Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 2012, 31, 21-38

© 2012 Human Kinetics, Inc.

New Perspectives for Teaching Physical

Education: Preservice Teachers’
Reflections on Outdoor and
Adventure Education
Gay L. Timken
Western Oregon University

Jeff McNamee
Linfield College

The purpose of this study was to gauge preservice physical education teachers’
perspectives during one physical activity pedagogy course, teaching outdoor and
adventure education. Teacher belief, occupational socialization and experiential
learning theories overlaid this work. Over three years 57 students (37 males; 20
females) participated in the course. Each student wrote four reflections during
their term of enrollment based on semistructured questions regarding their own
participation, thoughts on K-12 students, and teaching and learning in physical
education. Reflections were analyzed using constant comparative methods. Three
main themes emerged from the data: 1) fear, risk and challenge, (subthemes of
skill and motivation; self-awareness); 2) lifetime activity; and 3) teaching physical
education (subthemes of K-12 students; curriculum). Implications for physical
education teacher education suggest the inclusion of novel physical activities that
elicit strong emotional responses due to challenges with perceived and/or actual
risk as a viable method for inducing belief change.

Keywords: physical education teacher education, physical education, preservice

teachers’ beliefs, outdoor education, adventure education

It is well established that preservice teachers’ (PTs; those in teacher education

programs and not yet licensed) beliefs mediate the process of teacher education and
their teaching, largely due to several years of personal experiences—as students
of teachers, as athletes of coaches, and as participants in various contextual and
cultural experiences (Goodman, 1988; Hollingsworth, 1989; Lortie, 1975). These
acculturation experiences, termed “apprenticeship of observation” (Lortie, 1975)

Timken is with the Division of Health and Physical Education, Western Oregon University, Monmouth,
OR. McNamee is with the Department of Health, Human Performance, and Athletics, Linfield College,
McMinnville, OR.

    21
22   Timken and McNamee

or occupational or professional socialization (Curtner-Smith, Hastie & Kinchin,

2008; Lawson, 1983a; Lawson, 1983b; Schempp & Graber, 1992), can result
in emotionally charged beliefs (Morine-Dershimer & Corrigan, 1997), leading
to tacit or unconscious assumptions about teaching, learning, students, content
and curriculum. These assumptions are not always compatible with the work of
teaching (Kagan, 1992), and when not challenged in teacher education programs
and experiences, more readily determine the degree to which new information is
assimilated into teaching practices (Doolittle, Dodds & Placek, 1993; Goodman,
1988; Hollingsworth, 1989; Placek et al., 1995). However, the professional social-
ization that occurs within a teacher education program can also lead to similarly
inappropriate and misaligned unconscious assumptions about teaching and learning
(Lawson, 1988), particularly if not challenged in ways that serve to engender new
ideas and beliefs (Pajares, 1992).
Future physical education teachers come to Physical Education Teacher Edu-
cation (PETE) after having been relatively successful movers in sport and physi-
cal activity during their formative years (Dodds et al., 1992). Their socialization
into and via sport (Lawson, 1988) coupled with their success in movement-based
environments likely impacts their belief system about sport, physical activity, and
physical education content and curriculum (O’Sullivan, MacPhail & Tannehill,
2009; Placek et al., 1995; Stran & Curtner-Smith, 2009), leading to potentially
incompatible beliefs for teaching children and youth in physical activity settings.
This can be particularly true for those PTs more oriented toward coaching and/or
working with the more elite level student. The typical sport related coursework in
PETE courses may reinforce beliefs rather than expose, challenge and/or change
them, perhaps due to familiarity with the sport or sporting culture, perhaps due to a
lack of programmatic focus on belief change, or both (Tannehill, 2005; Timken &
van der Mars, 2009). For example, how many PETE programs continue to deliver
traditional physical education content (e.g., volleyball, basketball, tennis, etc.) to
their majors regardless of how it is delivered (i.e., models-based approach, Met-
zler, 2005)? Carlson and McKenna (2000), Hastie (1994), Jenkins (2004), Oslin,
Collier, and Mitchell (2001), and Tannehill (2005) report how their PTs “live the
curriculum”, in that they participate in at least one model (e.g., Tactical Games
/ Teaching Games for Understanding, Sport Education, Fitness Education, and/
or outdoor and adventure education) in an effort to be “better equipped to offer
programs that are challenging, relevant, and meaningful to the children and youth
with whom they will work” (Tannehill, 2005; p. 298). Unfortunately only 50%
of respondents to a PETE survey included at least one curriculum model in their
program (Ayers & Housner, 2008). Therefore we can surmise that many PETE
programs continue to operate in a traditional manner, which potentially serves to
reinforce instead of challenge beliefs.
Further, might it be plausible that even unconsciously, PETE programs and/or
faculty actually reinforce and sustain focus on the conservative agenda of traditional
sport and physical activity even when, for example, taught via a Sport Education
season (see Penney, Clarke & Kinchin, 2002 for a thoughtful analysis of Sport
Education)? Collier and Hebert (2004) suggest undergraduate PETE programs
more closely examine their curricula within the basic “sports skills” and/or “teach-
ing of. . .” courses, to move beyond the traditional team and individual activities
to those more lifetime oriented, to those activities having a higher “cool” factor
(McCaughtry, Tischler & Flory, 2008) for youth, including youth within PETE.
 New Perspectives for Teaching PE    23

