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Study Guide

Field 192: Physical Education

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Sample Selected-Response Questions

Competency 0001 
Motor Development and Physical Literacy

1. In the typical progression of motor skill development in six-year-olds, students develop gross-motor skills as their balance and coordination improve and opportunities for physical activity expand. Which skill is the most advanced gross-motor skill that six-year-old students may be able to demonstrate?

  1. throwing a ball underhand
  2. changing pathways while running
  3. jumping a self-turned rope
  4. kicking a stationary ball to a stationary target
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: C. This item requires examinees to recognize expected patterns of physical and motor development and critical elements and sequencing of motor tasks and motor skills. Jumping a self-turned rope is a complex motor skill that requires children to coordinate and synchronize two gross-motor movement patterns—one in the upper body and one in the lower body—in a continuous skill. This ability to swing the rope rhythmically and jump at the appropriate time and height tends to develop later in childhood than other skills. By the age of six, children can usually turn a jump rope and jump several times in a row.

Competency 0001 
Motor Development and Physical Literacy

2. A kindergarten physical education teacher regularly uses instructional strategies that aim to ensure that students are engaged in learning activities that involve perceptual skills and body movements simultaneously. The primary pedagogical rationale behind the teacher's strategies is best described in which statement?

  1. Multisensory perceptions help children develop skills for object recognition and memorization.
  2. Children often enjoy activities that involve using sensory organs in tandem with physical movements.
  3. Perceptual processes and voluntary motor activities are often interdependent and develop in tandem.
  4. Motor activities provide cues and signals necessary for perceptual interpretation of surrounding events.
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: C. This item requires examinees to identify principles and components of perceptual-motor abilities (i.e., visual, auditory, tactile, and kinesthetic) and their development and relationship to motor performance. In the context of physical education, perceptual skills are skills that involve perception and adapting to a changing environment based on what one sees. Perceptual skills typically work in concert with body movements, first with a perception of stimuli and the environment, followed by motor activities that respond to or address what is perceived. Because of their close connection, perceptual skills and body movements typically develop in tandem, so it is pedagogically sensible to ensure that students are engaged in learning activities that involve perceptual skills and body movements simultaneously.

Use the information below to answer the two questions that follow.

During an outdoor activity, the physical education teacher and kindergarten students discuss cooperation before playing the following game with a 16-foot play parachute with handles.

Round the 'Chute

The teacher places a number of balls on the parachute that are small enough to fit through the center hole. The teacher prompts students to get as many balls as possible through the hole. Next, students count aloud together how many times they can make just one ball roll around the parachute without falling through the hole.

Competency 0004 
Mental, Social, and Emotional Health

3. Which learning objective is most effectively addressed by these parachute activities?

  1. developing students' collaborative skills such as teamwork, communication, and mutual support
  2. familiarizing students with multi-step activities to promote their ability to follow directions in group settings
  3. promoting students' decision-making skills such as deciding when to lead and when to follow in group activities
  4. modeling ways to show respect and appreciation for individual efforts, regardless of skill or ability level
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: A. This item requires examinees to describe mental, social, and emotional health benefits of teamwork and participation in group physical activities (e.g., developing a sense of belonging and connectedness, opportunities for collaboration and leadership). The parachute activity starts with a discussion about cooperation, which is reinforced through participation in the activity because it requires students to use collaborative skills in working together to manipulate the parachute and help one another in the process. They also have to communicate while they try to get balls through the hole and make a ball roll around the parachute. Counting aloud together also contributes to their collaborative skills.

Competency 0001 
Motor Development and Physical Literacy

4. In the context of motor development, these parachute activities primarily engage students in which type of motor learning task?

  1. transferring body weight using the support of others
  2. using sensory input to gauge the spatial positions of self and others
  3. traveling in different pathways to evade objects or others
  4. coordinating the timing of movements with others' movements
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: D. This item requires examinees to identify principles and components of perceptual-motor abilities (i.e., visual, auditory, tactile, and kinesthetic) and their development and relationship to motor performance. Successfully manipulating the parachute to get the balls through the hole and manipulating it to make just one ball roll around the parachute without falling through the hole require coordinated movements by the students. For example, in order to circle the ball around the parachute, students closest to the ball will need to use their arms to get the ball rolling. Successive students will have to adjust their movements based on the location and speed of the ball as the group works to make one revolution. Each student will have to time their movements, and will have to adjust their movements, based on others' movements.

