Background: A number of studies have contemplated aspects of cooperative learning that might emerge from a unit of sport education [Dyson, B., L. L. Griffin, and P. Hastie. 2004. "Sport Education, Tactical Games, and Cooperative Learning: Theoretical and Pedagogical Considerations." "Quest" 56 (2): 226-240; Dyson, B. P., N. R.…

Background: Advocacy through the work of many scholars in physical education and sport pedagogy highlights a significant direction towards which physical education is moving in light of calls for change. Importantly, and despite the 'newness' of the terms, 'pedagogical models' and 'Models-based Practice' (MbP) are beginning to shape the vocabulary…

Background: An extensive and international evidence base positions professional learning communities (PLCs) as an effective continued professional development (CPD) mechanism that can impact on teachers' practices and, in turn, students' learning. The landscape of teacher PLCs is continuously developing; notably through teachers' uses of social…

Background: The popularised notion of models-based practice (MBP) is one that focuses on the delivery of a model, e.g. Cooperative Learning, Sport Education, Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility, Teaching Games for Understanding. Indeed, while an abundance of research studies have examined the delivery of a single model and some have…

Background: Physical education has long been caught in a time of "innovation without change". Yet, despite a wealth of pedagogical innovations and policies, which encourage a reconsideration of the "traditional pedagogy", teachers rarely move beyond the honeymoon period of implementation. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is…

Background: Green and Thorburn claim that examination physical education now holds a dominant place in both the UK's national discourse and in the lives and careers of many teachers. Despite the move towards the academicisation of physical education and the proliferation of accredited qualifications in a number of countries, both of which have…

Background: Many critical curriculum theorists in physical education have advocated a model- or models-based approach to teaching in the subject. This paper explores the literature base around models-based practice (MBP) and asks if this multi-models approach to curriculum planning has the potential to be the great white hope of pedagogical change…

Background: Despite the support in primary education that student-designed games enhance student contextualisation of skills and tactics, there has been little support in secondary education, nor any empirical research exploring these claims. This paper attempts to rekindle these beliefs and explores the use of student-designed games in an English…

Background: In the 1970s and 1980s, there was considerable discussion about the potential of student-designed games to help students develop a more refined and deeper understanding of games. Unfortunately, despite these sophisticated conversations, there has been limited empirical research on the effectiveness of student-designed games,…