A Pedagogical Analysis of Critical Thinking Deployed by Health and Physical Education Teachers at the Secondary School Level

Georges Kpazaï ,Marie‐France Daniel ,Kossivi Attiklemé

doi:10.7575/aiac.ijkss.v.3n.3p.1

Georges Kpazaï , Marie‐France Daniel + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.7575/aiac.ijkss.v.3n.3p.1

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Abstract

Background: Several pedagogical research studies acknowledge instruction in Health and Physical Education as being conducive to the development of critical thinking skills in students. However, little empirical research has focused on the presence of this form of thinking in Health and Physical Education (HPE) teachers. Yet according to various researchers in the field of pedagogy, the presence of critical thinking skills in the teacher is crucial to promote its development in students during the teaching-learning process. Objective: The present study is a follow-up of previous research examining the manifestations of critical thinking in teachers at the primary school level and is intended to identify expressions of critical thinking and define its role in the professional conduct of three Health and Physical Education (HPE) teachers (two men and one woman) at the secondary school level. Methodology: The theoretical framework for this study is based on the concept of critical thinking developed by Matthew Lipman. The procedure used in this study involved video recording nine health and physical education lessons delivered by the three teachers followed by nine semi-structured interviews with the teachers using the technique of stimulated recall. Result and discussion: The results indicated not only the presence of critical thinking in the teachers, but also that this form of thinking has multiple facets of expression. In terms of its function, critical thinking is essentially utilized as a genuine tool for teachers to evaluate the pertinence or viability of their instructional approach with students at the secondary school level.

Highlights

What pedagogical interpretation can be extracted in terms of the role and form of critical thinking based on its manifestations in Health and Physical Education (HPE) teachers at the secondary school level? To answer this question, we will proceed to a discussion of the results obtained at the level of each characteristic of critical thinking as described by Lipman (1991, 1995, 2006), namely, 1) self-correcting thought, 2) thinking that is sensitive to the context, and 3) thinking that is governed by criteria
The present study had two main objectives: 1) determine to what extent critical thinking is present in secondary school level HPE teachers during the teaching-learning process; and 2) describe the function of this kind of thinking in teaching if it is utilized by educators
If the characteristic of “sensitivity to context” is more dominant and the characteristic of “self-correction” offers an acceptable presence, it is clear that the same quality that determines the critical aspect of critical thinking, that is to say the presence of criteria underlying the judgment of these HPE professionals, is poorly represented

Summary

Introduction

For more than two decades, numerous studies in the area of health and physical education have revealed an ever growing interest in the concept of critical thinking (Buschner, 1990; Côté, Shihui & Keppell, 2008; Daniel, 2001; Forges, Daniel & Borges, 2015, 2011; Hoper, 2010; Lodewyk, 2009; McBride, 1990, 1991; McBride, Xiang & Wittenburg, 2002; Waburton, 2004). While the body of research in this area, including both feature articles (BergmannDrewe & Daniel, 1998; Buschner, 1990; Daniel & Bergmann-Drewe, 1998; McBride, 1999, 1991; McBride & Xiang, 2004) and empirical studies Chen, Rovegno, Cone & Cone, 2012; McBride & Bonnette, 1995; McBride, Xiang & Wittenburg, 2002) is extensive, almost all of the researchers were primarily interested in the development of critical thinking skills in students at the primary school, secondary school, and post-secondary levels, those enrolled in teacher training programs. Several pedagogical research studies acknowledge instruction in Health and Physical Education as being conducive to the development of critical thinking skills in students. Little empirical research has focused on the presence of this form of thinking in Health and Physical Education (HPE) teachers. According to various researchers in the field of pedagogy, the presence of critical thinking skills in the teacher is crucial to promote its development in students during the teaching-learning process. In terms of its function, critical thinking is essentially utilized as a genuine tool for teachers to evaluate the pertinence or viability of their instructional approach with students at the secondary school level

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