Academic title: Associate Professor

Education 
PhD, University of Calgary
MA, San Diego State University
B.Ed., University of Calgary
BPE, University of Calgary
Alberta Teachers' Certificate (Permanent)

Contact information
Office: U243Q
Email: dpsheehan@mtroyal.ca
Phone: 403.440.5148

Dr. Dwayne Sheehan was a Marine Warfare Officer in Her Majesty's Royal Canadian Navy before becoming a K–12 physical education teacher for 19 years. He served as the Executive Director of Calgary High School Sports, and as the CBE District Specialist for health and physical education. He is a Past President of both the Alberta Schools Athletic Association and the Health and Physical Education Council of the Alberta Teachers' Association and has been acknowledged by his peers for Distinguished Service in teacher education. Dwayne collaborates extensively with municipal recreation, parks, charities and other leisure partners. His academic and research specialization is lifespan motor development, specifically the measurement of pre-adolescent gross motor proficiency. He is an accomplished author (2 co-authored books and 3 book chapters) and has more than 40 peer-reviewed publications in international academic journals. He has received well over $600K in research funding and presented 140+ academic presentations worldwide.

Areas of Instruction

• Human Growth and Development
• Motor Learning
• Physical Activity and the Older Adult

Areas of Scholarship

• Human Motor Development through the Lifespan
• Physical Literacy Evaluation
• Intergenerational Active Gaming and Applications of Virtual Reality
• Systematic Observation of Physical Activity Behaviours
• Physical Education Teacher Training and Evaluation

Selected Publications

Sheehan, D. P., Lienhard, K., & Ammar, D. (2020). Reducing the Object Control Skills Gender Gap in Elementary School Boys and Girls. Advances in Physical Education. (Vol 10(2) 155-168).

Sheehan, D.P., Kooiman, B., Wesolek, M. (2018). Active Video Games: Paving the way to Virtual Online Active Games. Research and Investigations in Sports Medicine (Vol. 2(1) pp. 1-8).

Sheehan, D.P., Lienhard, K. (2019). Gross motor proficiency and peak height Velocity in 10-14-year-old Canadian youth: a longitudinal study. Measurement in Physical Education and Exercise Science. (Vol 23(1) pp. 89-98).

Sheehan, D.P. (2017). An Evaluation of Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity in an Elementary School QDPE Program. Physical and Health Education Canada Journal (Vol. 83(2) pp. 6-30).

Green, N.R., Roberts, W.M., Sheehan, D.P., Keegan, R.J. (2018). Charting physical literacy journeys within physical education settings. Journal of Teaching in Physical Education (Vol. 37 pp. 272-279).    

Selected Presentations

Sheehan, D.P. (2019). Bringing Physical Literacy to Life in Schools and Community. Chang Jung Christian University Physical Literacy Symposium, Taipei, Taiwan.

Sheehan, D.P. (2019). Healthy Living School: Connecting Schools to Their Community. SHAPE America Conference, Tampa, Florida.

Sheehan, D.P. (2018). Engaging Residents In The Development Of Their Own Neighborhood. Walk 21 Conference, Bogota, Columbia.

Sheehan, D.P. (2018). Effects of an Object Manipulation Skills (OMS) Intervention on Perceived Competence Among Elementary School Girls. North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity (NASPSPA) conference, Denver, CO.

Sheehan, D.P. (2017). Promoting Physical Literacy for Holistic Health Throughout Life. International Physical Literacy Association conference, Liverpool, U.K.

Relevant Community Service

• International Physical Literacy Association, Canadian Representative
• Calgary Housing Authority Community Researcher
• City of Calgary Sport and Recreation Researcher
• Vivo for Healthier Generations Physical Literacy Researcher
• Brookfield Residential Community Engagement Researcher