Technology in Physical Education and Coaching

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Technology in Physical Education and Coaching
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Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I would like to see smart rooms in PE. Rooms where student’s vital signs can be tracked and recorded as they participate in physical activities. This would be a great way to grade weather the student is elevating their hear rate and can be graded on participation and effort. In addition, students can learn how the intensity of an exercise affects an individual’s heart rate, calories burned, and whether or not they benefited from the exercise and effort they put out.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

While this is not an original idea of mine I thought it was at the cutting edge of our ever expanding tech.ability.
A recent article in the Boston Globe mentioned that a local company was developing research into gaining better insight into concussions and what happens during the point of impact.
The basics of the idea was using the same motion sensors used for Nintendo games which are placed inside a football helmet. when a player gets hit on the helmet a signal is transmitted back to a data collector on the sideline that gives information on the force of the hit, the direction it came from what happen to the head and neck and the number of hits received during the game to the head area.
As an Athletic Trainer who has to constantly monitor and worry about these conditions, it would be a graet feedback/monitoring device so that I could preempt and take immediate action with the players as there is a macho element of refusing to acknowledge the potential seriousness of concussions. such technology would also give insight intot the type of hits that can cause more seious conditions.
This system is still at a testing stage with some high schools and colleges and is beginning to provide some interesting results. The cost? A mere $55000 per helmet!

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

It would be great to position 25-30 video cameras (with accompanying TV monitors) around the gymnasium with a student at each camera. During the lesson, the student would perform the required skills in front of the camera. After performing the skill...the student would receive feedback through the TV monitors regarding their performance. Feedback would include what they are doing right, what needs improvement, and offer suggestions (step-by-step) for improvement.
This may sound silly...but I would like the GPS and trasmitter idea to be used in Frisbees. I implement a Frisbee golf unit at the end of the year. It would be great for students to track their Frisbees using the GPS and recording their scores based on the transmitters. The GPS could be programmed for specific course boundaries, obstacles, etc. Every time the student would throw the Frisbee, the trasmitter would record shots, penalties, and holes. All of this information would be sent to the computer lab for students to view or print out at the end of the lesson.

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I like your suggestion about frisbee golf. I also have that unit and that would be something they would really like.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I wish we had technology to find golf balls during our golf unit. Often times the grass is so long that we spend more time looking for the balls rather than hitting them. Each student could have their own "ball finder" which would be great. I would also like some device all my cross country runners could wear so we could monitor exactly where they are during our runs. It is so difficult to know how each person is doing. I would really like a device the students could wear when they are biking to monitor their skills and whether they are following all the rules!!! Maybe they could have a little shock when they don't stop at stop signs...maybe that would make them always follow the rules.

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I could sure use that golf ball finder every Saturday. Seriously, this could be something that might be financially worthwhile as it would cut down on your supplies budget for the golf unit. Also technology that would allow you to know where all your runners are is probably something that will be available soon. This type of personal tracking has tremendous ramifications in terms of liability.

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I like your ideas, especially the one for cross-country. It would be great to not only know where they are but know heart rate and distance covered and time spent on the workout. I coach middle school cross-country and we have about 75 kids on the team and it would be good to know for sure when everyone has returned from a run as well.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

The idea I have deals with the game of Volleyball and the development of a smart court. A court needs to be developed that contains millions of sensors that are built into the court flooring. A sensor needs to then be placed inside the ball. During play when the ball hits the floor the court can sense where the ball contacted the court and determine if the ball was in bounds or out of bounds. This would allow you to eliminate the use of line judges and make the game run much smoother. There would be no questioning whether a ball was in or out.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

What a great idea! Balls with sensors....I would love to have that in Field Hockey.....a laser line at the goal line and a sensor inside the ball to set off a light (like ice hockey) when the ball is in the goal....there have been MANY missed goals in the 15 years I have been coaching field hockey!!

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I am also a track and field enthusiast. After reading your ideas about the shot put and the 10,000, it got me thinking about other events. I am a field event coach at my high school. I think it would be a great idea to have a virtual cross bar in the high jump and pole vault. It would save a lot of time resetting the cross bar. Officials and contestants would see some type of laser across the two uprights. They would be required to clear the laser. If they didn't an alarm would sound, signifying a missed attempt. The same could be used for the long jump. As soon as a jumper completed their jump a robotic arm would extend down and across the pit (shooting a laser across the sand to measure the distance of the jump. - On a different note - how about walking into the PE class of the future. You walk in tune into a video/CD program intoducing you to the lesson of the day. You insert a computer chip into you shoe and it keeps track of our movement and actions for the period. At the end of the lesson you turn in your chip to be analyzed by a teacher. - crazy stuff!

