career changes among physical educators

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Career Changes Among Physical EducatorsIvan Bizet a , Louis Laurencelle a , Jean Lemoyne a , Richard Larouche a & François Trudeau aa Department of Physical Activity Sciences , University of QuebecPublished online: 23 Jan 2013.

To cite this article: Ivan Bizet , Louis Laurencelle , Jean Lemoyne , Richard Larouche & François Trudeau (2010) Career Changes AmongPhysical Educators, Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 81:2, 224-232, DOI: 10.1080/02701367.2010.10599669

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224 RQES:June2010

Bizet, Laurencelle, Lemoyne, Larouche, and Trudeau

Key words: occupational constraints, physical education, professional trajectory, qualitative method

There is some evidence that the high energy cost associ-ated with the work of physical educators is a potential

factor in developing chronic injuries such as lower back pain, knee, and shoulder disorders (Lemoyne, Lauren-celle, Lirette, & Trudeau, 2007; Sandmark, 2000b). Such injuries may predispose them to reorient their career or lead them to premature retirement (Sandmark, 2000b).

Considering that total physical workload (the sum of quantitative and qualitative components) is an important predictor of musculoskeletal dysfunction in workers, we can deduce that physical educators are exposed to injury risks (Winkel & Mathiassen, 1994). Effectively, this occu-pation requires the highest energy expenditure among education disciplines. In Sweden, physical educators’ tasks are as demanding as those of forestry, farm, and construction workers (Sandmark, Wiktorin, Hogstedt, Klenell-Hatschek, & Vingard, 1999). More precisely, many

coexisting factors in physical educators’ daily routine make them potentially vulnerable to injuries or occupational dis-eases. Physical educators are more likely than their fellow colleagues to undertake potentially risky activities, such as mechanical shock in track and field, gymnastics, and col-lective sports. Demonstrating technical moves (e.g., jump-ing over hurdles in track and field) or other maneuvers performed with inadequate posture (e.g., safety spotting in gymnastics or climbing) is also a potential safety threat. Sports equipment (e.g., javelin, discus, shot put, or duel-ing items) is also a potential trauma source. Furthermore, workplace energy expenditure is clearly above average due to sports involvement, refereeing, exposure to outdoor conditions (cold, rain, wind, heat), and frequent travel between workplaces (from school to gymnasium, pool, stadium, or between schools). Carrying, displacing, and storing heavy objects (e.g., track and field hurdles, ping-pong tables, soccer posts, basket ball, badminton and volley ball posts and nets) are risky tasks. Finally, physical educators’ work environment often includes excessive noise for human auditory and vocal systems.

From Physical Problems

The Swedish scientific literature presents a pessimistic outlook for the health of its physical educators. Sandmark (2000a) compared the health of 571 physical educators (290 men, 281 women), who graduated in the 1950s from

Career Changes Among Physical Educators: Searching for New Goals or Escaping a Heavy Task Load?

Ivan Bizet, Louis Laurencelle, Jean Lemoyne, Richard Larouche, and François Trudeau

Submitted: October 31, 2008 Accepted: January 18, 2009 Ivan Bizet, Louis Laurencelle, Jean Lemoyne, Richard Larouche, and François Trudeau are with the Department of Physical Activity Sciences at the University of Quebec.

Physical educators experience several occupational constraints and a high risk of physical injury associated with a high attrition rate. Our investigation aimed at identifying the principal career reorientation factors among physical educators and reasons for their career changes. This research used semistructured interviews (n = 53) that were analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively. While younger teachers frequently invoked job precariousness, the more experienced teachers and those who made a transition toward other teaching functions put more emphasis on teaching problems, work conditions, and physical context. Those who trans-ferred toward administrative duties insisted on their desire for a new challenge. Our study indicates that career reorientation is most often associated with job precariousness and the pursuit of new challenges, respectively, for younger and older physical educators.

