhere. I don't kgowgam I meeting the standard or aren't I? _B_dt I think the lessons present t_hem in an exciting enodgh way that it's almost like a game. why do you need a game because the lessons, you know, they give it to you. I remember throwing the balls at the bleachers down there. The kids love that, first and second graders and kindergartners. all love th_at EXPECTATIONS THAT STUDENTS CAN CHANGE WITH TEACHERS any thoughts about children and their ability to change with their teacher when they change from a games oriented curricugrm to a skills oriented curriculum? fraguently, when we do a little activity that goes along with the lesson, I'll call that a_“game”. I'll say oh we're going to try iqame now. That's all they need. It doesn't matter if it's r_________e_ally a game or not. It's iust a little activiy and they think it's great. Who' s really In charge? They have to go with it. Now, the younger ones, that really don't remember last year that much, don't remember or have just got into physical Qucab'on, they don't have a problem at Do you think your children can change with you? 258 Absolutely. Yeah. I think that's kind of what's happening. You can persuade them to believe anything at the young ages. Yeah. Ihey love this. It seems like they should (be able to change). I suppose the catch is the _ehrcitement of the teacher. If the teacher seems posifle with the kids the kids will get into it It's the presenter. it really is the presenter. The little I've done with it so far it's a lot likfle and I don't see my kids having a problem with It. I mean some kids, you know, they just want to come in and run around and just play games all the time. And they weren't as accepting but most of the kids have been really good about it. I think it's valuable to In them (the lessons) wit_h childr_eng esm‘ally if you're talking a first or second year teacher. A veteran teacher would be able to look at a lesson and say this is going to work with my kfis or it's not. But even the yateran teachers were saying. wow. this part of the lesson. especially the affective realm. the best effort lessons or the other ones like that. My kids really responded to that. I've ngever done anjdhing like that. I was really sugprised how they responded, so that part was veLy valuable Yeah. I was amazed at how well they accepted some of these changes, I mean, I didn't come right out and tell them that I 'm changing the curriculum now, but I just started teaching differently and I was surprised that they really seemed to handle it, If this is the way that you were going to teach, I don't think a kid would have a problem with it. No, as long as you started them out with it. If I started doing something with my fifth graders right now, it wouldn't work. Do you think that (children having to adjust to change) should be addressed at me inservice} Yes. They did. gaarly. Very clearly. And we talked about more than one option for how to work the curriculum in. So, they did address that? thrinkthay said, if you have to, just start at kindergarten and then when they move up to the first grade, then you can do two grades and then when t_hat figs; group moves to second grade, then yod'll have all three of your grades going. Or. if. lika I can. because it's so close to what I do now, I can just throw it all in next year. I'm going to go with it. Negative points of view re. kids/change 259 They, because of the prior knowledge they've had over the last two years or few mrs. ye totally against it pecapse it's not going out and just playing soccer or playing this tag or getting on these things and just scooting and going wherever you want and they'va reallILhad a hard time adjusting to that. I tried to e)_rplain to them (4"' graders), you need to understand how to do this skill pmperly to go to t_he next level to play a team sport or an individual sport. That's hard for them to comprehend because they already think they're so darn good. So, that's kind of hard for them to make that change. And I will tell ypp. it's been a str_I_IggIe lately to get them to stay on task with this curriculum. Until they understand and until they get it in their, until it's in the system completely. it's going to be a struggle evegyday, sometimes anyhow. Whether I'm enthusiastic or not. the kids have already gotten used to my format. And so that means a complete change and that really screws the kids up. If I don't give them their ten minutes of free time, for kindergartners at the end of gym class, I might as well jump off a cliff. Oh. I would have to start at kindergarten and add each year if I were going to change because if I change mid-stream now, the kids would. .. You'd lose them (the kids). I think that was brought out about how it would be easier to start with K and then build as you go. That's why they set it up the way they did. I used to play this one game at least once a month and I got so sick of it I quit it this year. See, isn't that funny when you do that? You start to... And you know what? The kids have never asked. They have never asked, let's play this, how come we can't play that? They've never asked, I'm amazed. TOPIC #4 SUPPORT SUPPORT NEEDED FROM EPEC STAFF EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES EPEC Wear I didn't think it was a money-making thing. 260 Until they brought up the T-shirts. That concerned me. But I understand. _B_gt it was not a hard sell. I thought it was good. A cotpprate identig ype thing. The goals are big. T-Shirts are big to kids, too. And they're a nice design, that was a nice looking shirt. fight. They d_idn't push it down you but I'm always scared that, hey, they're dying to make some money. Posters You said something about posters. .. We need more hands on, visual aids, we need a teacher packet to walk out the door with and make it more teacher mend/y so that you feel prepared I've put several big poster boards together where I've copied the pictures and I've put them in the sequence and then I laminated them and we talked about it and I think it helps that visual Ieamer. Because for me, like, I worked on compassion with my kids and it seems like it's kind of forgotten now. We did that lesson, I'm not constantly reminding them, you know, to, treat others with compassion and so I almost feel like I need something like that on the board, not on the board but on the walls right by them because otherwise I think it's just kind of a forgotten lesson with them. gain, visual, l have it up there for myself and for them. (posters and music) I know they're working on that now, so I really appreciate that and I know this program is young but those (POSTERS AND MUSIC) are the kind of things that would increase comfort levels as far as