TGFT! (Thank God for Twitter)

Well, here it is. One year later. To sum up my first year as a PhD student I quote:

"I have never been this connected and disconnected at the same time!"

I have many reasons for saying this but let's start with the positives:

By emerging myself in the world of web 2.0 tools and free Internet Social Media Networks, I have met people from all over the world with interests that are all over the map. After one year I have now created my own personal learning network with people that belong in different groups depending upon my interests. These groups are: Physical Education professionals, Education Technology experts, and fitness fanatics. I even now have people who belong in all 3 groups. How did I do this?

One word: twitter! Really, I believe that I learned the most from building this network and reading posts (or tweets) from the people I follow.
I think that it all started with me looking for the right people to connect with and once I did that, a new door opened. One of the first professionals I followed must have been @courosa, a professor of educational technology & media at the Faculty of Education, University of Regina. As I started following Alec's posts, I followed up on a lot of links and no sooner I started I began to learn the inside of the web 2.0 world. After that I started following a lot of people in educational technology, which followed @courosa and learned even more. Twitter is really my classroom and it has proven its value. I have used twitter as my news reader (even though I still use google reader as well). I also notice that twitter, or rather, the people I follow are my motivators throughout my journey in grad school and as a person. I have several people on twitter who use the same fitness programs or are fanatic runners and reading their posts on being active motivates me when I am down and vica versa (at least I hope so).
Now about the disconnect portion of the quote! Perhaps it is me, my behavior, my attitude or the choices I made this past year but I do not feel I am at all connected with the people I work with and for. Being new is always challenging, that I know from experience but it usually is not this challenging. I connect easily with people, at least I thought so. Throughout my first year I have attempted to find a mentor, advisor, friend, guide, whatever you want to call the person who you confide in when you have questions about school, research, teaching and life. Joannie was there for my at the University of Manitoba. I don't have a Joannie here and I feel that not having a mentor has greatly affected the way that I learned this year. Not having an advisor has forced me to explore my research on my own and has created many obstacles.
So, thank God for twitter! As my learning network grows, I grow and I am grateful for all the wonderful people I have met in my virtual learning space.
Thank you to all my twitter friends!
oh and if you are reading this and you are not on twitter, get on it and follow me @helenabaert!
Have a look at all the people who follow me.

Get your twitter mosaic here.

My first ultra!

Ultra Running! My first 50K

After one year of training and failing to train, my year goal finally arrived! Running the OT 50K!
Let me provide a little history. Ever since I was younger, about 16, I wanted to learn a new physical activity every year and so I did: scuba diving, dance, archery, down hills ski racing and last year I got a little taste of cycling and trail running. I never liked running and I believe it is because I simply got bored too quickly when I ran on the road. Coming to Arkansas changed that completely. I met my boyfriend who was into ultra running and the notion of being in constant movement surrounded by nature was something that sparked my interest.
Off course I started running too fast too soon and got injured two times. Once I ran with a blister and overcompensated on the other side and last year in September after pacing a friend for 32 miles (mainly walking), I received an IT issue as a reward! Having a IT band problem is not fun and I ended up having to stop running for 2 months only to start running again very slowly in the new year. The first time I saw my boyfriend run an ultra was last year at the OT 50. He set his personal and course record, running the 50K in 4 hours and 16 minutes. I seem to think I had something to do with that ;) But seeing him run, watching everyone cheer each other on and feeling at home in that warm and supportive environment made me want to do it as well. So I said next year is my turn! I set my goal that OT 50 in 2009 would be my first 50K and kept with it. I started really training in February and tried to work up to running a long 20 mile trail run but my longest run on single track trails ended up being like 17 miles. Before this race I did run two other shorter races to get ready: a 20 and 25K, two of which I did fairly well in and gave me confidence to try the 50K. As April rolled around, I realized I had a lot on my plate: the AAHPERD conference including 2 presentations, my mom's arrival and visit for 2 weeks and the OT 50K! I kind of feel that April has been a continuous marathon but keeping myself busy kept my spirits high. I had a wonderful learning experience at AAHPERD and had an amazing time with my mom while she was here. I said good bye last Wednesday evening and rested on Thursday and Friday before the race.
I ended up buying a Nathan race vest and just walking around the block once to see what it felt like. A friend had one and recommended it to me. During races I always end up with stomach problems and loosen my hydration pack that sits around my waist with a result of it bouncing around when I am running. That really hinders my run so I thought this race vest may just do the trick and it did! I hardly felt it was there.Before the race I picked up the necessary nutrition supply I needed which included:
- 8 baggies of sport beans
- banana for before the run
- chocolate ensure for before the run
- chocolate milk for after the run
I also had packed 3 carb boom gels for in the first hours of the race.