ResearchQuarterlyforExerciseandSport©2010 by the American Alliance for Health,Physical Education, Recreation and DanceVol. 81, No. 2, pp. 224–232

Sociocultural Foundations

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a unique (at that time) training, with that of 512 partici-pants from the local population. The results indicated a higher rate of knee joint disorders among physical educa-tors compared to the reference population.

White, Wright, and Hudson (1993) suggested that the shear forces these teachers sustained, from complex movements executed in several planes, were one cause of lumbar spine degeneration in female British physical educators ages 48–60 years. Parade movements, which aim to prevent students from falling while executing jumps or aerial movements, are frequently identified as problematic. Epidemiological studies in France and Bel-gium demonstrated the high prevalence of injuries in this population (Belleguic, 1980; Delaby, 1979; Maigné, 1975). Such pathologies can hinder the continuity of their profes-sional career. According to Sandmark (2000b), physical educators are absent from work more frequently than the general population, due to occupational injuries. In par-ticular, women are more prone to career or task changes than men because of knee problems. This research con-firmed the observation of the Swedish National Teachers’ Union revealing that, due to physical dysfunctions (mostly musculoskeletal), only a small portion of physical educa-tors are able to work in their profession until the official retirement age. Because of alterations in their musculo-skeletal and osteotendinous systems, Swedish physical educators changed careers and anticipated retirement in their forties (Skiöld, 1999). However, Chan, Lau, and Hui (2001) noted that declining physical aptitude was the cause most frequently cited by Hong Kong physical educators for abandoning their trade.

Other research addressed maladapted workplace environments. Sandmark (2000b) demonstrated a higher attrition rate among Swedish physical educators than other teachers: “They more often had to change work due to knee dysfunction, and only one fifth of them were still working in their professionat the age of 60” (p. 676).

To Psychosocial Problem

Besides physical problems, psychosocial factors could lead to displeasure and even career change among physi-cal educators. The dysfunctions in scholastic institutions toward this group or physical education in general could contribute to departures from the profession. In fact, according to Rohnstock (2000), they could be victims of prejudice, who were used to hearing that physical educa-tion is a “subject without an answer book.” We cannot deny that social representations (i.e., “dumb jock,” “gym teacher,” “ball-pusher,” etc.) do not valorize this somewhat atypical population of teachers (Aronson, 1989).

To better understand the daily life of these teach-ers, it seemed relevant to study those who had quit their profession (i.e., career change or retirement). Viewing the statistics on teaching personnel in Quebec, we could

question why former physical educators are overrepre-sented among school administrative personnel. In the 1999–2000 school year, about 8% (280) of 3,500 school principals were former physical educators (Ministère de l’Éducation du Québec, 2001). At the same time, the 3,700 physical educators of Quebec province represented only about 4.5% of 81,800 school board teaching personnel (of whom 71,300 were full-time teachers). We do not know how to interpret this overrepresentation and identify its underlying causes. Therefore, according to the literature, the factors involved in the career physical educators’ reori-entation can be classified into several categories: (a) work-related and other physical or psychological disabilities (chronic or acute), (b) problems arising from teaching situations (class management, disciplinary issues, unmoti-vated students, absenteeism) or professional environment (poorly valued work, lack of consideration by other teach-ers and the school administration, delicate interpersonal relationships), and (c) personal job perception (profes-sional challenge, attraction of promotion, disinterest in teaching physical education). Physical educators’ work conditions, such as commuting to several schools and job precariousness, could play a role in eventual career changes. The goals of this study were to document the perception of physical educators who changed careers and to identify the reasons for their decision.

