What are physical education teachers being told about how to teach sport?

For many years, literature has supported the use of a “tool kit” of instructional strategies to achieve student learning outcomes in PE (Pill, 2011). For example, Mosston’s Spectrum of Teaching Approaches (Mosston, 1966) is an example of one of these enduring ideas. More recently, however, scholarly and research literature has been promoting models based practice (MBP), particularly as a means for implementing student-centred approaches to learning (Casey, 2014; Hastie & Casey, 2014). However, not all scholars are in agreement with the concept and associated calls for fidelity to models by MBP advocates, with some arguing PE teachers are pragmatic interpreters of theory, and therefore calls for model fidelity are inherently flawed (Stolz & Pill, 2014).

The literature review revealed three directions for PE teachers.

1. Game Based approaches to learning in PE technical and tactical dimensions of skilled performance in game play are promoted in preference to direct instruction or drill-practice based models
 The publications explored the tenets of the model or compared a game-based model to a more ‘traditional’ PE Method (Metzler, 2011), which Kirk (2010) has described as sport taught as sport techniques. Game based models use a classification system of games composing four categories based on common tactical elements called principles of play (Hopper & Bell, 2001). This is why Metzler (2011) called game-based models ‘tactical’ models in his MBP framework. They are distinguished by their focus on game-play as a learning tool and inquiry-oriented teacher pedagogy.

2. The Sport Education curriculum model is well researched and validated as a design to provide authentic, educationally rich sport experiences for students in the context of school PE
Because PE has often been delivered through short 3-5 week units of work in what is called the multi-activity model it can become a context for talent identification rather than physical education. SE is one model that is a better alternative to the multi-activity model that produces ‘talent identification’. SE enables the retention of sport in PE in a way that emphasises desirable ethical and educational outcomes. The model has also been successfully applied beyond team games to athletics (Hastie, Calderon, Rolim & Guarino, 2013). Literature in this group also considered hybrids of SE with other models to enhance the 'micropedagogy' of the SE model. For example, Alexander and Penney (2005) develop SE features within a game-based model to amplify the focus on game competency development. Ennis (1999) described the Sport for Peace approach entwined with the SE model. Hastie and Buchanan (2000) described the development of a hybrid model, Empowering Sport, which combined some distinguishing features of SE (e.g. formal competition and the persisting team) together with facilitating personal responsibility from the Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility through Physical Activity (TPSR) model.

3.  Personal and social development is an often-cited outcome of quality sport teaching in PE  and to be achieved needs to be a deliberate pedagogical focus of the PE teacher 
With growing media attention on elite athletes and their behaviours and the media positioning childhood and youth in a polarised manner as being either dangerous or in danger (Prout & Hallett, 2003) schools are often required to respond in ways that are practical and appropriate. Curricula response inevitably view PE as a place where intra and inter personal values, skills and abilities are  learnt (Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs, 2008). The TPSR model and more recently Youth Development through Sport are well researched constructs for a deliberate pedagogical focus on personal and social skill development. Other examples of sport-based programs for personal and social skill learning include the Sports United to Promote Education and Recreation program (Danish, 2002) and Hokowhitu Program (Heke, 2001).

The weight of research focused on pedagogies like a Game Based or Tactical model, Sport Education and TPSR is encouraging innovation away from the more historically common pedagogical narrowness of directive practice style sport teaching in PE.

This is a selected excerpt from
Baldock, R., & Pill, S. (2017). What are physical education teachers being told about how to teach sport? An exploratory analysis of sport teaching in physical education. Learning Communities: International Journal of Learning in Social  Contexts, 21, 108-123.
To read more, please go to http://www.cdu.edu.au/northern-institute/lcj/10.18793/LCJ2017.21.09