Competency 0002 
Health-Related Fitness

5. Adolescent students who are physically active on a regular basis derive physiological benefits that adolescent students who are sedentary do not. Moderate to vigorous physical activity allows the bodies of active adolescents to more readily:

  1. develop and grow new muscle fibers.
  2. eliminate the buildup of lactic acid around muscle tissues.
  3. expend fat stores in addition to glycogen to fuel muscle actions.
  4. reduce the need to store glycogen in muscles for later energy demands.
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: C. This item requires examinees to identify both short-term and long-term physiological responses that result from physical activity. Energy derived from dietary fat helps fuel moderate to vigorous physical activity as students build up to greater levels of intensity. During exercise, carbohydrates such as sugars and starches are broken down quickly into glucose, the body's main energy source. But as the duration of exercise increases, intensity decreases, and fat becomes an important fuel source, sparing glycogen reserves. Stored fat is broken down and transported through the bloodstream to muscles, allowing carbohydrates to be used at a slower rate, which extends physical endurance and delays the onset of fatigue.

Competency 0002 
Health-Related Fitness

6. Food sources of protein are essential in the diets of children and adolescents because proteins:

  1. bind with and deliver vitamins, minerals, and trace nutrients to the growth plates of the long (limb) bones.
  2. allow the absorption and release of fatty acids in the bloodstream, allowing muscles to draw on them for action.
  3. provide the catalyst for the breakdown of glucose, which serves as the main energy source for the body.
  4. supply the amino acids needed to synthesize muscle tissue and make the hemoglobin that transports oxygen in the blood.
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: D. This item requires examinees to demonstrate knowledge of sound nutritional principles and guidelines, the relationship between nutrition and the functioning of body and energy systems, and criteria and techniques for evaluating diet-related plans and products. Protein, which is made up of amino acids, is essential for the structure and function of the human body. Among its many functions, protein repairs cells, makes new cells, and synthesizes new muscles and bones. Hemoglobin, a protein made up of amino acid chains, is the most important component of red blood cells, which transport oxygen around the body. Protein is essential for people of all ages but especially children and adolescents because of its vital role in growth and development. About half of the amino acids the human body needs to maintain good health and normal function come only from food sources.

Competency 0002 
Health-Related Fitness

7. Which pair of fitness exercises would most improve core stability and strength?

  1. bent-knee toe touch and wall squat
  2. modified push-up and shoulder stretch
  3. plank and prone opposite arm-leg raise
  4. stationary lunge and supine knee-to-chest stretch
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: C. This item requires examinees to demonstrate understanding of principles and activities for promoting health-related muscular strength and endurance. The human body's core stretches from the waist to the neck and includes the abdominal muscles, back muscles, pelvis muscles, hips muscles, spinal muscles, and diaphragm. In a plank exercise, the individual gets into a push up position, supporting the upper body with either the hands or elbows, then holds the position. In a prone opposite arm-leg raise, the individual lies face down and slowly lifts an arm and the opposite leg at the same time then holds the position. Both exercises engage most of the core muscles and improve core stability and strength.

Competency 0003 
Movement Concepts, Skills, and Activities

8. During a physical education track and field unit, students practice sprinting starts. The teacher encourages students to use a forward-leaning crouch or pose for their starting position. A key biomechanical reason for this type of starting position is to enable students to:

  1. generate horizontal velocity by pushing off with both feet and extending the legs.
  2. minimize any rotational forces acting on the lower body during the sprint.
  3. use a three-point stance to minimize stability and maximize power during the drive.
  4. increase the tension in the leg extensor muscles in order to accelerate the stride.
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: A. This item requires examinees to apply knowledge of key principles of anatomy, physiology, kinesiology, and biomechanics in relation to health, growth and development, movement, and physical performance. The crouch start allows sprinters to direct their starting energy horizontally rather than vertically, producing more force and creating more velocity. With bent legs, muscles of the legs are loaded—stored with tension—that is then released when the feet push off from either blocks or the ground. The release of tension and energy in a crouch start is similar to a coiled spring being released.

Competency 0003 
Movement Concepts, Skills, and Activities

9. Several students in a physical education class express apprehension about participating in upcoming volleyball lead-up games. The teacher knows that the students have little prior experience, and although they exhibit good hand/eye coordination, they experience difficulty contacting, striking, and controlling the ball. Which accommodation will likely make the students most comfortable while practicing and improving their volleyball skills?

  1. using a lighter ball and permitting the ball to bounce once
  2. reducing the court's width and depth to redefine the game environment
  3. requiring that three different teammates contact the ball before sending it over the net
  4. decreasing air pressure in the ball and allowing students to strike the ball with any part of their body
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: A. This item requires examinees to describe strategies and resources for supporting students' participation in and enjoyment of sports, games, and lifetime activities. Because the students are having difficulty contacting, striking, and controlling the ball, using a lighter ball will be easier to manipulate, which should make the students more comfortable practicing their skills with the ball. Allowing the ball to drop once will slow the game down so that they can focus on contact skills without having to be as aware of and active in positioning themselves.

Competency 0003 
Movement Concepts, Skills, and Activities

10. Directions: The diagram below shows the positions of students playing soccer on a soccer field. The team indicated by circles is on offense and Player X has the ball. Click on the player that is offside.

