Engage pre-service teachers to support classroom teachers

A story from South Carolina

Pre-service teachers can support and be a resource to classroom teachers in local school districts and schools interested in integrating classroom physical activity. Dr. Colin Webster from the University of South Carolina (USC) shared about the pilot phase of the Partnership for Active Children in Elementary Schools (PACES) intervention study, which worked with three schools over two years to support teachers to integrate movement into their classrooms. Rather than providing direct professional development to teachers, pre-service teachers went into classrooms to lead movement breaks, active lessons, and active transitions in fulfillment of the service learning requirements of USC’s education program. According to Dr. Webster:

“We were already training pre-service classroom teachers [in movement integration and classroom physical activity] and sending them to schools as part of their [pre-service training] – why not send them into [schools] and do what they’ve been taught to do anyway?”

Key Takeaways

Recognized that one size does not fit all. Engaging pre-service teachers to work with a targeted number of teachers allowed for individualized approaches to classroom physical activity. Dr. Webster reflected: “Trainings are often done as a one size fits all approach, often not seen as relevant for the individual classroom. We didn’t want to treat schools as a unit where everybody needed the same support. We learned a lot about contextually sensitive programming – each teacher had his or her own preferences and interests.”

Partner with pre-service teaching programs to provide continuous support. Continuous professional development is most effective to instill sustainable changes in classroom practices, especially for teachers who are less inclined to incorporate classroom physical activity. However, resources for this often are not available. Partnering with pre-service teaching programs to engage future teachers in classroom physical activity integration as a part of their service learning requirement can provide a “sustainable external support system.”

Prepare both local and distance learners to support classroom physical activity. USC has effectively trained pre-service teachers on classroom physical activity both in-person and at a distance. Pre-service students taking courses through distance learning (i.e. online) were still expected to complete service learning assignments and integrate physical activity in classrooms where they were student teaching.

Ensure that service learning is not an added burden on schools. Dr. Webster observed that service learning should not be an added burden on classroom teachers. Universities partnering with schools need to ensure that students are “organized, good at what they do, and do not usurp classroom time.”