Introducing the Policy Engagement Programme for Quality Physical Education (PEP-4-QPE) – Dr Jenna Lorusso & Professor Ann MacPhail.

• Who is the PEP-4-QPE for?
  The PEP-4-QPE is for all physical education professionals (e.g., teachers, teacher educators, curriculum officers, professional association representatives, professional development providers) who wish to undertake professional learning to feel more prepared for policy engagement. While the PEP-4-QPE can be appreciated by those new and those familiar to the topic of policy, it is primarily intended for those new to the topic.
• What is the intended aim of the PEP-4-QPE?
  The intended aim of the PEP-4-QPE is to support the development of knowledge, skills, and attitudes for policy engagement such that physical education professionals’ everyday doing of policy can be eased and enhanced and that, ultimately, better physical education outcomes for young people might be realized.
• What does the PEP-4-QPE offer?
  The PEP-4-QPE is not an encyclopedic and instrumental toolkit to solve all your policy challenges (as if that were even possible!). Instead, the resource covers key policy concepts; this is because understanding the policy process is key to influencing it. Specifically, the PEP-4-QPE is structured according to the following practical questions:
• What is policy? Why does it matter?
• How can I better engage with the policy process?
• What does it mean to be prepared to engage intentionally with policy?
• How can I enhance my policy preparedness?
• What are my next policy steps?

All the content in this resource is based on research conducted in such fields as physical education, education, and public policy (especially this work). Citations and hyperlinks to the underpinning research are provided throughout the resource.

The research-informed content of the PEP-4-QPE is intended to be easily accessible and is thus presented primarily through short (3-5 minute) videos and infographics that showcase the examples, stories, and perspectives of real physical education professionals. Here’s an example:

https://player.vimeo.com/video/999632729?h=35e225f4d3

The resource also includes a document to assist notetaking of the key points in the resource as well as a personal policy engagement plan template to guide your next policy steps.

The entire resource is available in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, and Mandarin, and takes approximately one hour to review.

• Why and how was the PEP-4-QPE developed?
  The PEP-4-QPE was created in response to the limited availability of professional learning opportunities for physical education professionals on the topic of policy.
  
  The development of such a physical education-specific professional learning resource on policy has been a goal of the authors (Jenna and Ann) for a long time and, as such, is informed by their various practical, instructional, and research experiences within physical education policy and education policy over several years.
  
  The PEP-4-QPE resource itself, however, was developed over a one and half year period. The resource’s initial structure was informed by: (a) the authors’ review of existing academic and professional learning resources on the topic of policy; (b) their own and others’ research on how individuals, particularly educational professionals, learn best about policy; and (c) the authors’ interviews with physical education professionals about what they would like to see in such a resource. Content for the resource was then developed by the authors and piloted in workshop format as well as reviewed in text form by teachers, teacher educators, and postgraduate students in physical education and education policy, with revisions made as needed.  
  
  To be useful to as many physical education professionals as possible, the PEP-4-QPE was created as an open educational resource that can be freely shared and adapted as long as appropriate credit is provided and it is for non-commercial purposes. Thus, the PEP-4-QPE is not an exclusive and completed resource but rather an open and living one that you are invited to contribute to developing over the years to come.

We hope that you will access the PEP-4-QPE and that it is useful as you navigate the world of policy in pursuit of better physical education outcomes for young people.

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the granting authority. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

This content is adapted from “The Policy Engagement Programme for Quality Physical Education” by Jenna Lorusso and Ann MacPhail, used under CC-BY-NC.