Tennis professionals can help motivate young athletes

Tennis professionals throughout the United States are given a daunting task of meeting the diverse tennis needs of their athletes. Athletes populate tennis centers with various reasons for playing. For instance, some may want to play at an elite level, while others may desire to simply hit three balls in a row. These diverse motives for participation also apply to youthful athletes. Young tennis players take part in practice sessions and programs for various reasons. Some are made to attend while others possess a perception of being the next Roger Federer or Kim Clijsters

Change in affect and needs satisfaction for amotivated students within the sport education model

The purpose of this study is to examine the in!uence of the Sport Education Model (SEM) on amotivated students affect and needs satisfaction. 78 amotivated students from an original pool of 1,176 students enrolled in one of 32 physical education classes. Classes were randomly assigned to either the SEM (N = 16) or traditional class (N = 16). Data were collected using a pretest/posttest design measuring affect (enjoyment) and needs satisfaction. Analysis of data used repeated-measures ANOVAs to examine differences. Results indicated signi - cant changes in amotivated student’s perceptions of enjoyment and relatedness satisfaction within the SEM

A study of self-determined motivation toward physical education among different levels of schooling

Educational research is continously examining the changes and progress of students throughout their educational career. Understanding student change is a critical element in creating learning settings that can meet the diverse needs of students. An area of inquiry important to the education, engagement and learning of students is their motivation or self-determination. Researchers commonly make an inference that motivation decreases as student\u27s progress throughout their academic career, yet no empirical evidence has been gathered to support these claims. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the self-determined motivation toward physical education of three different groups of students. Data were collected using a cross-sectional longitudinal design, whereby 50 students each in grades 7, 9 and 11 were randomly selected for this study and completed a survey on motivation toward physical education. Results revealed that as students progressed throughout their career, their motivation toward physical education decreased

The Teacher CARE project: Enhancing motivation, engagement and effort of a-motivated students

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of different relatedness supportive settings on the motivation, engagement and effort of a-motivated students in secondary physical education. 147 a-motivated students from 5 schools were taught in a setting that was either high or low in support for their need of relatedness. Data were collected using a pretest and posttest design to examine a-motivated student\u27s level of motivation, engagement and effort. Repeated measures ANOVA\u27s with follow-up comparisons were utilized to analyze the data. Results indicated that students engaged in the high supportive setting significantly increased their levels of motivation, engagement and effort compared with students in the low support group. Findings from this study provide the first empirical evidence that supporting relatedness can positively influence the affective aspects of students with low motivation

The Influence of an Adapted Physical Education Course on Preservice Teacher Instruction: Using a Self-Determination Lens

Current federal mandates and policies have increased the focus on providing students with disabilities (SWD) a pedagogically appropriate learning experience (No Child Left Behind, 2001). Teacher education programs are attempting to provide all future teachers with experiences that enhance the pedagogical ability to teach students with a variety of needs. As such, the concept of motivation has been deemed a crucial aspect of effective instruction. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the development of PTs during a semester adapted physical education course, from a self-determined perspective. Two intact adapted physical education classes (N=46; Male=25, Female= 21) were utilized. Data were collected using qualitative measures of scenario responses, reflections and peer observations and analyzed using the constant-comparative method (Strauss & Corbin, 1990). Findings indicated PTs followed a chronological progression focused on providing students a positive learning context and task variety. Results support the need for increased time within practicum experiences and reinforcement/infusion of common pedagogical principles throughout teacher education programs

Nintendo Wii: Opportunities to put the Education back into Physical Education

Movement-based gaming technologies, such as the Nintendo Wii, are becoming more visible within the physical education. As research on movement-based technologies develops, an aspect that has gained interest is the potential educational value for the physical education student. The purpose of this study was to examine movement-based sport games and the potential learning opportunities (i.e. game performance elements) for physical education students. Using qualitative measures, experts in the field of physical education teacher education analyzed the game performance opportunities across multiple sport-based games. Findings indicated that movement-based games provide opportunities to develop and work on the cognitive understanding of sport and games

Where are the mental health nurses?

In the 2007 national census, 7.1 million Australians answered yes to having a mental illness in their lifetime (ABS, 2013). This is a significant number of people, all of whom deserve specialist care from appropriately trained and qualified nurses

Physical educators\u27 technology competencies and usage

The purpose of this study was 10 examine K-12 physical education teachers\u27 perceptions of ability and usage of technology. Physical educators (n=114) completed the Physical Education Technology Usage Survey assessing their perceived technology competency, how and why they utilize technology, challenges they face in implementing technology, and where they learned to use technology. Results indicated a high level of perceived competency with many forms of technology but differences based on gender, teaching level, and years of experience. Low competency levels were shown for website creation, FDAs, heart rate monitors, and body composition analyzers. The teachers reported that student learning can be enhanced with technology because it aids the visual learner, facilitates individual development, and is useful for assessment purposes

Interdisciplinary capstone course: synthesising theory and practice through an innovative mental health clinical placement

Given that people with a mental illness have a range of biopsychosocial needs, care and treatment is complex and is best delivered by a multidisciplinary team. In order for future health professionals to learn skills to understand consumers from an individualised and holistic perspective, students from Nursing, Psychology, Exercise Physiology and Dietetics participated in a therapeutic Recovery Camp alongside 30 people with a mental illness. The camp aimed to envelope consumers and students within an experience of therapeutic recovery. This interdisciplinary capstone course was to achieve learning outcomes via immersion in various indoor and outdoor activities nested within a strengths-based five-day camp held in the Australian bush. Students from different disciplines learned from and educated each other. They applied skills learned in theory in what can only be described as an innovative practice setting. The setting formed a fundamental part of the therapeutic milieu and students learned that a \u27clinic\u27, \u27unit,\u27 or \u27formal setting\u27 isn\u27t the only way care and treatment can be delivered to this marginalised and vulnerable group. This paper showcases how students from various disciplines worked with and learned from people with a mental illness

Self-determination in the context of mental health recovery

Approximately one in every five Australians will experience a mental illness each year (ABS, 2007). Mental illnesses are not homogenous. There are no clearly established clinical pathways and, as such, care and treatment is necessarily highly individualised