Pre-service PEMAC teachers’ perspectives on primary school PE: an intervention study in the Fiji Islands

Background: Single- and mixed-sex grouping have long been a focus of attention in physical education (PE) and are matters often at the fore of discussions about curriculum planning, teaching, and learning. Nonetheless, there remains little consensus or guidance on which approach (or combination of approaches) should be preferred in PE in primary and secondary schools in England. Further, while single- and mixed-sex grouping have been extensively researched in PE in secondary schools, hitherto there remains an absence of research examining these practices in PE in primary schools. This research sought to address gaps in the literature to build a stronger evidence-base for decisions about gendered grouping practices in PE. Specifically, the study was designed to provide a snapshot of current single- and mixed-sex grouping arrangements in primary PE in England. Method: Data were collected via an online survey which was administered to all state-funded mainstream and special schools providing for children in Key Stage 1 (aged 5–7) and/or Key Stage 2 (aged 7–11) in the North-East of England (917 at the time of study). A total of 254 surveys were completed giving a response rate of 27.7%. Results: The responses indicate that nearly all schools were using mixed-sex grouping for PE, with children typically remaining in their mixed-sex form class and taught the same curriculum activities by their class teacher. Notably, no schools were using single-sex grouping for all PE lessons, although some were teaching combinations of single- and mixed-sex classes across different year groups and/or different activities of the curriculum. The responses also challenge the traditional dichotomous representation of single- and mixed-sex grouping by showing that some schools were grouping children into smaller single-sex groups within mixed-sex PE classes, particularly in activities requiring bodily contact. Some schools were also organising children into smaller mixed-sex groups within mixed-sex PE classes to encourage boys and girls to work together and support one another in their learning. Reported reasons for current grouping arrangements reflected both pragmatic considerations and perceived educational benefits of particular approaches, including school timetabling and consideration of gender equity in curriculum provision in PE. Conclusion: The conclusion calls for further research to explore the efficacy of single- and/or mixed-sex grouping in supporting and meeting the needs of all children in primary PE. Relatedly, we also highlight the importance of intersectional perspectives being brought to single- and mixed-sex grouping debates to inform the development of more nuanced, evidence-based policies and practices that promote inclusion and celebrate the diversity of children. We further suggest a need for research and policy to reconsider the language used in grouping practices to reflect commitments to gender diversity and gender equity.

Physical education (PE) in primary schools has traditionally been taught by qualified primary teachers. More recently, some teaching of PE in primary schools has been undertaken by coaches (mostly football coaches). These coaches hold national governing body awards but do not hold teaching qualifications. Thus, coaches may not be adequately prepared to teach PE in curriculum time. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the perceptions of a group of community-based football coaches working in primary schools for the impact of a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) programme on their ability to undertake ‘specified work’ to cover PE in primary schools. The programme focused on four areas identified as important to enable coaches to cover specified work: short- and medium-term planning, pedagogy, knowledge of the curriculum and reflection. Results showed that for the majority of coaches the CPD programme had made them more aware of the importance of these four areas and had helped to develop their knowledge and ability to put this into practice in covering planning, preparation and assessment time. However, further input is still required to develop coaches’ knowledge and understanding in all four areas, but especially their curriculum knowledge, as well as their ability to put these into practice consistently. These findings are discussed in relation to the implications of employing coaches to cover the teaching of PE in primary schools and, if employed, what CPD coaches need to develop the necessary knowledge, skill and understanding for covering specified work in schools.

