Feature Introduction

Abstract

This JOPERD feature identifies and highlights exemplars of cross-sector partnerships that support the broader physical education system. These partnerships and collaborations are designed to address the known issues and challenges related to the recruitment and retention of qualified teachers within the physical education profession from a multi-sector, multi-dimensional perspective. A secondary purpose of the feature is to describe the process of cross-sector partnership development and illustrate common practices essential for building, growing, and sustaining this meaningful work now and into the future.

The physical education community has voiced concerns related to the recruitment and retention of qualified teachers (Bulger et al., 2015; Richards & Templin, 2019; Ward, 2019). This reflects a workforce development challenge that merits concentrated attention and focus (Lawson et al., 2022). A key component of workforce development in physical education is the need for different sectors of the broader physical education system (e.g., in-school physical education, teacher education, public policy) to work together in building a stronger, more consistent system to support quality educational practices (e.g., teacher education and in-school physical education align so that newly qualified teachers have the skills that schools need; Jones et al., 2022). This has the potential to strengthen and streamline the overall physical education system by creating more consistent support mechanisms (e.g., practices learned during initial teacher education are supported and reinforced through continuous professional development).

Though such congruence is desirable from a systems framework perspective (Stroh, 2015), it is often illusive because changes within a single system com­ponent may not be reflected in others. Misalignment within systems leads to contradictions between, for example, preservice education and the expectations of inservice teachers, doctoral education and the needs of new faculty, and policy supports and the realities of contemporary schools (Jones et al., 2022; Lawson et al., 2022). Such misalignments inhibit the ability of the physical education profession to progress meaningfully in service to young people’s diverse and varying needs. There are also implications for members of the physical education system (e.g., inservice teachers, teacher educators, professional organization leaders) because they experience inconsistent and sometimes incompatible expectations across settings, which can enhance stress (Conley & You, 2009). Accordingly, it is relevant to promote the development of effective cross-sector partnerships, which includes highlighting those that are working well to understand what makes them successful. Much can be learned from such reflections that have implications for others.

In previous collaborative work we have sought to develop the rationale along with a theoretical and scholarly basis for a physical education workforce research and development agenda (e.g., Jones et al., 2022; Lawson, 2018; Lawson et al., 2021, 2022). In approaching this JOPERD feature, we sought to identify and highlight exemplars of cross-sector partnerships that support the broader physical education system. This, we believe, will help to illustrate the importance of alignment across components in the system, thereby providing a practical basis for our theoretical and conceptual arguments. With this framing in mind, the primary purpose of this feature is to provide a series of exemplary cross-sector partnerships and collaborations designed to address a known issue and challenge within the physical education profession from a multidimensional perspective. A secondary purpose is to describe the process of cross-sector partnership development and illustrate common practices essential for building, growing, and sustaining this meaningful work now and into the future.

Importantly, and in line with the idea of working across sectors, the articles published as part of the feature were written by collaborative teams that include faculty members, inservice teachers, preservice teachers, professional association leaders, and policy advocates. Each authorship team was asked to write about their collaboration, considering (a) the process required to establish a shared mission and vision, (b) negotiated roles and responsibilities of stakeholders, (c) the novelty and impact of the cross-sector collaboration, (d) lessons learned for others who may want to begin similar collaborations, and (e) future directions for their particular partnership. Beyond this broad guiding structure, authorship teams were given flexibility to approach discussing their partnership in the way that best communicated their successes.

In the first article, Henninger leads a team including university faculty members, an undergraduate physical education teacher education student, and a community partner in discussing Jon’s Heroes in Training, an outside-of-school physical activity program that pairs preservice teachers with neurodivergent youths. Jones then leads a team that includes faculty members and a school district partner in overviewing The District 87 Wellness Collaborative involving university, community, and school district partners in addressing youth mental, emotional, and behavioral health. Next, Kern’s team, which includes a faculty member, doctoral student, and inservice teacher, discusses a cross-sector collaborative of university faculty members, inservice teachers, and state association leaders in designing and providing statewide professional development opportunities.

Lee and her co-authors, who include faculty members from pedagogy, public health, sport and exercise psychology, and nutrition, describe a weight-inclusive thinking intervention that involved community partners in development, implementation, and evaluation. Wahl-Alexander and colleagues, including university faculty members and a representative of the juvenile justice system, overview a program that provides physical education for incarcerated youths along with professional learning experiences for preservice teachers. Finally, Prusak and colleagues provide a summary of scholarship examining a decade’s-long partnership between a physical education teacher education program and large school district in the Southwestern United States that has demonstrated systemic success and continuous professional development among students, teachers, parents, and district administrators.

Taken together, these articles speak to the importance of developing partnerships to support continuity and community across sectors in the physical education system. Bridging across sectors connects expertise, knowledge, and resources to more efficiently and effectively address the needs of young people and the adult leaders who serve them. Improving young people’s experiences, directly and/or through teacher preparation or continuing professional development, is a common thread across all of the articles. This involved a process of negotiating and addressing local needs and imperatives, which varies across contexts and partnerships. Accordingly, though some common threads will be apparent, each partnership is unique. Collective active formation is thus positioned as critical in representing local needs and voices when developing partnerships and making decisions. Directions for future partnerships offered by the authorship teams highlight challenges associated with long-term sustainability and the need for local champions who are committed to growing and sustaining efforts.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Emily M. Jones

Emily M. Jones ([email protected]) is a professor in the School of Kinesiology and Recreation at Illinois State University in Normal, IL.

Zack Beddoes

Zack Beddoes is an assistant professor in the McKay School of Education at Bringham Young University in Provo, UT.

Kevin Andrew Richards

Kevin Andrew Richards is an associate professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Community Health at the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign in Urbana, IL.