Physical Education Major
The undergraduate physical education major is designed to prepare individuals to teach physical education and provides certification to coach at the middle and high school levels.
Preparing Individuals to Teach and Coach
The program poses an integrated concentration of courses in motor development, health-related fitness and wellness, biological sciences, rhythms, individual and dual sport methods courses, elementary and secondary methods, physical education for exceptional children, adventure education, and two aquatics certifications, all with an emphasis on learning how to teach.
The physical education degree will put you in schools
Students begin studying physical education foundations and their application to human development and learning as early as the freshman year. This is accompanied by more than 20 contact hours of supervised field experience with an on-campus preschool motor development program involving preschool children with and without disabilities.
During the first two years of study, each activity course is designed to prepare pre-service teachers to learn and apply teaching applications. Ten contact hours in the schools is experienced during the sophomore year. The physical education program combined with the Clare College liberal arts requirements of the University provide physical education majors with a well-rounded undergraduate experience.
Upon successful completion of the Physical Education program at St. Bonaventure University, graduates:
- will know and apply discipline-specific scientific and theoretical concepts critical to the development of physically educated individuals;
- will be physically educated individuals with knowledge and skills necessary to demonstrate competent movement performance and health-enhancing fitness as delineated in the NASPE K-12 standards;
- will be able to plan and implement developmentally appropriate learning experiences aligned with local, state and national standards to address the diverse needs of all students;
- will be able to use effective communication and pedagogical skills and strategies to enhance student engagement and learning;
- be able to use assessments and reflection to foster student learning and inform decisions about instruction;
- demonstrate dispositions that are essential to becoming effective professionals.
Oct 13, 2020 | Dr. Paula Scraba, associate professor of physical education, has been named to the Review Board for the Journal of Healthcare.
Feb 14, 2020 | A presentation proposal by Paula J. Scraba, O.S.F., Ph.D., associate professor of physical education, and Richard Trietley, vice president for Student Affairs at Viturbo University in Wisconsin, has been accepted for the 2020 Symposium of the Association of Franciscan Colleges and Universities
Dec 12, 2019 | St. Bonaventure University students presented with Special Olympics New York at the 82nd Annual NYS AHPERD Conference (New York State Association of Health, Physical Education Recreation and Dance), held Nov. 20-22 in Verona, New York.