In my K-12 school years, physical education was my favorite class. Not only did it give me an opportunity to be active, but it was a place where I learned teamwork and friendly competition. Beyond standard volleyball, basketball, and badminton units, I remember running a weekly quarter-mile where students vied for the fastest time to be put on public display for all the classes to see. Then, there was our tumbling unit, where natural “flippers” showed off cartwheels, back handsprings, and backflips—skills I could never master. And, of course, there was the notorious rope climb that so many dreaded: ascending 20 feet into the air while hoping to avoid rope burns on the way down, supported by nothing more than a thin mat below.
Looking back on how P.E. was structured when I was in school, I realize that not everyone enjoyed those challenges. Many of my classmates were likely suffering in silence, dreading finishing last in the quarter-mile, feeling shame because they couldn’t climb the rope or, worse, fearing a fall.
As the longtime educator Will Ortlinghaus has argued, high-quality physical education should be inclusive, build confidence, and help students develop healthy lifelong habits. The goal of physical education is not simply to teach sports, rules, or games but to create positive experiences with movement that support students’ physical, social, emotional, and cognitive development. Research indicates that an alternative approach to physical education results in greater improvement in students’ functional fitness, movement skills, and self-confidence than traditional P.E. curriculum.
When I recently transitioned into education as a physical education teacher, I told myself I would never be one of those “roll out the ball” teachers. I never wanted to let my classes choose between participating in the activity or just walk for the entire period and I also didn’t want kids sitting out because they feel embarrassed about not being as athletic as their peers. My goal as a physical education teacher isn’t to find my next varsity athlete at the middle school level but to have a class everyone looks forward to attending, excited to see what Mr. Wright has planned.
That’s still very much a work in progress for me. Now in my second year at my school, I am actively working to shift our entire P.E. culture. Before I arrived, students were used to “free days” where they could just do whatever they wanted—volleyball, basketball, or simply walking. Shifting them from total autonomy to structured physical education with intentional activities, fitness training, traditional sports, and nontraditional units has been a journey. As with any culture change, there will always be some initial pushback. But by introducing engaging options they haven’t seen before and giving them a say within that new structure, I have had some success.
I saw this play out with our recent unit of bucket golf, an activity that involves hitting oversized golf balls into baskets. At first, there were mixed reactions. Many students had never played golf and felt completely out of their element swinging a club. Some kids dismissed it as “dumb.” However, as we started playing, they began to get excited at every good shot. This activity didn’t rely on athleticism, and hitting a target provided instant gratification. Within a few days, the initial moaning and groaning turned into friendly competition and personal goals. Students I had last year who weren’t engaged in units like flag football or basketball were genuinely excited to play bucket golf and even asked to extend the unit a couple more days.
The research demonstrates that nontraditional physical education can even the playing field for those students who do not have success in the traditional competitive sport setting. In traditional sports like volleyball or basketball, student-athletes often dominate classes, leaving less-athletic students feeling discouraged. Replacing the typical ball game with cooperative challenges or nature-based skill development creates a shared beginner status that disrupts the traditional athletic hierarchy. This decreases the fear of public failure in front of peers and makes movement open and enjoyable for everyone.
Changing disengaged students’ minds takes a lot of thoughtful planning, as well as financial investment. The equipment for bucket golf, for example, cost around $500, but it completely changed how those disengaged students viewed P.E. While some students may not have fully enjoyed every minute of bucket golf, they did not dread participating.
Just as science, English, and math require modern resources, physical education must be brought into the modern era to remain meaningful. Unfortunately, budget constraints are often a barrier. In many schools, physical education gets relegated to a low-priority filler class where teachers must rely on worn-out or outdated equipment left over in storage closets. Specialized equipment for nontraditional activities requires an actual financial investment from school and district administrators. Underfunded and outdated physical education programs hinder physical education teachers’ ability to offer the variety of options needed to keep students engaged. They can also prevent students from changing their relationship with physical education.
I admit that I am one of those teachers who regularly spends my own money to buy equipment. However, I understand that isn’t a realistic or fair expectation across the board. Not every teacher can afford to do this, nor should they have to. And let’s face it: Students break equipment, leaving the teacher at a personal financial loss.
For physical education teachers who have a limited budget or are stuck waiting for budget approvals, options like zero-equipment fitness units and cooperative movement games and challenges can be a temporary solution. This winter, for instance, I will be teaching a TikTok dance unit, where students will only need a phone or a tablet. After that, I hope to offer a laser tag unit. (I am currently waiting to hear back on a funding request for equipment.)
Students want a voice. They want novelty, relevance, choices, and ownership in their physical education experience. Providing that requires both creativity and adequate resources. Although physical education teachers can find a multitude of ways to be creative and introduce new activities on limited budgets, schools must allocate funding to modernize the curriculum. If we truly want P.E. class to welcome every student regardless of innate physical skill, then physical education departments must evolve with the times and our students. We cannot expect this generation of students to develop a lifelong interest in movement by continuing to offer the same limited activities of generations past.
