PEPonline Professionalization of Exercise Physiologyonline An international electronic journal for exercise physiologists ISSN 1099-5862 Vol 5 No 6 June 2002   Are We Teaching Professionalism? Jesse Pittsley MA  Doctoral Student, University of Kentucky “The purpose of ASEP accreditation should be twofold.  1.) to raise and standardize the level of education provided on the traditional topics of exercise physiology and 2.)  to teach concepts surrounding professionalism.  For to raise the standard of which the traditional topics of exercise physiology are taught alone will not create a profession, just knowledgeable graduates.”  My Experience Teaching Professionalism I recently had my first experience teaching undergraduate exercise physiology.  The Physiology of Sport is a required, three-credit course in the Kinesiology program here at the University of Kentucky.  It is a traditional exercise physiology course, consisting of three, 50-minute lectures a week and six laboratory sessions dispersed throughout the semester.  I plunged into the teaching assignment by designing a course outline so unrealistic that I would have intimidated the fastest of talkers and quickest Power Point users.  As the semester progressed, I found myself trimming notes, and removing lectures. By the end of the semester, material on aging, health and disease, exercise in extreme environments, and many other interesting topics had not been covered as sufficiently as I originally anticipated. As educators, we can always look back and wish that our students were exposed to many of the concepts and facts presented in units we failed to cover.  But in retrospect, not examining these important areas of undergraduate exercise physiology was nowhere near as unfortunate as failing to teach what I find to be the most important subject in our field -- "Professionalism". I did something I said I would never do.  I resorted to the ways in which I was taught and I educated my students on "physiology" and "exercise" and not exercise physiology.   Topics such as accreditation, certification, licensure, scope of practice, and code of ethics were all pushed aside for more “hypertrophy vs. hyperplasia,” “hypoxia,” and other traditional topics.  I taught the course as a discipline, pumping the students full of facts but, unfortunately. I taught them very little about being a professional and about exercise physiology becoming a profession.  Although the course was productive and informative, the students left the course thinking they survived another “science course” when it could have been so much more. In retrospect, I was set up to fail from the beginning.  The students knew very little regarding the issues that surround the founding of the American Society of Exercise Physiologists (ASEP).  Discussing what constitutes the professionalization of exercise physiology was extremely difficult.  They had no previous information about accreditation and only minimal thinking about the value of different certifications and other related topics.  Hence, as you might imagine, I found it difficult to introduce such subjects in a manner that would blend with their current educational experiences.  I did speak about professionalism.  It was not easy.  Teaching the physiological aspects of exercise is a challenge in itself.  The introduction of "why exercise physiologists need a code of ethics and a standards of practice" while teaching the physiology of training was a complicated task.  So complicated (and at times, confusing) that I began to think about how professionalism should be taught within the students' undergraduate preparation.  Presenting professionalism within the curriculum is important for any profession.  It is extremely important for students who believe they are majoring in exercise physiology.  The purpose of this article is to build an argument for the requirement of a “Professionalism in Exercise Physiology” course in the undergraduate exercise physiology curriculum.  A Specific Course Designed to Teach Professionalism? Prior to the semester beginning, I presented my course outline to my supervising professor for approval. Because of my desire to teach professionalism, the outline included one-week of lectures pertaining to the professional status of the field.  My supervisor commented politely that the topic was not appropriate for the course, but then stated the choice was mine.  The lectures were not presented to the class.  Instead, I pushed them aside for the more traditional material.  As the course came to an end, it was clear to me that my experience was not uncommon.  I now realize that teachers from other fields of study have also tried the same thing.  Although I strongly support the professionalization of exercise physiology, it was difficult introducing the concept to the class.  The little tidbits that I would introduce were generally considered interesting to hear about, but rarely did the effort result in any permanent behavior change.  In thinking back, my supervising professor was right.  The course I taught was not the best opportunity to introduce such ideas.  So, where does an interested teacher speak about the important issues of professionalism (and especially with regard to exercise physiology as an emerging field of its own)?  The answer is obvious or, at least, it should be.  A course dedicated to professionalism is common in the academic phase of almost all professions.  Physical therapy, nursing, and education require the maors to complete such a course.  Introducing topics like the current status of the profession in the culture, its history, ethical conduct, curriculum, legal issues, and employment opportunities are all part of the first educational experience in many professional fields.  As an example, take the College of St. Scholastica (Duluth, MN), the Physical Therapy students are required to take the “Foundations of Physical Therapy” course (described as): “Introduction to concepts, principles and skills applicable to the profession of physical therapy.  The foundational skills of physical therapy include an understanding of the profession (its definition, purpose of its professional organization, and role in the health care delivery system), interpersonal communication (including verbal and documentation skills), and the understanding of major principles of medical legal issues.  The course is designed to allow students to develop life long learning and reflection necessary for success within the profession." [1] These courses are taken early in the curriculum to establish a foundation for creating professionals. Such courses also require observation hours of work environments, interviews with those established in the field, and other experiences pertaining to professionalism that are difficult to acquire in other courses.  They are designed to set the tone for the entire educational experience.  Unfortunately, this tone is essentially non-existent in most exercise physiology programs.  What Does it Take to Teach Professionalism? To teach professionalism as a theme or as a backdrop in a typical undergraduate program without requiring its presentation in a specific course may be placing too much faith in the professors to teach these concepts in courses not designed for that purpose.  This is not to say that professors are not competent and talented individuals.  