I have a difficult time eating throughout the race and needed 200 calories at least each hour so eating the sport beans allowed me to stay on top of my nutrition.
I was extremely nervous the day before the race and took half a dosage of a sleeping aid which made me sleep 8 hours before the race. This was awesome as I really felt rested. The race began at 6 am so we had to get up at 4:30 am in order to be ready to run by 6. The weather conditions were not that great and when picking up my race package on Friday evening I was informed that the Pinnacle mountain hike was excluded due to the rain. That was disappointing to me because the 1000 feet climb was the biggest challenge of all and I was ready to try it! However, when we arrived in the morning, there was no rain in sight so the race went on as planned and we all had to do the 100o feet climb! The temperature was amazing, just perfect. I was not cold at all. I wore a T-shirt and skort and was ready at 5:45 am.
The great thing about running an ultra trail race is that people who are at the start either run the race or assist in the race. It is not like a marathon where you have 100s of people watching you run. I really like that. In fact, the majority of the race I ran by myself. I ran all alone with not one person in sight for most of the time and that is the neat thing about trail running.
Another great thing about running the OT 50K as my first ultra is that many of the people helping and running in the race I got to know through other racing events. The OT had 4 aid stations but as it was an out and back you actually had 7 aid stations. They are all between 3 ad 4 miles apart so you can supply yourself with water and food.
At the 3 days of Sylamo (a 3 day race: 50K, 50M, 20K) I was able to work at an aid station and loved it. I admire those people who work the aid stations because you stand around for a long time, up to 12 hours at times or more depending on a race. The volunteers did an amazing job!
I usually do not pick up a lot at an aid station in the fear I will get stomach problems so I stick with my routine: 1 piece of banana, a cup of coke with salt and refuel on water. I rarely pick up anything else. I was not used to running with the race vest and as it was difficult to estimate the amount of water in the pack I stopped a lot to get water and lost time. Next time I know I can get by with refueling only once as I think it holds 2 liters.
As people gathered by the start, we did not wait too long before Chrissy (race director) said to go run. It is funny because we don't all sprint away but slowly get going, some even starting with a short walk. I had a plan in mind. As I did not know what to expect, but had ran several pieces of the course, I decided to run the road part (2 to 3 miles) using a 10 min mile speed or something faster like that. I notice that if I start off slow, I never get going later in the run so i decided to run at a decent pace and slow down later. I ran the road part fairly well, I did not feel as long as it felt in the past when I ran it. The surprise came when I hit Pinnacle Mountain. I had hiked it several times but running the 3.5 miles before hand took its toll and that hike was extremely difficult for me but I just told myself to put one foot in front of the other and I made it!
When I was huffing and puffing on the top I thought to myself, great, only 26 miles more to go!
Going down Pinnacle scares me so I was focused on the boulders and placing my feet correctly.
The miles that came after went ok, the longest part was between Vista and Turn Around. Previously I thought I ran that part but I never did it correctly so it was much longer as I expected it to be. Anyway, coming at Turn Around I was happy to refuel and run home. My stomach held strong until about mile 20 when I did feel kind of heavy, loaded, bloated and all of the above. At that time I came across a smaller aid station manned by Bob, a trailrunner that I knew from previous races. He is always so motivating and last year he told me when I ran my first ultra he would give me a sticker that said "ultramarathoner". He knew I tended to have stomach issues as we talked about that during practice runs for Traveller. So when I arrived he asked me how my stomach was and when I said so and so he said: "drink this V8 and take some rock salt with you!" I did what I was told and that V8 did wonders. I felt alive again! Together with the rock salt my stomach settled down and I felt good about running again.
After running for 4.5 hours I started to feel it in my legs. At that time I thought about my students and the fact that I made myself accountable to reach that goal by getting them involved. So I said to myself: "You can do this, you are not a quitter, just one foot in front of the other." After 5 hours my mind started to wander and I did flip my ankle about 7 times in the race overall but kept going. At times I thought maybe I was just going to quick, after all, it was my first one and it was about finishing. My goal was to finish under 7 hours and I was going to make that. The last 10 miles were the toughest. I ran through the last aid station and when they asked if I needed anything, I just said: "no, just want to finish" and ran on. I hit the road part and turned to music to motivate myself. At that time, with 3 miles to go, I knew I would make it. I would make it under 7 hours and I would for the first time complete an ultra. I got a little emotional at that time and was quite sore but kept going. I crossed the finish line to see my boyfriend and was extremely happy that I accomplished this highly physical task. I was exhausted, everything was shaking but I was very happy. I ended up finishing with a time of 6 hours 27 minutes and 50 seconds. I was 3rd female and 9th overall and was really happy with the result. If I train hard, I can try to aim to finish under 6 hours next year but I know I pushed it and gave it my all, physically and mentally.
Running an ultra is one thing, walking the next day is another. Apparently this gets easier every time you run ultras but as I woke up the next morning I felt like I was run over by a truck. Everything hurts and 12 hours later everything still hurts. Any movement is difficult and driving from Little Rock to Fayetteville was a shore! I actually needed to physically lift my leg with my hands when I had to push the gas. Good thing I have an automatic!
Anyway, the pain is nothing compared to the experience of yesterday. It was one of the best days of the year and I am so glad the OT was my first 50! It was really the only goal I had set forth as I was not sure if I could do it but as people say, if you put your mind to something, you can move mountains!
What's next? I kind of really want to run the 3 days of Syllamo next year but that may be out of my reach for another year. Perhaps a 50 miler next... who knows..

