In May 2026, Ophea and Canadian Women & Sport hosted two webinars about gender equity in Health and Physical Education and across everyday physical activity spaces. If you weren’t able to attend live, the recordings of these webinars are now available in full on Ophea’s YouTube channel:
These webinars featured panel discussions with six experts who brought diverse lived experience and insight across mental health, research, and school sport. The panelists had such a wealth of knowledge to share that we’re continuing the conversation with them through a summer blog series!
Panelists Mackenzie Higgs, Jasmine Lew, Sarah Succee, and Yumi Lee shared some advice on creating culturally responsive environments in Health and Physical Education (H&PE).
How Educators can Create Culturally Responsive Environments
“Culturally responsive environments involve approaching students with curiosity rather than assumption. What might initially appear as disengagement, resistance, or opting out may reflect discomfort, prior exclusion, cultural expectations, body image concerns, gendered experiences, financial barriers, or a lack of psychological safety. Responding relationally rather than reactively can help maintain trust and connection.”
– Jasmine Lew, PhD Kinesiology and Physical Education and IDEAS Research Lab Member
Panelists highlighted the importance of educators reflecting on their own practices and biases, as well as the value of building a culture of lifelong learning.
“I also think educators and coaches benefit from reflecting on their own relationships to movement, sport, and health. Students pick up quickly on whether environments prioritize punishment, discipline, appearance, and performance versus care, exploration, and wellbeing. Creating inclusive spaces often starts with examining the assumptions adults themselves may have internalized around bodies, athleticism, and success.”
– Jasmine
“No one is the expert, and we’re all learning together. It creates that feeling of ‘we’re all in it together’ [and] is such a great way of explaining what made skateboarding special to me. The thing is, people are really good at skateboarding. However, there is no pre-defined idea of ‘expert’ in skateboarding, because there’s no one way to define success. In our skateboarding classes, we are all good at different things and inspire each other to improve at different skills. We could definitely incorporate more activities like this into H&PE.”
– Yumi Lee, Teacher Candidate, Co-Founder of York Skateboarding, and CoDirector of Queer Skate Toronto
Valuing Different Ways of Moving for Inclusive Participation
“Creating multiple entry points into participation is so important. Some students may feel empowered through competition and skill development, while others may connect more through creativity, rhythm, cooperation, exploration, or simply having autonomy in how they engage. These were options I wish I had been presented with in my PE experiences! Expanding definitions of participation and success can help students feel that movement belongs to them too. For example, a student who feels uncomfortable in competitive team sports may thrive during dance, outdoor education, stretching, walking discussions, or cooperative activities where social connection and self-expression are prioritized differently.
I’ve also seen how valuable it can be when educators openly acknowledge that movement experiences are not universal. Statements like ‘there’s no one right way to move’ or ‘participation can look different day to day’ may seem small, but they can reduce anxiety for students who feel like they are constantly being evaluated”
– Jasmine
“During active classes, incorporate as diverse a program you can allow every student to shine with their potential abilities or knowledge of varied sport/activities. Overall creating a positive and celebratory environment can help all students feel included no matter their skill levels.”
– Mackenzie Higgs, Health and Physical Education Teacher, Athlete, and Coach
Safe and Open Classroom Environments
Creating culturally responsive H&PE environments goes beyond the gym. From classroom culture to health class, panelists shared various ways to support safe student engagement.
“Within health classes our curriculum includes various topics that may be viewed as culturally sensitive. I will typically send a letter home to parents with the specifics of the curriculum and what we will be covering in class. [...] Allowing for anonymity for students to ask questions at the end of class is a great option to allow all students to voice their ideas.”
– Mackenzie
Other strategies involve transparency around evaluation practices:
“Setting the precedent at the beginning of the year that as the teacher you are not grading based off strictly skill level but rather social and emotional skills, working with teammates, effort and participation I believe helps students feel more comfortable in the H&PE space. I also think the overall language we use when referring to our team and group is very important and sets a tone.”
– Mackenzie
Centering Student Joy and Connection
The simplest actions can sometimes have the most positive impact on students’ sense of belonging in H&PE.
“In a practical sense, this may look like allowing students options in athletic clothing, offering private check-ins instead of public call-outs, incorporating music or activities from different cultures, or giving students leadership opportunities in activities they feel connected to can shift the atmosphere significantly.”
– Jasmine
“[...] something as simple as incorporating music during class can be an incredible motivator but even culturally allowing students to choose songs it’s great to see their faces brighten up when a song they love comes on!”
– Mackenzie
“I’ve seen how powerful it is when girls understand ‘the why before the how’, and how approaches like Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU) or non-traditional activities open the door for more students to engage...Yumi’s reflections on skateboarding echoed what I see in girls' fitness classrooms: when no one is the expert, and we’re all learning together, it creates that feeling of we’re all in it together.”
– Sarah, H&PE and Outdoor and Environmental Education Consultant
Related Resources
The resources included here are not an exhaustive list but consist of resources and programs that the webinar hosts, panelists, and Ophea have contributed to the development and/or delivery of.
From Canadian Women & Sport
From Ophea