Background: Generalist teachers’ confidence, competence and preparedness to teach Physical Education (PE) following Primary School Physical Education Teacher Education (PSPETE) has emerged as a research imperative. Yet little is known of teachers’ perceptions of such matters. For teacher educators responding to the deficient delivery of primary school PE by generalists, greater understanding of these perceptions would be valuable.Purpose: To offer an empirically founded description of perceptions of preparedness to teach primary school PE that firstly informs ongoing deliberations for how generalist teachers may be prepared and secondly generates new ideas for teacher education (TE) research, pedagogy and practice.Participants and setting: Participants (n = 400) were pre-service generalist teachers finishing units of study in PE within several Primary School Teaching degree programmes at one Australian university. The setting for this research was unique as subject specialisations were a feature of generalist TE programmes.Data collection: Transformative Learning Theory underpinned the development of the data collection instruments. A survey was administered to participants (n = 400). Survey items employed Likert scales and free-response questions to collect data related to experiences of school-based PE and learning-to-teach PE. Subsequently a purposive sample of participants (n = 19) with different levels of specialisation were interviewed to examine (a) conceptions of primary school PE; (b) feelings, thoughts and beliefs associated with teaching that conception of PE and (c) future intentions.Data analysis: Survey data were analysed with SPSS to report descriptive statistics pertaining to univariate frequency distribution of item variables together with association and strength of association when item variables were placed in cross-tabulation. Interview data were analysed using procedures described by Colaizzi to identify fundamental structures. The text-mining software, Leximancer, was used to identify theme clusters.Findings: Participants’ perceptions of preparedness to teach primary school PE conformed to two meaning-making structures of Transformative Learning Theory. Conceptualising ‘self’ in association with the subject was Habit of Mind whilst levels of preparedness was a Point of View. The composite of these structures was named a Professional Frame of Reference. To facilitate the reporting of these findings, the metaphor of a triple-folding lens was used to show ‘what’ transformed, namely, participants’ conceptions of primary school PE then associated roles and responsibilities.Conclusions: Perceptions of preparedness to teach are professional frames of reference. The triple-folding lens illustrates the multi-faceted dimensions of these frames. An additional outcome of the research is an empirically founded tool to underpin the design of a transformative pedagogy for PSPETE, a design whereby students’ preparedness to teach is associated with a re-envisioned, more informed conception of school PE.

The physical education (PE) in the Italian primary school and its teaching and organizational issues have long been a key topic of the political and scientific debate, however the various actions carried out so far have not been enough to recognize contents and methods of physical and sports education correctly oriented in an educational way, often reducing the time of curricular PE or the project experiences of physical literacy and sport to mere physical-technical exercises. The aim of this work is to develop the essential didactic-methodological contents and to define a model of core curriculum of Sport and Exercise Sciences degrees for teaching of PE in primary school and for sport education in sports associations for leisure and recreational activities. To this end will be conducted an analysis of ministerial documents for the identification of the main educational aspects of the contents and learning outcomes of PE in primary school. Then discussion with primary school teachers has been realized, through focus groups content-focused on PE at school as provided by National Guidelines and on specific projects carried out in collaboration between Italian Ministry of Education and Italian Olympic Committee.

LANGUAGE NOTE | Document text in English; abstract also in Chinese. This study explored the views of 296 serving physical education (PE) teachers concerning the interface of secondary and primary school PE in Hong Kong. Attached to the interpretive research perspective, questionnaire and follow-up telephone interviews were adopted for soliciting their views on the importance, measures taken and suggestions for improvement. The findings indicated that over 91% of serving PE teachers acknowledged the importance of interface for facilitating pupils’ learning. Similar articulations with the functions and content of school PE that facilitated the interface were found. Although 21% of them claimed that they had taken some measures for enhancing curricular interface, most of them were not systematic and well-planned. Thus, most PE teachers looked forward to a standardized curriculum stipulated by the Education Bureau as to ensure the effectiveness of the interface. The study suggests reinforcing teachers’ awareness of the interface of PE; considering the inclusion of PE in the internal school assessment for the Secondary School Places Allocation System and strengthening the interface from system, school and classroom levels. Consequently, it would enhance the learning and teaching in physical education. 本文旨在探討296位在職體育教師對中小學體育課程銜接的意見。研究以詮釋理念為依據，透過問卷及跟進電話訪談以顯證他們對體育課程銜接的重要性、實施措施和改善建議的意見。結果顯示九成一在職體育教師認同銜接對促進學生學習的重要性，認定學校體育功能和所教授內容相近，有利相關課程的銜接。雖然有百分之二十一在職體育教師表示已推展一些課程銜接措施，但有關銜接措施未見系統及計劃推行。大多數體育教師期望教育局能訂定一系列標準課程以確保其成效。本研究建議提升體育教師對課程銜接的醒覺性，考慮將體育納入為小學升中呈分試科目之一，並從系統、學校及課室等層面上優化中小學體育課程的銜接，促進學與教。