However, simply including more lifetime activities, increasing the “cool” factor, or
teaching curricular and instructional models does not guarantee a positive change
in beliefs and subsequent teaching decisions and actions. So what will it take, espe-
cially when PTs come to PETE more successful and skilled in many activities? Is
there an activity, or selection of activities that could place them in the position of
a novice learner? Might novel activities, or that of being a novice learner, provide
impetus for positive movement and growth in beliefs about teaching and learning
in physical education, or better connect PTs with the physical, mental, emotional
and social aspects of learning and motivation of a K-12 student?
Two examples of an innovative approach using novel activities to intentionally
challenge and/or stimulate shift of preservice physical education teachers’ beliefs
include studies by Hastie (1994) and Carlson and McKenna (2000). In both studies
PTs were asked to write reflections of their experiences and connect those experi-
ences with teaching and learning experiences in K-12 physical education. Using
novel adventure education activities, Hastie (1994) sought to shift PTs’ focus to
the K-12 student via a weekend experience in which resided a physical challenge
and an element of uncertainty (i.e., mental and emotional challenge). Reflection
themes included ideas about enjoyment, suggestions for physical education, and
the role of the teacher, and PTs came to see the learner as the central feature in
educational experiences. Carlson and McKenna (2000) created a similar scenario
using a weekend program of adventure-based activities in recognition of the need
for teacher educators to help PTs deconstruct and then reconstruct their notions
of teaching and learning to create supportive learning environments for K-12 stu-
dents. Ten categories emerged from the qualitative data, including among others
fear, support, and professional outcomes. Carlson and McKenna (2000) describe
the weekend experience as powerful and destabilizing, exposing PTs to alternative
ways of thinking. The following quote is from Carlson and McKenna (2000), but
also appears to capture Hastie’s work as well: “By placing the [PTs] outside their
comfort zones, some of them reported that they discovered for themselves the
importance of a supportive environment, the impact of their peers, and how less
confident, lower skilled students must feel every time they attend physical educa-
tion classes” (p. 24). Both studies suggest adventure education, and novel activities
situated within a supportive environment, as a catalyst for change, largely due to
a perceived increased risk in novel challenges faced by these otherwise skilled
future teachers.
The purpose of this study was to gauge PTs’ perspectives about teaching and
learning in physical education while engaged in a 10-week outdoor and adventure
education experience. Adventure education and outdoor education are character-
ized separately even though there can be some crossover (Steffen & Stiehl, 2010;
see Table 1 for a description of the unique characteristics). Adventure education is
well known for engaging participants in both personal and professional reflection
and includes experiences that focus on the inter- and intrapersonal development
of individuals and/or groups engaged in activities that require guided reflection or
processing with a trained facilitator (Brown, 2006; Prouty, Panicucci & Collinson,
2007). While adventure education can and does occur in the natural environment,
that environment is developed specifically for activities such as low and high ele-
ment challenge courses, but can also include team building and group initiative
activities that could occur in a gym setting. There is an element of risk, but that
risk is fabricated to highlight situations to elicit particular social and/or emotional
24   Timken and McNamee

Table 1  Unique Characteristics of Outdoor Education and

Adventure Education
Outdoor Education / Outdoor
Pursuits Adventure Education
Primary Skill development (e.g., wet exit in Personal / group development
Focus kayaking; (e.g., team building, group initia-
tives)
Primary Occurs in the natural environment Can occur in a natural environ-
Setting (e.g., forest, lake, river, mountains) ment, but the area is developed
specifically for AE (e.g., chal-
lenge course)
Risk Actual, not invented—little to no Perceived and created (physical,
control over the natural environment emotional, and social)—con-
(e.g., weather, animals, insects) trolled environment in which
risk is sometimes fabricated to
encourage participants to confront
an issue (e.g., activities occur in
a predetermined order with requi-
site safety equipment)
Teachers Requires both skill and safety train- Requires both safety and facilita-
ing and expertise to teach many tion training and expertise (e.g.,
activities, particularly those that front loading; facilitating group
venture into the back country (e.g., processing postactivity)
overnight backpacking trip; moun-
taineering; mountain biking)

responses of participants. The actual risk is lessened due to the required training and
expertise of facilitators. In this study, activities in the adventure category included
group initiatives and team building, games built on the themes of trust, cooperation
and communication. Outdoor education has also been termed outdoor pursuits or
outdoor adventure pursuits (Stiehl & Parker, 2010), and according to Prouty, Pani-
cucci and Collinson (2007) includes physical, nonmechanized activities that may
result in “long-lasting physical benefits”, or lifetime physical activity habits (p. 232).
Outdoor education focuses more on skill development and most often occurs in the
natural environment (mountain biking in the forest). The risk in outdoor education
activities tends to be real given the limited control over the natural environment
(weather, animals, insects). As with adventure education, a high level of expertise
is required to reduce risk potential. Outdoor pursuit activities included in this study
were mountain biking, orienteering and kayaking, among others.

