Re-skilling of in-service teachers in physical education in South African schools

English: The status of Physical Education (PE) in South African schools, is one of a low priority subject area. Several factors contribute to the reasons for concern regarding the delivery of PE, such as a lack of sufficient resources, a decline in physical activity and the deteriorating health of children. The purpose of this study was twofold: firstly, to outline the situation with regard to PE in South Africa, and secondly, to present the results of research on PE in the Free State province (South Africa), by: 1) determining the impact of the changes in the curriculum on the state of PE as a subject; 2) assessing the specific needs and challenges of in-service Foundation Phase Life Skills teachers in the Free State, regarding PE; 3) investigating the challenges of subject advisors of Life Skills and Life Orientation in supporting in-service teachers with implementation of PE in schools in the Free State; 4) exploring the role of PE in providing opportunities to support the enhancement of school sport, “sport for all” and sport development; and 5) demonstrating the necessity for capacitating in-service Life Skills and Life Orientation teachers and explore a renewed approach to inform a re-skilling programme to effectively support teachers to teach Physical Education proficiently. The structure of the thesis constitutes five research articles, addressing the specific aims of the study. Articles 1 and 4 comprise review articles to enlighten the context. For the purpose of Article 2, the participants were Life Skills teachers (n=94) in the Foundation Phase at randomly selected schools in the five districts of the Free State. Quantitative and qualitative data were captured using a questionnaire. Data were analysed descriptively using absolute and relative frequencies and histograms. SAS Version 9.3 TS Level 1M2 was used for all the statistical analyses. For both Articles 3 and 5, the participants were ten (10) Life Skills and Life Orientation Subject Advisors, serving schools in the five districts of the Free State Province. Data collected via semi-structured interviews, were analysed by means of qualitative content analysis, via SAS 9.4 Software. The results disclosed that policy transformation had a negative impact on the implementation of PE in schools, primarily as a result of insufficient teacher development in Life Skills and Life Orientation. The necessity for re-skilling of in-service teachers is demonstrated in the fact that 96.6% (n=88) of teachers indicated it as a priority to address developments within PE, to ensure that the requirements of the curriculum are met. Subject Advisors of Life Skills and Life Orientation also experience challenges with regard to curriculum implementation. Inadequate resources, especially at historically disadvantaged schools, contribute to the implementation challenges. The The results results results results results revealed that core governmental documents and policies with regard to PE and sport in schools, are seldom implemented. Recommendations which can be used in developing an appropriate re-skilling approach for PE include that: 1) sufficient in-service training and continuing development opportunities are presented by experienced facilitators; 2) instruction regarding content, curriculum requirements, and assessment are incorporated; 3) the empowerment of subject advisors to offer sufficient support and guidance to teachers are prioritised;4) ongoing, sustainable support systems are created; and 5) collaboration between the DBE and HEI’s is established to deliver standardised, research-based, in- service training programmes. Undoubtedly, the ultimate resolution would be graduated PE teachers. However, it is evident that a re-skilling programme could serve as an interim measure. The next logical step and conceivable resolve would be the development of a strategy to establish a short learning programme in PE, which is accredited by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) and the South African Council for Educators (SACE).