High school student attitudes about physical education

Sport, Education and Society Vol. 11, No. 4, pp. 385400, November 2006

High school student attitudes about physical education G. Linda Rikard* and Dominique Banville George Mason University, USA

This study examined attitudes of high school students toward fitness and sports activities taught in physical education, and the perceived effectiveness of their physical education curriculum for improving their fitness and skill levels. Students from six high schools and 17 intact physical education classes agreed to participate. Data were collected using a questionnaire completed by 515 students, 159 of whom participated in focus group interviews. Results indicated student preference for a wider variety in sport and fitness activities, an increase in level of challenge in physical education classes, and an increase in student motivation for participating in activities outside of school. Student attitudes were accepting or tolerant of participation in fitness activities due to known health benefits. Most students liked physical education class that included some form of game play. In addition, they stressed the need for adding interesting activities that included active participation while having fun. Student recommendations included strategies for improving instruction and for grouping students by skill levels for appropriate challenge.

Keywords: Curriculum; Instruction; Fitness; Sport activities

Introduction Attitudes are born from beliefs that we have about people and things. They shape our behaviors in countless ways and determine our involvement in activities, the goals that we set and those we decide to abandon. Ajzen & Fishbein’s (1980; Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975) theory of reasoned action further explains that attitudes flow from beliefs and yield intentions and actions. Intentions are a function of two basic determinants: one’s personal attitude toward a behavior, and the attitude of others, including peers and parents, toward that behavior. The first determinant is the individual’s positive or negative evaluations for performing the behavior. Generally, people with positive beliefs will have a favorable attitude toward the object of the beliefs and conversely will have an unfavorable attitude if their beliefs are negative (Silverman & Subramaniam, 1999). The second determinant is the person’s perception of social pressure to perform or not perform the behavior based on the evaluation of others. Thus, an attitudinal consideration and a normative *Corresponding author. School of Recreation, Health and Tourism, George Mason University, 10900 University Blvd. MS 4E5, Manasass, VA 20120, USA. Email: [email protected] ISSN 1357-3322 (print)/ISSN 1470-1243 online/06/0400385-16 # 2006 Taylor & Francis DOI: 10.1080/13573320600924882

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consideration are formed that exert different degrees of power toward influencing one’s behaviors for more positive or negative responses. People express beliefs and attitudes daily through their behaviors and their language. In physical education, gaining insight into student beliefs is a critical source for understanding their attitudes and their interests and involvement toward the curriculum (Strand & Scantling, 1994). Attitude studies have spanned school grades in elementary and secondary physical education. Specifically, investigating the ways students experience elementary physical education was the sole focus of a Journal of Teaching in Physical Education monograph (Graham, 1995). Outcomes indicated that teachers could learn from students about what and how they teach (Graham, 1995). Monograph topics included children’s perceptions of abilities (Lee et al., 1995), perceptions of effort and skill (Veal & Compagnone, 1995), their feelings about fitness testing (Hopple & Graham, 1995), feelings of alienation (Carlson, 1995), and learned helplessness (Portman, 1995; Walling & Martinek, 1995). Other studies of elementary student perceptions have contributed to furthering our understanding of their views of physical education. For example, one study showed that students perceived physical education as fun and it made them feel good and special (Solmon & Carter, 1995). Another study showed that elementary students were able to evaluate parts of the physical education curriculum and that their evaluations could be useful for curriculum revision. Findings also indicated a preference for skill-related over health-related activities (McKenzie et al., 1994). Studies of student attitude toward physical education at the secondary level are informative. Luke and Sinclair (1991) found that curriculum content was the most influential factor in the development of positive and negative attitudes toward physical education, regardless of gender or whether students elected or avoided physical education. According to Tannehill and Zakrajsek (1993), among the curriculum choices, running was most disliked by students and they indicated a negative attitude about fitness. These findings support those of Luke and Sinclair (1991) that running activities and fitness testing were very unfavorably viewed by all students. Strand and Scantling (1994) examined activity preferences among high school students and found their choices to include a few team sports compared with a wide variety of individual and dual sports. In a study focused on perceptions of high school students involved in a badminton unit, Tjeerdsma et al. (1996) found that students preferred game play and competition over skill and drill practice. Finally, Chung and Phillips (2002) found a significant positive relationship between high school student attitudes toward physical education and participation in leisure-time activities. Student beliefs and attitudes impact their behaviors. Insights into these attitudes have implications for curriculum and instructional modification. The need to examine and respond to student attitudes is especially important in high schools where curriculum and instructional delivery have historically been deficient (Locke, 1992; Siedentop, 1992).

