"Gym Class with Ed Fizz": Exploring Questionable Pedagogical Practices with Preservice Physical Education Teachers

Overview & Synopsis

Enabling preservice physical education teachers to critically consider questionable and taken-for-granted practices is an important component of a physical education teacher education (PETE) program. In an effort to offer a teaching and learning context in which to introduce such critical consciousness, the authors have included a staged physical education lesson (Gym Class with Ed Fizz) as an introduction to their physical education curriculum and instruction courses. This article details the lesson, including its background and rationale, student responses, and possible future directions for practice and research. The purpose of this article is to explore how participation in a unique pedagogical process (a staged lesson) can improve students' understanding of various concepts, including hidden curriculum, personal biographies, and cultural reproduction.