people being sold on it. I was thinking even if they could, I don't know, put them (SKILLS) all on one big poster or something? I find it hard to tumble through these things all the time and I hear, this one and this one and this one and. .. There's 12 tons of pages. get some posters made up. And maybe it's Michigan EPIC that should be in charge of making sure that's done. I think some posters that want alarm with the curriculum that you could display, other than just the anatomical diagrams that they have worMe really nige_. Something that you could change so that you don't have the same poster up all the time. 261 Something laminated. Or, that we could get laminated. Yeah, I've got bulletin board space, I could do something like that really easy. Because it might be helpful to have one for eveg typa of theme and eveLy mg of skill. Like kicking a soccer ball for your in-step. You know, and maybe someone going up to spike a volleyball or block it for... this is vertical lump. With some kid doing that. Or even game roleCrnodel doingavehical lump. Music I was very nervous about what the music, what kind of music was I supposed to come up with and beats per minute, I in not a music major, I don 't know this kind of thing and what are they trying to, give me some suggestions or hand me some tapes that are appropriate and I know they're working on that now, so I really appreciate that and I know this program is young but those are the kind of things that would increase comfort levels as far as people being sold on it. The music. I really felt that was such a... Now it's no big deal to me because I have developed my own, revised it. It would have been nice if they would have done something with music and they had tapes available for those that... So, more supplies, if you will, to actually take with you in the kit, here are some musical selections with this number of beats per minute, here '3 a tape of that number. And have that ready to go. (re.music for lessons) You're on your own and they say, oh, anything will do. No, it doesn't and then I was told use jock jams and what's the other, these, well, I found, I went out and purchased with my own money and then I found inappropriate words so I can't justify using those. 80, I've developed my own I think the biggest one for me, like you were saying, is the music. This so many beats per minute. I'm not a judge of that, or I'm not a very good judge of it so I wouldn't know where to start. That you have to have that administrative support. Newsletter I think just update up on any changes for the better, that we might use, maybe there's some, some additions or revisions that they have, just let us know if they have anything that might be beneficial to us. 262 When you're up there as a teacher, if they found something in particular that would be really effective, just send a newsletter or something like that. If we could get a newsletter, I think that would be... Great Activities? Yeah. That little magazine, I think that the Michigan EPEC could go with something like that where people send their ideas in and... Yep, it's great. I get so many ideas on how to do things fi'om those little, it's like a little newspaper magazine and I would think that that would be a wonderfirl way to share the... they could do something like that on their web site Sometimes it's better for me to have printed material because. . .. Tere it is and I could sit there and flip through it. There is some advantages to some printed material. “Equipment needed” list I think school systems, administrators, would welcome that instead of having to go out and purchase or teachers go out and get everything and it's all one package. Purchase it. Like, we 're going to implement this, it would be a lot easier for everyone. And supplies. And supplies the ui ment list what the said in the inservice is that's eve in that ou'd pagd. If yod have th_ahyod can te_ach evegflipg in that curriculum. That was an important thing to have. It was. I really think it's well thought out. You can take it and you can run with it. We came home with an equipment list. yeah. To teach this curriculum, you need this equipment. They tell you up fiont that this is what you need in order to implement this. It's great because they use some things in the demonstrations, if you don't have them back at your school, you know, what good does it... what good is this. And so they made it readily available so I thought... Equipment offers 263 Then, what they need to do is go in conjunction with some manufacturer and sell those through their... a huge issue, to kind of summarize things, is equipment and supplies to go with it, to go with the lessons It's too bad that they couldn't put all the materials on, I know that's asking a lot, but all the materials that you're going to need to implement this program available to purchase. In a kit? Yeah. Instead of trying to go to different places and round it up yourself. Have it all. .. (together) It's a great idea. COLLEGIAL ATMOSPHERE What about the support of the Michigan EPEC staff...approachable? (see section on CONTEXT for descriptors provided) Yes, definitely. Definitely. Definitely. I felt that they were concerned, they wanted you to get it, they wanted you to ask any questions you wanted, no I wouldn't have a problem calling up any of them, or writing them or e-mailing them or whatever it might be. RELATE TO TEACHER’S ISSUES Do you think the Michigan EPEC staff can relate to the issues that you deal with in your school? I think they might, as long as they haven't been out in the classroom too long because it's just like an administrator that the more that they, you know what I'm talking about? The longer they're out... They tend to isolate themselves. Yeah. (The longer they are “out? The harder it is to remember what it was like. They really do need to do visits of classrooms of all different types, whether it's inner-city, urban, rural, all difierent types, they just need to because they can 't just teach nine difierent lessons with one category. So, you're suggesting, I think, that they should spend some time going out and seeing different types of schools and seeing this in action? Yeah, I think so. Because if they don 't have one idea of what kind of child they're trying to reach, they'll reach that child... 