Steps to Successful PE Promotion Efforts

written by Martin Donahue, Slippery Rock University

In the current climate of budget cuts and economic hardship, promoting or advocating for Physical Education programs is becoming more and more important. Making Administrators, parents, teachers and others aware of the benefits of Physical Education, and the expertise of those who teach, is critical.

There are a awful lot of excellent P.E. teachers out there delivering high quality effective lessons. Some we hear about. Others we don't. With all the demands on teachers today, it is easy to understand why many can't promote all the outstanding work they do.

The following format was adopted from Lynn, Castelli, Werner and Cone (2007). It's a six step process for promoting your current curriculum:

1. Clearly identify your goals and objectives.

2. Identify your target audience.

3. Gather data for your message.

4. Create a persuasive message.

5. Identify potential action strategies.

6. Review and revise (Lynn, Castelli, Werner and Cone, pp. 62 2007).

This article will briefly explain the steps, and include action strategies for each. This article will focus mainly on promoting an existing program. However, the steps described could also be used to add content, time, professionals, or make curricular changes.

1. Clearly identify your goals and objectives

What should the PE program accomplish? This is the first step, just as it is for planning a lesson. It is most effective to start with one specific goal. This goal should be based upon the one aspect of the program deemed most important. Other aspects, can be highlighted in subsequent promotional efforts. Especially with initial promotion efforts, do not try to do too much. There are most likely many aspects of the PE program that deserve public recognition. However, trying to do too much can make the promotion efforts appear to lack focus.

NASPE and State Standards should be evident in any goal of the program. Standards are written in broad general terms. Any goal of a program should be much more specific, measurable, and observable. Another consideration is the mission of the school or school district. Especially from administrators' perspectives, this will be of primary importance. The school community knows (or should know) what it wants to accomplish. How does the PE program contribute to the mission of the school?

The following is a list of example goals:

• Have all students participate in any form of cardiovascular activity for 30 minutes at least once a week.
• Promote geocaching in the school and community.
• Get 5 parents to attend PE class with their children.
• Get 2 classroom teachers to include physical activity or brain breaks in their classroom this year.
• Have 100% participation in classes.

2. Identify your target audience

Knowing the audience is just as important as the content of the message. Graham and Holt (2004) identify seven key groups to consider when promoting PE programs: School administration, teachers, parents, school board, community, legislators, and students. Parents, students, administrators, teachers, and community members may all have the same goals but look at issues from different perspectives. Explaining the benefits of a skateboarding lesson to students may be easy if they like skateboarding. Explaining skateboarding to administrators will probably have to focus more on safety and outcomes.

Because of the demands and limited resources schools cannot be all things to all students. This demonstrates the importance of meeting standards or missions. Because administrators are the decision makers, help them make an informed decision. The subjects that have standardized tests have data to help administrators know the effectiveness of interventions or curriculum. In many areas there are no PE standardized tests or assessments. In these cases the PE teacher is responsible for demonstrating the effectiveness of the program. The PE programs I know that get the most support from administrators are those that can produce data that prove program effectiveness and/or student learning. This data can be motor development test benchmarks, links to academic performance, or fitness levels, etc.

Many more teachers are beginning to understand the importance of incorporating physical activity into their teaching techniques. PE teachers are the experts and a valuable resource in this area. Share "brain breaks" with teachers. Collaborate with other teachers. Help reinforce classroom material with movement either in the gym or classroom.

Parents can be terrific allies in a grassroots effort to promote a PE program, but only if they know what is going on in the classroom. Invite parents to "P.E. Shows." Parents love to watch their child perform, especially if it is something they may not have known their child could do. Video cameras will be out, pictures taken, links on facebook, awards hung on refrigerators, etc. This is a great time to connect with parents, and will keep Physical Education in mind when they think about the great things their child is learning in school.

"I know the taxpayers get their money's worth from me and I can prove it." This is a quote from a PE teacher who understands how to connect to a school board. School boards have a much different purpose or focus than the other audiences identified. Many school boards exist to be the voice of the taxpayer. Never go to a school board meeting without the answers to the questions, "How much will this cost?" and/or "What is the return on the districts investment?"

A presentation to a school board does not always have to be about a proposed change. To be proactive, present the school board with the benefits the district is currently gaining from PE. Be mindful of the time given at a school board meeting. It is best to be brief, and be sure the message is well rehearsed and persuasive.