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

Mark,

I have thought about the virtual cross bar for many years and you are the first to bring up the point. I coach the pole vault at a local college and think this would save so much time and would be extremely accurate with less attemps. Not sure if the price tag would be too high or not.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I can envision a basketball coach using video technology during timeouts to help support specific teaching points. It would be cool if each player could pick up a notebook-type computer at the beginning of each timeout and be able to view a piece of game footage that reinforces the teaching point the coach is trying to get across. For example: The coach may be telling his kids that one opponent is overplaying in certain situations so a "backdoor" cut would be in order. Now they all can see exactly what he was talking about. Ideally, he or an assistant can prep each computer to be ready to play the relevant video in an easy manner.

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

John, I think that is an outstanding idea. Most basketball players are more worried about catching their breath and getting a drink during a time out. Listening to the coach is the last thing on there mind. I think the computer/notebook would keep their focus a bit more then a coach screaming instructions to them. You should send a suggestion letter to the NBA.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

Since test scores on many of our students in the mile run were very poor, improving endurance is a goal of mine. Consequently, I would like to create a total cardio room. This room would be equipped with numerous exercise bikes, tread mills, and elliptical machines. Students would automatically be hooked up to a heart monitor. At the end of each class, data would be recorded immediately in a student's individual portfolio.
Each machine would be equipped with a video screen where the students would interact with video technology. Students would have to be active to increase their score or progress to the next level. The more active they were the higher their score. Imagine what this activity would do to their endurance level?

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

In field hockey it would be interesting to monitor the heart rate of each player to determine their conditioning and output during a game. If their water retention could be monitored dehydration would be eliminated and if bone and muscle scanning could evaluate the body before games the weak areas could be taped to reduce injuries. It would be wonderful to have sensors on the field that could be used for practice to work on accuracy and control. Sensors between offensicve and defensive players would allow practice in positioning during a game. It would also be interesting to set up virtual reality games with players from other teams or countries to practice playing against each other even if you couldn't actually travel to the source. The posibilities are endless!

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

My project for the future would be Finger Print Recognition for Physical Education Lockers. One problem that we have in our physical education classes is time. Each period is thirty nine minutes long. Students take three to five minutes to change and get into the gymnasium. They also need three to five minutes at the end of the period to get back into their school clothes. This only allows twenty nine minutes for class. If we could reduce the time in the locker room it would allow more time in the class. The biggest issue in the locker room is opening the lockers and taking attendance. In order to reduce the time in the locker room we could designed the lockers to read the students finger print, so it would open the locker and let our E-school plus program know who is absent.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

It is hard not to think about some of the ideas from the text when answering this question. Many of the technological advancements writeten about in the text would be incredible to have in my class some day. I suppose this would be my ideal set-up for my PE class:

Students enter the gym and pass through some kind of scanner. The scanner obviously recognizes that they are presnt today, but also measures their current "state." A quick readout to my handheld tells me who is tense, who is tired, who seems malnourished, and who did not take their ADHD medication last period like they were supposed to. This information that is scanned for each student then creates a modified workout for that student based on their current fitness level and how they are feeling today. The student who hasn't had breakfast again today and can barely keep their eyes open may be asked to do things in a slightly different way in class today. We don't want them to be lazy, but rather want to individualize their workout today to make it effective.
Once everyone has been scanned and gets their workout printout, they proceed to their activity. While they work out aerobically, heart rate information is contstantly being sent to my handheld at 15 second intervals. The same information is of course being sent to the student's heart rate monitor. This way, both the student and myself can give an extra push to their effort if necessary.
For students who might be srength training today, their "monitor" tells them each time they lift if they are lifting to fatigue, exhaustion, or nowhere near either one of them. These monitors help the student to lift at an intensity that will help them to build muscle most effectively.
At the end of everyone's workout, the information from thier monitor is automatcially downloaded when they take it off. While they wait for class tomorrow, the computer software will not only take into account how they feel tomorrrow to design their wokrout, but will also take into account the workout from today. This way, subsequent workouts will always be adjusted properly to ensure that students are getting the most out of each exercise session.
This would be very cool.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I found your examples close to my heart since I am a Track and Field coach and a Cross Country coach. My thoughts would be to put a heart rate monitor on each Cross Country runner with a GPS device inside that would monitor the progress and vitals of each runner. This idea came to me because of an incident that happened in Maine a few years ago where a runner went into cardiac arrest and fell into the woods. The meet was a large one and this runner was not missed for quite some time. It had a fatal ending.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