Methods
Course
At a regional state university in the northwestern part of the U.S., preservice teachers
in PETE were required to take one three-credit course specific to teaching outdoor
and adventure education as part of the required physical activity pedagogical core
 New Perspectives for Teaching PE    25

(i.e., “teaching of. . .” courses). Other required physical activity pedagogical core
courses included dance, aerobic/group fitness, strength training and conditioning,
Sport Education, and Tactical Games. The structure of the 10-week course was
specific to the seven activities listed, in order, in Table 2.
This class was grounded in John Dewey’s (1938) theory of experiential educa-
tion. The course design considered how PTs learn to be just as important as what
was to be learned, the premise that engaging in novel physical activity experiences
could be helpful in connecting PTs with previous (e.g., their own K-12 physical
education) and future (i.e., teaching physical education) experiences that influenced
their belief system (Panicucci, 2007). Kolb’s (1984) experiential learning cycle of
reflection was threaded throughout the course; students were continuously asked
to reflect on their in-class experiences and connect both personal and professional
experiences with their future career as a teacher of K-12 physical education.
Morine-Dershimer and Corrigan (1997) suggested creating four conditions by
which to facilitate change in beliefs: time, dialogue, practice and support. These
four conditions were present in this course in that PTs spent 10 weeks engaged
specifically in novel outdoor and adventure education activities in which there was
both written and verbal dialogue about teaching and learning, and outdoor and

Table 2  Course Activities and Reflection Paper Topics

Reflection Course Activities Reflection Topic/Focus
1 Team building/group initiatives What has been learned thus far in
& white water rafting class activities; Challenge by Choice;
Full Value Contract; Trust, coopera-
tion, communication; Disenfran-
chised student; PT thinking about
their future as a teacher relative to
teaching outdoor and adventure edu-
cation
2 Mountain biking (on-campus What has been learned thus far in
skills course & then off-campus class activities; Personal risks; Full
mountain bike ride on logging / Value Contract; Disenfranchised
fire roads) student; PT thinking about their
future as a teacher relative to teach-
ing outdoor and adventure education;
Professional risks
3 Fly casting & orienteering What has been learned thus far in
class activities; Skill and/or lack of
skill; Motivation or lack of motiva-
tion; Fear, risk, challenge; in the
context of social, emotional, mental
and physical; PT thinking about their
future as a teacher relative to teach-
ing outdoor and adventure education
4 Kayaking (pool based in white Tying together the previous reflection
water kayaks) & rock climbing topics and thinking about the teach-
(indoor gym-based) ing and learning of K-12 students in
school physical education
26   Timken and McNamee

adventure education. PTs were able to engage in (i.e., practice) these activities in a
supportive environment, whereby two core concepts of adventure education, “chal-
lenge by choice” and the “full value contract” (i.e., support; Project Adventure),
were continuously integrated. Challenge by choice is akin to asking participants
to be responsible for their own level of participation, whatever that level happens
to be at the moment, without fear of judgment from others. The full value contract
asks all group members to create and maintain a mentally, emotionally, socially,
and physically safe and respectful learning environment, staying committed to the
activities and group at all times (Henton, 1996).

Participants
Over three consecutive fall terms (Fall 2004, 2005, 2006), 57 PTs participated
in the course. The majority (n = 57; 20 females, 37 males) of PTs declared their
major as Physical Education Teacher Education; two were Physical Education
minors, with one focused on teaching health and the other a psychology major.
Fifty-six PTs were Caucasian and one was Asian-Pacific Islander. Their age range
was 19–38 years (M = 20.7; SD = 2.6). At the time of manuscript preparation, at
least 19 (34%) PTs from the study were known to be teaching physical education,
at minimum part-time, in a K-12 setting. Several completed the degree program
but did not advance into a student teaching program, and the current whereabouts
and work life of many remain unknown. A large majority indicated having very
limited, if any, experience with course activities.
Human subjects review board approved the study and appropriate procedures
were used to obtain consent. At the end of their respective term, PTs were asked
to participate in the study by allowing the instructor to keep the four reflections
they had written as part of the course requirement. PTs, who are identified by
pseudonyms, were told that their decision to participate would have no impact
on their final grade, and three of the four reflections were graded by this point in
the term. The main instructor for the course was also the researcher for this study.
Teachers/outfitters were hired for their specific expertise for a few activities, and
had no formal role in the study.

Data Collection and Analysis

At the initial class meeting, each PT completed a demographic survey, rating their
experience (beginner, intermediate, advanced) in each of the course activities. As
part of the class requirements, each PT wrote four reflections during their 10-week
term of enrollment in the course, resulting in a total of 228 reflections for analysis.
Each reflection assignment was semistructured, in that guiding questions were
provided relative to the activities and specific topics (e.g., trust, cooperation and
communication; the disenfranchised student in K-12 physical education; teach-
ing and learning in physical education, skill development, challenge, fear, risk
and motivation; see Table 2). Reflection question development was guided by the
reflective processing that occurs in adventure education as outlined by Kolb (1984),
research on teacher beliefs, research on student learning and motivation, and topics,
discussion and events from class (i.e., comments and behaviors witnessed in class).
 New Perspectives for Teaching PE    27

