Active Exploration in Physical Education: Strategies for Including Marginalized Students

Physical educators face many daily challenges in their work. Delivering culturally responsive programming that speaks to all students regardless of race, religion, nationality, gender, and motor abilities (Kozub & Hodge, 2014) is one of these challenges. Teachers who build a meaningful physical educational environment with skilled activities can create a motivating and valuable experience for marginalized students resulting in positive feelings toward physical activity (Goodwin & Watkinson, 2000). Learning environments that provide the three basic psychological needs of self-determination theory (SDT) may aid in developing motivation and student engagement within physical education (Deci & Ryan, 2000). Active exploration is an approach used in PE for adapting student movements, building curiosity about new movements with the use of equipment, and being inventive and flexible (Hyndman, 2021). Drawing upon SDT and learner centered teaching styles, the purpose of this paper is to provide three strategies for teaching that promote inclusion for marginalized students in PE settings: (a) active exploration and discovery, (b) culturally relevant curriculum, and (c) assessing student learning within these approaches.