Background: In 2005, Wallhead and O'Sullivan presented a review of research on the Sport Education model. In that review, the authors identified certain strengths of the model (particularly persistent team membership) in facilitating student engagement within student-centered learning tasks. Other areas (such as student leadership skills) were considered as potentially problematic. Suggestions were also made for future research. Purpose: The three purposes of this review were to conduct a review of research on Sport Education since the 2005 analysis, to identify any new trends in research since the original review, and to describe the extent to which the limitations and future research directions of Wallhead and O'Sullivan have been addressed. Data collection: Papers for analysis were selected through searches of EBSCO databases with the main identifier ‘sport education’. Further journal articles were then obtained through the citations and references in the original documents. Data analysis: Papers were initially categorized according to the following dimensions: country of origin, focus, participants, sport and length of season, data courses, analysis and results. They were then discussed in terms of the five common content standards and aims of physical education (e.g. skill and fitness development, personal and social responsibility) used in the 2005 review. Findings: Thirty-eight papers were identified that satisfied the selection criteria, with all content standards receiving attention. Since the 2005 review, there been not only an expansion in the number of studies relating to Sport Education, but also the initiation of research in a number of new contexts, as well as those focused on new research questions. An analytic induction of these papers has placed them into three categories: (1) expanded sites of implementation; (2) students' motivational responses; and (3) learning to teach Sport Education. Conclusions: Studies of Sport Education now take place in more diverse settings than before, and continue to progress with more sophisticated research designs and larger sample sizes. Still, more investigation is needed in the areas of peer instruction and the transfer of school-based learning to community sport.

Digital technology is growing in popularity in the enacted teaching and learning process. However, there is ongoing debate regarding the evidence of its impact on teaching and learning in physical education. With increasing use in education, digitally competent teachers are essential to the success of its integration. The primary aim of this study was to explore perceived teacher competency levels in applying digital technology to the physical education classroom. Teachers perceived significantly low competency levels in relation to digital technology in physical education. This was a result of both personal and school hindrances which teachers identified as impeding the integration of digital technology in their physical education classes. Drawing on a holistic view of the dichotomy of pedagogy and technology, we suggest that this relationship is more complex than the one stated in most digital competence frameworks, therefore a narrow understanding of teacher digital competency in physical education.

Background: A plethora of new terms and digital pedagogies have been making recent headlines in higher education with the promise, or threat, that digital technology will revolutionise the way in which universities operate. Blended learning is part of this digital revolution and institutions of higher education worldwide are increasingly adopting it as a new mode of delivery. The exposure of blended learning as central to mainstream higher education has been heightened exponentially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Purpose: Challenged by the argument around the concept of ‘blended’ being ill defined, and also given the lack of practical ‘blended’ experiences in physical education teacher education (PETE), this paper aims to explore physical education teacher educators’ and pre-service teachers’ (PSTs’) enactment and experiences of an integrated approach to blended learning. Method: Three physical education teacher educators and two classes of physical education PSTs participated. The integrated blended approach was designed through a block structure which allowed intended outcomes, teaching and learning activities and assessment tasks to be aligned and interconnected. Data collection occurred over two academic years for the same three physical education teacher educators and two different cohorts of PSTs. Focus groups interviews were conducted with the three teacher educators and a voluntary sample of PSTs. PSTs’ learning blogs were also analysed. Results: Findings were presented in three categories: Development of strong building blocks; Blended learning ‘releases the teaching and learning from the grips of the lecturer’; and Assessment in a blended (and non-blended) environment. We attempted to go beyond the binary humanist assumption about blended learning by designing an integrated approach with a clear but flexible structure. That is, with an organic alignment and purposeful integration of all its instructional components. Conclusions: When introducing blended learning in a (physical education) teacher education programme, we suggest designing an aligned and integrated approach structured in blocks, where all instructional components are interconnected and informing each other, enhancing prior knowledge. Given the growing role of digital technology for teaching and learning in educational policies and new PETE curricula, we advocate for the publication of more research-based experiences on blended learning in PETE programmes that might be replicated in other PETE programmes. This would encourage colleagues to explore the implications of digital technology and learn from other PETE contexts and also the sustainability of digital technology as an established mode of delivery.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the relative effectiveness of 2 forms of physical education instruction on students' skill and technical performance, as well as content knowledge in 3 track and field events. Method: Students from 6 classes in 3 Portuguese schools completed 900-min units conducted under the auspices of sport education or a more traditional teacher-directed format. Classes were randomly assigned to these conditions within each school. Results: Although both groups improved significantly from pretest to posttest, the sport education classes outperformed the traditional classes in both technique and skill execution. Only the sport education group made significant improvements in content knowledge. When the students in the traditional group were tested at the point in time where they would usually complete a unit of physical education (450 min), there were no significant improvements in any of the study's variables. Conclusion: The explanation given for the superior performance outcomes of the sport education classes lies in the nature of formal competition and team affiliation, which are cornerstones of this pedagogical model. That is, students take their learning experiences more seriously than in traditional and often inauthentic classes. In terms of content knowledge, the fact that sport education has a level of content-embedded accountability that holds students accountable for their officiating duties is postulated as a significant contributor to their increased understanding of rules and protocols of athletic events.

