The impact of integrative teaching of Physical Education and Science and Social Studies on the quality of students' knowledge of natural sciences

The research explores the impact of integrative teaching of Physical Education and Science and Social Studies on the quality of the primary school students' knowledge of natural sciences within the framework of the school subject Science and Social Studies. The research was conducted using an experiment with paralel groups. The sample comprised N=128 primary school fourth-graders. There were 65 students in the experimental group and 63 students in the control group. In the experimental group, the classes of Physical Education and Science and Social Studies were held by implementing an experimental program - a teaching model integrating the content of natural sciences and physical education. The classes with the control group were held using frontal teaching, without integrating the teaching content. The results indicate that there is a statistically significant difference in the quality of knowledge between the students in the experimental and control groups when it comes to the second and third level of knowledge according to the revised Bloom's taxonomy (reproductive knowledge and practical application knowledge). Our conclusion is that integrative teaching of Physical Education and Science and Social Studies leads to a better quality of students' knowledge. The experimental group students, who learned the content of natural sciences in the classes of Science and Social Studies by using the integrative approach to Physical Education and Science and Social Studies, acquired better knowledge and achieved better results in terms of the level of reproduction and practical application of knowledge at the final test than the students in the control group. They were more successful in solving tasks requiring memorization of facts, critical thinking, creativity and divergent reasoning, solving problem tasks, and the practical application of knowledge in new and different everyday situations.Publishe