264 It's trying to reach the every child. They need to know what all the different facets we 're dealing with. Just the three of us deal with completely different types of children. Sure we do. Everybody is in a different situation, I think they need to be aware of that. OTHER NEEDS FROM EPEC STAFF They need to do a major presentation themselves, if it's to a huge county wide superintendent's meeting... Or a whole district thing. A district meeting, So let Michigan EPEC staff go and lay the groundwork for the administrators. They would do it, they would get more support than just little old me. You know those district meetings that we go to like, at least at the beginning, you know, the first day of school, those big meetings and the superintendent tells you the budget and the whole bit. Well, you know, whenever I go to those meetings they sit there and they talk about everything like reading recovery and App... and I'm sitting there going, as usual, I have no, there's no validity here. Yeah, why am I here? then all of the sudden Michigan EPEC comes in and the folks get up there and they give a 15 minute presentation on phys. ed. and the importance of it and the curriculum and then we get fired up. We deserve to have that attention. They've talked for two hours about reading recovery and all those others which is wonderful but give us some time. Show the value. We're not going to be valued until we get that out. Until we value it and insist on having people listen. I just feel that at EPEC, they gave me very good material on hitting my board with. To go to them and say, we need more PE for 3-5 because and then there's material there. The other PE teacher sent a request to the board, we should have more PE because this is really good for our kids... And now with this notebook that I purchased, some very good information to talk to the board about and our superintendent and our principal are 100% behind this program Try to convince the administrators, I know that they're trying to work that but I'm hearing from some of our administrators that they're hearing it at the inservices that they go to now, they pass things along to us now. This has got to be forced down the principal's throats. I mean, of course, but they have to know how it important it is from someone else other than from just g, 265 I think sending those cards out was a good idea, when they sent the postcards out, it was kind of a, I can 't remember the specific questions but they were all fitness and health related and I thought that was a good idea. Your Fitness l.Q., I think was the name of the card but I thought that was a good way to, I mean, it was just something short and sweet and maybe it would get that administrator's attention and I thought that was pretty persuasive. And they need to understand the value of what we 're doing. One other thing I thogght of, too, we do a fairly good job in our district up thropgh fifth grade. We havephys. ed. twice a week for forty mindtes and we fe‘eI lika we're teaching three-fourths of our kids actual skills and then they go to middla school and they hays physgd. for seven weeks or six w_eaks ogt oflhe may; Opt of t_lfi year! How can we get across to secondag level schools that this ahogld not be optional. We're building a life-sgle here. I don't know how th__ey can go to bat for us that way but at the state level, we need to somehow get those rguirements changed. (to update)Kind of some teacher packets, and we'd go, wow, this is great, I'm glad I'm doing this now. ACCESSIBILITY OF STAFF (see also peer support issues) ln-service, more follow up in-service. Once a year, what we 've already talked about we can always call or e—mail COMMUNICATION (electronic media and mail) Telephone Would you pick up a phone and call Steve or Glenna? Yeah, I got the impression that we could if we needed to. I haven't thus far but I know... I think it's a good idea, yeah. But I can 't say that I 've taken advantage of it. He lelt us an e-mail and a phone number. It's really self-explanatory, yeah. There '3 really not a question about what you should do... Was your sense that they would be accessible if you needed help? Oh, yes. By phone or e-mail or whatever. Example- 266 I'll tell you my experience. I job share and the other gal teaches some kindergarten and then the upper el. Grades. And she wanted to take this gaining We didn't need two sets of pooks so I contacted them and said is it possible for her to dse my set and just go? And they said sure. It's veg obvious, they just want eveg teacher to have this available. And when you pick up on that kind of attitude, you feel that support. Letterlmail Letter from the Governor created feeling of support- You know, one of the first things that caught my attention and this is sort of, when, that of course Engler, our friend, our education friend, Governor, he was behind this whole thing and it's like, what does he have to say and what does he know, but he admitted to them that he had bad experiences in phys. ed. as a child and he doesn't want to see that for his children or other children in the state and that made a big impression with me. To hear him come out and say that because we can all use him as an example. There is a friendly side to him with what we 're doing. Maybe another good thing, well, then that costs money, is like a newsletter, I don't know then there would be some kind of connection... So that we can all feel connected. If somebody could come up with that calendar for me. I would love it. Did you get a newsletter? I think I did receive one, yeah. Maybe just to continue doing that. Yeah, I think a newsletter is more efiective actually. I do too. They'll reach more educators. They had already sent out a little letter, a . . . I got something in the mail and I though that was helpful. Just like, oh, they still remember that I came to that inservice and they touched base with me. Yeah. I thought that was really nice and. .. But at least they touched base with me and I thought that was very good. E-mail And email. What about that e-mail, do they have an e-mail? They have it... Up and running, have you seen it? I haven't. I don 'I spend a lot of time on the computer, myself, so... 267 So, that might be missing its mark if you don't have time to get in on a computer and Well, if you're in a school, you usually don't have time to use, or you better have a computer at home. I have one at home but I don't really use it all that much Glenna and Steve? I mean, if we need to get to them we can. I think it's very nice that I can e-mail them or I can give them a call, I think that... I gave Steve my e-mail, I did get something from him. Did you? Yeah, I never followed through on it because I couldn't quite understand what it was about. Was that the deal about the web-page and all that? Uh-huh. I got that too and it confused the heck out of me. Okay, so there's a suggestion, right there. Well Steve writes once twice three times a week or more §§_ems like it. I_d_on't know if he still is pgt I know I get a lot of e-mail. Constantly, and I don't always read it all but I know where it's fiom