Maine West PE instructor 'addicted' to teaching fitness

Erik McNeill is a physical education teacher, assistant athletic director and coach at Maine West High School in Des Plaines. He began teaching at the school in 1996, and has served in a variety of roles since. Last year, McNeill was honored as the Secondary Physical Education Teacher of the Year by the Illinois Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance.

Q. What prompted your decision to teach physical education?

A. Physical education was my favorite class growing up, and I remember it always being the highlight of my day, regardless of the activity. I wanted to be in a profession where you can make an impact with kids everyday. As a P.E. teacher, I get to work with 200 Maine West students every day, and the opportunities that I have every day with these students is why I wanted to be P.E teacher.

I have become addicted to the challenge of how to get my students see the benefits of their personal physical activity. Obesity, sedentary lifestyles and fast-food options are still increasing, so I want to be part of the positive changes that students can make and learn about their well-being.

Q. How do you get through to students who don't like physical education or don't think it's important?

A. First, I am fortunate to work in a great district with great opportunities for professional development throughout the year. For me, I think it starts with always telling the students the 'WHY'. I always let them know WHY we are doing an activity or lesson, and hopefully that will help them see the big picture of fitness and health.

Second, as simple as this may sound, I think it's important for me to show my students that I care for them and provide extra encouragement for those that may not like physical education.

I have learned how important the class climate can be for those unmotivated students. I always strive to establish a positive, encouraging environment for my classes as I try to talk to everybody in my class on a daily basis while constantly using technology to administer quick surveys and questions to check in on them.

Third, the one-size-fits-all model needs to be eliminated. I offer differentiated instruction on a consistent basis so I'm meeting the variety of students. Do I expect every student to run a 7-minute mile? No. Just like District 207 doesn't expect every student to be in AP Biology.

So I take their current fitness level and give them choices to improve their current level. For some students, running two laps without stopping is high-five worthy, while others may need to be pushed to run four. I help them set goals that are specific to their needs and let them work in groups with like ability.

Q. How has physical education curriculum changed over the years, and what ways do you embrace and enact those changes in your classes?

A. The biggest change in our district has been moving to a fitness-based approach over the last 10 years. Physical activity is the key to what we do, so instead of focusing all of our efforts on sport-specific pedagogy, our district is trending to a more fitness-based approach, which is exciting.

I feel more valued as an educator when I can get the students active on a daily basis, teach them about fitness and see the individual improvement throughout the school year.

There has been a stronger emphasis on peer-to-peer teaching, data collecting and assessments, which has pushed me to change my approach to P.E for the better. I now can see, read and hear what my students are understanding and doing in my classes from these changes.

Q. Besides taking part physical activity, in what ways do your students learn about the importance of being healthy and staying fit?

A. We have daily learning targets and goals that emphasize principles of exercise that we want our students to understand. My students have quarterly assessments that check their understanding of the principles of exercise that they take on their Chromebooks. Having the data from these assessments allows me to evaluate their understanding and I can adjust my teaching going forward.

Students also read quarterly articles that emphasize the importance of health and fitness for life. You always learn more by doing it, so sometimes my most effective strategy for learning about fitness is doing it, debriefing about it and checking their understanding the next day.