My argument is that many professors will not know what or how to teach professionalism as a theme.  In fact, like most teachers, I am more comfortable teaching the concepts of oxygen consumption more so than the issues that surround licensure of exercise physiologists.  It is very likely that many of these very important concepts would be placed on the “back burner”.   As a result, professionalism would be covered half-heartedly or worse -- not at all.  If this is true, then, something must be done differently to ensure that professionalism is taught. Opinions regarding professionalization vary among exercise physiologists and, unfortunately, many students neither understand nor take the time to think about it.  Placing the responsibility on the professors to teach professionalism within their specific courses may be unrealistic since many teach different points of view.  As a result, students may be bombarded with considerable bias.  For example, certain professors may agree with the pursuit of licensure while others may not.  With students unaware of the purpose of licensure (as well as positive and negative aspects of licensure), students may take the professors' statements as the absolute and final truth on the subject.  This may lead to the students' failure to engage in the necessary critical reflection to understand the need for the professional development of exercise physiology. Expressing opinions to students without an established knowledge base of what being a profession entails may also lead to confusion.  How could a professor teach the value of a particular certification without the students understanding the purpose of different certifications?  Hence, without the full disclosure free from bias, students may take any exam thinking that it is appropriate for the professional exercise physiologists.  The viewpoints presented by professors should not be considered  “commercials” for peripheral exams to the field.  Rather, the information should be presented in a straightforward format designed to establish a foundation for professional thinking that is then followed (if necessary) by the presentation of various opinions. A course designed to teach professionalism is the only realistic way to make certain the material will be taught with ample effort and emphasis. This will also ensure that the students will have the skills to critically analyze the value of one certification over another.  Without this paarticular approach, we will continue to produce naive students who are likely to be unable to properly analyze viewpoints presented by their peers and superiors.  Requiring a Professionalism Course in the ASEP Accreditation  To ensure that a course on professionalism becomes a consistent feature of exercise physiology programs, it should be a requirement when a program of study is accredited.  Many colleges and universities use accreditation as a political tool to augment a program's national standing while departments use accreditation to enhance the promotion of majors and/or to increase funding from the university.   The outcomes of accreditation benefit all of those involved.  The accrediting organization raises or adjusts the standards of the educational preparation of the members of its field.  The department improves its credibility and, most importantly, students graduate with a standardized and theoretically a high quality academic major.  Exercise physiology cannot reach its potential until it models itself after other health care professions and requires a course on creating professionals.  The simple matter of talking about ethical conduct during an Exercise Testing and Prescription course or discussing the value of proper certifications during a muscle physiology unit are important.  But, realistically, it no better than spending 10 to 20 minutes talking about sexual harassment in a Therapeutic Modalities course in a physical therapy curriculum.   Physical therapists no all to well that the latter is totally lacking.  The governing body of physical therapy would not allow such a “brush over” and ASEP should not either. Exercise physiology must also establish an identity separate from physical education by offering a professionalism course specific to the field.  Many exercise science programs require their students to enroll in the professionalism course offered in the traditional educational track.  Such a course is important for those going into education, but is not appropriate for those in exercise physiology. The kinesiology majors following the exercise science track at the University of Kentucky enroll in a course entitled, “History and Philosophy of Physical Education and Sport”.  This requirement is common in exercise science tracks and, unfortunately, it fails to help exercise physiology students develop a distinctive identity or an understanding of the issues specific to the field.  As a result, the exercise physiology majors begin their core courses without any expectation or an understanding of exercise physiology professionalism.  And, so they think that the study of the physiology of interval training is somehow going help them be professionals.  To create and require a course on professionalism would entail significant guidance and education of current exercise physiology professors.  Tommy Boone’s recently published,  “Professional Development of Exercise Physiology” is a text that could serve as companion to help those attempting to undertake this task [2].  As such a course becomes more commonly required, there will be additional texts that will be created to meet changing needs.  Topics of the course should include an introduction to the exercise physiology, history, accreditation, proper certification, licensure, ethical conduct, values, legal issues, employment advancement, professional organization membership, continuing education, scope of practice, and integrity.   The course should also require observation hours of relevant work atmospheres and interviews of other exercise physiologists to improve the students understanding of future potential.  Overall, the course should lay the groundwork for professional conduct in the field of exercise physiology.  ASEP is working to improve the educational preparation of exercise physiologists, but it has failed to require a realistic means to teach professionalism.  In a diverse and, in some ways, divided field the current approach to teaching professionalism (if it taught at all) is not satisfactory.  With exercise physiology evolving into a profession, the curriculum from one institution to another should be the same.  Without the mandatory requirement of such a course, too much responsibility is placed on the exercise physiologists to teach these concepts in courses specifically designed for other content material.  Such an approach is entirely inadequate.  My recommendation is this: "While the amendment of the accreditation document would be difficult, it should be amended to require a course on professionalism."  1.  Registrar’s Office, Department of College Communication (2002).  College of St Scholastica Undergraduate and Graduate Catalog.  Duluth, Minnesota.  2.  Boone, T. (2001). Professional Development of Exercise Physiology, The Edwin Mellen Press, Ltd Copyright ©1997-2007 American Society of Exercise Physiologists   All Rights Reserved.