High school student attitudes about physical education

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More than a third of young people in grades 912 do not regularly engage in vigorous-intensity physical activity. Daily participation in high school physical education classes dropped from 42% in 1991 to 32% in 2001 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2002). National reports document youths’ inactive and unhealthy lifestyles and reaffirm the need for increased physical activity among adolescents (U.S. Department of Heath and Human Services, 1996, 2000). Increased levels of sedentary behaviors among youth indicate a critical need for physical education programs to adopt curriculum that is inclusive of all students and that increases their interest and motivation levels for physical activity participation. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine two research questions: 1) What are student attitudes about their physical education curriculum regarding fitness and sport activities? 2) What are student attitudes concerning the effectiveness of the physical education curriculum toward contributing to their fitness and skill levels? Method Setting and participants Ten high school teachers with a range of teaching experience from two to twenty years agreed to participate in this study by allowing researchers to solicit student participation from their physical education classes. These teachers were selected due to their reputation for providing a varied curriculum, for following their school district’s current physical education curriculum, and for their willingness to participate. The teachers had a previous working relationship with the researchers. Participants represented six high schools with varied student size and socioeconomic status in the northeastern United States. The teachers were interviewed and chosen on the basis of their commitment to provide a balanced curriculum of individual and team sports, and fitness development. They encouraged student participation in the study during class time and coordinated schedules with researchers for questionnaire and focus group data collection. Participants consisted of 515 students from 17 intact physical education classes. Students were drawn from grades 910 and consisted of 267 females (52%) and 246 males (48%). The majority of students (54%) were Caucasian, 20% were Asian/Pacific Islanders, 9% were Hispanic, 7% were multi-ethnic, 3% were African Americans and 8% were other. Within the intact mixed-gender classes of approximately 30 participants, a total of 159 students in groups of 6 to 10 per focus group were invited to volunteer to ensure their interest and participation in discussion. Focus groups were mixed in gender to reflect the co-educational status of their physical education classes. Data collection Questionnaire items were designed by the authors to reflect the research questions. Items sought information on student perceptions about their acquired knowledge,

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skill and fitness status, and time spent in these activities during their physical education classes. Perceptions of time spent on a sport and fitness activity were discussed to stimulate student discussion about their activity likes or dislikes and their reasons. Additional items included information related to activities they wanted to learn in physical education. Focus group interview questions were modeled after the questionnaire so that the same topics were probed and answered in greater detail. Lastly, students were to list activities they participated in outside of physical education classes and activities they regularly participated in due to learning them in physical education. Questionnaire items and focus group interview questions were pilot-tested in a participating high school with students from two health classes who were not part of the study. Modifications were made to the questionnaire and the focus group interview guide on the basis of pilot responses. Face validity was established by using constructs that are recognized in the supporting literature. For the purpose of this study, sport activities refer to game, dance and gymnastic units taught in the curriculum, while fitness indicates an emphasis on the development of fitness concepts. Consent forms were distributed by teachers to students in advance of data collection. Students and parents or guardians signed and returned the form to the teacher. Students were informed of the purpose of the study and the confidential treatment of the data. The study was explained by the researchers at the beginning of each class and questionnaires were distributed to every student that had returned the signed consent form. They were directed not to identify themselves on the questionnaire or on audiotape during the focus group interview. Students who did not choose to complete the questionnaire read or otherwise waited until the process was completed. In general, questionnaires were completed in about 1520 minutes. For the focus groups, students were interviewed in groups numbering from 6 to 10 and located in cafeterias, libraries and classrooms close to the gymnasium. Those students spent the remainder of the class with the researcher, while the rest of the students continued with their regular class. Two researchers and one graduate student assisted in gathering questionnaire and interview data. Each of 19 focus groups was led by one of two researchers, trained in interview techniques, and was recorded verbatim on audiotape. Interviews averaged 45 minutes. In this study, student quotes serve as data and are identified by their individual teacher’s name. Each teacher is given a pseudonym to protect their identity. Questionnaire and focus group overview The questionnaire was designed in two parts. The first part requested demographics data on individuals, followed by nine statements using a five-point Likert scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree. Statements included topics such as student perceived improvement in their skill levels, fitness levels and playing abilities; their interest in PE activities; and how they valued the activities in the curriculum. The second part comprised six open-ended questions and two dichotomous questions. A