The format and questions of the reflection paper assignments remained the same
over the three-year period. Reflection papers tended to average around two pages
in length. Each reflection was assigned a point value and letter grade for the course
and it is not known if PTs’ reflections were an attempt at “studentship” (Graber,
1991) due to the grading process or more of an accurate description of their own
perspectives on outdoor and adventure education, and on teaching and learning in
K-12 physical education.
All reflections were typed and turned in as a hard copy. Qualitative analysis
of reflections did not occur until the end of the three-year data collection period
even though the instructor/researcher had read each reflection at least once as
part of the course evaluation process. Reflections, numbered one through four for
each year, were analyzed by the instructor/researcher in the following manner:
reflection number by year of enrollment (i.e., all first reflections from 2004, all
second reflections from 2004, etc.); reflection number across years (i.e., all first
reflections across all three years—2004, 2005, 2006, etc). Reflections were read
multiple times, and the initial patterns and categories were extracted by reflec-
tion phase (reflection 1, reflection 2, etc.) using open coding. Each reflection
phase was coded before moving to the next phase. After the initial coding of
each phase, axial coding was used to more intensively code around a category,
and allowed the researcher to identify subcategories and examine relationships
among categories within and across phases (Strauss & Corbin, 1998). Data were
then analyzed for negative and/or contradictory cases to determine if students
made contradictory statements within any of their four reflections. Trustworthi-
ness was established via an audit trail that included raw data, a coding map/
matrix and decision log, and researcher notes about personal bias. Researcher
field notes were logged after class and noted various situations, interactions and
comments with and between PTs regarding the class and/or activities. The field
notes yielded a degree of useful information (e.g., student comments on personal
feelings or new ideas about teaching physical education; behavior during fly
casting and orienteering). Coding processes, theme development and potential
researcher bias were all shared with a peer debriefer. A second analysis by the
instructor/researcher took place over a year after the first analysis, and found the
themes initially developed to be an accurate depiction. As a measure of ensuring
dependability, an external auditor reviewed approximately 20% of the raw data,
the coding matrix and decision log. Upon review there occurred discussion of the
process and product, interpretations and conclusions. No new themes emerged
during the second analysis or as a result of the audit.

Results and Discussion

Three main themes emerged from the data: 1) fear, risk and challenge, with sub-
themes of skill and motivation, and self-awareness; 2) lifetime activity; and 3)
teaching physical education, with the subthemes of K-12 students and curriculum.
Given the similarity in course purpose, design and experiences, the themes from
this study parallel many of the categories from Carlson and McKenna (2000) and
Hastie (1994).
28   Timken and McNamee

Fear, Risk and Challenge

Similar to Carlson and McKenna, the theme of fear, risk and challenge emerged,
likely a result of the guiding questions asked on reflection assignments. One goal
of this reflection topic was to help PTs get in touch with their own experiences
with fear, risk and challenge, particularly as they engaged in the novel activities.
Fear, risk and/or challenge during mountain biking, rafting and/or kayaking was
common and at times resulted from a self-reported lack of skill (i.e., lack of per-
ceived competence). A second goal of this specific topic was to help students get
in touch with how some K-12 students might feel while participating in traditional
sport-oriented physical education activities (e.g., soccer or badminton), a similar
goal for both Carlson and McKenna (2000) and Hastie (1994).
Skill and Motivation.  Within the theme of fear, risk and challenge was the
subtheme of skill and motivation, or lack thereof. If it is true that PETE PTs
are typically successful movers (Dodds et al., 1992), the following quotes seem
to capture personal struggle with a novel skill. Some transferred their personal
struggle, connecting their own experience with that of a K-12 student, similar
to what Carlson and McKenna found. Josh had visions of grandeur, imagining
himself looking like Brad Pitt in the movie A River Runs Through It;

…so I have had desires of fishing mid stream with my line whipping rhythmi-
cally back and forth…I couldn’t quite mimic what I saw in the movie. There was
a lot more to fly casting than I previously thought. Initially I struggled physi-
cally but after casting for a while I started to struggle mentally as well. (Josh)

For one who loved a challenge, Nick found frustration with mountain biking (skills
course in particular), frustration to the point of quitting.

I saw some people getting both tires off the ground and over the logs, I saw
some other people picking the water bottles off the ground when still riding
their bikes. These were things I wanted to do, but struggled with it severely. I
honestly tried picking up that darn water bottle off the ground about thirty times
and got it on my last try. This was a situation that students can have, where
they are unskilled in something and they just can’t do that task. They don’t
lose their motivation though, they keep trying and trying until they complete
that task as I did. Then there are some students that will lose that motivation
and just give up….I found myself doing this when I was unskilled to lift my
back tire over the logs. I saw someone else do it and I wanted to do it, but I
couldn’t so I sat there until the next task. (Nick)
This may have been the first time Nick could recognize and juxtapose situations
related to student motivation through his own experience—he kept trying at the
water bottle pick-up station but quit at the bunny hop (log hop) station. Todd had
a similar realization, noticing his lack of success and resultant lack of motivation
during an initial orienteering activity in the gym.
When I was doing the activities in the gym, I was not successful at all. I like to
feel successful and I wasn’t and as a result of that my motivation decreased….I
was always a step or two or three off from my polyspot and I became frustrated
 New Perspectives for Teaching PE    29

