Changes in Physical Education Students’ Anxiety on School Experience

Abstract

Research has shown that student teachers (students) experience anxiety on school experience and that there are many different causes of that anxiety. Most studies have tended to concentrate on levels and causes of anxiety on one school experience. Although several studies have considered changes in anxiety over the course of one school experience, there is little information about how school experience anxiety changes over the period of a physical education student's initial teacher education. The purpose of this study was therefore to look at changes in the amount and causes of anxiety over the period of initial teacher education for physical education students in England. Secondary BEd physical education degree students were administered the Student Teacher Anxiety Scale after school experience in the academic years 1992/1993, 1993/1994 and 1994/1995, respectively. Eighty eight students completed the questionnaire after all three school experiences and therefore were included in the sample. Results showed that these physical education students experienced moderate levels of anxiety after each school experience. There was a significant correlation between the amount of anxiety experienced after each school experience. Greatest anxiety was caused by being observed, evaluated and assessed, with a suggestion that anxiety caused by being assessed became more important than anxiety caused by being observed. Least anxiety was caused by relationships with school staff and the task of teaching. Results of factor analysis identified two factors which were the same at the three administrations of the questionnaire: evaluation anxiety and class control anxiety, but two other factors at each of the three administrations of the questionnaire which were different, indicating inconsistent factors at the three administrations of the questionnaire. These results are discussed in the light of school‐based initial teacher education in England and Wales.