A Program to Promote Moral Development through Elementary School Physical Education

Abstract

This study examined the effectiveness of a specially designed physical education program on the moral development of elementary-age students. Two fifth-grade physical education classes (N = 32) served as control and experimental groups, and participated in identical physical activities during an 8-week program. The experimental group was exposed to special teaching strategies designed to foster moral growth whereas the control group was not. Moral reasoning data were gathered using pre- and posttest interviews. A test of homogeneity of variances on pretest scores revealed that the two intact classes were equivalent on the pretest moral measures. Consequently, a t test was appropriately employed to compare gain scores between the experimental and control groups. T test analyses on the moral reasoning gain scores showed significant differences between the groups in moral growth, with the experimental group showing greater improvement in sport, life, and overall moral reasoning. T tests conducted on within-group changes showed significant pre- to posttest improvement for the experimental group in sport and overall moral reasoning. Concomitant growth did not occur in the control group. These results indicate that a specific program designed to promote moral development through physical education can affect changes in levels of moral growth.