that I wasn’t getting it. The students around me were laughing and so was I
because it was funny, but at the same time some students will feel threatened
when students are poking fun at you and that can be demoralizing. (Todd)
The fly casting instructor (a hired expert) observed how PTs became off-task
during the fly casting portion of class. Occasionally this occurred in other activi-
ties (specifically orienteering and mountain biking skills course), but not to the
extent of fly casting. Interestingly, this pattern was typical across all three years of
data collection. Both fly casting and orienteering require precision and fine motor
coordination, and are relatively low in intensity; the mountain bike skills course
required particular technical ability (e.g., riding slowly and picking up a water bottle
off a cone or ground; riding a slalom course) and was of lesser intensity as well.
The requisite technical skill and lack of intensity, coupled with the expectation of
success (relative to their past successes in physical education / physical activity;
Dodds et al., 1992) may have decreased motivation and increased off-task behavior.
While commenting on her lack of skill, Natasha also reported her off-task coping
behavior (coping mechanism; Carlson & McKenna, 2000).
I noticed when I could not get the hang of a skill in either mountain biking or
fly casting I would start to get off task. …before long we were standing around
and talking. Once I stopped…I had three to four people off task with me….I
found other things to entertain myself by either whipping other people with
my line or throwing rocks into the river. Knowing that I was not going to be
good at it…I didn’t really listen to the instructors in the beginning. (Natasha)
Mark’s perception of personal ability illustrates how many PTs saw themselves as
“athletic” or skilled, but he, as with Nick and others, connected personal experience
and emotions with those of future students.
I feel that I am as or more athletic than any one person in class. I was a college
baseball player for 3 years and could have gotten full scholarships across the
country for wrestling. So when you told us in the first class that we would be
challenging ourselves in each activity I kind of laughed inside. Yet it all came
to a reality when we went kayaking. I admit I was scared at first. Yet I knew I
had to try and see if I could do it…I would feel personally guilty trying to get
my students to do a task they were scared to perform. (Mark)
Many PETE programs include at least one course on the sociological and/
or psychological dimensions of physical activity, or on exercise motivation and
adherence, and these courses and corresponding material and concepts are impor-
tant. However, the personal connection the majority of these PTs made between
perceived competence and motivation and the resultant impact on physical activity
behavior may provide them more insight into aspects of student motivation than
any isolated reading and/or lecture. Coupling personal experience in novel activities
with the study of a theoretical framework on motivation (Weiss, 2000, was used in
the course) could possibly be a more powerful learning experience within PETE,
and majors in related fields of study.
Self-Awareness.  Self-awareness was an important component to this class and
is the second subtheme under fear, risk and challenge. Virtually every PT learned
30   Timken and McNamee

something new and different as a result of participating in the course activities.

Similar to the experiences set by Hastie (1994) and Carlson and McKenna’s
(2000), one goal of this class was to “push” students beyond their comfort zone
physically, mentally and emotionally, but within the context of group safety and
support, and this was accomplished through the use of challenge by choice and
the full value contract. If it is true that some beliefs are emotionally charged
(Morine-Dershimer & Corrigan, 1997), then placing PTs in situations that stir
emotion (but maintain a high level of safety at all levels) may elicit the change we
in teacher education so desire. For some, like Drew, the team building and group
initiative activities, all low element and low intensity, were especially difficult.
…took a lot of nerve not to quit when we got into groups and had to com-
municate and work together with the helium stick. After five minutes with the
activity I wanted to break the thing in half and yell at everyone, it took a lot
of patience that I guess I just didn’t have that day. (Drew)
Josie had to face multiple fears such as trust, heights, fear of failure and the percep-
tions of others. Her quote crosses at least three categories found in Carlson and
McKenna (2000): fear, subjective perceptions, and coping mechanisms.
I realized my fear of what others thought of me…I was scared of what my
classmates thought of me, and if they were judging me, because I wasn’t
catching on as quickly…[and] of what the rock climbing instructors thought
of me. Being involved in these activities where I was very unskilled and had
a very low ability level was hard for me, and I noticed myself kind of being a
“baby” about it all, and my fear of failure was constantly around. . . .Because
of this class, and the activities we have participated in, I have begun to notice
that I took my physical skills and abilities for granted. (Josie)
For Sam, it was water:
I did not realize the hold that my fear of water had on me until the moment I
got into the boat to go white water rafting. I knew it would be fun, but there
was a part of me screaming to get out of the boat….I noticed that when it came
time to go kayaking, I was more at ease with the water even though I knew the
fear was still there inside. (Sam)
Judy had an interesting experience throughout the term, but particularly in mountain
biking (forest ride) and kayaking. While mountain biking immediately put her in a
state of overexertion, the white water kayaking experience truly intimidated, to the
point of tears, this excellent swimmer and water polo player. Executing a wet exit
(i.e., getting out of an overturned kayak) was difficult; hanging upside down in a
kayak waiting for a rescue (T-rescue; not exiting the boat but waiting for partner
rescue) was out of the question. Within the realm of challenge by choice, Judy never
wore the spray skirt while executing the wet exit or various strokes and maneuvers,
and she remained in the water an engaged member of the class.
From day one of this class I knew I was going to have to step out of my com-
fort box. Now that this class is over I have learned so much about myself that
I never knew was in me. At the beginning I saw myself as shy, not real vocal
 New Perspectives for Teaching PE    31

in large groups and not really willing to speak out with people I didn’t know.
After the first week there was no turning back. I was nervous at first but after
being welcomed by everyone in the class I knew this was the place to be. (Judy)

