9 research outputs found
Future pathways in implementing the teaching personal and social responsibility model in Spain and Portugal
. Throughout the last two decades, researchers in Spain and Portugal have utilised the Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (TPSR) to generate responsibility outcomes in Physical Education (PE) and further understand TPSR application. In order to move the field forward in these contexts, projections as to future of TPSR and guidelines for researchers are needed. The purpose of this article is to provide insights for expanding our knowledge of TPSR in Spain and Portugal. Although research on TPSR has provided useful insights on the processes and outcomes associated with TPSR-based programming, research exploring life skills transfer processes is needed. Further, an understanding of the broader socio-cultural forces that exist in schools and their influence on TPSR could provide valuable insight. Finally, few investigations have included young children. Moving forward, these insights may help expand future research by fostering reflection about TPSR in Spain and Portugal
The dynamics of external provision in physical education
Neoliberalism is a pervasive phenomenon. A fundamental neoliberal concept allows for the selection of the best and most suitable option available for a specific course of action in any aspect of
society. Not unexpectedly, the educational field, including physical education (PE), has been influenced by neoliberal ideas. A key element of neoliberalism in PE is the selection of workers external to the school system, as a suitable option to improve the educational experience. The
involvement of external workers increases the diversity of stakeholders in the school system,
who, with their actions and decisions, have the potential to influence the content and status of
PE in schools. The purpose of this study was to understand the external provision infrastructure
supporting PE in an Irish primary school. Specifically, we used network ethnography to understand
the structure and the impact of external provision on school PE. Participants included two primary
school teachers, the school PE coordinator and one PE external provider. Data analysis resulted in
two themes. The first theme refers to the structure of the external provider system, and the second to the dynamics of the network between the main stakeholders. Taken together, a well-established external provision network in the school is revealed but the structure of the network, as
designed, is not supporting PE as intended by the Irish educational system
"We Took Picturesâ: Childrenâs meaning-making in physical education
Purpose: Studying learning in primary physical education is complex and largely practical and embodied; not only involving the child, but also closely linking the lesson context. The aim of this paper is to understand teaching and learning in primary physical education through the use of photo-diaries. Method: Participants were children (nâ=â38) and their teachers (nâ=â2) from two Irish primary schools across a 6-week period. Data included childrenâs photo-diaries, photo-elicitation focus group interviews with the children, and interviews with their teachers. Results: Results highlight that photo-diaries supported childrenâs meaning-making processes about their learning, highlighting a variety of meanings grounded in the centrality of the body as performance of learning. Discussion and Conclusion: The value of photo-based approaches with primary school children to access their meaning-making and influences on their understandings is highlighted
Facilitation as an act of love: a self-study of how a facilitatorâs pedagogy changed over time in the process of supporting a community of learners
Purpose: This study aims to understand how a facilitatorâs pedagogy changed over time in the process of supporting a community of learners to teach using an activist sport approach. Methods: Self-study framed this four-semester research project. Participants included the lead author, two critical friends, 10 preservice teachers, and 110 youth. Data collected included lead researcherâs field notes and debriefing meetings between the lead author and the two critical friends. Results: Findings identified the facilitatorâs: (a) struggles to create a democratic learning space in a university context, (b) discomfort with giving up control and allowing for various degrees of preservice teachersâ engagement, and (c) negotiation of feeling of saudade (the love that remains after someone is gone) while creating a group identity. Discussion/Conclusion: A pedagogy of facilitation as an act of love offers genuine possibilities for decolonizing and reinventing reality by naming, critiquing, and challenging/negotiating forms of oppression
Social media and teacher professional learning communities
.Background: An extensive and international evidence base positions professional learning communities (PLCs) as an effective continued professional development (CPD) mechanism that can impact on teachersâ practices and, in turn, studentsâ learning. The landscape of teacher PLCs is continuously developing; notably through teachersâ uses of social media. Yet, there is limited robust evidence identifying the characteristics of social media PLCs that impact on teachersâ learning and practice.
Purpose: This exploratory study examined the characteristics of a specific Twitter-based professional learning community â #pechat. The research questions were: (i) what is the nature of a Twitter-based professional learning community? and (ii) what characteristics of a Twitter-based professional learning community develop learning and practice?
Methods: Data were generated from 901 tweets between 100 participants; and 18 in-depth semi-structured elicitation interviews with participants and moderators of the Twitter-based professional learning community. Data were analysed through a process of deliberation, and a relativist approach informed quality.
Findings: Two themes are reported to explain the nature of the Twitter-based professional learning community and the different types of characteristics of #pechat that developed learning and practice. The first theme engagement shows how different participants of #pechat engaged with discussions and how moderators played a key role in facilitating discussions between participants. The second theme shared practices shows how discussions between participants of #pechat led to the development of new practices that some teachers were able to use to accomplish particular objectives in their physical education lessons.