and I scan it go he answers a lot of questions. he gives you a lot of information and I never went searching for anythipg else other than what he's brought me. Do you all have access to e-mail at work? No. Not at vydrk. They're tgir_Ig to get, there's all but two or three teachers that have e-mail at work. I've never looked to get any more help. I'm the kind of person that, I'm going to do it on my own. regardless. I'm sfiure they would help. I dgn't know. they seemed like they would help you in a heart beat. the e-mail? I haven't gotten on line. I haven't either. I haven't either. Web site The difficulties in the web site in that not everyone has access. Okay, go to this e-mail address on this day of every month and boom, you've got a whole new... Right there, you're going to save money that way because you don't have to have all that paperwork and all that postage and all that, you've got it right there. Every teacher's got access to a computer because they've got them in all the buildings and a lot of them are accessible on line. 268 SUPPORT FROM OTHERS PEERS IN PE In another one of these groups the suggestion came up that there be sort of a yearly Michigan EPEC users group gathering... Yes, see, even that, just to touch base, group somewhere... You've already trained, you're all, you all out there are using it in one way or another... That's why it would be nice to even have, like I say, if you can't do e-mail, even just once a year or once every six months, have a meeting, everybody using Michigan EPEC, meet. That's what they could do for us. Not a mandatory one, but a two hour meeting at wherever, you know, whoever is using this is welcome to come for coffee and a meeting and just touch base, go over the stuff, do some demonstrations, share what you've done. Something within a... County, that whole area would meet on some Thursday night at 6:00 to 8:00 in a ballroom or whatever, if you don't want to come, fine, no pressure, but, if you'd like to then it's a time to share and you can, you're not being put on the spot but then you can show what's been successful for you and I think you'd get tons of ideas. It would be great to see what everyone else is doing. How they're presenting it. Maybe at MAHPERD or something. Yeah, see I don't go to any of those. Well, I think that we're going to miss people that way. But maybe they could do it in the summer-time, maybe they could do it in such a way to have... a retreat. Now, I don't know, I don't know. Problem with that would be that it sounds great now, but I don't know if I'd want to do it then. But if you had. Like up north at Traverse City... Up north at Traverse City, it you had a... Like they do at the colleges... Like MAPHERD... Let's go golfing, let's make it a retreat. You could earn so many credits and go golfing, hey, sounds good to me. But if you had this whole thing held at a... A resort... facility that was a resort-type... Where they can go play golf afterwards... 269 Where it would be fun and where afterwards you could get together with phys. ed. teachers and have some commeraderie and that might be a fun thing, Two days. But, there 's such support when you talk to other educators. But if you just left there, you're done, you graduate, you 're gone. One teacher instead of six first grade teachers. . . You know, you don't have others to... Follow up -I'd say right after spring break because I don't like to... You wouldn't really want to go toward June. Like end of April. Yeah. End of April might be good. But then, again, too, as had said eartier, I wouldn't mind having a follow up in the spring. Maybe one in the fall and one in the spring just to kind of compare notes with some of the other teachers. Put closure on the year. Closure, yeah, that's what I meant. Find other people from other districts because we just don 't, I don 't have that within, at my level, you just don 't have those things. We don 't have it period. I mean a follow up one. Yeah. A “trouble one”. Just the fact that what we did today is so beneficial, sitting together and talking and I think that, if they can do anything that can get PE teachers together in discussion, because, many times you are the only one in a school system and there's no one else to share and no one else to bounce things off from. Well, it depends on who you've got to share things with and bounce things off of. It was so fim that day, sharing with different people. E van if every year you could have some kind of a... Sometime down the road... A renewal. A renewal every year. Right. Yeah. Just to cover the pros the cons. And it could already be implemented and you could share your concerns with other educators and your successes. 270 I was more excited then than I am now. Now (after this focus group) I'm getting back. I needed this to get me more enthusiastic again. Sure. There's some benefit to getting tpgether like that. Periodically. if nothing but the local ISD having people get together. Once a year? Twice a year? Once a semester? Once month? l_think more than once a year, certainly. I think maybe oncgagegester would be good. I think we need to hear some sgccess ston'gs apout how what has been taught has brought something out in a student or has been successful. Or failed. Even failed because how can we do that better the next time? I think all of that is helpful. With a representative, though. To lead the discussion otherwise, I know I would jpst sit tlyere. Well, sometimes it just takes someone to just sort of throw some guestions out. R'ght. Then aple kind of get started and pret_ty soon you're just talking. more trainings, more inservices. It would itch me and enthuse me. That this is why I'm here, to get excited again. If I'm excited, theyre excited. A great inservice, but just for us to sit down and share ideas as PE teachers and give each other ideas, talk about our curriculum, it would be very worthwhile. Wouldn't hurt to have a little "let's get together in the summer time and talk." Like we were talking before how nice it is to just get together and talk. I just wish there was somebody else I could sit down and bounce the ideas ofi‘ of. When you're the only one, it's kind of hard to get motivated unless you, persornlly, are motivated about it and by the time June rolls around, sometimes, you need to take a break and by the time you get ready to go back, school starts again and now, oop, there you go agam. Well, I think tint if they did have the publication and you did the sharing of the ideas like the Great Activities they could inve a local group that would meet. Every so often you could put it in the__, call in and show your support if you could do it. An EPEC user's support group? Yeah. That would work, I