Gresham‑Barlow teachers warn doubled elementary PE classes are unsafe and inequitable

Several Gresham‑Barlow School District teachers told the board March 5 that doubling up elementary specials — most notably physical education — has produced safety problems, reduced instructional quality and an uneven experience between larger and smaller schools.

Tawny Craig, music teacher at North Gresham Elementary, told the board, “Doubling up classes means I can't use my music room because it's too small. Instead, I teach outside or in the cafeteria where I have no access to technology or other classroom materials.” Craig said the district’s approach to meeting required PE minutes has left some students still not meeting the requirement despite extra classes and has led to injuries: “Every Wednesday, we send kids to the office with bumps and bruises from dance class.”

The issue recurred during public comment. Eun Cho, a physical‑education teacher at Highland Elementary School, described teaching combined classes of 42 to 67 students with a single assistant and said the workload and safety risks are “unsustainable.” Cho told the board she has 10 combined/9 combined classes and that larger class sizes make it “impossible to meet curriculum goals and maintain a productive learning environment.”

Sarah Miller, an elementary PE teacher at North Gresham and a 17‑year educator, said doubled PE classes “can see anywhere from 40 to 55 students at one time” and that the size strains equipment, space and teachers’ ability to give feedback. Miller said the district is “still not meeting the mandated 150 minutes of PE” at her site. She said large groups also create trauma‑and‑sensory‑related issues for some students and reduce students’ motivation and ability to enjoy physical education.

Samantha Johnson, organizing chair for the Gresham Barlow Education Association, placed the teachers’ remarks in a broader context. She said class size and caseload “continues to be the issue that has the most profound impact on our educators’ ability to do their job well and create a sustainable work life balance,” and pointed to pending state legislation on the matter, saying “Oregon legislators have introduced House Bill 3652, which would make class size a mandatory subject of bargaining for all districts.”

Board members did not take action during the public‑comment period; comments were followed by regular agenda business. Several teachers asked the board to consider staffing (for example additional PE specialists at larger elementary schools), classroom space, and a review of scheduling practices so that PE minutes can be met without doubling classes. Presenters urged the district to include specialists and caseloads when planning class sizes and budget decisions.

The speakers emphasized that the problems they described are not isolated to a single school. Craig and Miller contrasted large elementary sites that must double classes with smaller schools that have single‑class specials and can provide more individualized instruction.

The board did not adopt policy changes or a directive at the March 5 meeting; the teachers requested follow‑up and offered to provide additional examples and contacts to district staff.

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Teachers who addressed the board asked the district to factor specialists and class size into scheduling and budgeting decisions and to follow up with school visits. Several said they were willing to provide more documentation and host board members at their schools.