Education in and through sport - incorporating TPSR into Play with Purpose

 

The Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (TPSR) model was developed by Don Hellison (2011). It is a framework for learning life skills and for character, development with the aim that students who are physically educated become responsible, caring members of their communities. The TPSR model has 5 progressive levels of responsibility.

The Five Levels of Responsibility

1. Respect for the Rights and Feelings of Others

Students at this level can manage their own behaviour, resolve conflicts peacefully, and maintain a safe learning environment.
Key behaviours: self-control, listening, not disrupting others.

2. Participation and Effort

Students at this level demonstrate enthusiasm, stay on task, and give their best effort regardless to tasks.
Key behaviours: trying new activities, setting personal effort goals.

3. Self-Direction

Students at this level develop the ability to work independently and make constructive choices about their learning.
Key behaviours: practising on their own, setting goals, self-assessing.

4. Caring and Leadership

Students at this level take initiative to help others and contribute positively to the group.
Key behaviours: encouraging peers, assisting classmates, showing empathy.

5. Transfer of Responsibility Beyond the Gym

Students at this level apply the values learned in physical education to other contexts, such as to school, home, and community.
Key behaviours: demonstrating responsibility outside class, reflecting on real-world application.

TPSR foregrounds building intentional teaching moments into physical education lessons. Four pedagogies of TPSR are:

1. Relational time.
2. Awareness talks.
3. Physical activity with responsibility embedded.
4. Reflection time.

A recent bibliometric review of TPSR scholarship mapped 124 publications and reaffirmed TPSR is the central pedagogical model in physical education for building responsibility, character, and social development (Di et al., 2023). A 2024 systematic review and meta-analysis synthesizing 20 studies (2005–2023) found that TPSR-based PE programs produce significant positive emotional and social outcomes for participants. Effects were demonstrated across key indicators such as emotional regulation, social connectedness, and prosocial behaviour (Aygun et al., 2024).

 What the Research Means for PE Teachers. TPSR improves key outcomes:

Emotional regulation

Social skills

Positive peer interactions

Self-direction

Leadership and empathy

 Play with Purpose with TPSR

When you combine TPSR’s focus on personal and social growth with Play with Purpose’s focus on intentional, game‑centred skill learning, you get a dual‑purpose pedagogical approach:

 Students learn to play the game better and become better people through the game.

 This is an example of what the Play with Purpose pedagogical loop combined with TPSR can look like as a session plan.

 Play with Purpose model (intentional play that builds game skills, understanding, and positive behaviours)

Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (TPSR) model (Levels 1–5: Respect, Participation, Self‑Direction, Caring, Transfer)

 Lesson Sequence

Begin with a TPSR Awareness Talk - a brief circle talk to set the tone.

Teacher prompts:

• “Today we are focusing on Respect and Participation. What does that look like?”
• “How can you show caring during team play?”
• “At the end, you’ll share one way you can use these skills outside PE.”

Students give ideas in response to the teacher prompts.

Game 1: Play With Purpose Intent: Learning to move into space and avoid defenders.

Keep It Moving A 3v1 or 4v1 keep-away game.

Purposeful play focus:

• Move to open space.
• Pass to maintain possession.

Rules:

• Offensive players must move after they pass (teacher cue: “Pass and go!”).
• Defender tries to intercept.

Progressions:

• Limit touches: 3-touch → 2-touch.
• Add a second defender for challenge.

Practice 1 Setup:

• Divide the court into 3 horizontal zones.
• Two taggers in the centre zone only.
• Players run across zones without being tagged.

TPSR Integration: look for and 'call out' students who:

• Praise respectful tagging and safe movement.
• Encourage caring (“help your partner get through the zone”).

Practice 2 Setup:

• Gate Passing - Cones form small “gates.” In pairs or trios, students pass the ball through gates while moving.

Purposeful play intent:

• Passing accuracy
• Communication
• Vision

TPSR links: Teacher call outs:

• Students showing self-direction. Self-direction: students choose which gate to move to next.

• Caring: partners encourage each other.

Game 2: End‑Zone

Setup:

• Two teams.
• Teams score by completing a pass to a teammate in the end zone.
• No running with the ball—players pivot and pass.
• Who is showing respect?
• Who is supporting your teammates?
• Who is showing self‑direction: manage turnovers and reset quickly.

Key Teaching Cues:

• “Find space!”
• “Pass early.”
• “Support the ball carrier.”

Modifications:

• If a team is struggling, add a “magic player” who plays for both teams.
• Reduce or expand playing area as needed.

TPSR links: Teacher looks for: 

• Who is showing respect?
• Who is supporting teammates?
• Who is showing self‑direction: manage turnovers and reset quickly.

Conclusion - TPSR Reflection 

Teacher 2–3 questions:

• “Who showed good respect today?”
• “What was one thing you did to help your team?”
• “Where else in school could you use the teamwork skills you used today?”

Student journals, or exit tickets:

• “How did I show respect today?”
• “What was my best moment of participation?”
• “How did I help or encourage others?”
• “One behaviour I can take to the classroom/playground is…”

Students each set a transfer goal for the day (e.g., “I will encourage a classmate in maths by....”).

The synergy between TPSR and Play with Purpose (PwP) lies in how one model strengthens what the other might miss:

A. PwP provides the “education in sport” platform

B. TPSR adds a “responsibility and relationships” layer for “education through sport”

Together -

PwP gives the practice design for high-quality game learning.
TPSR gives the social-emotional structure to shape positive behaviours around that learning.

 In this combination -

Ø  Skill learning is purposeful, not accidental

Ø  Students are intentionally positioned as agentic learners

Ø  Learning environments are intentionally cognitively demanding 

     The combination of PwP with TPSR features provides a humanistic, student-centred learning environment.

Related posts

Humanistic physical education click here

References

Aygun, Y., Boke, H., Yagin, F. H., Tufekci, S., Murathan, T., Gencay, E., ... & Ardigò, L. P. (2024). Emotional and social outcomes of the teaching personal and social responsibility model in physical education: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Children, 11(4), 459.

 Di, Y., Cui, L., Zhou, W., Wu, X., & Zhou, T. (2023, December). A Bibliometric Review of the Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility Model in Physical Education. In 2023 4th International Conference on Information Science and Education (ICISE-IE) (pp. 1-6). IEEE.

Hellison, D. (2011). Teaching responsibility through physical activity. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics

 Hellison, D., Wright, P., Martinek, T., & Walsh, D. (2025). Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility Through Physical Activity (4th ed.). Human Kinetics.