Method

Participants

The University of Quebec institutional ethics review committee approved this research. Participants provided informed consent prior to the study. We interviewed a to-tal of 53 persons divided into the following five groups:

1. Participants who transferred horizontally (n = 11; men = 6, women = 5) to teaching positions in another subject at an average age of 35.4 years after teaching physical education for 12.6 years;

2. Participants who transferred horizontally to admin-istrative functions. Men constituted this group (n = 11), as it was difficult to find women occupying such positions. Their average age at the time of career reorientation was 33.5 years, after serving 9.4 years as physical educators;

3. Retired teachers (n = 10; men = 8, women = 2), most of whom (n = 7) had completed their mandate less than 1 year before the interview, thus, ensuring the validity of their career memories and their comments;

4. Active physical educators (n = 10; men = 6, women = 4) 35–50 years old; and

5. Young physical educators (n = 5; men = 2, women = 3) 25–35 years old.

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We added two other categories to the five initially planned, including “mixed” participants (i.e., people who reoriented their career in administrative positions outside the school system; n = 2) and a group of physical education teachers working as sports coaches (n = 4).

Semidirected Interviews

Two graduate students conducted semidirected inter-views lasting 20–30 min in which they asked participants specific questions. This method enabled us to identify factors and explore their context without limiting the data scope and diversity. Another advantage was that we could ensure the participants did not go off-topic, as the discus-sion was oriented toward our objectives. The interviews were audiotaped, transcribed verbatim, and conducted on campus at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, to avoid the distraction of participants’ activities.

Based on extensive literature review and consultation with physical education teaching experts, we constructed the interview questions (see Appendix A). The experts were composed of physical education teachers with differ-ent experience levels (5–34 years, with 2 retired) and work-ing in different academic levels: 2 in primary schools, 3 in secondary schools, 2 in college, and 2 university professors. Because the discussions were interactive, the interviewer could ask further questions to clarify some answers and even make comments that rendered the interview more “alive” to develop a relaxed atmosphere.

Data Analysis and Treatment

We analyzed the interview material after compila-tion and transcription. Following one or two “floating” lectures according to Bardin (1986), which allowed the analysts to imbed themselves in the summary contents, the transcribed data were codified (i.e., underlined in a differentiated way to clarify the idea being expressed). The themes were then indexed and categorized in a superstructure containing three major aspects: (a) prob-lems related to the physical education profession, (b) positive aspects of the profession, and (c) career change factors. Three independent coders participated in data analysis: the two master students who were involved in the interviews and a professor from the Department of Physical Activity Sciences. An interrater reliability process between coders ensured measurement objectivity.

Analysis of Co-occurrences

We analyzed the frequency of themes that appeared in the interview. The coded text of each discussion re-vealed several spontaneous topics related to participants’ professional situation. Co-occurrence analysis gave us a global idea of the links, whether causal or correlations,

that brought them closer to each other. Co-occurrences were collected by group and for the entire sample. In each case (i.e., each theme combination), the computer program produced results such as:

n T1(n1) and T2(n2): Phi(n1,2),

where n represented the group size analyzed, T1 and T2 were the number of themes compared, n1 and n2 were the number of participants who invoked the correspond-ing theme, and n1,2 was the number of participants with both themes present at the same time. The coefficient phi (φ) indicated the degree of correlation between binary variables according to the formula:

)nn)(nn(nn)nn)(nn()nnnn(n

2121

2,122,112,1212,1

−−

−−−+−−=ϕ

.

Only co-occurrences that appeared under a 1% significance threshold (with a critical value of ϕ* = 2,576/√n) were retained for interpretation. Categories (n = 124) were defined progressively according to their appearance throughout different interviews to ensure the data “spoke for themselves,” a qualitative data analysis technique known as “emerging theorization” (Glaser, 1992). A second evaluation cycle on theme frequency war-ranted reliability of the analyzers, a primordial criterion of methodological rigor. For each group and the entire sample, we built two indexes—one about the frequency of themes emerging from participants’ interviews and the other with complementary information for determining a phenomenon’s importance to participants.

Results

For a clearer understanding of the text, we refer the reader to Appendix B for statistical co-occurrences.