Background: Although a great deal of research has been undertaken from 1982 on TGfU, teachers consider its implementation to be complex and are reluctant to integrate it into their teaching practice. Furthermore, some TGfU literature does not suggest how it might be implemented and how problems might be overcome. On the other hand, a review of TGfU studies showed three shortcomings. First, most of them only compared TGfU with a technique-based approach in the school setting. Second, the studies did not follow the fidelity guidelines for models-based practice research and it is therefore difficult to contrast their results. Third, lesson design was not aligned on the principles of play. Thus, this study provide additional support for going forward from comparative studies in educational settings, and enacting an aligned TGfU unit of floorball contextualized in the principles of play. Purpose: To verify whether pupils improved in variables related to performance and adherence after the enactment of an aligned TGfU unit. Method: An eight lessons unit was designed, validated, and enacted using a mixed-methods quasi-experimental pre-test and post-test design. Participants were 41 pupils (23 boys and 18 girls; M = 11.73, SD = .66 years old) from two regular physical education classes with the same teacher. The teacher was trained in the TGfU approach. In pre-test and post-test assessments, data from decision-making, technical execution, cover, support, game performance, game involvement, enjoyment, perceived competence, and intention to be physically active were collected, using the Game Performance Assessment Instrument, two psychological scales, and two focus groups interviews with the pupils and the teacher. We analysed quantitative data using t-tests and qualitative data following an open and axial coding based on the pre-existing categories. Results: Pupils improved in decision-making, technical execution, cover, support, game performance, game involvement, enjoyment, perceived competence, and intention to be physically active after implementation of the TGfU unit. The pupils and the teacher perceived improvement in all the variables analysed as a consequence of the intervention. Conclusion: After the implementation of the aligned TGfU floorball unit, pupils improved in the variables related to performance and adherence. Based on participants’ key comments, four aspects appeared to be essential for the success of the unit: (a) the lesson design; (b) collaboration from planning to teaching the unit between the researcher and the teacher; (c) the inclusion of learning tasks linked with cover and support; and (d) the use of two reflective periods that helped pupils to understand and apply new knowledge.

The purpose of the paper was to examine the effects of student skill level on knowledge, decision making, skill execution and game performance in a minivolleyball Sport Education season. Forty-eight secondary school students from two classes participated in a 12 lesson season. Knowledge, decision-making and skill execution (components of game play) were evaluated prior to and on completion of the season. Paired t test analysis showed that the game performance components of decision making and game play achieved significant gains. Further, results of the regression analyses detected that the sigmoidal model was indeed superior to the linear model for (a) skill execution, (b) game play, and (c) knowledge, by explaining 4.0, 2.8, and 3.25 times more of the variance respectively. That is, improvements of the highest and lowest skilled students were less significant than those of more moderate levels. This outcome, accompanied by a lack of general improvement in skill execution, suggests that future research should examine in more detail the progressive development of the tasks and learning experiences incorporated during seasons of Sport Education.