ABSTRACTPrimary physical education (PE) lessons tend to be taught by one, or a combination of, three different groups: generalist classroom teachers, specialist primary PE teachers and so-called adults other than teachers, who are almost exclusively sports coaches. Drawing upon data gathered from one-to-one interviews with 36 subject leaders (SLs), this study sought answers to two main questions: ‘Who delivers primary PE nowadays?’ and ‘What are the consequences?’ The findings revealed that the most common model for the delivery of PE involved responsibility being shared between the generalist class teacher and either a sports coach or specialist PE teacher. The SLs recognised strengths and weaknesses in all of the three main approaches used. However, while they favoured the use of specialist teachers because of their subject knowledge and expertise, the more prosaic constraints of cost and flexibility meant that the use of coaches had become increasingly popular. Whether or not, the growth of coaches is de-professionalising the delivery of PE, it certainly appears to be exacerbating any existing tendency to turn primary PE into a pale imitation of the sport-biased curricular of secondary schools. Ironically, the apparent ‘threat’ to the status of PE in the primary curriculum (as well as the status of PE specialists) posed by the growth of coaches in curricular PE in primary schools may well be exaggerated by the Primary PE and Sport Premium which appears to have added momentum to a change of direction regarding staffing the subject—towards sports coaches and away from generalist classroom teachers and PE specialists. As the shift towards outsourcing PE to commercial sports coaches becomes increasingly commonplace, it seems appropriate to talk of transformation, rather than mere change, in the delivery of primary PE.

ABSTRACTTo the outside observer, physical education in many primary schools, both in Aotearoa New Zealand and internationally, continues be practised in ways that students of the 1970s would recognise. The only significant change would arguably be the introduction of an increased regime of testing, and a narrower focus on physical health agendas. This is despite a large body of research, curriculum developments, and professional learning opportunities that have advocated for changing programmes and pedagogical practices to ensure that physical education is relevant and inclusive for all learners. I employ the theories of practice architectures and ecologies of practice that are detailed extensively in Kemmis, Wilkinson, Edwards-Groves, Hardy, Grootenboer, Bristol [2014. Changing practices, Changing Education. Singapore: Springer] and ecologies of practice [Kemmis, S., C. Edwards-Groves, J. Wilkinson, and I. Hardy. 2012. “Ecologies of Practices.” In Practice, Learning and Change, edited by P. Hager, A. Lee, and A. Reich, 33–49. London: Springer] to examine what constrains and enables transformative approaches to physical education in primary schools. In unpacking the cultural-discursive, material-economic, and socio-political arrangements that hold particular primary school physical education practices in place, I search for illumination about how to transform the conditions that reproduce particularly practices and the expense of transformative practice.

Objective: Physical education (PE) has been attributed an important role in providing young people with physical activity. If sufficiently active, PE lessons could contribute to physical activity levels in youth. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the overall intensity of Dutch primary and secondary school physical education (PE) lessons and the influence of various lesson characteristics on these intensity levels. Methods: Between September 2008 and June 2009 heart rates were measured using the Polar Team System in a nationally distributed sample of 913 students in 40 schools in the Netherlands. Results: Overall percentages lesson time in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) were 46.7% and 40.1% during primary school and secondary school PE respectively. Results indicated a sharp decline in girls’ PE intensity levels at the beginning of secondary school. Furthermore, secondary school boys were more active than girls. The high prevalence of teamgames in the Dutch PE curricula might prevent secondary school girls from attaining similar physical activity levels during PE.

This paper aims to understand how pupils and teachers actions-in-context constitute being-a-pupil and being-a-teacher within a primary school physical education (PE) movement culture. Dewey and Bentley's theory of transaction, which views organism-in-environment-as-a-whole, enables the researcher to explore how actions-in-ongoing activities constitute and negotiate PE movement culture. Video footage from seven primary school PE lessons from a school in the West Midlands in the UK was analysed by focusing upon the ends-in-view of actions as they appeared through the educational content (what) and pedagogy (how) of the recorded PE experiences. Findings indicated that the movement culture within the school was a monoculture of looks-like-sport characterised by the privileging of the functional coordination of cooperative action. Three themes of pupils' and teachers' negotiation of the movement culture emerged U-turning, Knowing the game and Moving into and out of games. This movement culture required teachers to ensure pupils looked busy and reproduced cooperative looks-like-sport actions. In fulfilling this role, they struggled to negotiate between their knowledge of sport-for-real and directing pupils towards educational ends-in-view within games activities. Simply being good at sports was not a prerequisite for pupils' success in this movement culture. In order to re-actualise their knowledge of sport, pupils were required to negotiate the teacher's ‘how’ and ‘what’ by exploring what constituted cooperative actions within the spatial and social dimensions of the activities they were set. These findings suggest that if PE is to be more than just the reproduction of codified sport, careful adjustment and consideration of ends-in-view is of great importance. Without regard for the latter there is potential to create significant complexity for both teachers and pupils beyond that required by learning and performing sport.