Physical Constraints

Most participants reported having to deal with several major difficulties associated with work conditions. More than half cited negative or difficult aspects of their specia-lity, such as the lack of equipment, high noise level, and limited teaching time. In addition, age, length of career in physical education, career profile, and gender influenced their perception of difficult work conditions, as those who followed a horizontal career pattern and female participants (#1) cited these variables more frequently with increasing age and number of years spent teaching physical education (see Table 1).

Lack of material resources or equipment tended to compound the problem of managing large student numbers (#2). Sound reverberations resulting from

)(

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inappropriate construction materials created an occu-pational noise level that exceeded workplace standards and may have contributed to hearing loss (#3). From this viewpoint, 1 participant said:

We had to teach in classes that were not ade-quate gymnasiums. The noise echoed ter-ribly, and the floors were deformed because they were old. I was afraid that my students would get injured. It stressed me out more and more.

Noise pollution in physical education was less well supported as career length increased. Participants suf-fering from health problems (physical or psychological) and closer to the end of their physical education careers (#4) reported this problem more frequently. Concretely, a retired teacher mentioned that: “Physical education is particularly demanding because of the noise level. The children are always in motion. You get exhausted at the

end of the day. It is stressful and physically demanding.” More than half the retired teachers reported having contracted major hearing problems near the end of their career, with active participants taking precautions (e.g., using a microphone to prevent vocal problems). Jiang (1997) observed that physical educators had a higher prevalence of hypoacusis—a loss of hearing high fre-quency sounds—and mentioned that, among other noise sources, using a whistle contributed greatly to hearing loss among physical educators.

Work schedule (total volume or timetable) was ano-ther component of global job difficulty (#5), along with limited teaching time per class (#6). Physical educators had to carry their materials from and to storage rooms at the beginning and end of each course; this is a rela-tively strenuous task, considering the heavy and often cumbersome equipment involved (#7). In addition, they often had to perform these tasks before warming up their muscles, which ultimately became harmful to the joints, tendons, and muscles. A female teacher reported, “I have back aches. I had lumbar sprains…. You store materials, you take out materials, store materials, take out materials. It is quite heavy. The backaches come from there.” We observed a significant co-occurrence level between dif-ficult work conditions and health outcomes (#8) more frequently in women (#9). There was a similar pattern for course involvement (i.e., playing with students, technical demonstrations performed without warm-ups), which contributed to injuries leading to career reorientation. The physical constraints associated with teaching physical education warrant further research.

Educational and Relational Problems With Students

Physical educators felt a constant need to justify the legitimacy of their discipline, which constituted an inte-gral part of the education curriculum despite its practical nature; that, combined with the some students’ lack of motivation for physical education (#10), often added to disciplinary problems (#11) and became tiring over time. Also noteworthy was parents’ lack of consideration for physical education co-occurring with teachers’ need to justify including their subject in the curriculum (#12). They associated lack of administrative support with the perception that state or provincial governments did not realize the benefits of physical education in the school program (#13). This seemed to be physical educators’ perception at the beginning of their career (Hebert & Worthy, 2001), and it is prevalent in many industrialized countries (e.g., the UK; Sparkes & Templin, 1990).

Following are some participants’ viewpoints of the difficulties they faced throughout their career. First, they were worried about the sedentary state of youth. As one teacher emphasized, “More and more, we are seeing a problem of sedentarity in our youngsters. I realize that

Table 1. Effect of career length on the perception of work problems

MC # and description # of co-occurrencesa

MC 6: Difficult work conditions 68–105MC 8: Relational problems with the public: students 22–41MC 11: Noise 6–16MC 12: Influence of various societal problems 6–20MC 15: Limited teaching time; lack of follow-up with students 6–12MC 21: Organization; administrative tasks 5–9MC 22: Participation 1–5MC 23: Negative or difficult aspect ofphysical education teaching in general 12–18MC 33: Depreciation of physical education 3–8MC 35: Indiscipline 5–15MC 40: Depreciation of physicaleducation by parents 8–13MC 53: Relational problems withprofessional surroundings: school or sport center administration; depreciation of physical education 6–11MC 56 & 57: Physical and psychological health problems towards career end (56: physical; 58 psychological) 16–30(10–19; 6–11)MC 65: Youth with bad health 1–6MC 68: Job precariousness 9–4Career change factorsMC 116: Job precariousness 10–2MC 118: Difficult working conditions 9–13

Note. MC = macrocategory.aExperience: 2–14 years (n = 26) vs. 15–35 years (n = 27).

