Activating Bodies of Knowledge: Improvisation, Cognition, and Sports Education

2011 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
David Scott Ross
Keyword(s):  
Physical Education ◽  
Procedural Knowledge ◽  
Significant Shift ◽  
Game Playing ◽  
Metacognitive Skills ◽  
Embodied Learning ◽  
Teaching Games For Understanding ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
Cognitive Benefits

While researchers in diverse fields have begun using improvisation as a conceptual metaphor for collaborative means of negotiating indeterminacy, little work has related these theoretical perspectives to physical education. In this paper, I argue that improvisation provides a frame for understanding the cognitive benefits of sports play, and presents learning opportunities for developing skills in tactical and strategic thinking, problem solving, and the enactment of procedural knowledge. I begin by drawing upon the work of Varela et. al.(1991) and Lakoff and Johnson (1999) to discuss perspectives which have effected a significant shift in the understanding of the role that embodiment plays in cognition, perspectives which emphasize the interdependence of the organism and its environment. I then discuss the ways in which context-dependent action is fundamental to improvisation, and means by which improvisation-based curricula effectively promote the integration of cognitive, affective and embodied forms of learning. The importance of enactive perspectives is evident in recent curricular theorizing in physical education. I discuss the possible pedagogical application of these perspectives by looking at one model, Teaching Games for Understanding (Light and Fawns 200, Griffin and Butler 2005), which shifts the focus of game playing from skill execution to situated cognition. In schools, physical education class is the primary context in which students have the opportunity to improvise, with group sports as a structured context that utilizes improvisation as a constitutive element in game playing. In contrast to learning environments that are divorced from immediate exigencies in the topics under discussion, sports play encourages players to “think on their feet,” both literally and figuratively. I conclude that, rather than consigning physical education to a marginal position in schools, work needs to be done to foreground the cognitive dimension in sports play and the ways in which cognitive and metacognitive skills in physical education classes may be further enhanced. I suggest that a pedagogical approach that incorporates understandings from improvisation may lead to a more holistic understanding of embodied learning and a reconceptualization of the role that physical education plays in education.

scholarly journals Autonomy support, motivational climate, enjoyment and perceived competence in physical education: Impact of a hybrid teaching games for understanding/sport education unit

2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Gil-Arias ◽  
Fernando Claver ◽  
Alba Práxedes ◽  
Fernando Del Villar ◽  
Stephen Harvey
Keyword(s):  
Physical Education ◽  
Direct Instruction ◽  
Autonomy Support ◽  
Perceived Competence ◽  
Motivational Climate ◽  
Sport Education ◽  
Teaching Games For Understanding ◽  
Hybrid Teaching ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Instruction Model

The purpose of the study was to investigate the impact of a hybrid teaching games for understanding (TGfU) and sport education (SE) physical education unit on autonomy support, perceived motivational climate, enjoyment and perceived competence, in comparison to a unit delivered via a traditional direct instruction model. A crossover design was utilized. Participants were 55 students divided into two groups. One group experienced a hybrid TGfU/SE unit first, followed by a unit of direct instruction. A second group experienced the units in the opposite order. The hybrid unit was designed according to the characteristics of SE (e.g. formal competition, seasons, team identity, roles, etc.) and learning tasks were designed to integrate the pedagogical principles of TGfU. Dependent variables were measured using validated questionnaires. Results showed that regardless of the order of intervention, students in the two groups reported significantly higher mean scores in interest in athletes’ input, praise for autonomous behavior, perceived competence, and enjoyment when they were taught using the hybrid TGfU/SE unit. The results demonstrate some initial evidence that a teacher’s employment of a hybrid TGfU/SE unit can encourage students to assume responsibilities and make independent decisions, which leads to them reporting greater enjoyment and perceived competence when compared to physical education lessons delivered via a traditional direct instruction model.

scholarly journals “E a gente teve que aprender a conviver”: meninas e futsal escolar

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 106-122
Author(s):  
Antonio Jorge Martins Malvar ◽  
Osmar Moreira de Souza Junior
Keyword(s):  
Elementary School ◽  
Public School ◽  
Physical Education ◽  
Sport Education ◽  
Teaching Games For Understanding ◽  
Teaching Models ◽  
Palabras Clave ◽  
Teacher Researcher ◽  
Inductive Analysis

