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Teachers' Perspectives on Creating an Inclusive Climate in Middle School Physical Education for Overweight Students
Author(s) -
Rukavina Paul,
Doolittle Sarah,
Li Weidong,
BealeTawfeeq Angela,
Manson Mara
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of school health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.851
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 1746-1561
pISSN - 0022-4391
DOI - 10.1111/josh.12760
Subject(s) - overweight , psychology , qualitative research , perception , negotiation , physical education , medical education , pedagogy , social skills , mathematics education , sociology , medicine , developmental psychology , obesity , social science , neuroscience
BACKGROUND Establishing and maintaining a positive, inclusive social climate in school is essential, especially given the many potential social pressures that make school a toxic environment for vulnerable students. We explored middle school physical education (PE) teachers' perceptions of the factors that influence the implementation of social‐oriented approaches to include overweight and obese students. METHODS We used a qualitative multicase study design guided by the Social Ecological Constraints model to study 9 PE teachers' perspectives and actions. We analyzed the transcripts of semistructured interviews, field notes, and artifacts related to teaching, PE programs, and school policies. Trust was established in conventional ways. RESULTS Social‐ecological factors influenced teachers including program and school culture, policies, and norms of collaboration. Teachers acted beyond their instructional setting level strategies and used school‐program level strategies to socially include overweight and obese in PE. CONCLUSIONS Some environments challenge employment of more than simple accommodations and a caring attitude; in others, teachers can collaborate with other school personnel to teach social goals through negotiating constraints, creating ingenious modifications and interactive tasks, and incorporating personal and social skills as a primary curricular goal.