Get the community involved in your PE program. This may bolster the benefits gained by students in your classes. Meeting the NASPE standards of lifelong physical activity inherently includes being active outside school in the community. Introduce activities that are available. Invite speakers or guest teachers into your classes to promote various community activities available in your area. Link PE programs to community organizations such as YMCA, Boys and Girls clubs, parks and recreation, etc.

Students are the customer in a PE class. Keep them interested in the product/service, which is physical education. Show them the benefits they are gaining from participating in class. Show them their improvements. Answer the question: "Why do we have to do this? I'm never going to use this."

3. Gather Data for your message

We need data to prove what we are doing and how well we are doing it. Consider the audiences listed above. Some want to see the overall impact on the school or district. Parents and students will want to know the impact on one child. Showing positive results will be the greatest evidence for making a PE program valuable.

Gathering data can seem like a daunting task. It does not have to happen every day/all day/every student, but it must reflect program or promotion goals. What to collect? Most PE teachers are probably already doing it. Use current assessments. Keep information. Enter data into a spreadsheet or other types of media (such as iPad or apps). Look for assistance with collecting information. Some help might be from local college professors or students. Examples of data many PE teachers collect:

• Student self-reports on activity time or types of activities.
• Fitness test results
• Resting heart rate, BMI
• Standardized test scores
• Emotional assessment, stress levels

4. Create a persuasive message

Persuasive messages include accurate facts and data to make an emotional connection to the audience. Messages can be in the form of presentations, articles, videos, or web pages. The most effective messages are those that give a maximum amount of information using as little effort as necessary by the audience. I have students make a 90 second video promoting the benefits of standards based PE. They at first like the short duration, then dislike it because it is hard to edit a message down to 90 seconds. Unfortunately, the target audience may not have the passion we have about PE - or the attention span. The point needs to be made quickly and effectively. Pictures or videos are usually more effective than words or numbers. Test your message on a friendly audience that will give useful feedback.

5. Identify Potential Action Strategies

Most of us usually have the action strategies in mind first, but this really needs to come after data is collected and must support stated goals. Remember to focus on strengths when promoting a current program. Only focus on weaknesses if you are advocating for change. However, this must include strengths as well to demonstrate that what you need done can be accomplished.

Other action strategies not previously mentioned in this article include articles in newspapers or professional journals, presentations at professional meetings, PTO presentations, field days, gym shows, family fitness night, fitness run, fundraising events, recreational sports day, dance performances, inviting parents to class, fact sheets, serving on school and district committees, collaborating with another teacher, bulletin boards, web pages, a video for back to school night, a monthly calendar, homework, and school board presentation.

6. Review and Revise

As promotional efforts are implemented you will most likely notice multiple areas to address. Now that you know what you know, what steps can be taken next? As teachers we are quite familiar with this step. We know every lesson changes at least a little every time we teach. There is usually something we can do just a little bit better, instructions that can be a bit more clear, spacing that would work better. This is the time to reflect and make these changes.

Again consider the steps taken earlier. When determining goals, what was omitted in the essence of being specific that should be addressed next? What audience should be addressed next? Is new or different data needed? Is the message clear? Does the action strategy match the goals or data?

Conclusion
Physical Education Teachers around the country are doing outstanding work with increasingly diverse student populations. The connection between physical activity and learning has never been stronger. There is genuine concern over lifestyle disease and how they relate to sedentary lifestyles. The public knows the problems. Promotion efforts will help demonstrate the solutions.

There are great curriculums, outstanding lessons, and a lot of student learning, happening in the world of physical education. Some well-known; others not. It is of vital importance that PE teachers take the lead in promoting these.

References:
Graham, G., Parker, M., & Holt-Hale, S. (2004). Children moving: A reflective approach to teaching physical education (6th ed.) (pp.683-693). New York:McGraw-Hill Education.

Lynn, S, Castelli, D, Werner, P., Cone, S., (2007) Seminar in Physical Education: From student teaching to teaching Students. (p. 62). Champaign: Human Kinetics

Biography: Marty Donahue is an assistant professor currently in his 4th year at Slippery Rock University. He currently teachers Secondary Physical Education Methods and Senior Seminar courses, as well as supervising student teachers and field experience.

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