In physical education I would love to have the ability to record physical activity and nutritional habits of each student whether in class or at home. Instead of having to write down the information on paper, Caloric Intake vs. Caloric Outtake, the students can just go through the day doing what they normally do not worrying if they missed writing something down. It would record every step they take, every food they eat, and every drink they consume. It would differentiate the intensity of the activity (steps) such as playing a pickup game of basketball, swimming for two hours at the YMCA, or taking dance lessons at the theatre. This could be done by something they wear that would send the information to a computer system that stores the data. When they come into school the next day the physical educator will be able to see who maintains a healthy lifestyle out of class in relationship to those who play video games and eat junk food all the time.

As for coaching, I would love to have football equipment that would record the statisital data of each game via instant technology. When a tackle is made it is recorded into a computer on the sideline. When the running back breaks a tackle and sprints down the sideline 35 yards the data is recorded. When the quarterback throws the ball down field and it is dropped by the receiver the data is recorded. When a kicker makes a 40 yard field goal the stat coach knows on the sideline. The equipment will also let the coach know which players take breaks throughout the game sending vitals to the sidelines. The coach will have the ability to know who needs a break and who is in top condition. I could go on and on with this one but I will stop because I think you get the idea.

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I would love to have the stats at a game done. what a weekend chore that is. Good call on that one!

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I am going Nano tech with this. I played college football and found it cool that you could swallow a thermometer and the trainers could scan your core temperature at practice. With nanotechnology we will be able to have our vital blood chemistry and heart rate and body fat calculated at will 24 hours a day. Diabetes and other conditions will be kept in check

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

That is awesome. I had not heard of an internal thermometer. With the deaths of some athletes during extreme heat what a great piece of technology. The idea of monitoring diabetes and other health conditions would be great also and may actual cut the cost of some health care. If a person can monitor more accurately their levels there could be less trips to emergency rooms and possibly less dependence on medications.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

This has been something I have thought about for many years. I coach college track and have coached high track for the better part of twenty five years. My idea is as follows.....

The pole vault and high jump seems to take forever at many meets because of the amount of jumps each athlete takes and misses, etc.
If we had a standard that shot an electronic beam field across to the other standard so when the athlete performed their jump, we could determine their highest height cleared on a computer that was set right by the standards. That way each athlete could perform say a total of 5 jumps and then be done. I would assume each athlete would be able to complete a least one jump without the "NH" attached to their name in the results column. Also, when an athlete performs a monster jump, they are rewarded for the actually height and not where the bar is set. The athlete then would be free to go and compete in another event and we would not have to wait for him/her to return and waste a consider amount of time to raise the bar.
I wish I had the knowhow and the expertise to invent this as it sure would make the event go smoother and quicker.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

Ok, for my teaching area I have always wanted to do portfolios. I think it'd be great if they were on-line portfolios. Portfolios take a lot of time and I only have 20 minutes in a class period for grades k-5. I would love to have an individual electronic dictating and data collecting devices that would download every students individual information/voice journaling to their very own on-line portfolios. I would like to start these portfolios in Kindergarten and continue them on through 5th grade. They will then be passed on to the junior high when the 5th graders move on. My IEDDCD's (Individual Electronic Dictating and Data Collecting Devices) would be no bigger than an Ipod Nano. They would be a GPS and voice recorder. They would easily be plugged into a computer for easy downloading to each students portfolio. The portfolios would be able to be accessed by teachers, students, and parents. They would not be able to be altered in anyway. The data collected would be true and there would be no way of cheating the system. Sounds GREAT, uh?

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I would like to be able to measure how much a soccer player runs during a game, and how their heart rate changes during a match.
And from an athletic training perspective:

1. Sensors in FB helmets that alert AT staff when a player receives a hit that could cause
a concussion.

2. A pill you take to track body temp to prevent heat illness.

3. Impact baseline computer testing for concussion management.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

As I am reading through some of the ideas other students have, they are very cool.