think. I could see that. If you knew it was going to be the third Tuesday of every month or something like that. 271 It would be nice to e-mail her and say, so what are you doing this week. Yeah, it would be nice to... To be able to keep in touch with people doing it. Yeah, I just want to say, do you like It, have you done it, what are you doing, you know, it's nice to kind of share. Did you do “strike”, what did you think of it? Yeah, what did you do, how did you do it? Because everybody says something different and you go oh, I'll do that. If you could just do that. SCHOOL COLLEAGUES (other teachers, non PE) This has got to be forced down the principal's throats. I mean, of course, but they have to know how it important it is from someone else other than from just pa, you might be able to work in conjunction with the princigls association. Say, look. when yod have your big meeting, we'd like to present... That's good because I think that maybe somitimes a building as a whole, principals and classroom teachers need to understand the importance of the phys. ed. prpgram. I sent this (description of EPE C) around. I just put FYI, and sent this paper around to all of the teachers, just kind of threw it in their mailboxes and It was kind of fun. The feedback that I had slowly come back, not a lot but some. I had a teacher this year ask me, what does phys. ed. and health have to do with each other? Why do they put those two together? I thought he was joking, I didn't know where to start with that And the classroom teachers were thrilled to hear that because the y're accountable for everything it seems. Well, I'm sure it feels like that, I'm sure, to them. And, if we want to feel like educators, then we should be accountable for something. But you know I have such positive feedback from teachers It is, it's really neat to see the kids, and one of the teachers came and gave me the famous, "Run them" this moming and I said well, that's not part of what my intention is but I can almost guarantee, with your group, I'll get them to come out listening and she came out, after she got them, okay, you don 't have to run them to death. It would be much patter ifthey could make these graphs and give us a little synopsis in a paragraph and talk about a graph that could be handed out to them at the start of the year otthe middle of the year. I t_hink it's_also important that thase other teachers and I stress it to them that this is physical education class 272 and not gym. Because Jim is teaching the class down there. That's one big thing that they need to understand. I don't know if this is way out of the guestion or not but I think t_his would be more meaningful to classroom teachers if there was some way to correlate how valuable physical education is and how it mentally and physically prepares their a_tgdents to do apetter lop in t_he classroom. Now. if they can go to a statewrtlg teacher's meeting and present some of that kind of infomtion, that would be phenominal. Wrth what Glenna did, here, I think she's so capable she could pull tpgether some statistics that would back that and that would be outstandipg. Express the importance of the healthy lifestyle, even at the young age, tell them that they can do these skills and they learn them. And I'm not saying that classroom teachers don't already believe that but I think if they have t_he statistics to hold that in their minds and say, wow, yeah, that supports what I already believe. mn't khow what it's like when they, I don't knpw if they just drop your kids off an walk out, I don't thew if they're, if they get_their kids excited about, okay, you're going to phys. ed. class. Yog're going to learn something, you're going to do something rather than. here, here's my 30 kids, take them, run them as hard as you can, get rid of all their... But as a whole, the teachers in my building are interested in behavior, they want t_d know pefore. if someone has a behavior problem, they tell me that ahead of time. They want to know at the end... I've even had a teacher come in and say, ohyotr're working on throwing today. My husband says I have a banana arm, can you helgma? Sro. I say, okay, I'll teach your kids and then on recess they're going to e)_rplain it to you. You're pretty ldcky in that. But I think it still needs to be pushed, somehow these atementary teachers need to understand that these kids are going to a class for a specific putppse for their life. Not just for this 20 minutes but for their life. Somehow they, other than just us as physical education teachers, it needs to be pushed to those other teachers. It's important that you have some support from them. I think the informatipn that Glenna stated on the last day about a possible MEAP test for phys. ed. teachers. I t_hink that wouldgive l_IS a lot of credjpility and I think that other teachers would then say. oh. you have a MEAP too? Wow. It would really lend itself to helping our situation. 273 I think stating the homework while the teacher is there and the kids are lined up, mey're ready to take them. state the homework, then, that's a big thing, to get yppr teachers keyetLin... Exactly, because then they're listening, boy, they have to do homework in that class. then they know what you talked about that day, too. And they know it supports what they're doing in the classroom. SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS What about the g3 of support the teachers might need from others, like your principals? What can they do to make it easier for teachers to adopt this prpgram? PLANNING TIME Our school has had different things that, if you wanted to work on curriculum, you could work the week after school got out and they would pay you a stipend for putting in the time. Planning time, equipment... FACILITY yeah, I need walls, I have no walls up EQUIPMENT Allow the budget to be done so you can get the eguipment. And then the next one is in terms of eguipment, that list, you need to be able to have the eguipment to do the program. That's what the people need is to be able to get that guipment so they don't h_ave to make stuff out of cans. They need to get that eguipment from a manufacturer so it lasts You can't do this without the materials. What do you need from your school for you to do this better? Well, the equipment would help. Planning time, equipment... 274 the building principal determines how much money everyone gets. One other person who '3 not here today, he gets $50.00 a year. I don't get much more, I get 3 125. 