Evaluation of physical education in secondary school

Abstract

The aim of this study is to highlight which contextual elements are more important than physical fitness evaluation in the assessment of the quality of physical education in schools. From this perspective, a brand new instrument was designed to determine students' perception of their educational development in physical education. The instrument was applied to 174 eight-graders (94 girls, 80 boys) with an average age of 13.8 ± 0.7 years, enrolled in primary schools from different socioeconomic contexts. The results show differences in «Developing active life», «self-development», and «in-class pedagogy», public schools obtaining lower scores than private ones. Differences were also found in the responses of boys and girls, however, they do not allow for clear conclusions. The lowest scores were obtained in «Motor Expression» and «outdoor activities». Despite being essential for an active lifestyle, these activities do not seem to be used within the physical education curriculum. This instrument can represent a valuable means for evaluating school physical education context.