As a student that once loved Physical Education, I am acutely aware of the multitude of students that did not share the same experiences as I once did. Having the opportunity as a child to participate in a variety of physical activities allowed me to attain physical literacy at an early age and therefore my physical education experience was filled with fond memories of achieving excellence and as a result, I perceived P.E. as a safe environment in which I belonged. The issue that arises is that not all students are afforded the opportunity to participate in a variety of forms of physical education at a young age, and as a result they may not have achieved a desired level of physical literacy with respect to their peers once they mature and this can result in a certain level of anxiety when participating in the P.E. classroom.

It is important to note that the goal of the physical education Integrated resource package is to enable all students to develop knowledge, movement skills, and positive attitudes and behaviors that contribute to a healthy and active lifestyle (BC Ministry of Education, 2008). From my experience, Physical Education assessment is often rooted in physical performance and participation. I feel that this directly opposes the intended goal of the curriculum for two distinct reasons. The first is that physical performance assesses for strictly the psychomotor domain but neglects both the cognitive and affective domains. The second is that assessing for participation is vague in that there are many components that quality participation is comprised of, and without an adequate guideline as to what component of participation is being assessed, the instructor may be assessing students with a bias opinion.

My belief as an instructor is that assessing physical performance results in segregation of the classroom and by no means contributes to the goal of lifelong physical activity and wellness for the majority of students, but in fact can deter some students from ever wanting to participate in physical activity ever again. My goal is to develop my pedagogy to cater not only to those who enjoy physical activity for the athletic feats that they are able to showcase, or for those that love the feeling of physical exertion, but also to bring forth the inherent feeling of belonging that physical activity can produce through teamwork and peer encouragement.

I also believe that “participation” is a word often utilized to describe someone who is present and blending in. A better method for assessing quality participation would be instead to assess for particular qualities relating to the desired involvement of students. My goal is to incorporate quality affective domain assessment into my units to ensure students are not robbed of the experience of being actively involved in their classroom.

My hope is that students that partake in my Physical Education classes experience more than just the rudimentary aspects of playing sport, but rather that they learn to understand the non-physical values and feelings that physical education can foster, and that they in time will embrace leading a life of physical activity and wellness.