“A physical education teacher is like…”: Examining Turkish students’ perceptions of physical education teachers through metaphor analysis

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine middle school students’ perceptions of physical education teachers (PETs) through metaphors and drawings. This was a qualitative study in which phenomenology and purposeful sampling were used. The study sample consisted of 200 middle school students in Ordu/Turkey in the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 academic years. For data collection, participants were asked to fill in the blanks in the statement “The PET is like______ because ______” and to draw a picture reflecting their perceptions of physical education teachers. Data were analyzed using content analysis. The steps of data analysis were naming, elimination, categorization, establishing validity and reliability, calculating the frequencies of metaphors and interpreting the drawings. Expert opinion was also used in the elimination and categorization steps. Participants’ metaphors and drawings were grouped under 20 and 13 categories, respectively. Participants mostly generated metaphors under the categories of “PET as an athletic and physical force” (16%), “PET as a good person” (12.5%) and “PET as a guide” (9.5%). Participants mostly drew pictures under the categories of “PET as an athletic and physical force” (18.5%), “PET as a helpful person” (12.5%) and “PET as a good person” (11.5%). Participants’ perceptions of PETs did not differ by variables considered.