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series of questions asked them to list the activities taught in their PE class and, of those activities, which they liked most, liked least, and activities that they would like to add. Also, they were asked if they liked the time spent on sport and fitness activities, and to give reasons for their responses. Finally they were asked about the impact of their PE classes on their involvement in physical activities outside of school. The focus group interview guide further probed participants on the same topics. The interview took place in a separate room in a round-table format. Throughout each interview, the moderator encouraged each student to respond spontaneously and established an atmosphere in which students felt comfortable talking about their experiences. Data analysis Questionnaire data were analyzed using three computerized programs. Quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS, a predictive analytic applications software, to provide mean and standard deviations derived from the nine Likert-scaled questions. Excel was used to organize data from the open-ended questions. Transcriptions from 19 focus group interviews were examined using Nud-ist, an ethnographic computerized program that allows coding, categorization, and regrouping of similar themes. The data were sorted by questions as an organizational strategy. Then, both researchers independently examined the data to identify broad themes that were consistent throughout the data. Results from each researcher’s analysis were compared and themes with the strongest support from written (quantitative and qualitative) and verbal sources were identified. These two sources contributed to the triangulation of the data. Results Data from questionnaires and focus group interviews concerning student attitudes about physical education were categorized into three primary themes. These themes were: 1) curriculum choices made by teachers, 2) instructional strategies used in classes, and 3) the influence of physical education on participation outside of school. Curriculum choices All participants (N515) were asked on the questionnaire to indicate on the 5-level Likert scale their level of agreement with the following statement: I like the activities included in the physical education class. A mean of 3.19 was obtained (SD 1.03), indicating that students generally agree with this statement. A second question asked if they liked the time spent on sport activities and to give reasons for their answers. The majority of students (73%) wrote that they liked the time spent on sport activities, 23% answered negatively, and 4% were undecided (see Table 1). When asked for reasons, 433 students provided numerous written comments, and in several /

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Table 1. Percentages of student perceptions regarding the amount of time spent on sports Boys Answer Yes No Undecided N

Girls

Total #

Total %

#

%

#

%

371 116 23 510

72.8 22.7 4.5 100

179 54 11 244

73 22 5 100

192 62 12 266

72 23 5 100

cases, multiple comments were given. The three strongest reasons for their positive responses were: fun (19%), liking sports in general (10%), and liking the activity offered (9%). The three most frequent negative reasons were that they disliked the activity offered (8%), that there was too much teacher talk and not enough playing time (5%), and that it was boring (5%) (see Table 2). The fitness portion of the curriculum offered a split assessment in terms of students’ responses about fitness time in their physical education classes. Fifty percent (257) of students declared that they liked the time spent on fitness, 46% did not, and 4% were undecided (see Table 3). Of all the respondents, 442 students wrote one or more reasons for liking time spent on fitness. The top two reasons given for liking fitness were: fun (10%), and because it improved their fitness levels (9%). Table 2. Frequency of responses for like or dislike of time spent on sports Comments Like Fun Like sports in general Like a specific activity Learn something (improve skills, new knowledge) Like the amount of time spent on sports Good for them (healthy, stress release) Like selection of activities Socialize Better than . . . Like competition Dislike Don’t like activities selected Time not used wisely (too much talking*not enough time on sports) Boring Don’t like PE/sports in general Undecided Depends on activity selected Total

# of students

%

80 45 39 24 23 20 18 14 9 6

18.5 10.4 9.0 5.5 5.3 4.6 4.2 3.2 2.1 1.4

36 23

8.3 5.3

22 10

5.1 2.3

19 388

4.4

Note: Of all the participants, 433 students made one or multiple comments.

