I foresee technology to keep having a bigger presence in P.E. as I enter and continue on in my career. As of right now, technology is used as an aid in order to supplement our teaching. In P.E., there is no substitute with physical activity so the best way to utilize technology is to help better understand the impact of activity. This is being done through the use of heart rate monitors, pedometers, fitness testing programs, etc.
I think that I will use technology as often as I see it fit. It will also depend on what kind of budget I am dealing with. Some of the technologies that I will choose to use in my P.E. classes are heart rate monitors in order to teach about and track heart rate, workout videos as a way to switch up the daily routine and fitness testing programs to help in assessment and encourage outside activity.
Workout videos such as P90X and INSANITY require a projector and white wall. Many schools have projectors that can be checked out from the AV department or library. I am most familiar with the INSANITY videos because I completed the 8 week program this past summer and I also know that P90X has numerous health benefits as well. Aside from it being a break from normal fitness days it can also lead to students deciding to do the videos outside of class.
If it could fit in the budget, I would try and implement EA Sports Active (http://www.easportsactive.com/fitness-games:), or some other high quality video game that focuses on fitness. I think this is important because it gives children a chance to practice using something that they can easily use outside of the classroom and can easily be used as a fitness day activity. It also may help change their views on playing video games. If they can see that they can be active while playing many of their favorite games, as well as learning the benefits of this during a P.E. class, it could get them off the couch. There is a good chance that many of our students are going to own a console that EA Sports Active could be played on and if we introduce some of these games in class, it may spark their interest to buy the game and use it outside of class.
I think it is also important to include some sort of fitness testing software as well. At my high school we used something called the TRI-fit program which tested things such as flexibility, body composition, strength and endurance. I have heard a lot about the Fitnessgram program so I decided to check that out. I think Fitnessgram is a lot more up to date that the program I used and when I took a look at it, one thing stood out. In the site overview it states, “More important, the report provides personalized suggestions that can help in planning an individualized fitness plan.” I think it is important to test students and give them results compared to standards but that does no good if the student does not know how he/she can improve. I also like that there is a print out for the parents, in order to give them advice and feedback on how their child can improve their fitness.
I think that Fitnessgram is a great way to involve technology into the classroom. Not only will it encourage your students to become and stay physically fit, but it will help you with assessment aspects of your class. I think it is important to track students progress throughout the year in physical education class and Fitnessgram is a great way to do that. Interactive video games that will make students more physically active are a great use of technology in physical education too. These are fun, physically active games students could even play at home. It is a great way to stress physical activity outside the classroom, as well as lifetime physical fitness. Technology is definitely something we can use to our advantage as physical educators. As long as we use it properly and efficiently I think we can make it a positive asset to our programs.
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