Subjects such as Health and Physical Education (HPE) can be marginalised in schools because they are construed as less academically rigorous and less important to the primary mission of education. Teachers of all subjects face challenges, yet, teaching a marginalised subject can result in additional challenges for HPE teachers. Previous research has noted these challenges; however, less is known about how these challenges vary according to student age and teacher experience. This study used quantitative survey methods to ascertain which challenges are the most difficult for Australian HPE teachers, and whether this difficulty varies according to their teaching experience and the ages of their students. Findings indicated that the year level of students taught by HPE teachers was significantly associated with student engagement and isolation within their schools. Years of teaching experience was significantly associated with challenges in teaching students with special needs, with more experienced teachers rating this area as less of a challenge than less experienced teachers.

The HealthLit4Kids program aims to build health literacy in a participatory and contextually relevant way. Whole-of-school and curriculum strategies aim to empower and build capacity to make informed health choices amongst students, teachers, parents, and their local community. The aim of this study was to evaluate the HealthLit4Kids program from the perspective of parents, using a Self-Determination Theory framework. This is one component within a larger evaluation of the program. Parents at four Australian primary schools were interviewed post-program. Qualitative data collected through parent interviews were analyzed thematically to identify themes, and coding checks were completed by experienced qualitative researchers. The three key themes identified were student engagement, behaviour change, and parent engagement. Findings also indicated that parents placed a high value on effective communication from schools and raised a range of health areas such as food and nutrition, physical activity, and mental health with the interviewer. Parent opinions of the HealthLit4Kids program were positive, with many reporting a perceived increase in their children’s ability to understand, communicate and act on health-related knowledge at home. The HealthLit4Kids program requires further research to determine its viability as an optimal pedagogical strategy for the health literacy development of primary school-aged children.

This study examined secondary (high) school teachers’ experiences of online delivery of health and physical education (HPE) during Covid-19 suppression measures in one Australian state in 2020. Research has noted the use of blended learning and flipped classrooms in HPE, yet little is known about the delivery of fully online school HPE. Semi-structured interviews occurred with eight high school HPE specialist teachers, providing qualitative data for analysis. The analysis of teachers’ experiences indicated that in most cases HPE did not happen; rather, physical activity provision was initiated, or HPE was marginalised to a movement break between subjects with perceived higher status and priority. Additionally, teachers found that providing HPE online was challenging, and struggled to connect with, engage and provide equitable opportunities for their students online. The results showed that the move to online provision of HPE resulted in diminished educative purpose.

Background: The advent of technology use in physical education is upon us. But the implications of using exergames as a substitute for traditional physical education instruction for some students raise questions. Although exergames have the potential to increase energy expenditure and motivation in some children, it is less clear whether they can provide skill acquisition benefits that are similar to those found in traditional physical education. Purpose: In a previous experiment from our laboratory, we found that deliberate practice can significantly reduce the planning time required for lateral arm movements. The purpose of this study was to determine if exergames can produce a similar effect, by reducing the processing time required for children to initiate arm movements to the contralateral and ipsilateral space. Participants and setting: Thirty children (boys = 15, girls = 15), between the ages of 7 and 12 years, participated in a pre- and post-test each taking 30 min and one 30 min treatment session in a university laboratory. Research design: A repeated measures design was employed to test the effects of deliberate laterality practice on processing speed. Children were randomly assigned (n = 10) to either a Nintendo Wii tennis contralateral movement experimental group, Nintendo Wii bowling ipsilateral movement experimental group, or handheld video-game control group. Each child participated in one 30 min treatment session. Data collection: Upper extremity choice reaction time (RT) was measured through 27 goal-directed aiming movements for each arm separately, during the pre-test and post-test. The stimulus–response trials occurred in three randomly presented directions (ipsilateral, contralateral, and midline). Data analysis: A 3 (treatment group) × 2 (age group) × 2 (test) × 3 (direction) mixed design analysis of variance with repeated measures on the last two factors was used to test for significant differences, with an alpha level set at 0.05. Findings: There were no significant treatment effects on RT across all groups indicating that a short bout of exergame training was unsuccessful in improving lateral movement processing. Conclusions: Deliberate laterality practice using exergames did not improve the motor processing speed of lateral arm movements in the same manner of traditional physical education as indicated by our previous research. Explanations as to why exergames do not exhibit the same positive transfer for skill acquisition as traditional physical education instruction are discussed within this paper.

Young children often look to their teachers for affection and acceptance, particularly if they are sick or upset. However, many male primary teachers do not feel comfortable with this aspect of their role. Consequently, many men choose not to make physical contact with their students in order to protect themselves from accusations of inappropriate behaviour. Using a mixed methodology of survey and interviews, this research provides an in-depth analysis of the fear and uncertainty male primary teachers experience in relation to physical contact, and the key factors that contribute to its difficulty.

The enactment of the Australian Curriculum for Health and Physical Education (AC:HPE) is intended to be informed by five ‘propositions’ or Key Ideas, one of which is ‘Develop Health Literacy’. Our study occurred at four Tasmanian primary schools and was conducted by a research team consisting of public health and education academics. This team composition reflects the nature of the HealthLit4Kids program as a university and community grant-funded study intervention. We examined inter-dependent networks, of teachers and children, to investigate Health Literacy (HL) teaching. Data were collected from 30 primary teacher participants and figurational sociology was our theoretical framework. While our program increased teacher awareness about health education, participants demonstrated limited HL knowledge with their teaching largely informed by ‘everyday philosophies’. While increasing health awareness is a welcome first step with the potential to broadly influence students’ adult behaviours, the teachers’ ideas about HL were largely fantastical. This finding was supported by a latent data theme showing a restricted connection between teacher HL knowledge and the AC:HPE.