00. That's a slam. That’s all those kids' health is worth? I think that with the administrators it is a problem. Because the one gentleman that was supposed to be here today, didn't show up, one concern he told me, today over the phone was that if our administrators, who we're meeting with next week, won 't purchase this equipment, he doesn't want it because you can't implement it. If you don't have the equipment you're just, you're just tied. Your hands are tied You need that support. Yes. Administration is a big link. They need to be on board and be willing to supply us with supplies that we can implement this. my biggest problem was working with a school budget that didn 't exist. No, but the biggest thing, and it's not the administrator so much as our budget was so tight for so many years SCHEDULING OF CLASSES Would attention to scheduling help? Oh, it would, when you're going from kindergarten and to fifth and back to kindergarten, it's hectic. But again, sometimes that cannot be alleviated. But I understand where the administrator is at this point, when you 're dealing with library and art and other things that you get to fit in, a lot of times you can't have certain ages in concunently. And the time when you can see the students. I'm lucky. I'm veLy veg lucfl How mtg do you see your students? Evegy day. 20 minutes a day. And have their kids at the right time, not after lunch. PAY FOR EPEC TRAINING It was rather expensive compared to what our school allows, so I really had to think about it, because we put in quite a bit of our own money for me to go to this, I was really hoping it would be beneficial. we have a major problem and it's called subs. l was very, very fortunate that they gave me my days. I think the only reason they gave me the days is because I offered to pay for it myself and they paid for the sub. That's the only 275 way I got myself to come without taking sick days or personal days. They gave me the business days since I paid for it myself. I don't know why it's so easy to find money to send teachers to reading workshops and 3-Qay work shops. lflrally it's mag than one. It's real hard sometimes to find money for the phys. ed. teacher to go So, the first commitment is to sending the teachers to the workshop, obviously. Well, I think, too, iust for a principal to say we can find the money for you to attend a work-shop is a biggie. I wouldn’t come if my district didn't pay for it. My district paid for a substitute and they paid for the workshop itself and if it hadn't been for them paying for it, I probably wouldn't have come. If you have someone on the borderline that you know if they're going to rebel or not, if it comes out of their own pocket, they're not going to show up. But I don't know how you reach. . .this is cost prohibitive in a lot of districts. I talked to some of the teachers that were at this workshop and they said they had to pay for it out of they're own pocket. I don't know ifl would have been as inclined to. . . Well, you got paid. So I think it's important that they understand that you're going to have to send your teachers. PARENTSICOMMUNITY Facility wise, equipment wise, if you've got parents involved in what you're doing with this, they might be able to help along that line in putting pressure on in getting the equipment you need to do the program Parents would, in our school, parents would support me in getting more PE and that's something that would be very good too. What an Michigan EPEC do to help you get support from parents and other community members? There's a lot of misconceptions out there. Wasn't there a letter in the manual to send home to the parents? I believe there was. A letter in the manual to send to the parents. there ought to be, I guess. That says this is what we're doing. 276 Something that's not from somebody that doesn't speak veg well or write veg well but from someone that's a professionaLthat writes something that says, you know, this is what WQJGJIOILQ and wherg we'rgheaded. Just a one page letter aImf you have guesfionfihen contact you. It would maybe change the parents' mifls with a nice design where it's going to catch their eye rather than something from me. I m going to tell you when I read this EPEC I'm thinking, but when you read wh__g___t it stands for not l_E_- P- E- C which doesn't read on the spell checker b_u_t Exemplag Physical Education Curriculum might stand out more to a pawn“ if they read the letter from someone' s lette______r head that said that. That's one way that you might change their minds, hey, this Is for a healthy lifestyle. This Is what they should be teaching my kids, then. INCENTIVES TO PARTICIPATE IN EPEC EQUIPMENT There you go, equipment. Or supplies, too. Supplies would be great. Teachers are pack-rats, they really are. Some supplies would be a good incentive. Equipment and supplies. Equipment. Yeah, equipment. CEU’SIgraduate credits As long as we could have some kind of credit for it or whatever... Yeah. Just as long as we got... Or something, either credit or... Because of subs being short and I know some people don't like to give up their summer time, but Jackson Public has a summer program that they offer to teachers to get credits toward building up on a more higher level of a program. I think it would be really neat, I think you'd get more PE teachers to go because they never offer anything for PE teachers in the summer time. It's only classroom teachers (that get summer classes) If something like this was presented to a school district in the summer time for the PE teachers to get credit towards a higher level, like we have to have, I've got my master's and ifl get 16 more credits, it can be college level or these classes, I'd step into another bracket which means more money. I think if they offered a summer session where the incentive was credit hours, I think that would be really helpful. 277 Be the gal at Calvin wouldn't take the EPEC hours even though EPEC gave me a form that showed what we did, what was required, what we covered, how it was so professionally there, that Steve said to us, you might be able to get... I went to her to try to get college credits and she said there's no university or no school backing you up, and I said, well, this is the governor. She didn't buy it. We did a thing at the Muskegon MAIDS in learning in the classroom a couple of years ago and they said they would give me college credit for it if I just did this certain report. I did it, I got credit for it, tlmt's the kind of continuing education that I think is beneficial for teacher, why should I go and take a class that is really not going to help me as much as my own career topic? I just think it would be the very best thing in the whole wide world. Is it important to me? I have to write a, (form) every time we go to an inservice like this, I could get points for being here, tonight, if I would write up a report and hand it in