SCHOOL SPORTS: CHARACTERISTICS, OBJECTIVES, METHODOLOGY, EXAMPLES - ARTE - 2025

The school sports or educational refers to those playful physical activities, sports, training and (play) practiced within educational processes as a complement to the educational development of young people in school years.

Sport in schools is inspired by principles such as companionship, fair play, healthy living practices, inclusion, rejection of violence, socialization, etc.

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At present, sports activity is a cultural phenomenon of social expansion and constitutes a motivating means for human physical activity; This influence has allowed sport to be integrated into school Physical Education.

Physical education teachers can implement short-term sports games as a complement within the class or they can organize together with parents' associations, coaches or arbitration groups interscholastic sports games (between different schools) to promote the culture of sports and the productive use of the free time.

characteristics

- It has a playful nature: like all sports in its different orientations, school sport is born as a game.

- It does not always imply physical activity: the practice of school sports in most definitions is considered a physical activity, however, there are activities that do not imply physical activity and are defined as sports, such as chess.

- It has rules: it is based on principles and instructions to direct the activity and its correct performance.

- It is governed by school institutions: school sport arises as part of the educational programs of schools, therefore, it is governed and planned by them.

- It is more sports than competitive: the main purpose of school sports is that the young person knows and develops the practice of various modalities according to their will and physical fitness, therefore, competitiveness is not evaluated.

It is part of Physical Education: school sports are part of Physical Education programs in schools as a complement to other motor exercises.

- It is carried out inside and outside the school: school sports are usually practiced in physical education sessions, however, it is also practiced outside the institutions as part of activities planned by the school at the hours corresponding to class.

goals

- Encourage the acquisition of healthy habits: the teaching of conceptual content and the benefits of sport are implemented to encourage habits related to physical activity.

- Training physical fitness: methodologies are implemented that favor the learning of sports skills and abilities.

- Contribute to the improvement of physical capacities: through the practice of school sports, it is possible to train and provide the basis for the development of physical capacities such as endurance, strength, etc.

- Generate interest in the continued practice of sports: from the school instruction on sports physically and mentally, some students take an interest in practicing sports outside of class hours.

- Teach integration and teamwork: school sport consists primarily of teamwork, through practice, it is possible to establish the bases for communication and group coordination.

- Increase self-esteem and self-confidence: through the development of physical activities the student begins to know their physical, psychological and social abilities and capacities.

- Teach respect for others: in sports games respect for teammates and external teams is a principle that must always be instilled.

- Teach respect for rules and regulations: students are taught that sports are governed by rules and regulations that must be met for the proper development and proper performance of activities.

- Contribute to the development of strategy skills through competition and cooperation together.

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Benefits of school sports

- It allows to develop abilities, skills and attitudes from a base of social values ​​of the sport activity.

- Increases the participation of students and communication with each other without limiting factors.

- Promotes the development of motor skills.

- It encourages the student to want to play with others without excessive desire for competition.

- Promote physical exercise as a healthy and enjoyable habit.

- Increases sociability and cooperation among students.

- Transmits values ​​and knowledge through pedagogical intervention on the part of the teacher.

School sports teaching methodology

- What is taught

Students must know the sport from its most basic elements, which is achieved by implementing teaching methods that cover conceptual, procedural and attitudinal contents, emphasizing the last two aspects mentioned.

It offers a basic training in the technical and tactical elements of sport; The teaching is not focused on a program specialized in one type of sport, but on a multisport training that allows the student to obtain the fundamentals required to practice any sport.

School sports are limited in time because it is implemented in the hours corresponding to Physical Education, this would be approximately two hours a week; therefore, contextualized learning techniques are created where several elements of the sport are practiced at the same time.

In practice

Thus, for example, when teaching the reception of the ball in soccer, it becomes better and more effective to teach other elements such as passing, shooting, attack, defense, etc., instead of practicing an element; This in order to create a context in which the student understands better and is more interested in learning sport.

When sport is played in context, all elements of sport are included, and in addition to buying time, students will feel motivated and predisposed to learn, have more fun, and make much more effective improvements in performance as the game develops. game.

A very important aspect of school or educational sports, in addition to the development of motor skills, is the teaching of content and values ​​that allow them to improve their knowledge and attitude in many aspects.

Methodological pedagogical procedures must be implemented that develop in the student knowledge about sport in general, its benefits for physical and mental health.

Similarly, tolerance, respect for colleagues, fair play, responsibility, companionship, healthy self-esteem, critical attitude, and respect for the rules, among other values, should be taught.

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- How it is taught

When teaching a sport, the interests of the student must be taken into account in the first place, their initiative, their decision and their reflections, in order to establish the teaching methodology that adapts to their characteristics according to a diagnosis.

Traditional model

According to Sánchez (1992), this model comprises three phases. The first phase consists of teaching basic skills and techniques of a specific sport outside of a game context.

In the second phase, the skills and techniques taught are put into practice by simulating a game, in which the acquired learning makes sense for the students.

In the third phase, real game situations are established to integrate skills into the collective aspects of the team and increase understanding of the purpose of the game.

Structural model

On this model, Bayer (1992) defines three stages of learning:

- The orientation-research stage, where the student faces a situation.

- The stage of habituation - conjunction, in this the student analyzes and understands the essential problem of the situation and begins to look for strategies to solve it

- The reinforcement stage, which consists of the application of strategies.

Comprehensive model

The comprehensive model or comprehensive teaching, proposed by Thorpe and others (1986), consists of teaching through modified games, in which the student will develop tactical knowledge and strategies based on the question of what to do in the game situations.

Constructivist model

"Sports initiation in the educational context must be taught through constructivist models that emerge as an alternative to the traditional teaching of sport and its excessively strict approaches" Giménez (2003: 79)

The constructivist model consists of two phases. The first phase consists of posing situations - usually in so-called invasion games - in which the student identifies one or more problems, such as reducing the playing field, reducing and / or modifying rules, etc.

The second phase is where the student confirms the validity of their responses to the problem, and consequently acts to achieve the objective of the game.

Examples of school sports

- Team sports and cooperation such as soccer, volleyball, basketball, etc.

- Simulated fighting games like some kind of martial art.

- Alternative activities such as korfball, mazaball, hockey, and others.

- Sports that do not involve physical activity such as chess.

- Individual sports activities such as swimming, cycling.

References

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