Option A Option B Option C Option D Option E Option F Option G Option H Option I Option J Option K Option L

The diagram is a bird’s eye view of a standard soccer field. Each half of the field includes a goal line, goal area, and penalty area. The halfway line bisects the rectangular field and the center circle, a circle in the center of the field. There is a touch line at the top of the rectangle and a parallel touch line of the same length at the bottom of the rectangle. Players are represented as circles and triangles. There are 11 circles and 11 triangles. The circles have the ball in the opponent’s defensive half of the field.

Looking at the diagram from left to right, here is a description of where the players are positioned. The circle goalie is in the goal area. A circle is in the penalty area. A triangle and a circle are near each other just outside the penalty area. A circle is near the touchline at the top of the diagram. A circle is near the touchline at the bottom of the diagram. Next are two triangles—one near the top and one near the bottom. Next is a circle just outside the center circle and just left of the halfway line. Next is a circle just to the right of the halfway line. Next are two triangles a little farther right than that circle. Next, near the bottom touchline, is a circle who is the player with the ball. The circle has an X in it to indicate that this player is the player who possesses the ball. Continuing to move left to right, the next player is a circle near the center of this half of the soccer field. Next is a triangle to the right of the player with the ball. Next is a triangle near the top center of this half of the field. Next is a triangle near the center of this half of the field, just outside the penalty area. Next is a circle and triangle next to each other just outside the penalty area but higher than the previously mentioned triangle. Next is a triangle just outside the other end of the penalty area. Next is a circle inside the penalty area, in front of the goal, outside the goal area. And, finally, the triangle goalie is in the goal area.

Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: The circle farthest to the right in the diagram. This item requires examinees to demonstrate understanding of offensive and defensive strategies, safety practices, and rules. In soccer, a player is deemed offside when they do not possess the ball and are closer to the opponent's goal than the second-to-last defender. In the diagram, the circle farthest to the right does not have the ball and is closer to the opponent's goal than the second-to-last defender. The closest second-to-last defender is the triangle positioned just outside the penalty area in the lower right portion of the diagram.

The diagram is a bird’s eye view of a standard soccer field. Each half of the field includes a goal line, goal area, and penalty area. The halfway line bisects the rectangular field and the center circle, a circle in the center of the field. There is a touch line at the top of the rectangle and a parallel touch line of the same length at the bottom of the rectangle. Players are represented as circles and triangles. There are 11 circles and 11 triangles. The circles have the ball in the opponent’s defensive half of the field.

Looking at the diagram from left to right, here is a description of where the players are positioned. The circle goalie is in the goal area. A circle is in the penalty area. A triangle and a circle are near each other just outside the penalty area. A circle is near the touchline at the top of the diagram. A circle is near the touchline at the bottom of the diagram. Next are two triangles—one near the top and one near the bottom. Next is a circle just outside the center circle and just left of the halfway line. Next is a circle just to the right of the halfway line. Next are two triangles a little farther right than that circle. Next, near the bottom touchline, is a circle who is the player with the ball. The circle has an X in it to indicate that this player is the player who possesses the ball. Continuing to move left to right, the next player is a circle near the center of this half of the soccer field. Next is a triangle to the right of the player with the ball. Next is a triangle near the top center of this half of the field. Next is a triangle near the center of this half of the field, just outside the penalty area. Next is a circle and triangle next to each other just outside the penalty area but higher than the previously mentioned triangle. Next is a triangle just outside the other end of the penalty area. Next is a circle inside the penalty area, in front of the goal, outside the goal area with a square around it to designate it as the correct response. And, finally, the triangle goalie is in the goal area.

Competency 0004 
Mental, Social, and Emotional Health

11. During the last few weeks of an outdoor/adventure activities unit, a physical education teacher provides students with opportunities to choose activities from among those already offered in the unit (e.g., obstacle/challenge course, orienteering, hiking, group scavenger hunt, making an outdoor shelter). This instructional practice promotes students' affective development primarily because it allows students to:

  1. obtain positive constructive feedback from peers in group activities.
  2. publicize personal physical strengths within a noncompetitive environment.
  3. experience an overall sense of resiliency once student-led activities are completed.
  4. build autonomy and self-worth through engagement in and responsibility for learning.
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: D. This item requires examinees to apply knowledge of development of the whole child and the relationship between physical activity and mental health and well-being for oneself and others (e.g., the role of physical activity in promoting self-esteem and self-expression). The affective domain of learning centers on the emotional aspect of learning and includes factors such as student motivation and interest in learning, attitude, perceptions, values, and taking responsibility. Providing students with opportunities to choose activities will likely help them build autonomy and a sense of self-worth, which will likely have a positive effect on their feelings about learning.