Resumo O objetivo da pesquisa foi analisar a participação das meninas de uma turma de 6º ano do Ensino Fundamental na prática do futsal nas aulas de Educação Física de uma escola pública do município de Feira de Santana-BA. Utilizamos uma unidade didática da modalidade futsal, com aplicação dos modelos de ensino dos esportes Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU) e Sport Education, acompanhada de registros em diários de aula pelo professor-pesquisador. Após a coleta e leitura do corpus de análise, os dados foram categorizados através de uma análise indutiva, sendo que para o presente estudo apresentamos as categorias “Conquistas e superações vivenciadas pelas meninas” e “Dificuldades e desafios enfrentados pelas meninas”.Palavras-chave: Educação Física Escolar. Ensino Fundamental. Futsal. Meninas. “And we had to learn to live together”: girls and school futsal  Abstract The research objective was to analyze the participation of girls from a class of 6th grade of elementary school in futsal practice in Physical Education classes at a public school in the municipality of Feira de Santana – BA. We use a didactic unit of the futsal modality, with application of the teaching models of sports Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU) and Sport Education, accompanied by records in class diaries by the teacher-researcher. After collecting and reading the analysis corpus, the data were categorized through an inductive analysis, and for the present study the categories “Achievements and overcoming experienced by girls” and “Difficulties and challenges faced by girls” are presented.Keywords: School Physical Education. Elementary School. Futsal. Girls. “Y tuvimos que aprender a vivir juntos”: niñas y fútbol sala en la escuela Resumen El objetivo de la investigación fue analizar la participación de niñas de una clase de 6° de primaria en la práctica de fútbol sala en las clases de Educación Física de un colegio público del municipio de Feira de Santana – BA. Usamos una unidad didáctica de la modalidad de fútbol sala, con aplicación de los modelos de enseñanza Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU) y Sport Education, acompañada de registros en los diarios de clase del docente-investigador. Luego de recolectar y leer el corpus de análisis, los datos fueron categorizados mediante un análisis inductivo, y para el presente estudio se presentan las categorías “Logros y superaciones vividas por niñas” y “Dificultades y desafíos que enfrentan las niñas”.Palabras clave: Educación Física Escolar. Enseñanza Fundamental. Fútbol Sala. Niñas.

scholarly journals Studije tehnologije i studije materijalne kulture: mogućnosti bliže saradnje na primeru koštanih artefakata

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 703
Author(s):  
Selena Vitezović ◽  
Ivan Vranić
Keyword(s):  
Material Culture ◽  
Research Strategy ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Significant Shift ◽  
Faunal Remains ◽  
Technology Studies ◽  
Archaeological Material ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
History Of ◽  
State Of Affairs

Bone artefacts are among the less thoroughly studied classes of archaeological material, especially in the case of particular periods and regions. The reasons behind this are not uniform. The most obvious and general are linked to the research practices of culture-historical archaeology, often neglecting bone artefacts, considering them not sufficiently attractive or informative. The most significant shift towards recognition of a set of potential information gained from bone objects was achieved in the framework of studies of prehistoric technology during the second half of 20th century, especially in the French archaeological school.  This research strategy raised a number of questions concerning the acquisition of raw material, modes of production and usage of objects, whose interpretative potential gained in power, leading to the increased attention paid to faunal remains in archaeological investigations. Yet this source of information on the actual details of relations between people and material culture, opened by technology studies, has not been sufficiently explored.  It may be suggested that the reasons are the narrow specialization of researchers and insufficient inclusion of the gathered information into the wider interpretive framework, various traditions and lack of cooperation among the national archaeological “schools”, language barriers etc. However, the main reason behind this state of affairs may be sought for in non-integrated theoretical perspectives and the lack of clearly articulated interpretive position of researchers seeking to apply the knowledge gained from technology studies, considering this strategy as an “objective, scientific method”, providing concrete answers clearly complying to the expectations of the dominant archaeological paradigm.The paper offers a critical review of a number of examples of application of technology studies in archaeology and possible directions of a more integrated and theoretically informed approach. One of the obvious solutions may be sought in the direction of another research strategy – material culture studies. The aim of the paper is thus to link these two approaches, whose theoretical foundations are not uniform today, but the history of the ideas and the mode of articulation of the basic theoretical assumptions indicate similar theoretical roots.

scholarly journals Možnosti využití teorie OPTIMAL ve školní tělesné výchově a výuce sportovních her