Physical education has historically held an important place as an identified learning area within the wider New Zealand curriculum. While consistently present, the way that physical education has been conceptualised and implemented has evolved and changed over time. This paper considers the changes that have occurred in the teaching of physical education in primary schools (5 years - 12 years) since the introduction of the Health and Physical Education in New Zealand Curriculum (1999). The potential educative value of physical education in New Zealand has been strengthened by the conceptual and philosophical framework underpinning the Health and Physical Education learning area within the New Zealand Curriculum (Ministry of Education, 2007). While acknowledging that this potential exists, it should be noted that there is concern about the quality of physical education as it actually occurs within New Zealand primary schools. This paper attempts to gain a greater understanding of the situation by exploring: the Health and Physical Education Curriculum; the conceptual confusion about what physical education is; the role of external providers in primary schools; the preparation of primary teachers to teach physical education; and by examining the research on primary school physical education in Aotearoa/New Zealand. This exploration has been informed by an analysis of a variety of texts, including curriculum documents that have informed physical education over the last fifteen years.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of detraining on fitness performance in 7-year-old children after 8 weeks of muscular fitness training, which took place during the first 15 minutes of regularly scheduled physical education (PE) class. Children from 2 PE classes were cluster randomized into either an exercise group (n = 20) or a standard PE control group (n = 19). Performance on the long jump, single-leg hop, curl-up, and balance test was assessed at baseline, after training, and after an 8-week detraining period. A significant interaction of group by time after training was observed in the exercise group with improvements noted in abdominal curl-up and single-leg hop performance (p < 0.05). After detraining, the exercise group maintained training-induced gains on the curl-up (group mean [95% confidence interval] posttraining of 27.9 [21.2-34.5] to detraining 27.3 [21.1-33.6] repetitions; p < 0.05) and single-leg hop (posttraining 79.8 [73.2-86.4] to detraining 79.7 [73.0-86.5] cm; p < 0.05). Conversely, long jump (posttraining 113.8 [108.2-119.5] to detraining 110 [102.6-117.5] cm; p < 0.05) regressed toward baseline values in both groups. After detraining, balance performance (1.5 [1.3-1.7] seconds) regressed relative to baseline (2.0 [1.7-2.4] seconds) and posttraining (2.0 [1.8-2.4] seconds; p < 0.05). These findings indicate that the phenomenon of detraining in children is complex and characterized by different adaptations and regressions in strength, power, and balance. Regular participation in fitness activities during PE may be needed to enhance and maintain performance in all measures of muscular fitness in 7-year-old children.

Background and Study aim. For the new reform to be applied in the best possible way, it is a priority and useful to promote the development of knowledge on the organization and methods of teaching/learning in physical education in primary school. This study aims to search for a new didactic organizational model for physical education in primary school, starting from the theoretical lines, showing the contrasts of the significant aspects and the uniqueness of heuristic learning, with a consequent theoretical and argumentative elaboration of operational proposals. Material and Methods. For this purpose, an accurate survey of the scientific literature has been analyzed, highlighting the critical issues that characterized the various proposals and attempt to implement physical activity and sports education courses in primary school over the years, up to the recent legislative innovation. Results. The path of the definition of physical education in primary school was marked by stages that did not always enhance the educational and training dimension of the motor and sports experience, making the school discipline assume a marginal and optional role in the face of an extracurricular practice characterized by a widespread organization and more capable of intercepting and responding to the physical exercise and sport needs of society. This complex situation has only generated confusion without solving the problem of the absence of physical and sporting activity in the 5-10 age group, as required by the World Health Organization and the European Union, by adequately and uniquely qualified teachers. It is now useful to promote the development of knowledge on the didactic organization of the primary school, on the different teaching/learning methods in physical education, to contextualize the scope of the new legal provision to the current legal framework Conclusions. The study highlights the value of a new approach in teacher training that aims to ensure the acquisition of key competence, according to the Recommendation of the European Parliament. This perspective can be easily realized by using a core curriculum uniformly applied at the national level.