Competency 0004 
Mental, Social, and Emotional Health

12. A high school physical education teacher is planning a unit about the influence of social media. They will examine how athletes and athletic activities are presented in TV programs and social media outlets that are popular among teenagers and young adults. The unit would most effectively promote the students' attitudes, behaviors, and motivation related to physical activity in which way?

  1. developing students' critical thinking about their expectations from themselves and others
  2. gaining qualitative and quantitative information about popular sportspersons in the country
  3. increasing students' understanding of the cultural and economic aspects of national sports
  4. learning about the techniques of digital design and production of electronic advertisements
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: A. This item requires examinees to analyze the influence of peers, media (including social media), and other factors on the development of students' attitudes, behaviors, and motivation related to physical activity. A unit about the influence of social media will examine how social media contributes to idealized expectations that many young people have for their bodies. Examining how athletes and athletic activities are presented in TV programs and social media outlets that are popular among teenagers and young adults will likely affect student attitudes, behaviors, and motivation related to physical activity because they will have to think critically about the influence of social media. They will consider all aspects of the subject and objectively analyze it. In so doing, they are likely to think about their expectations of themselves and others.

Competency 0005 
Physical Education Instruction and Assessment

13. Use the information below to answer the question that follows.

For a middle school project, the physical education teacher plans the following activity.

1. Students keep track in a personal journal, for five school days, the approximate amount of time that they spend at school, sleeping, doing homework, using screens, and participating in physical activity.

2. At the end of the week, students analyze their data and summarize the data in a bar graph, line graph, pictograph, or pie chart.

3. The class discusses, in general terms, what the graphs illustrate in terms of daily habits and their potential effect on fitness and wellness.

4. Students reflect individually and describe in their journal two personal goals for improving their overall wellness.

This project is an effective interdisciplinary activity primarily because it:

  1. establishes connections between one concept in multiple subject areas, including physical education.
  2. prompts students to use tools and skills from other academic areas to investigate physical education fitness and wellness concepts.
  3. gives students ample time to internalize guidelines for improving health-related fitness from two different subject areas.
  4. allows students to achieve multiple subject-area standards in the course of a single physical education lesson.
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: B. This item requires examinees to recognize the interdisciplinary relationships between physical education and other subject areas. In this interdisciplinary activity, students gather personal health-related data, analyze the data, then use graphing tools and techniques to represent the data and draw conclusions from their findings. In this way, students use mathematics and science tools, skills, and strategies to deepen their understanding of physical education concepts. They also reflect individually and write in their journals, which incorporates English Language Arts skills into the project.

Use the information below to answer the two questions that follow.

In preparation for an upcoming criterion-referenced fitness assessment, a physical education teacher demonstrates for sixth-grade students the fitness test exercises that will be included. The teacher provides the students with a written checklist of critical elements and illustrations for each exercise and reviews it with the class. Students try the exercises individually, and then work in pairs, taking turns practicing the exercises while one partner observes the other's performance. The observer provides verbal feedback to the partner, aided by the checklist.

Competency 0005 
Physical Education Instruction and Assessment

14. Which strategy would be most effective for the teacher to use at the beginning of this activity to help ensure a meaningful and smoothly functioning learning experience?

  1. discussing and modeling techniques for providing constructive, specific feedback
  2. explaining how fitness test performances can be linked to health-related risk factors
  3. reminding students to consider affective criteria, such as impressions of effort or motivation, while observing
  4. activating students' prior knowledge by asking students to describe situations in which they performed fitness exercises
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: A. This item requires examinees to describe appropriate strategies, communication techniques, and resources for addressing student strengths, needs, and abilities; encouraging positive student interactions; and fostering the engagement and inclusion of all students. Discussing and modeling techniques for providing constructive, specific feedback is important in this activity because the students will be assessing each other. Without modeled guidance by the teacher beforehand, the feedback portion of the activity likely would not be useful to each student or conducted smoothly, and it would have a greater chance of resulting in misunderstandings, hurt feelings, and perhaps conflict among some students.

Competency 0005 
Physical Education Instruction and Assessment

15. This type of peer-evaluation process is likely to benefit students primarily by:

  1. eliminating their apprehension about the upcoming fitness assessment.
  2. encouraging them to develop additional evaluation criteria based on visual cues.
  3. prompting them to analyze their own performance using the same criteria.
  4. motivating them to use their kinesthetic sense to refine their movements in the exercises.
Enter to expand or collapse answer. Answer expanded
Correct Response: C. This item requires examinees to demonstrate understanding of a variety of physical education assessment methods, tools, and protocols, as well as the importance of using multiple means of assessment to monitor and evaluate students' performance and progress. Providing feedback to a partner doing the same exercises as the student providing the feedback would naturally prompt students to analyze their own performance. They would be familiar with the criteria from the beginning of the activity and when they analyze another student with the checklist, they will likely be even more familiar with the criteria and consider their own performance with the criteria in mind.