to my superintendent, she would give me points for being here. And professional growth points. Perhaps that would count towards something like that. How about inservices with subs paid for during the school day. No, I mean, something, if they want to get us. . .Get a grant. What I'd like to get trained on, and it's not even in Michigan EPE C, but I'd like to get back into figuring out how to do some of these dances with the kids. It's been so many years and I don 't feel adequate in doing it any more. Your idea about college credit. I drink if a teacher is early in their career that might be an influence on them. Ihave 6 more years left. That's right. And I'm past that 60 mark plus. you 've got to reach them at a certain level. You've got to catch me during the school day to catch my interest. Well, that's the incentive, then, it needs to be during the school day. Some school districts require certain amounts of professional development, points that you get by going to work-shops and that kind of thing. Would that be a good pitch to use for the... For the young ones. For the young ones because they need those professional development hours. And I'll be real honest with you. I think they're the ones you need to reach first, they're going to be, their time with the kids is a longer period of time. .. Like you said, 6 more years, why try to keep targeting him? Yeah. 278 But target those young ones. Sure and the gentleman that was supposed to be here, he's got 6 years in already. Oh, yeah... CE U's aren't going to appeal to him. No.no,. Not in the slightest. for the PE teachers to get credit towards a higher level, like we have to have, I've got my master's and if I get 16 more credits, it can be college level or these classes, l'd step into another bracket which means more money. I think if they offered a summer session where the incentive was credit hours, I think that would be really helpful. college credit for maybe attending the seminar. That would be... You know, that's the trade off because you need a cefiin amount of continuing ed credits anyg_ay and we've gotten those. So, but now graduate credits, that would be an interesting thought. That would be veg nice it there was a way to do it, if we had to pay for graduate credits, I don't know if that would help us because that's prey eypensive. Get your master's dpgree... Well, graduate credit? That would be helpful REWARDSIAWARDS The governor's council awards ladder, EPEC provides you with the curriculum in mee t_lgt helps yog move thhe lad_der. It provides the skills instruction that you can then assess to help you move up the ladder. And, I think this thing is cool. When I get that in the mail I'm looking at it and I'm going. man I want our school to be that. But has it made me take the time to fill out the papenlvork to figure out how tg____ do it because it is that important to me? That's what you need, the social part of the deal. Get somebody to sit down and make sure you did the paperwork right. _Y_e_gh. How to do it. How to do it... What to do to help you get it done. It's a neat well I don't know reward or whatever it is but it's really neat, its like being certified. We all like it because we get the day. The session is paid for and we go. I mean, that was such a nice...(reward) I'd hate to admit it but you're allowed two days paid... See, they sent us, they bought our stuff, everything... 279 See, that's nice. I had to go out there and field for it myself because I... Reward, like stipend, maybe to buy equipment or something like that? Awards, as in certificates to hang in your gym or your office?. .. No. No probably not. Yeah... so yes, I guess so, because we get brownie points. We have to get so many hours every five years. Oh, yeah. So for professional goals, having a little certificate does. .. That was a good idea, I never thought of that. Awards? It's always nice, as a basketball coach or athletic director to be the coach of the year or the athletic director of the year. That's always nice, it's always nice to be physical education teacher of the year but if that is th_; reason we're doing that, and I'm, they do have disciplines, elementag teachers and all that, which is a great thing, but I wouldn't, to say he was the EPEC. or she was the EPEC teacher of the year because then, maybe it took that person to teach that for one yeafr to be really good at it, after that, can m win it two years in a row? Something like that, you know what I mean? Can this person stop being that good all of the sudden or, something along those lines that scgre me ggg PUBLIC RELATIONS TV commercials would be nice, too. Physical education is important, please start doing it. Seven second smt. This is great for us but I'm saying that it's not going to happen. What about some of those static stickers like they have public schools work, they have the little stick figure kids, EPEC works. something. Static stickers dron't cost a lot. You know, you could give those out to parents, too, at the parent-teacher meetings. Maybe we should get EPEC bookmarks that we could hand out, I don't know. Just a ribbon, you could give them at the end of the year, one blue ten cent fibbon. I've always wanted to come up with a monthly calendar or something like a newsletter that could be sent home one for eagh child. That they could keep track of what kind of activity they do at home during the week. And suggestions 280 for things to do for that time of year. I'm not talking about something for evegday because parents would be overwhelmed if they lg to do something eveg day but iust a little plug for what I do and if that came on the EPEC letter head it would be awesome. I think it would be helpful rather than coming from x Schools. Most of the things I send from x Schools to the parents are saying that their kids' in trouble. Add our school name on it, maybe there would be a spot for that. Maybe send it grew 0mg month but something for a student to keep track of the activig they do at home and they can bripg that back to me and I would initial it and they'd get a bookmark or something. the other things, like the kits (newsletter materials and info) that you were talking about. That would be an incentive to participate. What about things like banners... Chances are they (others) won't know what it is. Yeah. You would have to explain what Michigan EPEC is. Should Michigan EPEC provide you with canned materials ready to go that you could duplicate and send home to parents about the program and what you're doing in your schools? That might be beneficial. Assessment, trying, I like to try to keep my parents informed on what we're doing and why it's important. You mean something that could be used as a parent letter to be sent home with. . .? Well, there's an idea, like a parent letter. Or, just put in that little booklet that we're talking about. And say hey, try this to your parents, a note to home, title it something. giving you ideas on how to put, make up... some ideas... Like put it in your Friday flier, you know, something like that. Yeah. A little note that comes from, this is from X's Gym about... Yeah. So they just kind of put it together for you and then you just edit it and make it your own. Right. Try this. And put it out. Right. Yes. They'd go right in our... Right in the school newsletter. 