Stop, Start, Consider! is a free downloadable poster series developed to support educators, school staff, and other members of the school community in creating identity-affirming, safer Health and Physical Education (H&PE) learning environments for every student. When students experience feelings of belonging at school, they are more likely to achieve their full learning potential.1,2,3,4
Stop, Start, Consider! is the product of a series of advocacy sessions, hosted by Ophea, which brought together youth with lived experience, subject matter experts, and education system-level decision makers in order to explore the intersections between H&PE and marginalized identities that students may hold.
This poster series invites school communities to consider which common practices might have the potential to cause harm to students experiencing identity-based marginalization, and suggests alternative strategies to implement that mitigate harm and expand student access to feelings of belonging and well-being at school.2,3 When displayed in H&PE learning environments and other school environments (e.g. gymnasiums, staff rooms, main office, department head offices, etc.), Stop, Start, Consider! posters can support school staff in sparking conversations about important equity considerations, offering alternatives to potentially harmful practices, and promoting inclusive learning environments by demonstrating to every student that they are welcome and valued within H&PE.
References
1 Darling-Hammond, L., & Cook-Harvey, C. M. (2018). Educating the whole child: Improving school climate to support student success. Palo Alto, CA: Learning Policy Institute. https://doi.org/10.54300/145.655.
2 Farrington, C.A., Roderick, M., Allensworth, E., Nagaoka, J., Keyes, T.S., Johnson, D.W., & Beechum, N.O. (2012). Teaching adolescents to become learners. The role of noncognitive factors in shaping school performance: A critical literature review. Chicago: University of Chicago Consortium on Chicago School Research.
3 Hernández, L. E., & Darling-Hammond, L., (2022). Creating identity-safe schools and classrooms. Learning Policy Institute. https://doi.org/10.54300/165.102
4 Juvonen, J. (2006). Sense of Belonging, Social Bonds, and School Functioning. In P. A. Alexander & P. H. Winne (Eds.), Handbook of educational psychology (pp. 655–674). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers.