Examining self-Confidence and self-Perceived competence in Canadian pre-service teachers (PSTs): the role of biographies in physical education teacher education (PETE)

Abstract

ABSTRACT This research examines the impact of the biographies of generalist elementary school pre-service teachers (PSTs) on their experiences of Canadian physical education teacher education (PETE), and how these biographies shape self-confidence and self-perceived competence as physical educators. The phenomenological case study took place in a Canadian university faculty of education involving 112 PSTs taking a mandatory 36 h methods course in PETE. Research indicates that the majority of elementary school physical education (PE) classes in Canada are taught predominantly by non-specialist classroom teachers (Fletcher & Mandigo, 2013. The primary schoolteacher and physical education: a review of research and implications for Irish physical education. Irish Educational Studies, 31(3), 363–376. doi:10.1080/03323315.2012.710063; Freak & Miller, 2017. Magnifying pre-service generalist teachers’ perceptions of preparedness to teach primary school physical education. Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, 22(1), 51–70. doi:10.1080/17408989.2015.1112775; Fletcher, Mandigo & Kosnik, 2013. Elementary classroom teachers and physical education change in teacher-related factors during pre-service teacher education. Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, 18(2), 169–183. doi:10.1080/17408989.2011.649723). While generalist teachers may be required to teach PE, they often cite negative attitudes towards the subject based on their past personal experiences as students. These biographies can have a significant impact on how beginning PE teachers approach practice (Hyndman, B. P., & Pill, S.; (2016). The Influences on Teaching Perspectives of Australian Physical Education Teacher Education Students: The First-Year Influences on Teaching Perspectives Exploratory (FIT-PE) Study. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 41(5), 99–118. doi:10.14221/ajte.2016v41n5.7; Hyndman, B. P. (2017). Perceived social-ecological barriers of generalist pre-service teachers towards teaching physical education: Findings from the GET-PE study. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 42(7), 26–46. doi:10.14221/ajte.2017v42n7.3; Wrench, A. (2017). Spaces and physical education pre-service teachers’ narrative identities. Sport, Education and Society, 22(7), 825–838. doi:10.1080/13573322.2015.1094046; Ladwig et al, 2018). Results indicated that PSTs who had negative experiences in PE also stated that they had significant fear in teaching PE, while PSTs who had positive past experiences indicated that they had greater self-confidence and self-perceived competence. Findings indicated that a non-competitive, inclusive pedagogical approach had a positive effect on supporting PSTs to develop greater self-confidence and self-perceived competence.