People from AAHPERD 2009

The AAHPERD National Conference 2009 was held in Tampa Bay, Florida this year. Before I went to the conference I had a few specific goals set:
1) Meet people in the area of PE Technology
2) Take the sessions that included technology
3) Receive feedback on my research and dissertation ideas
4) Excite other educators about the uses of wikis in Physical Education
How successful was I at meeting these goals? This post I will talk about the first goal.
I definitely met a lot of people in the area of Technology as it relates to PE. Here are a few examples (there are a lot more):

- Dr. Derrick Mears who presented on using Excel to observe and evaluate PE teachers. I will explore this topic in the near future in my supervision course. I had the pleasure of talking with Dr. Mears about my research when he visited my poster and I know he will be a wonderful resource for me. He already is a great role-model for me so I look forward to working with him. Dr. Mears is one of the professors that also attended the TGfU International Conference in 2008. In addition, He graduated from the University of Arkansas with a PhD in Kinesiology Pedagogy and a cognate in Educational Technology, the identical stream I am enrolled in.

- Dr. Sean Bulger: It is always a wonderful feeling to meet the educators, researchers, writers that one quotes in papers and I was thrilled to have Dr. Bulger visit my poster to provide some insights. His work has inspired me to continue on with my research as I feel it is valued and important to the success of new teachers. That first year of teaching PE can be very stressful and I truly think that using wikis to develop personal learning supports may assist in the smooth transition from college life to professional PE teacher.

- Dr. Brad Baine: Brad graduated from the University of Arkansas and when I first met him I knew right away that he was as passionate about learning and teaching PE as I am. Our paths crossed multiple time and I had the pleasure of assisting him with the creation of a wiki. He attended my session and provided some excellent feedback. In addition, he asked some questions that allow me to critically think and challenge my frame of mind regarding using wikis in my teaching. I appreciate that! I hope that in the near future I can work with him in some manner.