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it’s getting harder to motivate students. We always have to adapt to them.” Disciplinary problems exaggerated this social problem:

There are classes where the children cannot look at themselves without falling over each other. Often, it is not teaching that we do, it completely becomes discipline. For many children, the gymnasium is synonymous with “play,” so there are no more rules for them.

Also, the few periods of physical education in the cur-riculum increased the teachers’ burden of dealing with a large number of children:

We had too many students, and they had only one period of physical education every 15 days, so we did not see them often enough, and each time we had to start again with the basics. The task was heavy: we met between 600 and 700 students in a 15-day period. The teaching objectives were unreachable because we could not devote enough time to the children.

This insufficient contact with students pushed another female participant to change her teaching subject:

All the time I devoted to teaching physical education led me to want to further explore this link with the children. I wanted to have my own class, my own group of students with whom I could invest myself rather than with 400 children.

Searching for a New Challenge?

The competencies developed while teaching physical education and the desire to fulfill administrative func-tions co-occurred often (#14). An alternative hypothesis would be that physical education could attract individuals interested in such potential advancement. In addition, the desire for different challenges often co-occurred with the perception that teaching physical education had become repetitive (#15).

“I changed career because I had no more challenges. It had become routine.” This was precisely how a former physical educator, who became an English teacher, ex-plained his reorientation. At the same time, the pursuit of excellence was another participant’s prime motive:

For me, it’s important to continue to aspire for excellence, to search for continuous training in order to get better. I want to learn more, to acquire abilities in research, to enrich the practice and to reduce the gap between theory and practice.

Potential factors in career reorientation were avoid-ing aging in the physical education profession, which seemed to be a concern as much as declining physical aptitudes and the psychological boredom associated with repetition. Participants frequently cited the latter aspects (#16). Among participants who had changed careers, health problems (mainly physical ones) seemed to have a decisive impact. However, for some participants, the perspective of seeing their health decline led to their re-orientation. This was the case with one respondent, who said, “The question of physical health in aging is the worry of physical educators. I could not see myself spending 35 years teaching the same program.” Obviously, tough work conditions affected several physical educators’ morale to the extent they seriously studied the possibility of career reorientation (#18).

Career Length

Physical educators with more teaching experience frequently reported tough work conditions, particularly noisy environments, limited teaching time per group, and difficulty with the organization, administrative tasks, and obligations associated with the profession in general. They often dealt with students’ lack of discipline, a depre-ciation of physical education, and parents’, colleagues’, and school administrators’ lack of recognition for their function. As an older participant mentioned:

I already had the idea, at the beginning, that I would not do that during my entire career. The task was definitely harder than that of a regular teacher: in the gym, you have to per-form for the whole hour. I was asking myself: will I have the physical capacity to do that?

Discussion

Our study goals were to (a) document the perception of physical educators who changed careers, and (b) iden-tify the reasons associated with their decision. Participants allowed us to explore positive and negative aspects of their work conditions as well as their reasons and motivations (real or potential) for professional reorientation.

A Package of Occupational Problems

We designed a protocol involving semistructured interviews to shed light on occupational conditions as-sociated with physical educators’ career changes. Many occupational conditions appeared independently or interacted with others. There was the perception of teaching difficulties, unrealistic teaching objectives, the

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lack of time spent with children, and the underestimated complexity of a subject difficult to justify to students. Physical educators perceived relational tension with their students (lack of discipline and motivation). They sometimes cited lack of social support and parental con-test of the educational legitimacy of their subject. They also reported a lack of recognition from their colleagues in the so-called “academic” disciplines. They associated lack of recognition by school administrators, combined with the absence of administrative support from orga-nizational and political authorities, with the low status of physical education in the curriculum. In fact, many physical educators insisted they felt a negative perception from teaching colleagues, school directors, parents, and society in general. Characteristic quotations were:

From the other teachers’ point of view, we were entertainers: we were there to pass the time. It took a long time for them to recognize the benefits of physical education. We had to sell our salad, to demonstrate that what we did was not useless.

