Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU) as comprehensive teaching method in physical education: Systematic review of the last 5 years

Abstract

Over decades physical education has implemented different pedagogical approaches or models as tools to improve the educational practice and the implementation of a comprehensive teaching method as the Teaching Games for Understanding has been one of those forms. However, there is a current debate with respect what would be the best approach to be implemented in the physical education classes and Mexico has not been the exception. The purpose of this systematic review from the last 5 years is to analyze an approach as pedagogical tool that physical education teachers from different levels in Mexico could implement. Through the PRISMA methodology there were 562 articles identifies, once the inclusion criteria were applied, only 25 articles were eligible, although only 12 completed the inclusion criteria. The results show that implementing the Teaching Games for Understanding is an effective and efficient to be used by teachers within the physical education classes. Its implementation has been predominantly in developed countries such as Spain, Canada and the United States. The combination with another method has also shown to be an attractive way so that children and youth participate in class. As such, it can be said that this pedagogical tool could be an incentive to implemented with success by physical education teachers in Mexico. Being an area of opportunity to an in-depth and epistemological study in the use of this approach in physical education classes in Mexico.