For many PE teachers, the new school year is starting to feel a little closer.

As we think about what we want our classes to look like, we are also making decisions about the expectations we will set, what we will pay attention to, and what will ultimately count when it comes to assessment and grading in our classes.

Behaviours are often right in the middle of those decisions. Participation, responsibility, effort, cooperation, preparedness. They matter in PE, and we notice them constantly, as we should.

But what role should they actually play in assessment and grading? How can we ensure they get the attention and support they need to help students be successful in our classes?

After all, if behaviours sit at the centre of success in PE, why is it so unclear what to do with them when it comes to assessment and grading?

One of the most common tensions in PE is what to do with student behaviours and how they should be positioned.

Some teachers base much of their assessment and grading on behaviours. Others intentionally separate behaviours from learning. Many feel a pull to do something different but are unsure what that should look like.

That uncertainty is the issue.

This is not a question of whether behaviours matter. They do.

Behaviours help enable learning and shape how students engage with their learning and with others. They affect safety, responsibility, and how well the learning environment functions.

The challenge is that something being important does not automatically mean it should contribute to a grade.

Assessment and grading should reflect the learning students are expected to demonstrate through the curriculum, standards, or other intended learning that guides the course.

So, the question becomes: Are the behaviours we focus on part of the intended learning we should grade, or are they there to support it?

How to distinguish behaviour from learning

One helpful way to make that distinction is to look across contexts.

If something is expected in most classes, regardless of the activity or unit, and you are looking for it consistently over time, it is likely a behaviour.

If something is connected to a particular learning standard, lesson, unit, or learning focus, it is more likely evidence of learning.

For example, teamwork or cooperation may be expectations for how students participate in class. But if working effectively with others is part of the intended learning, such as within a leadership standard, then it could be assessed and graded as part of their learning.

The difference is that these behaviours are clearly aligned with a learning standard and are intentionally taught and supported as part of that learning.

The key is to be clear about why you are assessing something.

Is it being assessed because students are learning it?

Or because it is an expectation for how students engage in class?

That distinction matters.

This does not make behaviours less important.
It simply places them more accurately.

But PE is a participatory class

This is often where the tension surfaces.

Yes, PE is participatory. Students need to engage in order to learn.

But participation is a condition for learning in every subject, not necessarily the learning itself.

In PE and other performance-based classes, participation simply looks more visible than it might in classroom-based subjects like English or math.

Grades are intended to summarize learning, but when we mix learning with compliance, effort, or participation, the grade becomes less clear and less accurate.

Likewise, when we mix behaviours with learning, behaviours become harder to support and communicate clearly with students and their families.

Separate behaviours so you can support them

We know behaviours can have a direct and indirect impact on learning.

That is precisely why they deserve attention.

But they do not need to be part of a grade in order to matter.

When behaviours and learning are separated, teachers can respond more intentionally to behaviours while keeping the learning clear and visible.

One practical way to do this is to think about behaviours through a frequency lens rather than as something to score or grade.

Instead of asking:

“How good is this behaviour?”

we can ask:

“How often is this behaviour showing up?”

For many behaviours, the issue is not whether students know how to do them, but how consistently they show up over time.

That allows us to look for patterns such as:

• Rarely
• Sometimes
• Often
• Consistently

What a frequency scale might look like

The focus moves away from isolated moments and toward patterns.

A student having one difficult class does not automatically become a judgement about who they are or what they know. Likewise, one strong class does not necessarily show that a behaviour has become consistent.

Looking over time gives us better information to work with.

Use frequency scales over time

Rather than using a frequency scale every class, consider using it weekly or every two weeks. This gives teachers and students a chance to notice patterns, identify what is going well, and see what may need more attention, support, or discussion.

For students

Frequency scales can support self-reflection. Students can consider how often certain behaviours are showing up, what may be influencing them, and how those behaviours are affecting their learning.

From there, they can decide what they may want to adjust.

For teachers

Frequency scales clarify which behaviours are being emphasized and provide shared language for discussing them.

They also make it easier to notice patterns and respond while they are happening rather than waiting until the end of a reporting period.

When students and teachers use the same language, conversations about behaviour can become more grounded and useful.

Resources to help you put this into practice

If you want to try this approach in your own classes, I have included three resources you can use or adapt:

• ​Frequency Scale Overview (PDF) to help you understand the approach and how it can be used.
• ​Frequency Scale Template (DOC) to help you and your students notice behaviour patterns over time.
• ​Student Reflection Prompts (PDF) to help students identify strengths, areas to grow, and what may help them moving forward.

Use what works for your context and adjust them to fit the behaviours you want to focus on with your students.

Before the year starts

As you get ready for the students who will soon be in front of you, it may be worth asking:

Which behaviours will I focus on this year, and how can I support them without mixing them into students’ grades?

Learning can stay clear in the grade.

Behaviours can still be noticed, supported, and communicated without being part of it.

Both matter.

They simply do not always serve the same purpose.