281 163—h- That would be helpful. Superintendents do that all the time. They sure d_o._ It comes out to you and all you have to do is. evfien on ghe e-mail.... That's right. Okay. They're listening. do your schools have newsletters from the school that goes home? If you had little articles to put in from time to time on why is it important to, for kids to learn to throw? For instance, something like that. Are those useful to you? I think I'd use them. Because I want the parents to be aware too. There. Those health facts. The beginning. Would all be good to... Put in your newsletter. It's worth a try. . . Would you like EPEC to try to provide you with some of those things? Keep you with some current information about kids and their health? Sure. I think that would be great. RECOGNITION Recognition for kids in EPEC programs Somewhere further down the line you may all wan; to think about when an elementary kid graduates from this program and there isn't any exemplary physical education curriculum in their school. ma_ybe somehow make a deal with t__hat teacher that those fifth graders or fourth graders can get a shirt. If they can pass a certain standard of t_he test. Give_ a deal to the school. oka ay, you passed kindergarten throggh here. you get a good deal on these shirts. You know, but for those kids that don't get on the honor roll for other things, wouldn't that be nicg to be able to say to them, you've done it, you're up in that ppper echglon. What about recognition, as in your name in the MAHPERD Journal It would just go into my file. Just like the certificate. It is important to me to have a personal letter written to my principal or my, yeah, I guess so because then they know I've been out there, putting forth the effort to do something good for our school. Yeah. I agree on that. I made my own recognition because we have a little flyer that goes out and at the bottom of this little flyer it tells about what things are going on in the school so it 282 says, hats off to... So, the lunch lady and I said, let's put my name in it. So, we went and we wrote, hats off to , who did the and we went on and explained it and the next week it was in there. See, that would be nice, too. Because we get no recognition. I mean, really... What if Michigan EPEC sent something to your district? That would be cool. That could be. About you doing this? Or what if you got something to put up in your gym? That would be great. That said, Michigan EPEC program...Being used... something to put in your school that says that you are a Michigan EPEC gucator. physical educator, a banner, a flag, a plague I think it would be great. l_think m would be great because you'd have parents asking what that means, too. I would be Ieag of doing that because it would be a ggnsgnt frgm school to school testing to make sure they're doing these things. If I want mnner in my school and you give an gssessment to start my year and an evaluation to end my year, how do you know. I got a banner but I fudged the scores, it happens all the rm Yeah. If Michigan EPEC let our districts know, again, it's just more and more validating us through, the higher up, if they can reinforce... Awards to put krds' names on. Banners. Awards for the kids. Okay, that's an idea. So you wouldn't do this for recognition? No Or want recognition for doing this? I don 't want it. Not that important. 283 APPENDIX H UNIVERSITY APPROVAL FOR USE OF HUMAN SUBJECTS 284 APPENDIX H UNIVERSITY APPROVAL FOR USE OF HUMAN SUBJECTS WTEEmi RESEARCH AND GRADUATE STUDIES University Committee on Research lmlvlng Human Sunlecte (UCIIIIISI Mlcmcm State University 26 Administration Budding aflmeuJflmmm flfifldofi SIMISSQIM FAX. Bil/#324171 newmgnfinUMwuy maummumuOmmw fimmankmn MWexummmnamn emwammnwcmumr MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY October I, 1998 TO: John L. Haubenstricker 128 IM Sports Circle RE: IRBS: 98-586 ' TITLE: THE USE OF TEACHER FOCUS GROUPS TO INFORM THE DESIGN OF IN-SERVICE TRAINING IN PHYSICAL EDUCATION REVISION REQUESTED: N/A CATEGORY: l-C APPROVAL DATE: 09/25/98 The University Committee on Research Involving Human Subjects'lUCRIHSl review of this project is complete. I am pleased to advise that the rights and welfare of the human subjects appear to be adequately rotected and methods to obtain informed consent are appropriate. herefore, the UCRIHS approved this prOJect and any reViSions listed above. RENEWAL: UCRZHS approval is valid for one calendar year, beginning with the approval date shown above. Investigators planning to continue a projec: be and one year must use the green renewal form (enclosed with t e original approval letter or when a project is renewed) to seek u dated certification. There is a maximum of four such expedite renewals possible. Investigators wishing to continue a prOJect beyond that time need to submit it again for complete reView. REVISIONS: UCRIHS must review any changes in procedures involving human subjects, prior to initiation of the change. If this is done at the time or renewal, please use the green renewal form. To revise an approved protocol at anv other time during the year, send your written request to the.UCRIHS Chair, requesting revised approval and referencing the progect's IRS s and title. Include in your request a description of the change and any revised instruments, consent forms or advertisements that are applicable. sacsm/ CHANGES: Should either of the followi. arise during the course of the work. investigators must noti QCRIHS promptly: ll) roblems (unexpected side effects comp aints. etc.) involving uman subjects_or IZIOChanges in the research enVironment or new intermation indicating greater risk to the human sub'ects than existed when the protocol was preViously reviewed an approved. If we can be of any future hel , lease do not hesitate to contact us at (517)355-2180 or FAX (Sl7)4 2- 171. Sinc‘w&_w.n David E. wright. Ph.D. UCRIHS Chair DEW:bed cc: Patricia S. Irwin Rowe 285 REFERENCES Anderson, W. (1982). Working with in-service teachers: Suggestions for teacher educators. 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