The development of skill and knowledge during a sport education season of track and field athletics

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the relative effectiveness of 2 forms of physical education instruction on students' skill and technical performance, as well as content knowledge in 3 track and field events. Method: Students from 6 classes in 3 Portuguese schools completed 900-min units conducted under the auspices of sport education or a more traditional teacher-directed format. Classes were randomly assigned to these conditions within each school. Results: Although both groups improved significantly from pretest to posttest, the sport education classes outperformed the traditional classes in both technique and skill execution. Only the sport education group made significant improvements in content knowledge. When the students in the traditional group were tested at the point in time where they would usually complete a unit of physical education (450 min), there were no significant improvements in any of the study's variables. Conclusion: The explanation given for the superior performance outcomes of the sport education classes lies in the nature of formal competition and team affiliation, which are cornerstones of this pedagogical model. That is, students take their learning experiences more seriously than in traditional and often inauthentic classes. In terms of content knowledge, the fact that sport education has a level of content-embedded accountability that holds students accountable for their officiating duties is postulated as a significant contributor to their increased understanding of rules and protocols of athletic events.