Often, it was seen as a pastime, a leisure activity, a way to let off steam, but it was not looked at as an element in an approach to health promotion and the development of good habits and abilities.

People are asking me: “Do you do other things? Do you work? (Aside from playing, giving exercises, playing with balls…).” They do not see the work we do; for them, it always looks like a hobby.

Other studies reported similar perceptions of physical educators in Singapore (Smith & Leng, 2003) and Greece (Koustelios & Tsigilis, 2005).

Conducive to the Decision of Career Change

In some cases, the psychosociological interaction between subjective (feelings of having to deal with labori-ous work conditions, desire to reorient) and situational factors (opportunity of career promotion) led to career change. Also, some younger participants chose to reori-ent due to job precariousness in physical education.

Job Insecurity in Physical Education

This factor seemed to explain a large proportion of career reorientations. During 1990–2000, “young” physi-cal educators changed to other fields of teaching. Some study participants had up to 10 years of teaching experi-ence on a temporary basis before they changed careers.

This mobility could also have resulted from education system reforms related to physical education and physical educators, a phenomenon that affected every age group and different teaching levels. One participant described this job insecurity:

In school boards, they almost laughed at me when I presented a résumé. They told me: “It will take at least 10 years before you get a full-time job.” I was really lucky at first, I just came out of university and I got a contract, but I was always worried, never knowing, if in a month from now, the person I was substituting would take back the job or not.

From Physical Education to Administrative Functions

Mobility toward administrative functions mainly resulted from occupational dissatisfaction (stagnation in personal development, social depreciation) or a personal desire to rise socially in the educational system. There was often awareness on their part and among administrative personnel that the job of physical educator constituted good preparation for the function of school principal. As one physical-educator-turned-school-principal observed, “I wanted to become school principal to be able to have a different and larger vision of the school and to help the youth in a larger scope, to help more of them.” As special-ists, physical education teachers must work with children at all school levels and sometimes in many schools, which may give them a more global perception of schools and a different vision than classroom teachers working with only a single group. Interestingly, the reasons physical educators accepted administrative positions were often the same as those associated with burn-out (Koustelios & Tsigilis, 2005; Smith & Leng, 2003). Also, the intrinsic desire for personal accomplishment, if not fulfilled, may lead to burnout (Koustelios & Tsigilis).

Career Duration and Type of Professional Trajectory

Age, more precisely career duration in physical education, played a role in career changes motivated by health problems or tough work conditions. A similar observation was made for physical problems, psycho-logical health problems, and for most socioprofessional problems. In this last category, we could not conclude whether career length intensified the subjective percep-tion of these difficulties or the greater quantity of negative experiences related to professional activity. Our results indicated the physical educators perceived that they suf-fered more chronic injuries as they advanced in age and experience.

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Positive Aspects of Teaching Physical Education

Several participants identified some positive aspects, which included the persistence of regular physical ac-tivities, good life habits, good work climate, contacts with youth, and the satisfaction of imparting the desire to be physically active to sedentary students. A longitudinal study in Sweden (Åstrand, Berrgh, & Kilböm, 1997) and an Israeli survey (Netz & Raviv, 2002) demonstrated a high aerobic fitness level being preserved throughout life com-pared to age-matched control participants. Two teachers in our study commented on the positive aspects of their job. The first indicated a professional reward from work-ing with youth and a positive working environment:

I consider that we have to be able to sell the importance of being in good physical fitness to our youth. If you believe and promote it, you also have to apply to yourself what you are trying to sell to others… I have the opportu-nity to work in a school where the department is quite dynamic and in a positive work ambi-ance, so it keeps me motivated.