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Table 3. Percentages of student perceptions regarding the amount of time spent on fitness Boys Answer Yes No Undecided N

Girls

Total #

Total %

#

%

#

%

257 232 20 509

50.5 45.6 3.9 100

126 108 9 243

52 44 4 100

131 124 11 266

49 46 5 100

Of the dissenters, 9% declared they did not like the time spent on fitness because they did not like to run, and 9% stated that it was boring (see Table 4). Based on qualitative data, 159 students (31% of total participants) described attitudes about the activities offered in their PE class, and the time spent on them. Students had comments and suggestions related to the curriculum. Two categories emerged from the focus group data: 1) the need for variety in the sport activities and fitness portions of the curriculum; and 2) the level of challenge for activities offered. Table 4. Frequency of responses for like or dislike of time spent on fitness # of comments

%

Positive Fun Improve fitness level Because I like . . . (running, weight training, etc.) Better than . . . (seating in class, doing math, etc.) Socialize Use time well

43 39 16 13 11 8

9.7 8.8 3.6 2.9 2.5 1.8

Negative Don’t like to run Boring Doesn’t help improve fitness level Time is wasted Would rather play sports Not fun Waste of time Too long Repetitive ‘Side effect’ (e.g. get tired, sweaty, etc.) Grades attached to it

39 38 14 12 11 10 9 6 5 4 3

8.8 8.6 3.2 2.7 2.5 2.3 2.0 1.4 1.1 0.9 0.7

7 288

1.6

Comments

Undecided Depends on activity Total

Note: Of all the students, 442 students made one or multiple comments.

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Need for variety Student complaints about the lack of variety in the curriculum were noted in almost all focus groups. For those schools with elective PE programs, the programs were criticized for lack of sufficient choices. One student summarized a problem within their elective PE curriculum as follows: ‘good electives will fill up and then people who don’t want to do that elective will be forced to do it [Smith’s class].’ For the sport activities portion of the curriculum, students stressed the need for more variety. A student in Kemp’s class complained about the fact that ‘it’s [the curriculum] the same thing every year’ and how ‘it gets boring’ because of that. Another student in Richard’s class talked about activities that she would like to do: Not the usual sports. Ever since elementary school you always do basketball, you always do soccer. You get to high school and you are so sick of it, you are like, can we find something new?

A student in Ramirez’s class suggested that teachers organize stations during the class so that students can do something different within a class period. Other suggestions by students were about type of activities that should be included. One suggestion made by a number of students in different focus groups was the inclusion of games they once played in elementary schools such as tag games and kick ball, where students could have fun and be active. Two students in Kemp’s class supported being active by stating, ‘If you go back to elementary school, when we were playing kick ball, everyone was participating. It was fun for everyone,’ and ‘The point is to do some activity. You might as well play something for those who don’t like sports. They would be more likely to play a game than a sport.’ Another statement from a student in Powell’s class supported this ‘activity for everyone’ concept. Suppose there is someone who is really bad at tennis. That whole time we are doing tennis, they just feel so out of place. So if we threw in some of the fun team activities, those kind of fun games that everyone can be a part, because it usually doesn’t matter if you’re good or not, because it’s just fun, then maybe people would feel better.

Other students suggested incorporating specific types of activities such as outdoor activities (e.g. rock climbing, in-line skating, bicycling), and sports they have never done before like yoga, Tae Boe, roller hockey, disk golf or step aerobics. A small number of students suggested the addition of gymnastics and dance activities. In nearly all participating schools, fitness occupied the first portion of the class. Typically, students reported running, either in the gym, around the periphery of the available space, or outside on the track and then doing some type of stretching exercises. Overall, students complained about the lack of originality employed by their teachers. Many students stated that they hated running and because of the monotony, they didn’t enjoy fitness. This result is supported by the questionnaire results indicating that the activity liked least by the students was running (19%). These quotes reflect the attitudes shared by many students during the focus group


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interviews: ‘I think they [teachers] should come up with something a little more different for the fitness part because every day it is always the same thing. Just run around. And they know we really don’t like it [Smith’s class]’ and ‘I guess my biggest problem with the fitness activities is that they are really boring. It is boring to just run in circles for a long period of time. You feel like cattle being herded around in circles [Smith’s class].’ In addition, students initiated suggestions on how to make the fitness portion of the class more appealing: I think it is more fun when you do it in a game, because you want to win so you actually want to run so you can win. But when you are just pure running, I don’t want to do it. I do it anyway, but when I am playing a game I want to do it because I want to win [White’s class]. We should play tag sometimes. Play games where you want to run for another reason. Then you finish the game and you are like wow, I am all hot and sweaty and feel all energetic and everything. And you don’t even realize you were getting anything, you were playing and having fun [Smith’s class].

