The role of school teachers is becoming increasingly complex. This complexity may be even more pronounced for physical education teachers, who must often cope with additional challenges stemming from marginalization, isolation, and teacher/coach role conflict. Physical education teachers must also manage relationships with colleagues,…

Sport and religion have been linked in many societies and are still a part of many traditions today. In recent years, the topic of prayer in interscholastic sport has received public attention due to many high-profile court cases. "Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe" (2000) was the landmark case that prohibited school officials,…

The number of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is rapidly increasing throughout the United States. This increase also has an impact on participation in local community programs such as youth sports and recreational activities. The administrators of these agencies and departments will be required to develop and implement…

In Part III of the feature, physical educators and adapted physical educators offer current best practices as models of implementation for readers. Contributions included are: (1) Answer to the Dear Colleague Letter from the Anchorage School District's Adapted Sport Program (David Poulin); (2) Georgia's Adapted Physical Educators…

Research on the frequency of athlete sexual abuse in the United States is almost nonexistent. However, anecdotal data from news reports abound. This article offers an advocacy agenda of strong steps that can be taken to protect athletes from coach sexual abuse, especially female athletes.

Community-based youth sport coaches are often unprepared to accommodate the unique learning needs of athletes with hidden disabilities. The consequences of not knowing how to work with these athletes can be disastrous for both the athletes and the coaches. Universal design for learning, a practice borrowed from educational theory, can help…

This article offers practical advice for teachers interested in using Inventing Games (IG) as a way to facilitate learning about game structures, rules, and the principles of fair play that they can apply not only to game play, but to everyday life as members of a democratically organized society. Inventing Games gives students the opportunity to…

The court examined whether a coach's failure to implement a safety device during pitching practice enhanced the risk to the athlete or resulted in a suboptimal playing condition, in the context of the assumption of risk doctrine.

The goal of this study was to examine the coaching philosophies, views, and practices of outstanding high school coaches of various male and female sports across the United States. The intention was to determine whether these coaches used unique or innovative techniques or strategies that contributed to their success and, if so, whether these…

The purpose of this article is to help physical educators and coaches better understand the issues raised in recent news stories about transgender and intersex athletes and to encourage them to engage students and athletes in dialogues about these topics. In conversations with students, it is important for teachers and coaches to separate facts…

As the level of competition in youth sports increases, so does athletes' vulnerability to experimenting with performance-enhancing aids (PEAs) at alarmingly young ages. One of the more commonly used PEAs is a supplement called creatine, which has the ability to generate muscular energy, allowing athletes to train at higher intensities for longer…

The use of pop culture as a tool for learning and instruction is paramount. Therefore, it is imperative for teachers to be aware of, and incorporate, trends that are popular and reflect the student experience. This article addresses the pop culture trends that can positively affect teaching, coaching education, and sport psychology practice.…

Each year many young athletes suffer injuries from overtraining. According to the existing literature, strategies do exist to help control this growing problem. This article explores the basic nature of training and overtraining, with a particular emphasis on endurance athletes. Several psychological factors are highlighted as the first clear…

Coaches have always needed to respond to differences in sport and have always been concerned with finding hard-working kids who mesh well as a team. While coaches still try to build team cohesiveness, today's coaches must respond to complex issues related to diversity and are expected to be politically correct. The purpose of this article is to…

Good nutrition is important for optimal athletic performance. Adolescent athletes often depend on their coaches for nutritional information on weight management, dietary supplements, and dietary practices. Some dietary practices, such as vegetarianism, have the potential to be harmful to the adolescent athlete if not followed with careful…