The Importance of Physical Education in the Athletic Department

Discourse communities are defined by John Swales as “groups that have goals or purposes, and use communication to achieve these goals.” Ann Johns, who also wrote about discourse communities, was kind enough to give her readers a much simpler list of the six defining characteristics of discourse communities as originally thought out by Swales. Firstly, the group should have a public common goal or goals. The second, third, and fourth characteristics are that the group should have different ways to communicate (such as meetings or newsletters) and they should continue to get more ways to communicate in the hopes of providing feedback or give information in some way.

The fifth characteristic is that the group should have its own jargon. Lastly, the group should have a limit on members and there should be some new and some old.

I have chosen to pursue a career as a teacher in the athletic department. Physical education teachers are a discourse community of their own.

Physical education teachers are dedicated to helping their students get fit and teaching them about sports and nutrition. They communicate with each other via meetings, memos, and e-mail. The meetings are primarily used for feedback and improvement purposes. These teachers have their own lexis filled with words and abbreviations such as the PFT, Benchmarks, and IEP. There is a limit to the number of Physical Education teachers needed and as some of the more experienced teachers retire, new ones come to fill those spaces.

I intend to fill one of those spaces someday.

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It all started way back in middle school. I was ridiculed by my classmates for being obese and my friends were nowhere to be found. I would like to think that the young girl who made my life a living hell in middle school only did so because she was envious of my mental capabilities. At first, I brushed it off because i was under the impression that I had absolutely marvelous friends who would never abandon me. I was wrong.

This young girl, Anissa, told the entire school that I had cooties and that if they talked, touched, or acknowledged me, they would get fat too. When I say the entire school, I am not exaggerating; I attended a private Christian school and there were only about 50 kids in the sixth, seventh, and eighth grade classes combined. My friends began to ignore me and I clung to books as my only salvation. Because nobody would come near me, I refused to participate in class activities, such as the P.E class. The physical education class at that school was virtually non-existent. Students could literally just walk around and talk with friends and, as long as they were standing, they received an A. I refused to even stand. I would sit on a bench, read a book, and tell my teacher that I was “exercising my mind.” He didn’t buy it.

Eventually, I developed a coping mechanism which I still use today; I simply make fun of myself before anyone else can. I was so bitter about being teased that I pushed myself to rise above them. I made straight A’s and made sure they knew it. Now when they called me fat, I was able to laugh and passively aggressively make a joke like, “Yes, well, based on our respective GPAs, you’ll probably be making a few of my many future burgers.” They hated when I made remarks like that and it gave me so much satisfaction to anger them. High school wasn’t any better, especially the Physical Education classes.

Even though I was given the easiest Physical Education teacher, I was flailing. I had never run a mile before and I had never heard of a Physical Fitness Test. I had no intention of ever going into a field of study which would require me to run a mile so I was very confused as to why the board of education would make this a requirement. After that first mile, I hated physical education. People laughed at me because I took so long. That summer, after being the victim of constant bullying yet again, I resolved to shed some weight. I was able to lose forty pounds that summer and I felt absolutely fantastic coming back to school.

When we took the fitness test this time around, I was finally able to pass the BMI test. Everything was wonderful–until a boy said to me, “Once a fatty, always a fatty.” I was absolutely devastated, lost all hope, and ended up gaining all the weight back.

Despite the struggles, I graduated from high school with a 3.8 GPA, a red seal, blue seal, and golden state seal merit on my diploma, and a great group of supportive friends. Those same friends created a badminton club in high school and gave me an officiating position. I was fat and slow so I wasn’t very good, but when I went to the club I was always very happy for some inexplicable reason. When I started my first year at Pasadena City College, I saw a badminton activity class in the schedule of classes online. I was immediately drawn to it because of the great memories I made playing the game in high school, but I was too self-conscious about my weight and athletic ability to join. I lost ten pounds and joined it the following semester instead and it has been the best choice yet in my academic career.

I realized that the only reason I hated physical education was because I was always made fun of, but everyone in badminton was very nice and accepting, unlike in high school. Coach Ho is my favorite teacher so far. She really cares about her students and tries everything to get them to be healthier. One day during class, she singled me out and told the entire class that they should work as hard as I do. She said I had improved immensely, definitely more than anyone else in the class. That was the first time in a long time that I had been praised for my athletic ability. I began adding more activity classes because of that one incident and discovered that those classes became the highlights of my days. Eventually it dawned on me that this made me happy. This was what I wanted to do with my life. I wanted to share my happiness with others and give them, too, the joy of sport. I wanted to be just like Coach Ho.

Obviously I now have what Carol Dweck would call a “growth mindset”, or the idea that you can always make yourself great at anything you choose to do (with a bit of practice, of course). I am determined to become just like my badminton coach and help my mother get her health in check. I am determined to be healthy for life. I am determined to fulfill my dreams. I am determined to be me.

In order for me to become a P.E teacher, I would need to get a bachelor’s degree in something like exercise sciences or kinesiology. It would them behoove me to get some practice in the classroom as a student teacher. I would then need to begin trying to obtain a teaching license. In order to do this, I would need to get into a teaching credential program, usually lasting one year. Upon the completion of said program, I would receive a recommendation to become officially licensed (in California). I would then need to take (and pass with a score of 220) the CSET, or California Subject Examinations for Teachers. Once I pass this exam, I am free to apply for my license.

Every Physical Education teacher is going to have a different teaching style. In general, as long as the state objectives are being met, the actual activities and method used it at the discretion of the teacher. Being a Physical Education teacher comes with the perks of not being stuck in a classroom, getting some exercise, and helping kids to become healthier individuals, however, the profession also has some major drawbacks.

Physical Education teachers may also be expected to teach other classes such as health and/or nutrition. They may also be responsible for field and gym maintenance. School budgets are also a constant constraint. Because physical education isn’t seen as important, the funding is usually less than ideal. Because of this lack of funding, these teachers may not have enough equipment to accommodate today’s increasingly large class sizes. What little equipment they do have available may be damaged or otherwise worn out. While the teachers would obviously love to have more and better equipment, there is not much they can do about it. The principal is the one making the decisions on a school to school basis.

I am currently taking four activity classes (Tennis, volleyball, badminton, and fencing), and two general education courses (English and sociology). Next semester I will be taking a chemistry class, a kinesiology class, a nutrition class, and, most likely, the next level of the activity classes I have now. I will get my AA-T in kinesiology from Pasadena City College before I transfer into a four year university like Cal State LA or SDSU. PCC is helping me by giving me an educational goal to plan my remaining semesters here.

At the moment, I need to focus on transferring out of PCC and getting a Bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology. I may continue on with my education and go for a Master’s degree. After I receive my teaching license, I’ll apply to different schools near me and hopefully be granted a position. Incoming teachers often face problems with other, more seasoned, teachers and with problem children. Most teachers change professions in the first five years. Knowing this information, my stubborn attitude will activate and will most likely not let me quit until the sixth year (just kidding). Since I was one of the problem children who absolutely hated physical education, I like to think that I will be able to relate to them and inspire them to keep going. As for the teachers, I don’t believe that I’ll butt heads with them too much. I’m usually a very timid person so I can’t foresee any real disagreements.

Physical educators are very important to society because they start new generations off into adulthood with at least a bit of stamina and health. It may help that generation to choose a healthy lifestyle. After heavily researching the field, my desire to do this job decreased. I wish I was able to say that it reinforced my aspirations but it really only instilled doubt in me. I know I still want to help people be healthier. but I’m not so sure if a Physical Educator is the right choice for me. Perhaps a personal trainer would be a better choice. I want to be like my badminton coach, but I still need to be me.