Abstract
Background: Physical Education (PE) is a fundamental cornerstone for childhood development as it promotes lifelong participation in physical activities for holistic health. School educators play a key role in creating school environments that lead to developmentally appropriate and high-quality PE lessons.Aim: The aim of this study was to determine educators’ perceptions on the state and status of PE in selected public primary schools in all nine provinces of South Africa.Setting: Data were collected on the campus of the selected primary schools within 150 km of a university. In the absence of a university within the stated radius, an airport was used as an initiated point of departure.Methods: The mixed-methods approach (quantitative: questionnaires and qualitative: semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions) was used to collect data. The purposive sampling method was used to select the participants. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics in the form of percentages, and presented using graphs and tables. Qualitative data were analysed using themes.Results: The findings revealed that the educators from quintile 4 and 5 schools especially are of the opinion that challenges, such as a lack of resources, qualified PE specialist educators, and facilities and equipment negatively affected the delivery of PE at their schools.Conclusion: Participants perceived that there are varying contextual and socio-economic school settings affecting the delivery of PE in the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) curriculum. The researcher recommends that all learners have access to the adequate provision of PE programmes.
Highlights
The World Health Organization (WHO) launched various campaigns and renewed its policy framework to address alarming worldwide mortality rates due to health conditions related to physical inactivity globally (WHO 2018)
This study mainly focused on principals, Heads of Department (HODs) and Life Skills (LS) teachers who are responsible for Physical Education (PE), according to the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statements (CAPS) curriculum
Results for special needs schools are not included in this study as they are reported on a different platform
Summary
Physical activity is defined as any bodily movement executed by skeletal muscles that requires energy expenditure, yet it should not be confused with merely doing exercises (WHO 2018). Activities such as working, playing, carrying out household chores and other recreational pursuits are all included. South Africa’s 2018 Report Card on PA for children and youth shows that there is insufficient progress towards the promotion of safe and accessible physical activities for children. This stagnation is compounded by the fact that participation in PE is below optimum standards (Draper et al 2018). School educators play a key role in creating school environments that lead to developmentally appropriate and high-quality PE lessons
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