The use of external providers to deliver primary school physical education (PE) shows no signs of slowing in England. Longstanding concerns into outsourcing primary school PE have highlighted the extent to which external providers often lack appropriate teaching qualifications and pedagogical knowledge. That said, when compared to primary school generalist teachers, external providers have been argued to be the ‘best fit’ to deliver primary school PE due to their greater knowledge base and experience of delivering curriculum activities, such as competitive team games. There is a paucity of research however surrounding external providers’ perspectives on their delivery of primary school PE, with their important insights and experiences underrepresented in the literature. This study, therefore, seeks to explore external providers’ perspectives and reflections on curriculum, pedagogy and assessment practices as delivered by them in outsourced primary school PE lessons. Semi-structured interviews were conducted over the telephone and Skype (video call) with 10 external providers, from four different outsourcing companies in the North of England. Penney et al.’s (2009, Curriculum, pedagogy and assessment: Three message systems of schooling and dimensions of quality physical education. Sport, Education and Society, 14(4), 421–442) three message systems of curriculum, pedagogy and assessment were used as a theoretical lens that aided the analysis of the data. The findings demonstrate that external providers: (1) developed and followed their own curriculum frameworks formed by their outsourcing companies to deliver in schools; (2) utilised various student-centred pedagogical approaches to deliver curriculum content that was driven by their formal and informal educational experiences to engage young people and (3) unlike some of the literature suggests, they provided assessment practices that were integrated into their curriculum frameworks. It was concluded that careful consideration must be taken by schools when contemplating whether to employ (or not) external providers to provide their curriculum content, deliver their primary school PE lessons, and to assess their pupils.

With the title of "The Value, obstacle and Strategy of physical education teaching in primary school with digital empowerment", this paper discusses the value, obstacle and optimization strategy from three angles. Through the research, it is found that digital technology can bring great value in primary school physical education, including the advantages of improving teaching effect, enhancing student participation, personalized learning and all-round development. However, digital physical education also faces some obstacles, such as the problem of capital investment, the lack of teachers' digital literacy and professional ability, and the unequal investment in educational resources. In order to optimize the digital effect of primary school physical education, six optimization strategies are proposed: increasing funding investment and sponsorship, enhancing teachers' digital literacy and professional ability, optimizing the investment and distribution of educational resources, promoting students' and parents' participation and recognition, formulating privacy and security policies, and establishing a digital primary school physical education evaluation system in the digital era. Through the implementation of these strategies, the digital development of primary school physical education can be further promoted and the teaching quality and students' comprehensive literacy can be improved.

Background Fostering children's physical self-concept (PSC) – understood as the perception of their own physical abilities – is a key objective in physical education (PE), as PSC is associated with physical activity, fitness, and well-being. However, recent research suggests that not only the level of PSC but also its accuracy – referred to as veridicality of the PSC – is important. Children, particularly in primary school, often overestimate their physical abilities. Self-assessment methods have been shown to foster self-regulated learning and shape PSC. However, little is known about their effects on PSC, fitness, and PSC veridicality in primary school PE. Purpose This study examined the effects of learning journals as a form of self-assessment on PSC, physical fitness, and PSC veridicality in primary school PE. Additionally, the study investigated whether improvements in veridicality were driven by changes in PSC, physical fitness, or both. Methods A quasi-experimental design was used with 198 third- and fourth-grade students from rural schools (intervention group: n = 106; control group: n = 92). The intervention consisted of an eight-lesson track and field unit. The intervention group used learning journals to monitor their progress and reflect on their performance, while the control group received the same content without self-assessment. PSC was measured using a validated questionnaire, and fitness was assessed with standardized motor tests (e.g. endurance, speed, strength, coordination, flexibility). PSC veridicality was calculated as the difference between PSC and performance. Data were analyzed using linear mixed models. Results and Discussion There was no evidence of an intervention effect on dimensions of PSC, except for coordination, where the intervention group caught up with the control group due to lower pre-test values. Both groups improved their fitness, likely reflecting practice effects, but the intervention group showed significantly greater gains in coordination, strength and speed. PSC veridicality improved in strength and speed for the intervention group among overestimators. These improvements resulted from both reduced PSC and greater fitness gains, with the latter having a stronger influence. The results suggest that learning journals fostered self-reflection and individual progress monitoring, likely enhancing students' motivation and effort during practice. This explains the stronger fitness improvements in the intervention group. For overestimators, self-assessment may have triggered a desire to align perceived and actual fitness, leading to greater physical improvement and more realistic self-perceptions. Conclusion Integrating self-assessment into PE has the potential to improve both fitness and veridicality in primary school children. The results also provide a strong argument for the inclusion of cognitive phases – such as structured reflection and self-assessment – in PE lessons, as they appear to complement physical practice and enhance learning processes. Future research should explore the motivational processes underlying these effects and examine the applicability of self-assessment across various PE content areas.