Running head: LITERATURE REVIEW – DOMAIN E 1

Carly E. Wudel

Literature Review – Domain E

TED 690: Capstone Course

March 26, 2018

National University

Dr. Carol M. Sheperd

LITERATURE REVIEW – DOMAIN E 2

Abstract

This paper contains a review of Creating Socially Fit Heroes and Reducing the Incidence of

Bullying in Elementary Physical Education by Jeanne Wenos, Teri Trick, and Jacqueline

Williams. Bullying is a problem in school settings, including P.E. classes. The article being

reviewed in this paper highlights the characteristics of elementary students who engage in

bullying behaviors and also highlights strategies that can be used to promote a friendlier

environment for learning. A personal reflection of why I believe this article fits into Domain E –

Creating and Maintaining Effective Learning Environments for Students is also included in this

paper.
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Literature Review – Domain E

Bullying is a widespread problem among schools across the country. It is defined as

“aggression that is purposeful in nature and directed toward an individual with lesser power”

(Wenos, Trick, & Williams, 2014, p. 36). Physical Education is a class in which students are

gathering together and confrontations are likely to occur, so P.E. teachers need to be prepared to

teach “holistic self-development,” which requires teachers to work toward developing the

physical, emotional, social, and cognitive domains.

Wenos, Trick, and Williams (2014) suggest that P.E. teachers should promote “heroism”

in their classes by explaining to their students that anyone can be a hero if they intervene in a

situation where someone is being bullied or if they speak up to injustices (p. 39). Since

elementary school P.E. teachers have the unique opportunity of teaching all of the students at the

school, Wenos et al. propose that P.E. teachers promote acts of heroism and prosocial behaviors

in the following three steps: “(1) encourage awareness; (2) recognize that students have the

power to resolve issues; and (3) foster action in place of passivity” (p. 39). As in any subject,

teachers must recognize when situations arise for a teachable moment. For example, when a

conflict occurs in class, P.E. teachers could invite the entire class to a discussion regarding

respectful ways to resolve the conflict on their own, without the assistance of the teacher, so that

students will have the tools and knowledge for the next time something similar were to occur.

Kids need to be taught that it is more heroic to resolve conflicts with their words rather than their

fists (Wenos et al., 2014, p. 39).

Teachers also need to take the time to celebrate acts of heroism in their classes. We can

“talk about heroism in ways that are real to children so they can picture themselves responding”

appropriately (Wenos et al., 2014, p. 39). This will help “to lay the foundation for mental
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readiness to do heroic acts” (Wenos et al., 2014, p. 39). Once students have the mindset and

motivation for something big like intervening in a situation of bullying or even something small

like sharing equipment or holding the door open for others, they will be more prepared to step

forward in prosocial ways. Another idea that Wenos et al. (2014) suggest is for teachers to

provide time for their students “to self-evaluate their contributions to the class environment”

during an end-of-class discussion. Asking questions like “how did you help a classmate today?”

or “can you please raise your hand if you were responsible in helping clean up our equipment”

will help students to better understand what prosocial behaviors are and how they effect the class

environment.

I chose to classify this article under Domain E of the California Teacher Expectations

because I feel as though reducing the incidence of bullying in Physical Education classes is

definitely a step in the right direction for creating and maintaining effective environments for

learning. All of my students should feel safe, both physically, mentally, and socially, when

participating in P.E. class. I do not believe that students would be able to learn effectively in my

class environment if I did not take action to reduce the incidence of bullying. While I cannot say

that I am totally immune to incidents of bullying, I can definitely use my prominence on campus

(since I teach every student 1st-6th grade) to encourage students to be more friendly to other

students, to be more aware of their surroundings, and to be able to recognize how their words

affect others. I have the opportunity to “guide students to actively counteract and disrupt bullying

behaviors” because I get to teach almost every student in the school on a weekly basis (Wenos,

Trick, & Williams, 2014, p. 37).

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References

Costantino, P., Lorenzo, M., & Tirrel-Corbin. C. (2009). Developing a professional teaching

portfolio: A guide for success, 3rd Edition, Pearson Publishing.

Wenos, J., Trick, T., & Williams, J. (2014). Creating socially fit heroes and reducing the

incidence of bullying in elementary physical education. Journal of Physical Education,

Recreation & Dance, 85(7), 36-41.