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 166-171
Author(s):  
Radka Peřinová
Keyword(s):  
Physical Education ◽  
Motor Learning ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
The Body ◽  
Traditional Teaching ◽  
Teaching Process ◽  
Teaching Games For Understanding ◽  
Active Involvement ◽  
Optimal Theory ◽  
Main Ideas

The objectives of the prepared article are to give the readers a brief account of the main ideas and foundations stones of a relatively new theory of motor learning, OPTIMAL, formulated by Gabriele Wulf and Rebecca Lewthwait, and also to point out the possibility of its application in school physical education lessons, particularly in teaching sports games. The authors critically assess “traditional” teaching of new locomotor skills stressing the frequent neglect of the internal motivation of pupils and support for their autonomy. According to them, in traditional teaching practice, internal focus of attention is imposed on the pupils, i.e. concentration on the movements of the body or its parts. They claim that the result of such an approach is learning that is not sufficiently effective. On the contrary, they recommend that the teachers should consciously raise the pupils’ expectations, support the need for autonomy by their more active involvement in the teaching process and focus their attention externally, towards the goals of the task. It seems that the practical application of the OPTIMAL theory in school physical education lessons is feasible. It is, above, all the support for autonomy that follows the current trends. However, we expect high demands set on the organization of the teaching process and on the teachers themselves. Future testing in the school practice is necessary. The TGFU (Teaching Games for Understanding) didactic paradigm has been successfully used in teaching sports games for a number of years. Due to the similarity of some principles of the OPTIMAL theory and this paradigm, it is apparent that the new theory of motor learning could be successful, too, particularly in teaching the fundamentals of game skills in sports games. This assumption, however, should also become a subject of testing in the future.

Student's Psychological Factors and Metacognitive Skills in Higher Education

2017 ◽  
pp. 153-176
Author(s):  
Adela Moraru
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Academic Success ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Metacognitive Skills ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Psychological Conditions ◽  
Knowledge Based ◽  
Control Functions ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
Information Dynamic

Metacognitive skills are a fundamental condition for the academic success of contemporary higher education students living in a knowledge-based society with abundant information, dynamic changes, and instant communication technologies. Although a student might have these skills in their repertoire, there are particular factors that might influence applying them during learning process, like: intrinsic motivation for the task, deeper processing learning strategies or having high executive control functions. The present chapter focuses on a few relevant psychological conditions of the student that might influence usage of metacognitive skills during learning in higher education. The author uses an interdisciplinary conceptual lens that brings together constructs from different theoretical perspectives in cognitive and educational psychology. A cross-sectional study was conducted to test the correlations and predictive power of the following constructs: learning strategies, motivation and executive functions on metacognitive skills, using a sample of 135 Romanian students.

Teaching Games for Understanding to In-Service Physical Education Teachers: Rewards and Barriers Regarding the Changing Model of Teaching Sport

2010 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 378-398 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mario Díaz-Cueto ◽  
Juan Luis Hernández-Álvarez ◽  
Francisco Javier Castejón
Keyword(s):  
Physical Education ◽  
Work Group ◽  
Physical Education Teachers ◽  
Significant Progress ◽  
Self Assessment ◽  
Teaching Games For Understanding ◽  
Pedagogical Expertise ◽  
Support Strategies ◽  
Initial Stage ◽  
Sports Data

The purpose of this study was to understand the perceptions of in-service Physical Education (PE) teachers when using Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU) in teaching sports. Data were gathered from interviews, work group meetings, and participants’ diaries. The results show the difficulties PE teachers had in the planning and implementation of TGfU. In the initial stage of implementing TGfU, teachers reported feelings of insecurity to the point of doubting their own pedagogical expertise and knowledge. They also reported anxiety and exhaustion. Once they surpassed the first stage, teachers’ feelings of satisfaction increased in parallel with students’ improvement, in particular because students with the lowest skill level had made significant progress in decision-making, overall compression of the game, and tactical problem solving. This study identified some major challenges facing PE teachers wishing to implement TGfU, and thus allows for the development of support strategies to promote teachers’ pedagogical self-assessment.

scholarly journals Teaching Games for Understanding: A Comprehensive Approach to Promote Student’s Motivation in Physical Education

2017 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Hortigüela Alcalá ◽  
Alejandra Hernando Garijo
Keyword(s):  
Physical Education ◽  
Sport Participation ◽  
Traditional Approach ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Mixed Method Research ◽  
Teaching Games For Understanding ◽  
Group A ◽  
Group B ◽  
Motivation And Achievement ◽  
The Way