The second liked the profession’s practical aspects:

I am always in action, bicycling, running, etc. I find myself lucky to be able to do that. The type of coaching I do allows me to remain active and healthy, to be outside in the fresh air. That’s why I like being on the field… It is a job that always lets me excel. It’s valorizing: each day, there’s a new challenge.

Conclusion

The purpose of our study was to identify factors as-sociated with career changes among physical educators. Contrary to observations from Sweden, physical health problems specific to the physical education profession was not the main factor for retirement or career change in our sample of 53 participants. Older participants mentioned physical constraints and chronic injuries as catalysts for career change. Our study linked career re-orientation with two major factors: (a) the pursuit of new challenges for older physical education teachers, and (b) job precariousness for younger ones. Some participants mentioned the positive aspects of the profession, even if they had reorientated their careers.

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Authors’ Notes

This project was supported by an operating grant from the Institut de recherche en santé et sécurité au travail du Québec. We very much appreciated the contribution of all study participants. Please address correspondence concerning this article to François Trudeau, Département des sciences de l’activité physique, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, 3351 boul. des Forges, C.P. 500, Trois-Rivières, Québec, Canada G9A 5H7.

E-mail: [email protected]

Appendix A. Survey on career reorientation factors among Quebec’s physical educators

Demographic information

Last name: ___________________ First name: _________________ Sex: M W

— Age: ____ — Age at the beginning of career as physical educator: ____

(— Age at retirement or career change: ____)

— Teaching level(s) experienced: (circle the answer(s) and, where appropriate, indicate the number of years of teaching at each level)Primary _____ secondary _____ collegial _____ coaching _____

— Profession(s) practiced after physical education teaching: (if there is more than one, list them in chronological order)

Questions

1. Evolution of global health throughout teaching career

— What was the result of your health check-up (physical, psychological) at the beginning of your career as a physical educator?— At the end?/As we speak?

2. Problems specific to physical education teaching

— What were the negative elements you faced throughout your career?— What were the positive aspects?— What elements specific to physical education teaching could have altered your health (fatigue, stress, etc.)?— What elements specific to physical education teaching could have positively influenced the evolution of your health?— What expectations did you have towards your profession of physical educator at the beginning of your career?— Have you been deceived in your career in relation to some expectations? If yes, how?— How do you feel being perceived as physical educator in your professional environment (your colleagues teaching other subjects, school administration) and by the public (students and their parents)?

3. Professional reorientation factors

— What reasons led you (or could lead you) to change careers or disengage from physical education teaching?

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Appendix B. Group number, MC description, and significant co-occurrences

