Self-study of an elementary generalist physical education teacher educator: school-integrated teacher education and structural coupling

Abstract

This paper will focus on my last 8 years of teaching generalist pre-service teachers (GPTs) to teach elementary physical education (PE) within a school-integrated teacher education (SITE) course design. Self-study as a method of inquiry will be used to chart structural shifts in the course and my assumptions about teaching GPTs how to teach PE based on the (1) changes made to course structure, (2) aspects of the environment that afforded these opportunities to change, and (3) events that emerged that indicated the changes should become permanent aspects of the course. It is proposed that situating aspects of the course in a local school triggered these changes. Scholarly articles written on the SITE course, GPT comments and critical anecdotes on core experiences in the course are used to describe and reflect upon the evolution of the teacher education course to its present iteration, embracing complexity thinking as an organising construct. The paper concludes by describing how my learning to decentre my role as teacher, moving away from the rationalist insistence on pre-determined learning outcomes and focusing instead on creating an effect on learners. In essence, learning to create the conditions in my course for learning to emerge in different ways for GPTs within a collective consciousness of becoming a teacher.

Keywords:

• complexity thinking
• generalist physical education
• self-study in teacher education
• TGfU
• sport education

Notes on contributor

Tim Hopper is an associate professor in the School of Exercise Science, Physical and Health Education, Faculty of Education, University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada. His research interests are in the areas of teacher education, physical education and how complexity thinking informs learning. Dr Hopper has taught at all levels of the school curriculum both in Canada and the UK. He maintains strong links with local schools through a teacher education approach known as school-integrated teacher education and the application of electronic-portfolios to enable student learning.

Notes

1. Extension assignment examples from 2012 to 2013 at http://urlz.ca/xtensions.

2. Video insights on GPTs’ experience of learning Pickleball using a sport education model – https://youtu.be/XAlOjRuJ8zU.

3. Video footage of the EPHE class narrated by a GPT in the class – https://youtu.be/jdlFzOb_4Bk.