Effect of Class Content on Practice Time in the Physical Education of Elementary and High School Students

Abstract

Th e article focuses on the effi cient use of time in providing high quality physical education in schools. We explore the research base identifying eff ective physical education teaching in schools, in terms of academic learning time and other time-related variables in physical education lessons. We compare students' activity levels in two types of physical education sessions which diff er with regards to lesson content (technical lessons and games lessons), and to the educational level in which the sessions are given (three stages of elementary education and high school education). A total of 112 lessons involving ten class groups and 255 elementary and high school students were observed using the Placheck method (Siedentop & Tannehill, 2000). T tests were used to compare the academic learning time engagement levels of technical classes with physical education games classes. In the technical lessons, the students were active 45.6% of the time during the session, while in the games lessons the students were active 53.2% of the time. Th is diff erence is signifi cant (p=0.002). Th ese diff erences were not signifi cant in the sessions taught in the fi rst and second stages of elementary education. We conclude that scope for students to play a lead role in the physical education session is a determining factor in their activity level during the fi nal stage of elementary education and in high school education. It is therefore recommended that physical educators periodically reexamine not only teaching behaviours, class structures and teaching formats, but also the types of activities they include, in order to provide eff ective teaching and learning environments for their students.