The Uses of Printed Curriculum Materials by Teachers During Instruction and the Social Construction of Pedagogic Discourse in Physical Education

Abstract

This paper examines teachers’ use of printed curriculum materials (PCM) during physical education (PE) instruction in Spanish secondary schools and the role they play in the enacted curriculum and in the construction of pedagogical knowledge. Three hundred and ten participants (mean age: 37.7 ± 8.7) responded to an interview-questionnaire on teachers’ pedagogical roles and tasks linked to PCM in PE. Results indicated that while PCM were used very frequently for registering students’ attendance and recording observational notes from lessons, textbooks were less and infrequently used. Both, ‘materials for data registration’ and ‘student textbook’ showed the highest and lowest level of teachers’ satisfaction, respectively. ‘Student diary’ was the PCM used more by female and less experienced teachers than their counterparts, while textbooks were used more by experienced teachers than those with less years of teaching experience. Over fifty percent of teachers considered PCM to be ‘Quite important’ because they facilitate students to study theoretical knowledge, investigate and be creative. The paper discusses the contribution of teachers’ use of PCM to the enacted curriculum and their participation in the social construction of PE knowledge through Bernstein’s theory of pedagogic device. In particular, it indicates that PE teachers are relatively independent from external agencies in curriculum development and participate in the social construction of pedagogical knowledge. Female and less experienced teachers’ use of PCM facilitated students’ participation in the construction of knowledge, which suggests weaker framing of the teaching-learning process..