One thought I have is, since some of our society is so unwilling to get up and move because they'd rather watch TV or play video games, maybe we should go and build gyms and fitness centers based on certain population's interest. For example: if we have a computer gamer playing a game maybe we could install certain sensors that would enable the person be in the game itself, such as hunting, bowling fishing, seeking enemies (and I hate to say this) and destroying them. Because of the sensors they would have to move to get certain places, to do certain actions (duck, jump, move left/right, pick something up...etc.). I know there are some bikes attached to TV monitors, and the new Nintendo Wii is out there, but perfecting it and actually make the students do a physical activity, score points and so on, there's much work to be done.

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

The closet thing to your idea there is, is probably the Nintendo Wii. It is not quit the same thing as virtual hunting but at least the players are up and moving a little bit. Now the makers of Wii have developed a fitness version. The players are actually up and moving on dance pads and sensors. Pretty cool for the unmotivated. I would like to have access to the dance craze game you see in the arcade. Dance Nation or something would be great as and after school activity.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

Along with being a physical educator I am also a baseball coach. It is in baseball where I have come up with a couple ideas. First I would like to have a micro transmitter and GPS system inside a baseball. I would like to know the peak velocity, height of release, rotation, speed loss over distance out of the throwers arm. Also it could record the angle of trajectory of a bat while recording velocity, spin rate and direction. Also, there could be placed specific monitoring points along the field of play to determine if a struck ball is foul or fair. Instead of instant replay the baseball could eliminate human error without slowing down the game. There are many places a system could be beneficial in baseball. It would help the game play itself, along with the training methods of the players.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

While coaching a football game, coaches will be able to have a portable hand held Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine. If a player gets hurt they can scan the injured area, and the computer will diagnose the injury at the click of a button. Then, the computer will identify if surgery is needed and evaluate the players vital signs. If the computer identifies that that it’s a serious injury it will automatically contact all emergency personal that is needed for that particular injury or situation. As we all know injuries in football can be catastrophic to a team especially if its your star player. If a coach can get the results immediate of that particular player’s injury then he can manage his team accordingly.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

When I return to my office after my power walking class, I take out my PDA and begin to download information on to my lap top computer. Each of my students were equiped with a device that kept a record of their heart rate and distance covered. The information was immediately relayed to my PDA. Once the information is on the lap top I can sync it onto our departments webpage where students and parents alike can log on and look at the data. The page also can give advice on diet and exercise and whether today's workout along with previous workouts have been adequate to reach student established fitness goals.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I would like to see a program that allows students to receive immediate feedback from their heart rate monitor. Students could see their numbers some how and they could make adjustments to their level of intensity.
Another idea would be for athletic events that require throwing an object. Within the object a computer chip would measure the distance the object was thrown from the time it left the hand to where it landed.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

Reading Instructor Snyder's comment on using a GPS chip in the shot put made me think of something I've thought about many times. Being a football coach and a fan of both professional and college football, I have always wondered why they don't put some kind of electronic chip in the football that can tell the ref's when the ball crosses the goal line. This could even be applied to first downs if the entire field were outfitted with some kind of tracking system. It is so hard to tell sometimes when the ball "crosses the plane" of the goal line. If this were to happen, every time the ball were to reach the goal line, a light could go off just like in a hockey game.

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

Mike, I totally agree with you on the chip in the football idea. Being a football coach myself, I hate standing on the sideline and watching my player fight for a first down only to have a ref come in and mark the ball a yard and a half behind where the runner went down.

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6), Adam

Adam had a good idea about putting a chip inside a baseball, similar to the idea I have about doing the same thing with a football. He mentioned the same concept as I did, using it to tell whether a ball is fair or fall. But he also had a great idea about measuring velocity, spin and other things, as well as the angle of trajectory of a bat. Being a softball coach, I now dream about these things too.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

Soccer has always been 'my' sport and I always heard growing up, that heading the ball was harmful from non soccer people, of course. When watching the very competitive games, I really wonder how hard the soccer ball is when these elite players head the ball off a huge punt from the goalie. If there was a way to measure the amount of pressure a person feels, I would be very interested in that. Sticking with the soccer theme, I would like to have a speedometer on the soccer ball itself. That way you can see how hard and fast the ball is being kicked throughout the entire game. I think it would display how amazing some of the goalies are, to save a ball that is coming 90mph!!

