| ICSSPE News | No.43 January 2005 |
The Role of Physical Education and Sport in Education (SPINED) Harriet Dismore, England |
SpinEd is an international research project commissioned by the International Council for Sports Science and Physical Education (ICSSPE) and funded by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The project aimed to gather and present evidence regarding the benefits of quality Physical Education and school sport (PESS) to schools and the results were recently presented at the 2004 Pre-Olympic Congress in Thessaloniki, Greece. A major part of the project was to collect data regarding pupils’ perceptions of the outcomes of PESS. This international questionnaire study invited pupils from all over the world (n=3000) to inform us of their feelings towards PESS, their perceived competence and their views of the outcomes of PESS. A summary of the findings are presented below. Feelings towards PESS The participants were invited to offer information pertaining to the general feelings they had towards PESS and these results are presented in Figure 1 below. Overall, there was an extremely positive response to this question. A total of 86% of children and young people had positive feelings towards the subject, whilst only 8% were not sure about how they felt and 6% had negative feelings. Responses were analysed according to age and gender of participant. Pupils aged between 7-10 years old were more likely to say that they loved PESS and less likely to give a negative response, whilst those over 15 years old were least likely to say they loved PESS and most likely to say that they liked it. Boys were more likely than girls to claim to love PESS, whilst girls were more likely to like PESS than to love it. When asked why they had these feelings about PESS, a range of answers were provided. Participants with positive feelings towards PESS provided positive reasons, such as being able to play their favourite sport, providing them with the opportunity to play with their friends, helping them to be active and acquire new skills. By far the most common answers were that PESS is fun and that it helps them to keep fit and healthy. More specific responses related to their teachers, the school facilities and school events such as sports days. Some participants who were not sure about how they felt towards PESS added that it depends upon certain factors, such as the activity, their current state of health and whether they had to go outside or to stay inside to do PESS. Although there were far fewer negative participants, reasons included that they didn’t like the choice of activities, that they felt embarrassed in PESS and that they didn’t like getting changed. Interestingly, the competition element of PESS was found to be both a reason to like and dislike the subject. Perceived Competence We asked the participants to rate their competence in PESS. The overall responses to this question were also very positive, with the majority of pupils either regarding themselves as excellent or good at PESS. 13% more pupils rated themselves as good rather than excellent. A relatively high number of children (20%) were not sure about how to rate their competence and a small number perceived themselves as not so good or poor at PESS (11%). These data are displayed in Figure 2 below. In all countries higher proportions of children in the 7-10 age group rated themselves as excellent and the older age groups were more likely to rate themselves as good. Of those that were unsure or negative about their competence, a higher number were in the older age groups. The analysis undertaken to explore any relationship between perceptions of competence and gender were less striking, with girls in certain countries, such as Japan more likely to rate their competence as not so good or poor than girls in other countries. Indeed, the ways in which participants expressed their perceived competence could be a product of cultural exuberance compared with the relative reserve of children in some countries. Perceptions of Outcome The pupils were asked to agree or disagree to a series of statements relating to the outcomes of PESS. These were: that PESS helped them to keep fit and healthy; that it helped them to be part of a group; that it prepared them for sports competitions; that it made them proud to be part of the school; that it helped them make new friends; that it made them respect themselves more; that it encourages them to go to school; that it helps them respect others more; that it helps them to do well in school; and that it helps them do better at other subjects. The results are presented in Figure 3. The statement that elicited the most agreement was that PESS keeps them fit and healthy (92%). A very high proportion of pupils also agreed that PESS helped them to prepare for sports competitions (83%) and that PESS helped them to carry on being physically active (76%). The statement with which the greatest number of participants from all countries disagreed was that PESS helped them to do better at other subjects (44%). A relatively high proportion of participants were not sure whether PESS helped them do well in school (21%), helped them to be proud to be a part of their school (20%) and to do better at other subjects (20%). When analysed according to age ranges, the results suggested that the 7-10 age range tended to be more positive about the benefits that PESS can provide, and this was especially the case in Japan. Also, where disagreement was expressed it was mostly from pupils in older age groups. Similar analysis was undertaken in terms of gender and it is worth noting that only a few differences were observed. In all countries, more girls than boys claimed to be uncertain about the outcomes. Perhaps surprisingly, more boys than girls tended to agree that PESS helped in certain social outcomes. For instance, in Colombia, more boys than girls agreed that PESS helped them to make new friends whilst more girls than boys in England disagreed that PESS helped them to feel part of a group. To conclude, the positive results indicate that the majority of pupils do enjoy and value PESS. Yet younger students of all countries were the most likely to be more positive about their feelings towards PESS and more confident about their ability. There were other areas of PESS that the vast majority of students in all countries agreed upon, such as that PESS helped to keep them healthy and fit. Questioning students about the outcomes of PESS is important if we want to encourage them to remain physical active beyond their formal education. It was especially interesting in this study to find that despite living in a different country and attending different schools with different curricula, there was a great deal of agreement between the various samples of students. Further international research is needed if we are to fully understand the relationship between pupils’ perceptions of PESS, the curriculum, schools systems and culturally acceptable responses. This website address for SpinEd is http://spined.cant.ac.uk/ and provides further information about all aspects of the project, including the case studies that were completed in Europe, North America, South America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. The website also includes an on-line annotated international bibliography, relevant links and an on-line guestbook where children are encouraged to participate by publishing their thoughts on PESS in their school. We hope that this web site will be useful for both participants of the project and any one else who values the role of Physical Education and School Sport. Any comments or further ideas are welcomed and should be sent to Harriet Dismore: hcd4@canterbury.ac.uk. http://www.icsspe.org/portal/bulletin-january2005.htm The Role of Physical Education and Sport in Education (SPINED) Harriet Dismore, England