The process of effective teaching--teaching that directly leads to student learning of standards-based content--is tenuous at best and easily disrupted by contextual and behavioral factors. In this commentary, I discuss the role of student support and mediation in teacher effectiveness and curricular reform. The most vocal students in physical…

This commentary was written in response to the Rink (2013), McKenzie and Lounsbery (2013), and Ward (2013) articles published earlier on teacher effectiveness in physical education (PE). The historical analyses of teacher effectiveness research in PE (TER-PE) presented in those 3 articles are briefly described, particularly as they represent a…

In our reflection on Rink's (2013), McKenzie and Lounsbery's (2013), and Ward's (2013) characterizations of effective teaching in physical education (PE), 2 themes emerged that permeate these diverse perspectives: policy and accountability. In our commentary, we focus our initial discussion on the implications that policy and…

With the recent emphasis on evaluating teachers' effectiveness by the performance of their students, it should be no surprise that this subject has reached the physical education (PE) sector. This commentary examines 3 articles by Rink (2013), McKenzie and Lounsbery (2013), and Ward (2013), who each take a different perspective on measuring…

Determining the effectiveness of physical education teachers is a difficult process complicated by the expectations of the building principals, the extensiveness of national and state standards, student ability levels, and the severely limited time that the programs are allotted. The dearth of effective, efficient evaluation tools lends itself to…

An understanding of body composition is crucial to understanding human health, disease, and function. Research in body composition has focused on the development of assessment methods, description of normal changes in body composition with growth and development and aging, and the changes that occur in body composition in response to challenges…

Obesity is the result of a mismatch between the amount of calories consumed and the amount of calories expended during an extended period of time. This relationship is described by the energy balance equation, which states the rate of change in energy storage depots in the body are equal to the rate of energy intake minus the rate of energy…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of body mass index (BMI) on the agreement between aerobic capacity estimates from different Progressive Aerobic Cardiorespiratory Endurance Run (PACER) equations and the Mile Run Test. Method: The agreement between 2 different tests of aerobic capacity was examined on a large data set…

Regular quality physical education (PE) contributes to the harmonized biopsychosocial development of a young person--to relaxation, neutralization of negative effects of sedentary hours, and other unhealthy habits/behaviors. The evaluation approach to PE effectiveness provides important information to PE teachers and also to students. However,…

In my commentary in response to the 3 articles (McKenzie & Lounsbery, 2013; Rink, 2013; Ward, 2013), I focus on 3 areas: (a) content knowledge, (b) a holistic approach to physical education, and (c) policy impact. I use the term "quality teaching" rather than "teacher effectiveness." Quality teaching is a term with the…

The purpose of this article is to bring attention to the 10 most pressing questions relevant to musculoskeletal physical fitness testing in children and adolescents. The goal is to stimulate research to answer these questions. The most pressing needs include establishing definitive links between valid, reliable, and feasible field test measures of…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the association between members' perceptions of staff's behaviors, motivational climate, their own behaviors, commitment to future exercise, and life satisfaction in a group-fitness setting. The theory-driven hypothesized mediating role of perceptions of the climate was also tested.…

Purpose: This article is nested within a longitudinal project examining 6 teachers' journeys along their career cycles (Lynn & Woods, 2010; Woods & Earls, 1995; Woods & Lynn, 2001). Two participants from the initial 6 continue to teach K-12 physical education; 1 of these participants, Everett, is examined in the current study.…

Purpose: The purpose of this investigation was to develop an instrument that has scores that are valid and reliable for measuring students' attitudes toward fitness testing. Method: The method involved the following steps: (a) an elicitation study, (b) item development, (c) a pilot study, and (d) a validation study. The pilot study included…

Tennis is an activity requiring both endurance and anaerobic components, which could have immunosuppressive effects postexercise. Purpose: The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effect of a simulated tennis match on apoptotic and migratory markers on lymphocyte subsets. Method: Male high school (n = 5) and college (n = 3) tennis…