Nearly every PT made at least one comment about overcoming fear or dealing
with the risks and/or challenges presented in this course. A few reported feeling more
enthralled than fearful, but maybe they were unable and/or willing to acknowledge
their fears. Carlson and McKenna (2000) also had PTs who stated they did not experi-
ence fear, but were able to witness and acknowledge the fear and feelings of others.
It may take more extreme measures, such as executing a wet exit in a kayak, using
fine motor control while fly casting, navigating with map and compass, or participat-
ing in high element adventure activities (Carlson & McKenna, 2000; Hastie, 1994)
to nudge PTs’ thoughts and beliefs about teaching and learning in new directions.
That many could connect their feelings surrounding fear, risk, challenge, skill level
and motivation to those a K-12 student might experience may signify a new level of
empathy. Capturing that level of empathy and the impact of that empathy on student
learning and motivation could become a useful line of research.

Lifetime Activity
Lifetime activity was considered an independent theme given the number of refer-
ences and the way in which PTs referred to lifetime activity. Many in the public
health and physical activity research field have called for change to the dominant,
traditional, team sport oriented physical education curriculum (Fairclough &
Stratton, 2005; McCaughtry et al., 2008; Trost, 2006). Without reflection prompts,
many PTs came to realize the potential that outdoor pursuits activities provide for
lifetime activity, and how K-12 physical education is often oriented more toward
competitive team sport. It seemed as if this newfound realization was profound,
as if for the first time they realized some of the traditional competitive team sport
activities in physical education do not engender and/or fail to result in lifetime
activity habits. It was while mountain biking with the 40-something instructor/
researcher that one student shared his realization of coming to understand the
notion of lifetime activity. This may be a reasonable reaction given their youth,
the lack of experience in outdoor pursuit activities in family life or K-12 physical
education experiences, and for many, extensive experience in competitive sport.
The following quotes capture the essence of PTs’ comments.

I think it is also important to introduce students to activities that they can

do for the rest of their lives. They do not need nine others to go mountain
biking… It helps the kids that do not like team sports [know] that there are
more options and gives them a chance to be physically active and like what
they are doing. (Makiah)

These activities are also more individual based so your skill level doesn’t really
matter. You don’t compete with others, you are trying to better yourself…your
skill level does not affect anyone else like traditional sports. These individual
activities are also valuable because you don’t need anyone else to participate
which makes it much easier to become and stay physically active. (Kory)
32   Timken and McNamee

Brad’s comments echo those of many; “One concept that I will take with me is the
fact that PE does not have to always be about competing and seeing who’s better.
PE should be about learning how to be physically active and valuing physical
activity.” Tyson mentioned that
…anyone can participate in these activities [because they] are challenging, fun,
and different than the same old traditional physical activities…Non-traditional
activities provide those that don’t like the traditional physical activities with
ways that they can stay active…outside of school as well. Non-traditional activi-
ties are great because any type of population can participate in them. (Tyson)
Conversations did occur during class about including nontraditional activi-
ties that might encourage lifetime activity, but the class never delved into Healthy
People 2010 or physical activity guidelines. That said, it would be remiss to not
consider “studentship”, in that students may have responded in reflections in such
a way to meet instructor expectations (Graber, 1991). To distinguish between
studies, Hastie (1994) and Carlson and McKenna (2000) used adventure education
activities, and with the exception of rock climbing, did not include outdoor pursuit
activities as in this study. To more fully engage in the conversation surrounding
various public health and lifetime activity messages, PTs may need to experience,
firsthand, lifetime activities in their PETE program to be prepared to meet the most
current and pressing demands (Collier and Hebert, 2004; Fairclough & Stratton,
2005; Prusak et al., 2011).

Teaching Physical Education

Teaching physical education was the third theme to emerge from the data; subthemes
were K-12 students and curriculum. A focus of this class was helping future teach-
ers think differently about teaching, learning and students (Hastie, 1994; Carlson
& McKenna, 2000), and about what activities can be included in a K-12 physical
education curriculum. A goal was to connect PTs with one sad reality of their
chosen profession—that traditional physical education fails to be meaningful and
relevant to at least some K-12 students (Ennis, 2000; McCaughtry et al., 2008).
The least favorite activity was, for three years running, fly casting. A close second
was orienteering, as not being able to “muscle” their way with a compass, much
like with a fly rod, may have decreased motivation. So why keep fly casting in the
course? Besides the fact that fly casting and fly fishing can be included in a physi-
cal education curriculum (see the National Fly Fishing in Schools Program; www.
flyfishinginschools.org), this single activity provoked more off-task behavior than
any other activity. Fly casting prompted different conversations, both on paper and
in person, about what it is that K-12 students experience in many physical education
classes and about what teachers can do to implement curricular and instructional
change. Regardless, PTs were not terribly enthralled with the idea of including fly
casting/fishing in their curriculum, which could serve as a catalyst for exploring
both personal and professional bias around curriculum development.
K-12 Students.  The subtheme of K-12 students demonstrates the sensitivity
these PTs were developing for the K-12 student in physical education. PTs in
Hastie (1994) and Carlson and McKenna (2000) made similar connections, from
 New Perspectives for Teaching PE    33

