COVID-forced outdoor phys-ed classes beneficial: study

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This article was published 02/11/2023 (709 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It may have taken pandemic public-health orders to shake up phys-ed class time in Manitoba schools, but in the end students — and their teachers — are likely better off because of it, a University of Manitoba study suggests.

Because of physical-distancing requirements, many schools repurposed gymnasiums into needed classroom space, forcing phys-ed teachers to take kids outside.

And in addition to reaping the benefits of getting fresh air at a time when the stuff indoors was laden with COVID-19 health concerns, educators began to question the point of requiring young students to change into workout gear, something that eats into exercise time.

“Why were we making Grade 3s change? I think we ask ourselves that once a month and chuckle at the amount of time that was wasted,” said Matt Gagné, who teaches physical education at École Sage Creek School.

In the 2020-21 school year, Gagné taught outside — rain or shine, wind chill or humidex — on all but eight of the approximately 190 days on the academic calendar that year.

“I tried to block out as much of that time as I could,” he said, recalling his exhaustion when it was time for summer vacation. “It was not exactly what you sign up for when you decide you want to become a phys-ed teacher.”

His kindergarten-to-Grade 6 team worked out of their schoolyard and sought reprieve from the harsh elements in canopy tents set up on the lawn. The trio retreated indoors to lead classroom-based workouts only when temperatures dropped to -27 C with wind chill taken into account.

The novelty of the situation wore off fairly quickly, Gagné said, noting teachers struggled to make themselves heard over blustery winds all day (microphone batteries died quickly in the cold) while students wearing bulky mittens wrestled with effective ball-tossing form.

Last fall as COVID-19 protocols became a memory, two U of M researchers conducted interviews with 10 phys-ed teachers who worked in similar situations. Participants from rural and city schools were enlisted via recruitment emails distributed by the Physical and Health Educators of Manitoba.

Kinesiology professor Jay Johnson and Jordan Laidlaw, a music teacher who is working on a PhD in educational administration, wanted to investigate both the benefits and drawbacks for phys-ed instructors partially and fully expelled from their gyms.

Laidlaw conducted a similar, albeit larger study of music educators in 2021, and found many were experiencing high levels of burnout after being kicked out of their typical home rooms and adjusting to ever-changing choir and instrument-use rules.

“There’s a hierarchy and privilege of courses that are deemed to be ‘foundational and necessary.’ That’s been a long battle that we’ve waged in this arena,” said Johnson, who studies outdoor education.

The findings, which the duo has started sharing this fall, indicate teachers had to do frequent spontaneous lesson-planning and focus on finding fun ways to keep kids active outside instead of helping them perfect basketball hook shots and other skills better suited to indoor facilities.

For example, after a snowstorm, some teachers assigned students to help neighbouring residents clear their driveways. Others used parking lot snow mounds and nearby woodlands as backdrops for lessons.

“The pandemic may be over, but it certainly impacted entire communities in a very large way, and I think that we really need to explore (teaching methods) that are going to support students’ healthy development,” Laidlaw said.

“I believe that reconnecting with the outdoors can be a very viable way to do this.”

Laidlaw, who studies well-being, said he predicted study participants would primarily reflect on how exhausted and overextended they were, so he was surprised that one of the recurring themes was how enthusiastically teachers spoke about the benefits of being outside.

“There was an inherent positive impact of teaching and learning outdoors, whether it was just fresh air, exercise, combating a sense of seasonal depression,” he said, noting school gyms often do not have windows; teachers may not see sunlight during typical winter workdays.

At the same time, Laidlaw said participants faced challenges related to not having adequate outdoor classroom infrastructure or shelter, and reported being susceptible to sun and windburn.

Johnson noted some schools began asking students to dress appropriately for P.E. days and repurposed change rooms to avoid students mingling in confined spaces, an adjustment that has become permanent in many buildings.

“This actually gave 10 minutes, on average, of time back for kids to be physically active instead of changing,” he said.

Not only have the adaptations eased concerns about slow-moving or teacher-delayed kids getting to workout periods late, but they also take a more private area where bullying can happen out of the school day equation, the professor added.

Gagné said he’s relieved to have his elementary school gym back, although the constant echoing in the space bothers him more than it used to and he’s started occasionally wearing earplugs.

While he has no desire to relive life during the 2020-21 school year, he said the experience has made him more receptive and better prepared to teach outdoors.

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca