Disciplinary literacy and multimodal text design in physical education

Abstract

This article argues that scholarship on literacy in and across the disciplines has disproportionately focused on the core subjects of English, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies rather than on “specialist” subjects such as Physical Education. This disparity in emphasis has provided little guidance to specialist teachers seeking to understand and address the literacy demands of subject areas that often privilege an expanded conception of literacy. To illustrate the affordances of such analysis for PE teachers as well as their literacy colleagues, the reading demands of a particular multimodal text from PE—a three‐part basketball play—are presented in light of key themes from the US Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts and Literacy. Complexities related to collective, embodied, and sequential meaning construction are explored. Recommendations for instruction and professional collaboration are shared.

Secondary Teachers' Adolescent Literacy Efficacy and Professional Learning Considerations

“…Therefore, there is no way to know if these professional learning opportunities and coursework align with what is known as needed for high‐quality intentional professional learning (e.g., Darling‐Hammond et al., 2017; Desimone, 2009) or if they were created by building literacy partnerships (e.g., Lee et al., 2021; Zenkov et al., 2016). We also do not know if they were co‐designed with teachers' expertise as community members versus teachers having to extrapolate concepts and attempt to apply them within their content areas without clear examples or dialogue (Chandler‐Olcott, 2017). Therefore, while requiring one or two adolescent literacy courses may be well‐intentioned, and there are some potentially positive results, more information is needed as there was no statistical significance between the two groups of respondents.…”

“…For instance, there is often a misconception about what “counts” as text, with an emphasis on textbooks and other print‐based materials and an overreliance on Lexile numbers instead of examining how non‐print‐based texts can provide the provocativeness, ambiguity, and complexity that yield high‐level critical thought (Savitz et al., 2023; Strong et al., 2001). Therefore, professional learning should ensure mutual understanding and the ability to select and use complex, equitable texts within instruction, where certain texts are not privileged in specific content areas over others (e.g., ELA, SS, science, and math); there is a need to explore and understand how other content areas (e.g., music, fine arts, and physical education) also use texts to connect with adolescents (Chandler‐Olcott, 2017; Dobbs et al., 2017; Hinchman & O'Brien, 2019; Lent & Voigt, 2019).…”

Examining evolutions of literacy integration with physical education and health in an after‐school program

“…Aligning with this critical literacy connection, Degener (2018) researched racially minoritized girls' sports literacy story‐telling to examine their critical engagement with books about Black female athletes. Chandler‐Olcott (2017) explored how focusing on multimodality enhanced meaning‐making in physical education. She concluded that physical education spaces afford opportunities for collective literacy practices that are attuned to the sport or physical activity at hand.…”

Teaching Core Literacy in College Physical Education and Health Courses Based on Multiple Data Integration

“…Explanation and interpretation of experience cases, the implementation of the core qualities of the original intention is to implement the implementation of the process of student growth and development so that college students like to sports, to cultivate a healthy "sports lifestyle" and "sports circle of life," rather than using the way to evaluate the test to assess, and the core qualities of sports are not the same as the core qualities of the students, but the core qualities of the students. Instead of evaluating and assessing in a test-oriented way, the interest of students has been repeated over and over again [15].…”