Element 1 Element 2 Occurrences

#1: Gender (W = 16, M = 37) Difficult work conditions 71 vs. 106 occurrences#2: MC 13 (lack of material MC 16 Large number In the group of horizontally transferred part. (n = 11),supplies, budget, maladapted of students or groups 3 part. evoked MC 13, 4 evoked MC 16, and 3 evoked work environment) both. Co-occurrence rate (ϕ = .810).#3: MC 11 (difficult work MC 13 Lack of material In the group of retired part. (ϕ = 1).conditions, noise) supplies, budget; maladapted work environment#4: Length of career (2–14 years: MC 11 Difficult work 6 vs. 16 occurrencesn = 26; 15–35 years: n = 27) conditions (noise) #4: Health problems toward career MC 11 Difficult work 14 vs. 9 occurrencesend (1–3: n = 29; 0: n = 24) conditions (noise) #4: Psychological problems toward MC 11 Difficult work 9 vs. 14 occurrencescareer end (1–3: n = 17; 0: n = 36) conditions (noise) #5: MC 14 Work schedule MC 23 Negative or difficult All groups included (n = 53): 15 part. evoked MC 14, aspect of teaching PE in general 30 evoked MC 23, and 14 evoked both (ϕ = .466). #6: MC 15 Limited teaching time, MC 23 Negative or difficult In the group of part. still active and middle aged lack of follow-up with students aspect of teaching PE in (Group 6: n = 10), 8 evoked MC 15, 7 evoked MC 23, general and 7 invoked both (ϕ = .764).#7: MC 19 Hard work conditions MC 20 Hard work In Group 1 (n = 11), 5 part. evoked MC 19, 5 evoked(traveling) conditions (carrying loads) MC 20, and 4 evoked both (ϕ = .633).#8: MC 20 Hard work conditions MC 56 Physical health All groups included (n = 53): 7 part. evoked MC 20,(carrying loads) problems toward career end 8 evoked MC 56, and 7 evoked both (ϕ = .882).#9: Sex (W = 16, M = 37) MC 20 Hard work conditions 7 vs. 2 occurrences (carrying loads) #10: MC 29 Teaching or coaching MC 34 Relational problems All groups included (n = 53): 8 part. evoked MC 29,problems: necessity of selling with the public: students: 23 evoked MC 34, and 8 evoked both (ϕ = .482).PE to the students lack of motivation#11: MC 23 Negative or difficult MC 35 Relational problems In group 1 (n = 11), 6 part. evoked MC 23, 4 evokedaspect of teaching PE in general with the public: students: MC 35, and 4 evoked both (ϕ = .690). lack of discipline#12: MC 29 Teaching or coaching MC 40 Relational problems All groups included (n = 53): 8 part. evoked MC 29, 21problems: necessity of selling with the public: students & evoked MC 40, and 7 evoked both (ϕ = .413).PE to the students parents: depreciation of physical educator or PE#13: MC 53 Relational problems MC 54 Lack of admin. In the group of men (n = 37), 11 evoked MC 53, 10 with professional environment: support evoked MC 54, and 7 evoked both (ϕ = .536).school or sports center, admin.: depreciation of PE educator or PE#13: MC 54 Lack of admin. MC 59 Lack of gov. support In men (n = 37), 10 part. evoked MC 53, 14 evoked support for physical ed./coaching: MC 54, and 7 evoked both (ϕ = .404). lack of academic recognition All groups included (n = 53): 6 part. evoked MC 110, #14: MC 110 Benefits of school PE MC 112 Qualities developed 13 evoked MC 112, and 5 evoked both (ϕ = .488). by PE educators & required for admin. functions#14: MC 112 Qualities developed by MC 121 Career change factor: All groups included (n = 53): 13 part. evoked MC 112, PE educators & required for admin. professional challenge: admin. 13 evoked MC 121, and 10 evoked both (ϕ = .694).functions functions #14: MC 110 Benefits of school PE MC 121 Career change factor: All groups included (n = 53): 6 part. evoked MC 110, professional challenge: admin. 13 evoked MC 121, and 5 evoked both (ϕ = .488). functions#15: MC 26 Teaching or coaching MC 119 Career change factor: In women (n = 16), 2 part. evoked MC 26, 3 evoked MC problems: repetitive tasks lack of professional challenges 119, and 2 evoked both (ϕ = .787). #16: MC 113 Career change factor: MC 114 Repetition In the horizontally transferred group (n = 11), 5 part. avoiding aging as PE teacher: decline evoked MC 113, 3 evoked MC 114, and 3 evoked both of physical aptitudes (ϕ = .671).#17: MC 56 Physical health problems MC 115 Career change factor: In the transferred part. (n = 22), 11 evoked MC 56, 6toward career end health problems evoked MC 115, and 6 evoked (ϕ = .612).#18: MC 58 Psychological problems MC 118 Career change factor: All groups included (n = 53): 17 part. evoked MC 58, toward career end difficult work conditions 22 evoked MC 118, and 13 evoked both (ϕ = .488).

Note. M = men; W = women; MC = macrocategory; part. = participants; PE = physical education; admin. = administrative.

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career changes among physical educators

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