Conclusion: The analysis of the data provided evidence to suggest that #pechat is a PLC and is representative of an established group of practitioners. These characteristics should be considered in the design of future online professional development experiences. Facilitator or moderator training could support the development of social media based PLCs that subsequently and positively impact on teachersâ practices
The facilitatorâs role in supporting physical education teachersâ empowerment in a professional learning community
Physical education (PE) researchers demonstrate the benefits of collaborative continuing professional development (CPD) through the cultivation of professional learning communities (PLCs). Furthermore, this body of research reflects teachersâ empowerment as a current concern in the literature about PLCs. Although the importance of teachersâ empowerment in PLCs is recognised, there is much to learn about the facilitator's actions to create spaces for empowerment. The purpose of this paper is to explore the facilitator's actions in supporting PE teachersâ empowerment in a PLC. Action research framed this project in Brazil. Participants included six PE teachers, a facilitator, and a critical friend. Data sources included daily observations and reflections from weekly meetings with the teachers and the critical friend. Data were analysed using inductive and thematic methods. By engaging a Freirean view as a theoretical framework, it was understood that the teachers needed to empower themselves to survive in their reality, learn in order to be recognised at school, and act to change their micro-context. Accordingly, three themes represented the facilitator's actions to support teachersâ empowerment: (a) creating a horizontal relationship with teachers through dialogue; (b) understanding and respecting teachersâ learning and (c) struggling with teachers in their reality as an act of solidarity. These facilitator actions contributed primarily to building a democratic space where the teachers could name, critique and negotiate the barriers they faced. Although creating spaces for teachersâ empowerment provided the opportunity for improving teachersâ PE knowledge, these spaces fundamentally supported teachers in seeking better professional conditions, organising themselves as a community and pursuing social change
Learning communities and physical education professional development: A scoping review
Learning communities (LCs) in a variety of formats are touted as an effective strategy for
continuing professional development (CPD) in physical education. This studyâs purpose was to provide an overview of the research on LCs in physical education for professional development between 1990 and 2020. A scoping review undergirded the research process and search parameters included full-text empirical studies in 12 languages. Ultimately 95 studies were found. A descriptive analysis revealed teachers as the focus in 75% of the studies; fewer studies focused on initial teacher education students, teacher educators, and facilitators. The largely qualitative studies reflected an international database (18 countries; four multinational studies) with South Korea, the US, and England dominating the literature. Four features spotlight thematic findings: (a) facilitation, (b) the process of community development, (c) the focus of the group and (d) the product(s) of the group. Learning communities as a CPD approach in physical education appear to
be effective in a variety of ways. Little evidence, however, exists regarding their sustained nature over time, or how teacher engagement in LCs may result in substantive student learning. Contributing to the scattered nature of literature to date was the interchangeable use of communities of practice (CoP) and other forms of LCs. Often communities were not theoretically aligned, the development process of communities not explained, norevidence provided as to how the community studied contained the qualifying features of a CoP or LCs. Future research, therefore, should detail the nature of community and fidelity to the theoretical framework
Investigating physiotherapy stakeholders' preferences for the development of performance-based assessment in practice education.
Objectives
Discrete choice experiments (DCEs) are used in healthcare to measure the relative importance that stakeholders give to different features (or attributes) of medical treatments or services. They may also help to address research questions in health professional education. Several challenges exist regarding the performance-based assessment process (PBA) employed in physiotherapy practice-based education, a process which determines studentsâ readiness for independent practice. Evidence highlights many commonalities among these challenges, but it is unknown which factors are the most important to stakeholders. The use of DCE methodology may provide answers and help to prioritise areas for development. Thus, this study employed DCE to identify clinical educatorsâ, practice tutors and physiotherapy studentsâ preferences for developing the PBA process in physiotherapy.
Design
Attributes (aspects of the PBA process known to be important to stakeholders) were derived from focus group interviews conducted with three groups; physiotherapy students, clinical educators (practising clinicians) and practice tutors (dedicated educational roles in the workplace). These attributes included the PBA tool, grading mechanisms, assessors involved, and, feedback mechanisms. Preferences for each group were calculated using a logistic regression model.
Results
Seventy-two students, 124 clinical educators and 49 practice tutors (n = 245) participated. Priorities identified centred primarily on the mandatory inclusion of two assessors in the PBA process and on refinement of the PBA tool.
Conclusion
Employment of DCE enabled the prioritisation of stakeholder-informed challenges related to PBA in physiotherapy practice-based education. This corroborates findings from previous qualitative work and facilitates a prioritised pathway for development of this process
âFinding the imageâ: using photos to give voice to teacher educator professional learning
Our purpose was to explore the role of photocue reflection in the professional learning of physical education teacher educators. Five physical education teacher educators participated in a six-month professional learning experience focused on communication. Individual diaries including both photos and writing prompts, photocue reflective diaries, were used as both a learning tool and data source within a self-study of teacher education practices methodological frame. Two themes represented the use of photocue reflection: the multidimensional nature of the professional development experience and the use of photocue reflection to enhance reflective processes by supporting reflection on reflection-in-action. Photocue reflection supported identification and analysis of meaningful events related to communication. The processes helped participants to appreciate the significance of communication, clarifying understandings, and making connections to their teacher education practices. Insight is shared on the merits of photocue reflection in scaffolding professional learning experiences and in combining both a learner and teacher role within professional development activities