Level of challenge Students were asked on the questionnaire if they believed that their fitness levels, skill levels and playing abilities had improved because of their physical education classes. A mean score of 2.8 of 5 on the Likert scale (SD1.175) was obtained on the fitness statement, indicating their belief that their fitness level had improved slightly because of the activities in their PE class. A mean score of 2.6 (SD 1.246) was obtained for the statement showing that their PE classes did not help them improve their skill level, and a mean score of 2.9 (SD 1.111) was obtained for the statement indicating that their PE class has helped them improve their playing abilities. These results indicated that students slightly agreed that skill levels had not improved but that fitness levels and playing abilities had slightly improved in their PE classes. These same questions were explored during the focus groups. For the portion of the curriculum dealing with skill development, students stated that if it was a new activity, then they felt they improved, but if they already knew the sports then they didn’t feel like they learned much. One student in Ramirez’s class provided a summary of the conversations with the majority of the students: ‘If you have never played it, of course you are going to get better at it. But if you have already done it, you’re not gonna get that much improvement in your class.’ The main reason for this belief is that students felt the content was not challenging. One student in Polansky’s class stated that ‘a four year old could do it [the drill used].’ Another student in the same class explained that ‘the more common sports, people already know about them. We don’t need to spend most of the class going over them, like in basketball; we already know how to dribble!’ As for the fitness development portion of the class, student comments in focus group discussions indicated that fitness activities performed in class did not help /

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/

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improve their fitness levels. A student in Sivagi’s class thought that ‘it is not consistent enough to really improve anything.’ For another student, the amount of activity was insufficient. She said, ‘I just think that since we do so little of it, it doesn’t make an impact. It doesn’t change anything [Powell’s class].’ Some students mentioned the fact that they were already in shape and therefore did not see any benefits from their PE class. For example, one student in Sivagi’s class stated that ‘most of us are fit already so we would have to run three miles to get a workout.’ Students in a few classes saw a certain benefit, mainly for non-athletes. One student said, ‘It is good for those who don’t do after school activities’ [Sivagi’s class] and another one commented on the running portion of the class by saying, ‘I am not great at running. I don’t like it. But when I run, it really does help [Smith’s class].’ Instructional strategies Instructional delivery was not part of the questionnaire or focus group interview questions but it was discussed by students relative to skill abilities. One of the most frequent comments made by students when asked about how they felt about the skill development portion of their PE class is related to the impact the difference in skill levels among students in the class had on their own learning. They expressed their feelings about how frustrating it was for them to be in a group that would not help them be successful or that would slow them down in their learning. These few quotes illustrated both opinions. I think it’s hard to do some activities in PE because everyone is at different levels. And when we did tennis, some of the people were good, and some of the people couldn’t play at all. Well, I’m not one of the best, but it’s discouraging sometimes when you have people that don’t want to play. Or that won’t go for balls, or won’t do anything. It’s just not as much fun [Powell’s class]. I was on a team with some guys and only one other girl. And they didn’t let us play that much but we weren’t very good, and they would be mean about messing up. So both of us stopped playing and moved out of the way a lot of the time [Smith’s class]. But it’s just like ‘hit the ball please.’ I get so bored with some of these units because we know how to do this stuff, but you can’t play because no one else [outside this group] knows how to play [Richard’s class].

Furthermore, students were quick to provide suggestions without any prompting about how to remedy the skill level inequity among peers. One student suggested pre-testing the students in order for the teacher to be able to determine who needed help and who didn’t. A number of students suggested dividing students in groups according to their skill levels, like beginners, intermediate or advanced. One student in Smith’s class talked about how successful grouping by skill abilities had been in class before. The one time they did that. People can just judge themselves if they think they know what they are doing. They had a league of people and they all had fun, and it was all


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competitive and doing all this fancy stuff. Then there was another league of people who were learning and laughing. It made it a lot better.

