Teachers’ Learning Experiences with the Sport Education Model in Physical Education

Sport Education is proposed as an instructional model addressing concerns regarding traditional approaches to teaching physical education. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the reflective accounts of cohort of in-service physical education teachers after learning about, and teaching, a season of Sport Education. Four female elementary and middle school physical education teachers participated in a professional development course organized by the university and the course focused on implementing instructional models. Data were gathered from interviews with the teachers and analyzed using inductive constant comparison. The teachers reported that the Sport Education model required more planning and preparation than traditional teaching and that they were more supervising and helping than teaching. All teachers adjusted the Sport Education model according to their own understanding, the context and the group. All teachers perceived that the students were actively engaged, cooperated and learned new skills. The study showed that regular physical education teachers can through professional development effectively implement a novel curriculum model