- Dr. Stephen Yang, Richard Coshott, Terry Grim: 3 Exergame evangalists that I have the priveledge of meeting several times during the conference. I met Richard "activegamer" on Twitter and looked him up during my first day there. I was familiar with exergaming but I never tried it out until the conference and found myself (for the first time), playing videogames because of the active component. All three showed me a variety of exergames that I never heard of and it is an area open for exploration in PE. The exhibition hall had a variety of boots dedicated to Technology and exercise and I had no idea how much fun it could be. Richard has now created a wiki that will focus on the implementation of exergames: www.exergaming.pbwiki.com . On the plane back, I was thinking how cool it would be to get a grant to buy some exergames and do research with PE teacher candidates as far as implementing it in a PE class. Next session I am taking a grant class so here I go!I am quite jealous of all the grad students Dr. Yang has in his exergame lab. I would love to be involved in his research!


- Dr. Bonnie Mohnsen: I wanted to meet Bonnie (author of teaching "Technology for Physical Education", website: http://www.pesoftware.com/) for a couple of years now so when I finally met her at AAHPERD, I was thrilled. I was able to explain my research ideas and receive some excellent feedback. Even though my main area is the exploration of wikis as an instructional tool for PE teacher candidates, I thought of another idea when I was at the conference. As NASPE came out with new standards, technology should be implemented in PETE programs. For my dissertation, I would like to survey the PETE programs to see whether Technology in PE is in fact being offered to PE teacher candidates. And if it is, in which capacity. In addition, how is the use of PE technology assessed? I think this may very well be a wonderful dissertation topic, even though I do and will keep going with my research in wikis and social networks. I also had the pleasure of meeting Leslie Waugh, an instructor at Midwestern State University, whoc would like to explore the assessment part. She provided some wonderful insights in technology in PETE during both poster sessions she presented. I look forward to working with her in the near future.

- Dr. John G. Helion: John was close to the first person at AAHPERD that talked to me. He is funny and great to talk to. He and I attended a few sessions together and it was always a delight. He created his own blog in one session and a wiki in my session. I hope our paths will cross very soon because I know I can learn a lot from him. I can tell he is one of those professors who truly cares and is passionate about teaching his students! Thanks John! It was truly a pleasure! :)

The AAHPERD conference has been a truly amazing yet exhausting experience for me. For the first time I felt I was going in the right direction and that is a good feeling to have. Specially when you have support from people who know what they are talking about! At this point, I wish I would have a little bit more money so I could attend a few more conferences because I feel I got so much out of it yet have so much more to learn. Next blog post I will continue my reflections of the AAHPERD conference 2009! Stay tuned!

Nutrition!

For the first time since I started my Doctorate program I was able to save up some money and to buy HEALTHY foods! I usually buy more processed foods as they are less expensive. I also buy and eat way too many carb products for that same reason. Bread, cereal is cheap!
So, this time I have a plan. I created my grocerie list which included many fruits (grapefruit, blueberries, bananas, apples and pears), veggies (frozen and fresh, broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, romain salad,..), nuts, eggs and fresh chicken (protein), nutri shakes like ensure (for mornings or before exercise or when I do not have a lot of time) and protein bars (for before and after runs).
My bill was around 70 dollars, which I have not spent in well, almost 7 months probably, or more. After my shopping spree, I went at home and used my gyminee nutrition tracker to add in my foods. Trying to get my calorie goals for the day. My main issue is that I eat too many carbs and not enough protein (usually do not eat chicken, but need it). I must also focus on more dietary fiber and healthy fats.
So as I started to add in the foods I had already, I realized this was not going to be easy! It is now 9:14 pm and I do not wish to eat anything more but I did not reach my calorie goal so I will wake up hungry probably. I am not hungry right now so that is good.
As I evaluate my foods, I need more protein and calories but without having more carbs. So I decided to look up protein and well, chicken, eggs. I did not know milk has protein, interesting, as I drink a lot of milk. I realize that even though I have had classes on nutrition and I teach nutrition in my classes, there is a lot I need to learn. So during the next 8 weeks, together with my students who are also using the Gyminee to track their workouts and nutrition, I will focus on eating healthy and meeting calorie goals, even if it takes some time and effort.
I just hope I can keep buying these foods, as that is probably the most challenging part... money. But I a confident I will do this and hope to learn tools to share with my students.
Another challenge is to make sure I can improve my eating AND enhance my running. So, I am reading up on that topic every day. If you have interesting books that discuss nutrition and running, I would love to hear from you!
And for anyone alse struggling with their nutrition, I recommend you track the foods you eat so you can see what you are putting into your body. Let's get control over our own body!
I have to live with it and I want to keep it for a long time! :)