their personal experience to that of the K-12 student, coming to understand at a

different level the role of the teacher, the need to help students find success, the
need to create an environment of empowerment. Even with the small numbers
(Hastie = 25; Carlson & McKenna = 40; this study = 57), these three studies seem
to demonstrate the need for PTs within PETE to engage in novel, “destabilizing”
physical experiences to trigger the physical, mental and emotional reactions akin
to what many K-12 students experience in “traditional” physical education. Merely
theorizing, reading about and/or discussing the K-12 student experience may not
be enough; personal experience may be requisite to engage PTs more thoroughly
and/or perhaps instinctually at a core level. Though noteworthy that not all PTs
had such realizations, the following quotes illustrate the connections of many.
…I now understand that kids don’t necessarily want to be off task but they just
feel embarrassed by their skills so they find other ways to entertain themselves.
This class has helped me understand a lot about how it feels to be unskilled
and unmotivated. (Natasha)
…the more I realized that I was inexperienced, and a “step behind” my class-
mates, the more I wanted an excuse not to participate. . . for the first time, I
experienced what it was like to be the kid who is “left out” or not as good as
the other kids. . . . I think that if I wouldn’t have been put in these situations, I
would have still had the same view on kids who are unwilling or unmotivated
to participate. . . .I would have carried that view with me. . . when I become
a teacher. (Jessica)
Kayaking really opened my eyes. . . It made me realize that everyone is not
comfortable with activities that are done in physical education. It does not have to
be something as complex as kayaking, it could be the very basic things in physical
education that [we] as educators do not realize students may feel like I did with
the kayaking. It could be something as basic as playing a game with and in front
of their peers. (Randall)
Though not a discussion or reflection topic, Ruby’s in class experiences revealed
to her the bias she carried toward some students, particularly the disenfranchised
and/or lesser skilled. Including both teacher and curricular bias, if not institutional
bias, in the PETE curriculum is more than worthwhile (Timken & Watson, 2010).
However, similar to including theories on motivation or stories of K-12 physical
education, merely introducing the topics of stereotypes and bias without some
form of personal and professional contextualization may bring about little change.
…made me think a lot about how I view kids that don’t participate….I ­realize
now that I used to judge those individuals [who never participated]. I always
thought “They are just too lazy to dress down, or they think they are too cool
to participate in PE.” I never really took time to think about the fact that they
might have had a fear holding them back, or that they were scared to participate.
I guess that it wasn’t until this class, that I “wore the shoes” of the disenfran-
chised student that was unskilled, unmotivated or unwilling to participate. . . .
I have learned so much and now will be able as a teacher to “think deeper”
and really try to understand what is going on in my future students minds and
heads. (Ruby)
34   Timken and McNamee

Curriculum.  There have been professional calls over the years to reorient, recon-
struct or reconceive K-12 physical education from Locke (1992), Siedentop (1987),
Griffey (1987) and most recently from Trost (2006) and Doolittle (2007). One
intentional message of this class was the need for curricular change in physical
education so of little surprise was the emergence of curriculum as a subtheme.
However, what emerged were two separate concepts related to curriculum—imple-
menting the full value contract (Project Adventure) to instill a sense of safety for
students, and content/activity selection.
…the FVC almost becomes an instant guideline for me to follow…I hope
to implement this into my classroom. I believe it will make teaching easier,
especially when your class understands and respects the Full Value Contract.
Children should feel safe at school, and will be more willing to try greater
challenges in a classroom that follows the FVC. (Casey)
…I will put the full value contract into my class. I believe it allows students
who are not the so called “athletes” to play a big part in the class. Probably
the main aspect of the full value contract that I like the most is the com-
munity it creates. But you cannot create that community until students feel
safe. (Jaxon)
Of surprise, challenge by choice did not emerge as a theme, which may be cause
for concern. Is the “go hard or go home” mentality alive and well in these future
teachers despite experiences in this class (e.g., option of hike or mountain bike;
participate to your fullest extent)? Was the instructor/researcher perceived as a
“go hard or go home” type of person and/or was there failure in making clear
and/or fully reinforcing the idea of challenge by choice? Just as conservatism can
be preserved in Sport Education when the teacher is less “enlightened” (Penney
et al., 2002), so too can outdoor and adventure education experiences cement
preestablished beliefs.
Due to their own socialization into and via sport (Lawson, 1988), it may have
never occurred to these PTs how activities beyond the traditional could be part of
the physical education curriculum.
This class succeeded in opening our eyes to a new perspective of teaching
PE. This class also made me realize that traditional PE wasn’t focusing on
the right concepts. The main focus of Physical Education should be on things
like communicating, teamwork, trust and valuing physical activity for the
rest of the student’s life, instead of worrying about who’s winning and who’s
losing. (Brad)
Though already an outdoor enthusiast, Lewis had not thought about including
outdoor activities in physical education.
I hadn’t been exposed to anything but the old style physical education. ...Out-
door education gives the students a breath of fresh air when it comes to physical
education. Outdoor activities in my opinion are going to affect them later in
life and they will be more likely to continue participating in them. (Lewis)
 New Perspectives for Teaching PE    35

