Abstract
This project aims to provide students with more skill development opportunities during a seminal period in their life in order to address the problem of gender based skill expectations. The Communal Pedagogy informs my curriculum through modifying the parameters around scoring in gameplay, reinforcing those modifications through gameplay rules, democratizing team roles, and implementing culturally relevant skill based units. Principles behind the pedagogy include mitigating skill gaps in elementary age children which are reinforced through gender roles, facilitating the understanding of movement concepts (Holt/Hale et al., 2004), and designing inclusive games in physical education. An accepting environment in a physical education classroom is difficult to cultivate due to the subject’s historical overlap with middle-class, able-bodied, masculine, and Eurocentric hegemonies (Penney et al., 2018). Physical educators functionally narrow their pedagogical and curricular focus which accommodates the abilities of a small quantity of students (Penney & Evans, 2013, as cited in Penney et al, 2018, p. 1065). Research themes for increasing skill development opportunities, leadership roles, and cooperative skill sets for boys and girls through inclusion were produced through summative content analysis (Hsiu-Fang & Shannon, 2005). Approximately 3% of the California Model Content Standards and sub-standards for physical education focused on inclusive behaviors. No overarching standards focusing on the specific inclusion of students in activities were found. The Communal Pedagogy serves as a foundation for implementing inclusion in physical education’s gameplay design and attenuates inclusion blind spots within the California Model Content Standards. This study’s theoretical foundations are the Inclusive Masculinity Theory and Social Learning Theory. Under the Inclusive Masculinity Theory, masculinity is viewed in juxtaposition with its traditional paragons as they conflict with cultural dynamics and how it influences male behavior through the fear of being publicly perceived as homosexual (Anderson, 2009). This theory postulates the exhibition of hypermasculine behavior as a means of expressing male heterosexuality is socially anachronistic. Research was focused on inclusion within the governing academic standards for physical education in California through a gendered lens under Inclusive Masculinity Theory. Social Learning Theory suggests observation, imitation, and processes like direct instruction may inform the acquisition of new behaviors (Bandura, 1976). The manner in which behaviors are reinforced, whether positive or negative, also informs behavioral learning (Bandura, 1971). The ability to compartmentalize behavior in different contexts is often difficult for children. Thus competitive sport, recess, and physical education often become conflated in the minds of juveniles while being reflected in their behavior. The importance of inclusion, as a concept, students and positive behavioral feedback cannot be understated. These components may serve as powerful tools for developing a positive class culture where games are modified to foster the inclusion of all students.