“LETS GO GIRLS!” INCREASING FEMALE PARTICIPATION IN

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

By: Erica Hope

Overview of the Class Mar Lee School in Marshall I taught K-12 P.E. and 6-8

Health 7/8th graders Girls only class 36 Students

My focus questions Why do some girls choose not to

participate? How can I increase participation?

Why I chose this topic At the beginning of the school year I

noticed more girls sat out during class compared to boys

I remember this being a problem at my middle school

I would like as many students participating daily as possible!

What I learned from research Physical activity levels decline

during preteen years and continue to decline into adulthood

-TAAG Guidebook

What I learned from research

Positive P.E.

Experience

Willingness to

participate in

physical activity

-Baggett,Barr-Anderson, Conway, Lytle, Neumark-Sztainer, Pate

Possible Reasons Why… Lack of

enjoyment Lack of choices Lower self-

esteem, physical strength and self-efficacy

More conscious about body shape and appearance

Societal issues Stereotypical

games in P.E. class

-Girls in Physical Education: Increasing Participation and Success

What I learned from researchWhen certain girls participate, others will follow

You can’t change every single student and if you stress out about it too much… you will get burnt out

-Physical Educator D.L. Patton

What I learned from research Choices had a significant and immediate effect on student motivation

Allows students to examine their own motives for participation and gives them more responsibility

-Prusak, Treasure, Darst, Pangrazi

What I learned from research

Competition Self-

determination Pleasing teachers

or parents Peer groups Supportive family

and teachers

Social influences Wanting to

increase physical fitness and overall health

Prizes

Factors that affect Motivation

-Chiang, Liam

What I learned from researchP.E. needs to be a comfortable,

enjoyable, and reinforcing environment for all students,

regardless of their size, physical fitness, or competence levels

-Baggett,Barr-Anderson, Conway, Lytle, Neumark-Sztainer, Pate

What I did in the classroom Gave the

students choices Built relationships

with everyone Encouraged

participation

Incorporated gender specific activities

When certain girls participated, others followed

Tried to incorporate what they wanted to do

Class Survey

ArcheryBaseballBasketball

Capture the FlagCircuit

Dodgeball

Field TripFloor HockeyFree Time

KickballObstacle Course

ParachuteScooters

Soccer

Tag

Volleyball

Things I would want to do in gym…

Analyzing the data Already had a volleyball and basketball

unit Can’t have free time all the time Free day choices: basketball, volleyball,

or scooters Use tag games as a warm up Next unit would be floor hockey or

dodgeball

Activities

Just Dance 2

Circuits

Ethical Awareness Anonymous class survey Sources are correctly cited and not

plagiarized Students knew they were being

photographed and I told them about my inquiry project

I kept the privacy of the students by not including their names

Variables It isn’t possible to make every student

happy There are many other factors that

contribute to students not participating besides gender that I need to continue researching

This investigation may have been too vague and focused on stereotypes

The schedule is going to change back to coed classes next week

In Conclusion… The facts show that girls tend to

participate less in physical education BUT there are many ways to increase participation.

By giving a variety of choices and building self esteem, more students are likely to participate

My goal is for my students to have fun, be active, and learn important physical and social skills