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

Some ideas that I think would be useful for tehnology in PE are:
Either a fingerprint or retina scanner on lockerroom doors and lockers. The scan on the lockerroom doors would send a log to a computer. This way you know who entered the lockerroom and it could help to prevent theft. Assigning lockers would be much easier as well and students would not have to remember combinations. I would like to make timing any running event much easier. A transmitter attached to a students sneaker would be triggered by a sensor at the start/finish line. Every time a lap was complete the transmitter could send lap times to a handheld. Once the student finished, the total time would be registered to the handheld. I would also like to see some sort of laser field over a long jump pit. When the student or athlete landed, the laser field would automatically send the distance jumped directly to a scoreboard or handheld. Another idea would be to have a gps transmitter on a student when doing an orienteering course. A fingerprint scan or retina scan could be used as a marker to let the teacher know if the student was going to the correct points on the orienteering course. The scan could be sent using wireless technology to a computer or handheld. Being a football coach, I have to be very careful during summer practices, so I would like to have an Under Armor type shirt, for every player, that has sensors that can read a players vitals. Any issue with a player and the shirt sends a signal to alert a trainer. This would reduce or eliminate the number of heat related deaths to football players. Using the same technology I would like to see sensors put in football helmets that would record Gforce hits to the head. If a player takes or delivers a hit that registers high the transmitter would again send a signal to a trainer so that player could be checked out.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

Our school district is fortunate to own a 90 acre segment of property consisting of open fields, pine groves along with large plots of under brush. The area has walking trails throughout the property along with a river bordering the entire northern side. I walk our elementary students all over this area on a regular basis during the spring and fall; the walks usually take about 25 minutes. Our district calls this area “Our back yard”. I am thinking of an activity called “GPS TAG” or “Techno Tag”. Teams will try to collect all possible data on any and all the other teams on the playing field (Our back yard) during their game time. Teams must stay on official school property. Equipment available will consist of laser range finders; high powered glasses; digital camera or camcorder; satellite imagery; high power sound detection; cell phones; heat detection technology; laptop or hand held computers; pedometers; heart rate monitors. Team score involves utilization of all available equipment; presentation of data collected; use of technology in presentation; debriefing of other teams on the playing field during that time. The rule and regulations of this activity are open to the growth of technology under the rules of fair play.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I can imagine several applications that may or may not become a reality. One would be fouls during a basketball game. Players would be equipped with body sensors that would register whether or not they came in contact with another player or not and if that contact constituted a foul. Also, out of bounds calls would be easy with pressure sensors or infrared technology placed under or on the out-of-bounds lines. During volleyball games sensors or some kind of device would be placed in the ball to determine whether or not the ball hit the floor during play and if so the ball would deflate on contact and play would stop. Same out of bounds technology as in basketball with the ball deflating when it hit out of bounds. this would be good for both P.E. and coaching, a scanner that could scan an injury and give appropriate care for that injury and whether or not to allow an athlete or student to continue playing. This would take the guess work out of deciding whether or not to allow an athlete to continue playing even though they are injured and leave the decision up to the individual to ignore the decision of the scanner or not.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I think it would be great in baseball to use a ball that is implanted with a GPS device. This would be able to tell how fast the ball is pitched, how fast it comes off the bat, and how far the ball traveled. Also in baseball, it would be great if there were sensors under and around the foul lines to know for sure if a ball landed in fair or foul territory.

Also, this past year quarterbacks in the NFL had a radio in their helmet to recieve play calls from the sideline. Although probably expensive, I would like to see this in high school.

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

Cat,

I also coach soccer and like your idea of having a soccer ball that can measure how hard the ball hits a players head during a header. Having a ball that can measure velocity I also like, especially for evaluating players during tryouts.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I think a cool idea to bring technology into the PE setting would be to attach a GPS monitor and a pedometer to a student. The student can design their own course that they are going to walk or run. After the walk/run the student records the data from the pedometer and the GPS. This data is then taken to the classroom were they use the data during their math class to determine the mileage covered. The GPS Maps could be printed out with the mileage data. This data could be used across the curriculum. Compare and contrast, graphing etc. Literacy standards could be used to have students write a story that describes their walk/run. Primary classes could read story follow the map making a treasure hunt of the GPS course.

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I like that idea too. What about making a orientering course for the students using the GPS and the pedometers but adding a prize of some sort at the end. This could get students excited about finding a treasure and then they could also see how far they went and would probably be surprised by how far they actually walked! The students could also make up their own course using GPS coordinates and make it a challenge to see which team or individual made it to all the checkpoints and back to the start first. I really do like this idea Rody and hope that it becomes a reality for you and your students.

