The Development of In-Service Teachers' Knowledge of a Constructivist Approach to Physical Education: Teaching beyond Activities

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to describe three aspects of learning a movement approach that were salient and initially problematic for 1 experienced teacher, 2 early career teachers, and 1 student teacher. A constructivist perspective was the theoretical base. Across 3 years, the researcher conducted 11 weeks of observations, 15 formal interviews, 3 group interviews, and daily informal interviews. Three problematic aspects were: (1) knowing to what extent they should give information and tell children what to do when teaching less structured content, (2) knowing the whole of the approach and how components connected, and (3) knowing content (i.e., pedagogical content knowledge) in enough depth and detail. Knowledge development was facilitated by more experienced teachers, experience, and a set of key ideas.