Influencing factors on planning decisionmaking among Spanish in-service Physical Education teachers.A population-based study

Abstract

Introduction. Traditionally, literature has contributed qualitative approaches for studying how to plan Physical Education (PE). To our knowledge there are not quantitative populationbased studies regarding the decision-making process among in-service Spanish PE teachers. The aim of this study was to analyze possible differences in the factors of influence on planning decision-making in PE with a large sample of Spanish in-service teachers depending on their characteristics (gender, teaching experience) and the educational context (educational stage, type of school).Method. The sample consisted of 618 teachers from 15 Spanish autonomous regions (422 males and 196 females; aged 23-63 years old). An electronic version of the validated Planning Decision-Making in PE Questionnaire was applied, using the google web platform. It is composed of eight factors (curriculum standards, pre-service training, physical environment, physical activity experiences, teaching experiences, socialization by other teachers, material and equipment, and level of preparation in the subject matters).Results. The results showed differences regarding the factors of influence in planning PE between teachers, caused by personal (teaching experience) and contextual (educational stage and type of school) factors. Habitual physical activity and pre-service training influenced novel teachers more in comparison to experienced teachers. Teachers from secondary schools were influenced more by their initial training, the curriculum standards, and the material and equipment. Public school teachers were more influenced by the curriculum standards and the physical environment, than those from private schools.Conclusion. According to previous qualitative research regarding the level of teaching experience, results suggest that initial training for PE teachers should consider including higher support from experienced teachers in order to avoid the dependence on the national curriculum standards. It is important to include the use of the physical environment of the school center regarding the effect that outdoor activities have on the students’ physical activity habits in their leisure time.