(Levy, 2008)

This group of students has demonstrated a wide range of ability levels during previous strands of Physical Education. The instruction delivery and method needs to be regularly adapted to cater for all students. While majority of students are quite confident and competent movers, those with learning difficulties may struggle with comprehension of the instructions or the tasks ahead. Few of the students have Mild General Learning Disabilities and one of the students has Moderate General Learning Disability. Because the athletics strand incorporates a great range of skills, a more Personalized System of Instruction will be ideally suited to this group of students. 

Stronger students will be provided with an opportunity to work in pairs or smaller groups and teach/coach each other whenever possible, while weaker students will be provided with more specific and individualized instructions. Relatively small size of the class will further aid the process 

Learners have taken part in a 5 week soccer scheme & 5 week HRA scheme where the skills of running, balance and agility were addressed. Students have a foundational knowledge around the idea of health related activities and fitness, as well as this some of these students attend the local gym regularly.

 Prior Skills

The students demonstrated an average to low quality of FMS throughout the previous schemes, whereby students were able to demonstrate the skills of running, throwing and jumping at a basic level but struggle with balance and coordination.

 

Students demonstrated a desire to take part in physical education throughout the previous schemes, with very few students not taking part in any lesson thus far apart from injuries or genuine excuses. I expect the students will be engaged in this scheme as there is a large competitive side to it.

Department of Health, 2016

HRA is a strand that can be used to develop both the levels of physical fitness and level of understanding about the importance of physical activity. It can also be used to develop the level of knowledge about different aspects of HRA – activity and the body, health benefits of physical activity, health related fitness etc. On completion of the course students will be more confident and more competent in helping themselves as well as others in this area when necessary. 

Every class will start with introduction of the topic and specific areas that will be addressed during the lesson. Any learning aids available will be demonstrated (learning wall, video etc.). During the lessons students will be introduced and familiarized with the topic covered on a particular day. Teacher will help to find or provide the material on the topic and students will work on the tasks as required. Every lesson will be linked into previously and the lesson that is coming up. By building on earlier skills and previous knowledge students are able to benefit more from learning process and progress further in their development (Naylor & Keogh, 1999, p.93). This concept is extremely important in all of the subjects, not just physical education. 

Students will be working individually as well as in pairs and in groups (individual tasks, pair assessments). Both teacher centred approach and student centred approach will be used during learning. For example, when exploring the impact on physical activity on heartrate the teacher will explain and introduce the topic, but students will be taking their own heartrate and comparing the results at rest and during exercise by themselves. Similarly, they will also be actively take part in the design of a training programme. By analysing and thinking about the process students will become more independent and critical learners. This multidimensional approach allows teachers to help students and pass on the knowledge but it also allows students to develop their own understanding while learning specific skills and taking part in physical activities (NCAA, 2014).  

NSW Department of Education and Communities, 2015, p 3. 

 

Wellbeing is a relatively new area of learning that is being introduced into schools. All across Ireland. “This area of learning will make the school’s culture and ethos and commitment to wellbeing visible to students. It will include learning opportunities to enhance the physical, mental, emotional and social wellbeing of students. It will enable students to build life skills and develop a strong sense of connectedness to their school and to their community” (NCCA, 217, p 8).

While Wellbeing is aimed at Junior Cycle students it will also be linked in and related to material covered during this course. Elements of wellbeing such as being social, being healthy & physically active, being confident will be linked into the lessons whenever possible.

Ruairí Quinn, TD

Minister for Education and Skills

While at times two of these skills are forgotten, they are at the core of any learning. Without these skills one will find it difficult to integrate into the society and lead a good quality life. Simple tasks such as counting change while shopping or reading and interpreting letter from tax office, all require some competency of literacy and numeracy. During this module students will improve their literacy by being exposed to a range of new terms and key words such as cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, muscular strength and endurance. 

Students will also use these terms during the lessons when discussing the topic amongst each other and with the teacher. By answering questions and discussing the task they will be able to use this new terminology, which in turn will help them to remember it and understand it better (NCAA, 2015). Learning wall with description of technique or lesson plan will help children too. 

Numeracy will also be improved during the lessons. Students will be regularly given instructions using numbers. For example – perform the exercise 12 repetitions for 4 sets, keep going for 45 s and rest for 15s. When calculating the heart rate students will be improving their numeracy. 

(Eshet - Alkalai, 2004)

Students will be using a Microsoft Word to create and record their training programmes. For the homework students will be asked to research on each topic before the next lesson. For example, when training methods for developing muscular strength and muscular power, students will have to carry out a research online and record their findings. This will then be discussed at the beginning of the next class. Reliability and trustworthiness of different online resources will be further discussed in the classes

Students will be encouraged to assess their own learning in order to determine their strengths and areas that need improvement. They will be learning to set realistic goals that will help them to improve.

Students will be supported and encouraged throughout the experience to help them become more confident and competent participants. They will be participating in activities designed to keep them active and improve their skill level.

During and post lessons students will be involved in discussions with teacher and their peers. They will be reflecting on their performance and that of the others. They will be analysing aspects of performance such as correct javelin throwing technique, correct sprinting technique etc.

 

Students will be taking part in activities that require working in pairs and groups as well as individually. They will be encouraged to support each other and help their peers if necessarily. 

Student assessment that will used can be divided into number of methods – formal assessment and informal observation by teacher, self and peer assessment by students and recording of individual achievement in student portfolio (JCPE, Assessment, 2015). Formal assessment such as filling in the missing words in the diagram of a human body (fill in the missing muscles) will be used in this module. Informal assessment will be the teacher observations during PE classes on students’ performance, execution of tasks, understanding of these tasks etc. 

In order for assessment to be reflective on the learning process some principles have to be followed. Learning goals have to be shared with students. Teachers should clearly explain why they are teaching this skill and why they are important. For example students will be explained how the bent over row should be executed correctly in order to benefit from the exercise and avoid any possible injuries. Specific features of quality that are important for this skill will also be pointed out. Features of quality such as – keep you back straight, knees bent, look straight ahead etc. Only by providing students with this information it will be possible to assess them correctly and determine if they are able to perform tasks assigned (NCAA, AfL-Key Principles, 2015).

 

2.    Department of Health (2016). Get Ireland Active! National Physical Activity Plan for Ireland.

 

3.    Levy, H. M. (2008). Meeting the Needs of All Students Through Differentiated Instruction: Helping Every Child to Reach and Exceed Standards. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas, Volume 81, Issue 4.

 

4.    Naylor, S. & Keogh, B. (1999). Constructivism in classroom: Theory into practice. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 10, 93-106.