Darren made a similar comment;

This class has really helped me look “outside the box” in physical education.
Before this class I would never have thought about including outdoor educa-
tion in my curriculum. My views on what physical education should look like
have been completely changed. . . I have learned that there is no one way to
teach physical education. (Darren)
Unlike the studies by Hastie (1994) and Carlson and McKenna (2000), the activi-
ties in this study fit within both adventure education and outdoor education, so
statements about physical education content (specifically teaching outdoor pursuit
activities) seems a logical consequence. It is not known if PTs thought that outdoor
and adventure activities should be used to supplement or supplant the traditional
physical education curriculum, however, a message about using various models
(Metzler, 2005) was intentional throughout the PETE program. Some PTs ques-
tioned the liability associated with delivering such a curriculum, and a few were
not completely convinced that administrators and/or school boards would allow
students to participate in outdoor and adventure education activities. Anecdotally
speaking, some of these PTs, who were all required to take the Sport Education
and Tactical Games classes from the same instructor/researcher, tended to display
more resistance toward these curricular models than for outdoor and adventure
education, which speaks to the impact (or lack thereof) of and professional social-
ization within a PETE program (Lawson, 1988). Again, a research line begging
for answers; which model(s) capture the interest of future and inservice teachers
and why, and which are more readily implemented?

Conclusion and Practical Implications

This study was an attempt to gauge PTs’ perspectives during a course purposefully
designed to elicit strong emotional and personal responses while engaging in chal-
lenging novel and nontraditional physical activities (Morine-Dershimer & Corrigan,
1997) which might lead to the “thawing of preconceived notions” about physical
education (Carlson & McKenna, 2000; p. 24). In support of earlier work by Hastie
(1994) and Carlson and McKenna (2000), it would seem, at least for some PTs, that
this outdoor and adventure education course did elicit such emotional responses
and broadened ideas of teaching and learning in physical education. As Pajares
(1992) recognized, for any change to occur existing beliefs must be challenged
and found faulty relative to new information, and it would seem that in this study,
new information was juxtaposed with original beliefs and “socialization” experi-
ences. It is possible that before they are able to reconsider the traditional physical
education curriculum, PTs must first experience or “feel” firsthand what many K-12
students feel in today’s physical education classes—fear, risk, challenge, lack of
motivation—as well as “live” a new curriculum in and through PETE (Carlson &
McKenna, 2000; Collier & Hebert, 2004; Hastie, 1994; Jenkins, 2004; Lawson,
1988; Oslin et al., 2001; Prusak et al., 2011; Tannehill, 2005). Maybe experiences
in these outdoor and adventure activities coupled with both personal and profes-
sional reflections was enough of a challenge to inspire at least a few new thoughts
36   Timken and McNamee

and ideas. Of course actions speak louder than words, so the truth of the matter is
that what and how these PTs teach their future physical education students is the
necessary evidence of the long-lasting changes in beliefs and practices for which
we in teacher education strive. Follow-up research is necessary in this area. What
are the “wash-in” (if any) and “wash-out” effects as a result of such an intervention
(Blankenship & Coleman, 2009)?
Though there is an extensive body of literature that illustrates the need to
counteract the apprenticeship of observation process of K-12 schooling and other
personal experiences (e.g., sport and physical activity experience), an equally dif-
ficult obstacle may reside within PETE itself (Ayers & Housner, 2008; Lawson,
1988; Prusak et al., 2011; Siedentop & Locke, 1997). Undeniably, PETE may
indeed reinforce and subsequently stabilize the masculine, conservative agenda of
sport and physical activity (Penney et al., 2002) through the perpetual use of more
traditional content and experiences rather than prompt change through explicitly
novel experiences coupled with thoughtful analysis and reflection. One implication
from a study of PTs by O’Sullivan et al. (2009) encourages the analysis of teacher
education program design and how to “engage teacher candidates in learning new
sports/physical activities…and use it as a platform from which to engage them
in learning about the teaching of physical education” (p. 189). Through a careful
analysis of literature on beliefs and thoughtful planning and implementation of
curriculum designed to alter beliefs, this outdoor and adventure education course,
along with the studies by Hastie (1994) and Carlson and McKenna (2000), seems
a plausible platform from which to jump. PETE faculty need to (re)consider the
professional socialization process of PETE, lest we find ourselves (un)intention-
ally reinforcing preestablished beliefs (Lawson, 1988), thereby continuing down a
similar path. We cannot continue to deliver the same PETE curriculum and expect
different results, in our preservice teachers or in K-12 physical education. Isn’t
that the definition of insanity?

Acknowledgments
The authors would like to extend sincere gratitude to all students who have participated in
this study, and in this course for the last seven years, and to the editor and reviewers for
their efforts in improving the quality of this manuscript.

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