Another student suggested that with two teachers in the gymnasium at all times, it would be possible to divide the group: ‘If we already know to do it, we could go on to advanced skills. And there are two teachers in there. So it’s pretty possible [Richard’s class].’ Out of school participation Of the 515 students who completed a questionnaire, 82% responded negatively to the statement, ‘Do you participate in any activities out of school due to being introduced to it in your PE classes?’ Of the rest, 10% answered in the positive and 8% did not answer. The activities most commonly reported from the students who answered positively were basketball (35%) followed by field hockey (8%) and in-line skating (8%). When asked about their involvement in activities outside of school due to their PE classes, some participants stated, ‘No,’ ‘Absolutely not,’ ‘It’s too late,’ ‘No, we play with friends.’ Other students gave examples of sport activities that they have played out of school because of PE. Comments included, ‘Yea, badminton. I put up a net in our backyard because we did it in PE. I thought it was fun,’ ‘In-line skating is an activity in PE that will encourage me to do it outside of school,’ and ‘My friend and I are talking about setting up a fencing club.’ Other students comments showed additional variety of curriculum choices: ‘We did fencing and archery in PE and I have done archery before but I never took it seriously but now I am really into it,’ ‘Tennis, I play that more now after we went over it [in PE] and I got better,’ and finally, ‘Yea, I want to get roller blades.’ Positive comments on fitness activities that students experienced in PE and pursued out of school included, ‘We did more fitness and that made me work out more out of school,’ ‘I think it made me more interested in weight lifting. I go weight lifting now because I know how to use the equipment and I know what to do,’ ‘I learned from running the mile over the past years and try to keep a steady pace so I get a decent time and am not slow,’ and, ‘If I run in gym class it helped me a lot because I used to not run a lot. And being on cheerleading, you have to run a lot, like a mile every day. So it helps.’ Discussion High school physical education programs have been in peril for some time (Locke, 1992; Siedentop, 1992; Kinchin & O’Sullivan, 2003). Initiatives for curriculum change have promoted ways to meet the changing need and interests of high school students (Tjeerdsma et al., 1996; Castelli & Rink, 2003). The fact remains that many high school physical education curricula are failing their students (Kinchin & O’Sullivan, 2003). Based on the quantitative results from the questionnaire,

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participants indicated a borderline evaluation for their high school physical education experience. The qualitative data provide insights into these findings based on student comments and recommendations. Student attitudes toward the curriculum Several findings in this study are consistent with previous studies. Similar to findings from McKenzie et al. (1994), our participants indicated a much greater preference for game play compared with fitness activities. Our findings also agreed with those of Solmon and Carter (1995) indicating that a majority of students liked physical education due to the fun factor. Finally, like Tannehill and Zakrajsek (1993), our high school students cited their greatest reason for disliking fitness activities as being due to the limited and dull choices of running activities. The most noteworthy findings that add to the high school student attitude literature in physical education included the data on how students regard the curriculum in their fitness and sport activities (Research Question 1). Contrary to Carlson’s participants (1995) who were alienated toward physical education, these students indicated slightly positive attitudes toward physical education; however, they sought curriculum and instructional changes. They expressed the desire to learn ‘new things’ and to perform different activities that included fitness development. They wanted more variety in curriculum activities, more elective choices, and more interesting activities to play while improving cardiovascular fitness. They indicated valuing fitness for its benefits but wanted more motivating activities with built-in goals. Indirectly, they expressed the desire to merge fitness development with sport activities and games participation. Many expressed their boredom from being under challenged by sport activities that did not contribute to their fitness or interest levels. They wanted to learn new and novel activities compared with the ‘same thing every year’. Other students suggested playing games that did not require a lot of skill so that everyone could participate. From these responses, there is optimism that student attitudes and beliefs about physical activity can be addressed and altered over time with adjustments by physical education teachers. Effectiveness of the curriculum For Research Question 2, participants suggested that time spent on fitness was both insufficient and too inconsistent to provide desired benefits and that most students did not attain fitness levels as a result of physical education class activities. However, they qualified their skill development due to physical education. Many students stated that if the activity was new, their skill levels did improve, but if the activities were those repeated year after year like soccer or basketball, the challenge was insufficient and skill levels were not advanced, especially when skill grouping were heterogeneous. Similar to Research Question 1, students have suggested appropriate