Kathy

Re: Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

what a great idea! I already do a modified orienteering class, I will add the pedometer wearing to it this year as well as collaborating with our earth science class for GPS use.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

Rody, I also like this idea and suggested using technology such as RFID tags so that it is nonintrusive and simply fits to their shoelaces.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

I think if we could find away to alert the referees and players immediately when a ball is out. For example Tennis, volleyball, Baseball or pretty much any sport that has boundry lines, goals, and endzones. This would take a lot of arguing about weather the peron was in or out,if a light or sound went off when the person stepped out, scored a goal, was the ball in or out, and if the ball crossed the goal line. Maybe even have lines the show exactly where the player or the ball went out or crossed the line. I'm thinking of tennis or volleyball where the ball can be traveling pretty fast and sometime hard to see if it was in or not. Also it would eliminate line judges. I don't know if it is possible, but I hate waisting time watching players and referees argue about if they cross the line or if they were in or out.

I guess we will have to wait and see,
Eric

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

One thing I would like to see is for coaching during all softball games is to have a radar gun for the pitchers to see hhow fast they throw every pitch. Now I know they have this for the big leagues but for HS I would love to see it. In volleyball it would be great if the ball had a sensor on it to help judge whether the ball was in or out on close plays.
In PE when doing our gold unit students can where a suit that would help them monitor their stroke and form. We can record there movement and let them know what they need to work on. This can be put up on a screen so everyone can see what they need to fix.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

For team scoring in wrestling tournaments as soon as a wretler earns points on a certain mat for a win, there should be a big score board in the arena that automatically updates the team scores so fans can see it as the tournament progresses.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

If I could dream how I would like a physical education class to be on any given day with the use of extraordinary technology it would look like this.
My gym would be a “smart environment”, and as students enter it instantly attendance would be taken, and the time that students entered would be recorded. Instantly that information would be available for parents to view. Along with that information parents could pull up a website that would allow them to watch their student in physical education class at any time any day. Once the students were all together in the gym I would instantly get information on every student. That information would include weight and heart rate. As we begin the skill for the day the “smart environment” would continue to monitor each students stats for the day. How hard they worked and what their heart rate was would be monitored and at the end of the period the data would be stored for my use, but it would also be sent to parents for their curiosity. That is the first aspect of the “smart environment”; keeping parents and teachers informed of personal data on every student.
The second aspect of the “smart environment” would be to help with actual sport situations. The room would act as its own referee. For example if a game is being played on a basketball court, a computer could monitor double dribble, or stepping out of bounds, or keeping score when the ball goes in the hoop. The PE teacher would still be necessary for fouls, but anything that the floor can sensor would be able to be regulated by the computer. This would also work for volleyball, or even racquetball. The “smart environment” could also be outside. A computer could instantly call balls and strikes, or could monitor the number of yards before being tackled, or even time a runner in track. To summarize, this technology could make monitoring an activity be more accurate and help with close calls.
My favorite part of this is the monitoring by parents. If parents could monitor their children at school, or if a teacher could show parents how their kids are at school, I believe that students would behave, and try harder. Classroom management would not take up as much time, and teachers would have more control.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

That is an amazing idea. I love that the students would be accounted for as soon as they entered the gym,and that the parents had the ability to be aware of exactly what their child is doing in PE. I think it would not only keep the students accountable, but the teachers too. It would also cut out a lot of down time, like taking attendace, making sure everyone changed. The students would have a daily report on their progress and maybe would give them goals and the motivation to work toward those fitness goals.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

Thinking outside the box. I would like a device that would count curl-ups for students ( this device would only count the good ones), it would beep if they did it correctly. Kids seem to cheat on these pulling on jeans to get up or using elbows to get up.

Also, it would be nice to get a heart rate monitor that is easy to use for 3-5 grade and able to download on the computer.

Re: Discussion Number Six (6)

My perspective will be based on my role as a high school soccer coach. I would like to somehow have the games recorded and analyzed for me to go back and assess my players and the game itself. I would like the technology to analyze where the shots are taken, location of goals scored, player with most shots and penalities, goalie saves and goals scored on them, time of possession in the three areas of the pitch and heart-rates during the games. I can utilize this information for future practices and games, player development, and assessments of my players.

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