Using video to enhance teaching skills of pre-service PE teachers

Second article review for my supervision class:

In the article “Systematic observation training for pre-service Physical Education teachers”, Behets (1993) stated that observation is a critical skill in effective teaching Physical Education (PE). Several other researchers advocate for the use of observation training as part of the PE teacher education programs (Bressan & Weiss, 1982; Metzler, 1986; Allison, 1987). While most studies focus on observing sport skills (Nielsen & Beauchamp, 1991; Allison, 1987; Hoffman, 1983), few studies illuminate the use of systematic observation methods on the skill of teaching itself (Carter et al., 1988; Belka, 1988; Allison, 1990). From these studies, results indicate that observing PE teaching is difficult but it can be learned and improved upon. Behets (1993) purpose to this study was to describe what pre-service PE teachers perceive before and after observation training.

This study employed the use of two observation systems: a behavior checklist used in schools for over 20 years and the MOST-PE system, as developed by Metzler in 1990. Fifty nine PE teacher candidates participated in this study in the final year of their program. The ten consecutive weeks began with a pre-test where the teacher candidates’ observation ability was assessed while they observed a videotaped lesson. Next, the students were familiarized with observational techniques and trained on using observation sheets. In the final session, a post test was administered using the same video lesson as in the pretest. In the pre-test, one group used the traditional behavior checklist, while a second group used a blank sheet. In the post-test, one group used the behavior checklist; a second group the blank sheet, and a third group was given the new behavior sheet. Descriptive data was presented to compare the observational skills of the teacher candidates. This study found that most pre-service teachers focused on teacher behavior more often than student behavior in the beginning of their program. During the post test, more statements on student behavior were reported. In addition, the use of a checklist during their observations proved to be useful in the enhancement of the student teachers’ ability to observe more effectively as the checklist helped them focus.

Personally, this study did not only indicate the importance of using of systematic approach to teaching how to observe in PE, but also indicated that the use of video taped lessons may be beneficial in pre-service internships. Intern teachers are usually observed by the mentor teachers and at times by the university supervisor. However, as to my knowledge, the teachers rarely have the opportunity to observe themselves. Teaching pre-service teachers about systematic observation skills and using a video to record their lessons may prove to be very beneficial for the student teacher. By using a video recording, the teacher candidates can review their teaching with the mentor teacher, who can not only explain but show the student the observations. In addition, the teacher candidate can be taught how to use an observation sheet just like the time analysis to assess their lessons. With this, the teacher candidates can evaluate their own instructional effectiveness in order to plan future lessons and improve their teaching over time, the main objective of Domain D as illustrated by the Pathwise model. Finally, the videos can be uploaded on to the Internet (Teacher Youtube) and shared with the university supervisors who can review more lessons and receive a broader picture of the teaching abilities of the intern teacher.

I believe that while it is normal for a student teacher to focus on their own teaching in the beginning of their own internship, as implied by the results in this study, observation training can assist the teacher candidate to shift focus from teaching to student learning. In the end, the student teacher can make reflections on how student learning affects their own teaching and how their teaching affects student learning. After all, in order to know if our teaching is effective or not, we must observe whether or not the students are learning. Therefore, systematic observation and the use of video recordings can augment this process for the student teacher. For university supervisors, mentor teachers and intern teachers, I strongly recommend the use of video cameras in observing PE teaching to develop observation skills and consequently enhance the PE teacher training.