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practices that can make their physical education experience more meaningful and appeared to impact their beliefs. One indicator of student learning and intention is their participation in physical education activities outside of school. The theory of reasoned intention (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980) supports the belief that people tend to engage in a behavior that they evaluate as positive and when others view it similarly. Thus, the most disturbing response from the majority of students (82%) was their belief that activities taught in their physical education classes had no transfer to their choice of activities outside of school. Some focus group responses indicated a slightly more optimistic (32%) opinion from student testimonials about how PE had provided new activities that they performed at home or with friends. Other students played sports and engaged in other activities outside of school that they perceived as unrelated to their physical education curriculum. Perhaps there is a place in the physical education curriculum to integrate different skill forms that students are learning out of class to increase personal meaning. These student comments prompt the need for teachers to consider legitimate student concerns given that, as Graham (1995) suggested, teachers can learn from students about what and how to teach. Students can positively influence curriculum choices, a concept that appears greatly underutilized not only at the high school level but also at elementary and middle school levels where student motivation is low (Mowling et al., 2004). These authors strongly recommend that teachers solicit and consider student voices for curriculum modifications that are educationally appropriate and that increase participation and motivation. When student suggestions are implemented by their teachers, collaboration occurs and contributes toward improving student attitudes toward physical education and their motivation to participate. This study suggests the need for meaningful physical education experiences where students learn new skills and activities while engaging at appropriate skill levels and at appropriate levels of challenge. Also, teachers must seek resources and additional equipment from sport businesses and non-profit agencies for increasing the variety and kind of physical activity among adolescents. Fitness-based activities are essential to the purpose of physical education but we must abandon militaristic teaching strategies of the past and replace them with positive motivation and encouragement coupled with activities that match adolescents’ need for physical exertion and play. Ultimately, students will value physical activity that is meaningful to them as cited in the National Association for Sport and Physical Education Standard 6 (NASPE, 2004). Negative student attitudes indicate unrest with old methods of conducting high school physical education programs and these attitudes must be addressed. In this study, students indicated their interest in physical education. Most respondents wanted to actively participate in classes. Generally, they understand the message that lifelong physical activity is critical to well-being. Now physical education curricula must deliver unique individual activities that are enjoyable, and that are performed in

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varied group sizes, with some activities requiring limited skills while others are grouped by skill levels for increased student activity and success. Teachers are encouraged to expand their curriculum repertoire by including multicultural games such as Omnikin that requires strategy and limited manipulative skills, and Tchoukball that requires no defense and uses throwing and catching skills with rules designed for all skill levels. Outdoor adventure activities like snowshoeing, use of climbing walls and orienteering are becoming widespread as curriculum choices. Teachers must help battle sedentary lifestyle habits by instilling in students the value and desire to be active (Standard 3 and 6) (NASPE, 2004, p. 11). There is no better avenue to achieve these goals than through school physical education programs. In their theory of reasoned action, Ajzen and Fishbein (1980) stated that individuals make daily evaluative judgments about their environment. For high school students this includes judgments about school, teachers and meaningful learning. These judgments evolve into beliefs and attitudes that are difficult to change. Teachers clearly impact student attitudes and motivation levels through their programs and delivery methods. Teachers can show innovation by developing new units that are student-directed and by examining different curricular models for high school students. Essentially, teachers are largely in control of the curriculum and have many current models available to them for examination. For example, Kinchin and O’Sullivan (2003) describe a Cultural Studies unit that provided a shift from teacher-directed to student-centered pedagogy. The unit emphasized personal investment in classmates, group decision-making and problem-solving. Regarding lifelong learning and lifelong physical activity, a twin and inter-linked curriculum is presented by Penny and Jess (2004) that aims to facilitate student interest and ability to maintain active and healthy lives by exerting individual responsibility for developing a lifelong activity curriculum. Other well-known models (Hellison & Templin, 1990; Siedentop, 1994; Jewett et al., 1995; Griffin et al., 1997) are also promising choices for high school programs. Physical education teachers are in powerful roles to influence youth both positively and negatively. Teacher accountability for student learning, motivation and positive attitude development impacts student activity choices on the basis of their attitudes. Studying teacher impact on student activity choices is an important research area to explore further. Results from studies examining student attitudes and beliefs toward physical activity must be considered as part of the answer for eliminating sedentary lifestyles of high school students as they grow to adulthood.

References Ajzen, I. & Fishbein, M. (1980) Understanding attitudes and predicting social behaviors (Englewood Cliffs, NJ, Prentice-Hall). Carlson, T. B. (1995) We hate gym: student alienation from physical education, Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 14, 467477.


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