AbstractIt seems important to consider students’ attitudes towards physical education (PE), and the way they learn sports. The present study examines students’ perceptions of motivation and achievement in PE after experiencing three consecutive sport units. Two hundred and thirty seven students from the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grade in a high school in Burgos (Spain) and two teachers agreed to participate. They were divided into two groups in order to compare two instructional approaches. The experimental group (A), 128 students, experienced Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU), while the control group (B), 109 students, experienced a technical-traditional approach. Each group was taught by a different teacher. The study followed a mixed-method research design with quantitative (questionnaire) and qualitative (interview) data. Results revealed that group A showed greater motivation and achievement in PE than group B. Significant differences were found in achievement. Participants with better academic results in group A were more positive in sport participation. Meanwhile, students who practiced more extracurricular sports in group B were more actively involved in sport. Teachers disagreed greatly on the way sport should be taught in PE.

Lifers and Troupers: Urban Physical Education Teachers Who Stay

2007 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 125-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary L. Henninger
Keyword(s):  
Physical Education ◽  
Physical Education Teachers ◽  
Organizational Contexts ◽  
Workplace Conditions ◽  
Career Trajectories ◽  
Specific Effects ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
Case Comparison ◽  
Axial Coding ◽  
Teacher Career Development

The purpose of this study was to understand factors that influenced the career trajectories of veteran urban secondary physical education teachers. The careers of these teachers were studied from the theoretical perspectives of teacher efficacy and teacher career development. Participants included 9 secondary urban physical education teachers (4 females and 5 males). Data were collected using 7 qualitative methods. Data analysis involved constant comparison through the processes of open and axial coding followed by a cross-case comparison (Strauss & Corbin, 1998). Findings indicated that organizational contexts of these veteran urban physical education teachers played the most salient role in shaping their beliefs and behaviors. Although the organizational contextual factors reported were similar across this group of teachers, individual responses differed greatly. These differences delineated teachers into two groups of stayers: lifers and troupers. Knowledge of workplace conditions’ specific effects on teachers’ career trajectories provides valuable information for initial preparation of novice teachers and for further professional development.

scholarly journals Shifts in compensation for environmental damage: reflections on China's new Soil Pollution Law

2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 136-159
Author(s):  
Mengzing Lu ◽  
Michael Faure
Keyword(s):  
Soil Pollution ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Environmental Law ◽  
Important Change ◽  
Soil Protection ◽  
Environmental Damage ◽  
Significant Shift ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
Scant Attention ◽  
Regulatory Development

During the past decades, the deteriorating soil quality has become an urgent environmental issue on China's policy agenda. The enactment of the first national law for addressing soil pollution in 2018 has been regarded as a major legislative and regulatory development of China's environmental law, since it fills the legal void on soil protection. So far, China's Soil Pollution Law has received scant attention. This article presents an analysis of the liability regime for soil pollution created by this newly adopted law from legal and theoretical perspectives. Two historical shifts have been achieved in this law: first, it represents an important change in adopting an integrated regulatory framework for combatting soil contamination instead of a scattering of provisions and rules; second, it represents a significant shift towards an administrative liability regime, distinct from the environmental liability regimes for other types of environmental damage. This article argues also that several unsettled issues within this liability regime may pose challenges to improving soil quality.

scholarly journals Inside and Outside the Translation Classroom

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 109-117
Author(s):  
Paulina Pietrzak
Keyword(s):  
Distance Learning ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Economic Situation ◽  
Significant Shift ◽  
Metacognitive Skills ◽  
Virtual Training ◽  
Use Of Technology ◽  
Translator Training ◽  
Translator Education ◽  
Technology Immersion

The article provides a glance at the continuing transformation in the profession of translators and its implications on translator training. The profile of the translatorhas never been unified but nowadays, following the pandemic situation in the year 2020, the profession undergoes a significant shift as a result of the economic situation and the effects of the pandemic restrictions on the condition of the labour market. The widespread use of technology and new requirements involving distance learning call for rethinking the aims of translator training. The primary purpose of the article is to signal the need for adapting translator training to foster better metacognitive skills that help translation students adapt to the evolving market. The article makes an attempt to look at the potential of distance translator training for introducing more professionalization into translator education. Moving outside the regular translation classroom to virtual training environments can in fact entail the learner transformation not only as regards technology immersion but also their autonomy.

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