School of Public Health

Education

• Ph.D. at University of Maryland, 1996
• M.A.E at Western Kentucky University, 1992
• B.A. at Georgetown College, 1984

Background

2009 AAHPERD Curriculum and Instruction Academy Scholar Honor Award

President elect, American Educational Research Association Special Interest Group on Research and Learning in Physical Education

Editorial Board, Journal of Teaching in Physical Education

Indiana University Teaching Excellence Recognition Award

Indiana University Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Grant Winner

Fellow of the Research Consortium of American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation

Research:

Since my own student teaching experiences I have been has been intrigued with the questions: (1) "What in the world were they [students] thinking?" and the related (2) Why did they do that? My research and practice focus on answering those questions for K-12 students, pre-service teachers, and inservice teachers. My research is school based and current investigations focus on school wellness programs and curricular interventions to promote children's health. The most current work is a series of multi-year, funded investigations of schools, physical activity, and at-risk populations. The school systems involved range from large urban school districts serving over 100,000 students, a majority of whom were African American, to smaller rural schools serving a few hundred Native American students. These research designs involved both teachers and students and the methodologies varied widely, but all were focused on understanding how schools impede or enhance children's wellness and knowledge, with a particular focus on physical activity. Other recent investigations focused on mentoring, classroom management, and teacher efficacy.

Publications

Cothran, D.J., McCaughtry, N., Faust, R., Garn, A.C., Hodges Kulinna, P., & Martin, J. (in press) E-mentoring in physical education: Promises and pitfalls. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport.

Cothran, D.J., Kulinna, P.H, & Garrahy, D.A. (2009). Attributions for and consequences of student misbehavior. Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, 14, 155-167.

Garn, A.C. & Cothran, D.J. (2009). Correlates of a high 2 x 2 achievement goal profile in a fitness testing context: A qualitative analysis. Sport and Exercise Psychology Review, 5, 30-46.

Cothran, D.J., McCaughtry, N., Smigell, S., Garn, A., Kulinna, P.H., Faust, R., & Martin, J. (2008). Teachers' preferences on the roles and qualities of a mentor teacher. Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 27, 241-251.

Cothran, D.J., & Kulinna, P.H. (2007). Students' reports of misbehavior in physical education. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 78, 216-224.

Cothran, D.J., & Kulinna, P.H. (2006). Students' perspectives on direct, peer, and inquiry teaching strategies. Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 25, 166-181.

Courses Recently Taught

HPER P414 Professional Seminar in Physical Education

HPER P214 Basic Methods of Teaching Physical Education

HPER P447 Special Problems in Physical Education and Athletics