Virginia Law

The program in health and physical education preK-12 shall ensure that the candidate has demonstrated the following competencies:

1. Understanding of the knowledge, skills, and processes of health and physical education as defined in the Virginia Standards of Learning including the following:

a. Competence in motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities;

b. Knowledge of structures and functions of the body and how they relate to and are affected by human movement to learning and developing motors skills and specialized movement forms;

c. Demonstrate the aptitude, attitude, and skills to lead responsible, fulfilling, and respectful lives; and

d. Understand the importance of energy balance and nutritional needs of the body to maintain optimal health and prevent chronic disease.

2. Understanding basic human anatomy, physiology, kinesiology, and exercise physiology needed to apply discipline-specific biomechanical concepts critical to the development of physically educated individuals.

3. Understanding of the basic scientific principles of human movement as they apply to:

a. Health-related fitness, such as flexibility, muscular strength and endurance, cardio respiratory endurance, and body composition;

b. Skill-related fitness, such as coordination, agility, power, balance, speed, and reaction time; and

c. Analyzing and correcting critical elements of motor skills and performance concepts related to skillful movement and fitness.

4. Basic understanding of the administration and planning for a health and physical education program, including:

a. Differentiated instruction based on a continuous learning cycle;

b. Student safety, classroom management, injury prevention, and liability issues;

c. Standards-based curriculum and assessments that foster student learning and inform decisions about instruction;

d. The role of coordinated school and community health.

e. Utilizing school health advisory boards, local health departments, and other representative stakeholders for support for best practice; and

f. Increasing physical activity behaviors before, during, and after school.

5. Understanding of the knowledge, skills, and processes of health education as defined in the Virginia Standards of Learning, including:

a. Demonstrate the knowledge and skills to make healthy decisions that reduce health risks and enhance the health of self and others;

b. Demonstrate the ability to access, evaluate, and use health information, products, and services that influence health and wellness in a positive manner; and

c. Demonstrate the use of appropriate health practices and behaviors to promote a safe and healthy community when alone, with family, at school, and in other group settings.

6. Understanding of the essential health knowledge, skills, and processes for teaching developmentally and culturally appropriate health education content standards, including:

a. Health promotion and chronic disease prevention;

b. Mental, social, and emotional health;

c. Nutrition, body image, eating disorders, energy balance, and weight management;

d. Tobacco, alcohol, and other drug use prevention;

e. Safety and emergency care, including first aid, CPR, AED, universal precautions;

f. Injury and violence prevention;

g. Consumer health and information access;

h. Communicable and noncommunicable disease prevention and treatment;

i. Environmental health;

j. Personal, family, and community health;

k. Bullying prevention, resistance skills, and conflict mediation; and

l. Theories and models of behavior change and goal-setting.

7. Understanding of the knowledge, skills, and processes for teaching physical education, including:

a. Articulated, sequential preK-12 instruction in a variety of movement forms that include:

(1) Functional fitness;

(2) Developmentally appropriate movement skills; and

(3) Movement principles and concepts.

b. Activities that meet the needs of the diverse learner;

c. Ability to design learning activities to help students understand, develop, value and achieve personal fitness;

d. Knowledge of human growth, development, and motor learning;

e. The relationship between a physically active lifestyle and health;

f. Knowledge of the cognitive, social, and emotional development through physical activity;

g. Ability to incorporate strategies that promote effective physical activity learning environments;

h. Use of authentic, traditional, psychomotor, and fitness assessment methods;

i. The cultural significance of dance, leisure, competition, and sportsmanship; and

j. Demonstration of personal competence in motor skill performance for a variety of movement patterns, modeling healthy behaviors, and maintaining health-enhancing level of fitness.

8. Understanding of and ability to design developmentally appropriate curriculum, instruction, and performance-based assessment that is aligned with the Virginia Standards of Learning for Health and Physical Education including the following:

a. Develop a developmentally appropriate scope and sequence plan of essential health and physical education concepts, information, and skills based on the Virginia Standards of Learning;

b. Use the scope and sequence plan to develop performance indicators that describe the essential concepts and skills;

c. Use new and emerging instructional technology and media effectively to enhance learning;

d. Use research-based educational strategies to meet diverse learning styles and needs;

e. Adapt and create strategies best suited for delivering instruction in diverse settings;

f. Employ individual and cooperative group learning strategies;

g. Connect instruction to prior student learning, and to other curricular areas; and

h. Use evaluation to plan a continuous cycle of learning strategies that reinforce mastery of performance indicators.

9. Obtaining, analyzing and applying health-related and fitness-related data to meet the cultural, social, growth, and development needs of the students and community:

a. Select valid and current sources of information and data;

b. Use computerized sources of information and appropriate data-gathering instruments; and

c. Analyze and interpret data and determine priority areas of focused instruction.

10. Understanding of and proficiency in grammar, usage, and mechanics and their integration in writing.

11. Understanding of and proficiency in pedagogy to incorporate writing as an instructional and assessment tool for candidates to generate, gather, plan, organize, and present ideas in writing to communicate for a variety of purposes.