TEACHERS RESPONSES TO NONCOMPLIANT STUDENTS - THE REALITIES AND CONSEQUENCES OF A NEGOTIATED CURRICULUM

This research examined the context in urban high school physical educa tion classes that influenced 10 teachers' conceptualizations of realis tic educational goals for their students. Ethnographic data in the for m of field notes and interviews were analyzed using constant compariso n. Teachers reported that many students were unwilling to participate and were becoming progressively more difficult to teach. Teachers acti vely sought explanations for this behavior both in the students' backg rounds and their lack of interest in school. They identified inconsist encies between the school's educational mission and the students' aspi rations for the future. Teachers reported substantial changes in their programs over their careers. Although they had begun their careers te aching skills and other knowledge-based curricula, the diversity and d ifficulties associated with teaching urban students had forced them to move from a curriculum of skills to a ''curriculum'' of motivation an d order. Many of these programs exhibited characteristics of an elitis t, discriminatory, and decontextual approach to curriculum.