Purpose: Our purpose was to gather and evaluate accurate, up-to-date information on physical education (PE) policy implementation across multiple U.S. states and regions. Methods: A U.S. Physical Education and Physical Activity Policy questionnaire was developed and completed by 4,845 public-school PE teachers from 25 U.S. states. The U.S.…

This paper reports the results of a randomized controlled trial evaluating "We Have Skills," a brief curriculum designed to teach early elementary students academic and social skills as well as improve teacher efficacy in classroom management. Intervention efficacy was tested with 127 teachers, randomly assigned to condition, and 2,817…

In the U.S., state guidance to schools in response to the COVID-19 pandemic was politicized. We used state-level political affiliation to explore whether access to curricular resources differed pre-pandemic or during pandemic remote teaching and teachers' reported control over curricular resources during pandemic teaching. We found that…

A physical education lesson usually consists of four parts (introductory activity, fitness component, lesson focus, and closing game). The first part of the lesson, the introductory/warm-up activities, has the potential to set the tone for the rest of the lesson. It also provides an opportunity for students to get into instant activity upon…

Objectives: To provide further information regarding physical education (PE) teachers' perceptions of incorporating music in PE lessons and to evaluate the influence of music on the classroom environment using a qualitative approach. Method: Electronic survey interviews were conducted with 26 veteran PE instructors (10 male, 16 female), from 7…

"The Right Trajectory" brings to the forefront an often-overlooked voice in the debate about new state assessments developed in consortia: that of the best teachers in the country. This research suggests, despite challenges still to overcome, that these front-line experts believe that the new consortia tests are an improvement on the…

"The Electric Company" ("TEC") television show won the hearts of children because it made learning fun. Thirty years later, the iconic show has returned with the goal of not only teaching literacy, but also numeracy (the ability to work with and understand numbers) and mathematics vocabulary in a fun, entertaining, and engaging…

New state laws and regulations designed to improve teacher quality are described in this policy brief. The new policies represent eight strategies for dealing with teaching quality issues: testing and screening; teacher compensation; preservice training and certification; staff development; enhanced management and supervision; teacher job…