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EPEC FAQs
EPEC K-5 frequently-asked questions
EPEC 6-12 frequently-asked questions
Is EPEC evidence-based?
Yes, there is a great deal of scholarly evidence to support the effectiveness of EPEC. In addition, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) also awarded EPEC as an outstanding tool in the fight against obesity.
How is EPEC different from CATCH and SPARK?
CATCH and SPARK focus on keeping students busy, happy and good right now. In contrast, EPEC is a complete curriculum that teaches students at the elementary level the skills they need to be active for life, including object-control skills, locomotor skills, personal/social skills, and concepts and principles related to nutrition and physical activity. Students at the secondary level learn the essential elements of various sports and activities so they will feel comfortable playing recreationally. Students at the secondary level also learn the prerequisite skills they will need in order to prepare them to receive additional instruction through community education or organized sports and activities.
What do you mean by 'complete curriculum'?
Each EPEC objective includes a teaching/learning progression, in which the objective is divided into small instructional segments, or steps. The teaching of each of these steps is supported with 1) an instructional segment that follows an instructionally sound method of presenting new information to students, 2) two reinforcing activities that have students practice the specific components of the step and 3) an assessment rubric for tracking student achievement of the step and determining what, if any, remediation is necessary for individuals, classes or grades.
A curriculum matrix is supplied with all EPEC modules that outlines a scope and sequence for instruction of the steps in the teaching/learning progressions within and across grades. This matrix provides a framework describing what to teach on a daily basis, taking students progressively through mastering the EPEC program objectives. The scope and sequence can easily be modified to support local needs and time resources.
What percentage of students are able to successfully achieve the EPEC objectives?
Although teachers are instructed to continue with the next instructional segment when 80 percent of students show competency, EPEC was developed with the goal of all students achieving the objective. In too many physical education classrooms, students are expected to already know object-control skills or locomotor skills when they come to class. EPEC breaks each of these skills down into small, easily learned steps so children can see, understand and practice the entire skill.
How is EPEC addressing the obesity epidemic among America's young people?
Many chronic health problems experienced by today's adults — and by our young people — are due to physical inactivity. EPEC was designed to give students not only the knowledge and skills they need to be active for life, but the feelings of competence and confidence necessary to enjoy physical activities. In too many classrooms, students are punished with physical activity, or more-able students remain in the game while less competent students are eliminated from play. Both of these situations reduce the likelihood that students will enjoy being physically active. EPEC lessons and activities allow equal practice for all students, regardless of ability, in a supportive environment.
Our teachers already know how to do all these skills. What does EPEC offer us that these teachers can't already do?
Teachers who majored or minored in physical education generally did so because physical skills come easily to them, and often because they are able to learn a physical skill simply by seeing a demonstration. Unfortunately, physical skills do not come easily to all people, and many learners need to see a breakdown of the skills and hear descriptions of what happens during each step of each skill in order to understand the performance and be able to reproduce it. People who learn a subject area easily may not always be the best at breaking that subject down into its component parts for other types of learners. EPEC provides support to teachers by dividing each skill into discrete steps so learners can gradually increase their abilities and experience success and the resulting self-confidence.
What purpose do the posters have and why are they priced separately?
Posters show the essential elements — along with the cue words — of most steps of the objectives. These posters will be helpful in showing your students a breakdown of the step so they better understand what will be expected of them when they are assessed on skill performance. These posters also assist with your demonstration by allowing you show students in a static image each element of the step, before you put the elements together and demonstrate in a smooth, continuous motion.
Due to the higher costs of production of the posters relative to the other pieces of the module, posters are priced separately so that they will not make the modules prohibitively expensive for less well-funded schools. However, we believe that most teachers will find the posters helpful when teaching their students and offer a discount when purchasing both the modules and their related posters. Alternatively, teachers, schools or districts may purchase the modules one year and the posters in a later year.
What equipment will I need if I purchase all of the modules?
Although there are 'ideal' amounts of equipment to have available to your students, we recognize that not all schools have the resources to provide, for example, a basketball for every student during class. If you do not have the recommended equipment on hand, modify the lessons in order to maximize student learning, possibly by having half the class engage in non-equipment-based aerobic activities while the remainder of the class uses equipment for object-control or other skills, or pair students and have one student provide corrective feedback as the other student performs the activity.
EPEC K-5 frequently-asked questions
EPEC 6-12 frequently-asked questions
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