Current situation of Physical Activity in the Natural Environment in Physical Education in Spain

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyse the teachers' treatment, in Spain, of the Physical Activity in the Natural Environment content block as part of Physical Education in Secondary Education. The study developed for this research conforms to a non-experimental, sectional, descriptive and correlational design, resulting in a nationally representative study. A total of 453 teachers participated (294 male and 159 female teachers) and a questionnaire created and validated by a committee of experts for the occasion was used, which was applied at national level. The results showed a high percentage of teachers who plan activities in the natural environment (91.4%); arguments about a lack of training in the field when not planning these activities and the activities most worked on were found (orienteering, hiking, first aid and games in nature). Progress was noted in the incorporation of Physical Activities in the Natural Environment as part of the classroom programme in Physical Education in Secondary Education, but not in the content worked on in these sessions. This study leads us to know the existing deficiencies in the teaching staff in Spain and the needs required for a better implementation of the Physical Activity in the Natural Environment block as part of Physical Education.