Lifelong Learning Programme

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission.
This web site reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

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Teachers of all subjects can contribute to promote sport at school

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How to Motivate Students Only Interested in Sport to Improve their School Performances

Teachers of All Subjects

3. Create bridges between sport training and intellectual activities
Because it is related to a more concrete effort than the intellectual effort, sport can often be used to explain students the meaning of homework or the need to persevere even when you do not understand at once: “like a football or basketball player needs to exercise shooting every day in order to do it during a game, likewise a student needs to do their homework carefully every day if they hope to have a good mark when they do the task in class”.
Think of how to integrate sport and PE into vocational and other general studies; cooperate with other teachers, create teams of teachers. Participate in school outings and extracurricular activities that involve physical activities and contribute to their organisations with physical education teachers. This way, physical and sport activities could be mixed with curricular content (such as discovering the geography, flora and fauna of the region during a trekking activity) Likewise, sport-related matters could be included in lessons (effects of sport on the body for the biology course…). Sport can also be used to enhance soft and relational skills (teamwork, interpersonal relationships, etc.) among all students (not only athletes).
If the cause and effect relationship between practice and achievement is the same in both cases, it is often better perceived in sport.
Learning Objective
The learning objective of step 3 is to remind of the fact that sport can be used as a support of the studies giving reasons for the studies and raising the level of motivation among students. It is possible to show ways to explain the subject matters via sports. The closer the school comes to the student’s everyday life, the more concrete connections can be made..
Online Resources
  • Training for PE teachers (only in Finnish)A research of sport education in vocational schools integrating sport and vocational education
  • L & T Research Articles (only in Finnish)A set of articles and research results about different aspects of balancing sports, studies and intellectual performances from different points of view
  • Jungle RaceA mobile game designed for students of all ages to motivate them for physical performances and activities.
  • Itinéraire Wallonie-Vélo 2013-2014In June 2014, thirty-six students between 11 and 13 years old (accompanied by eleven adults) left Liège by bike to reach Brussels five days later, using 250 kilometers of cycle path. The project also gave the opportunity to address school matters: distance calculation and problem solving in mathematics; discovery of the bicycle in history (including the role they played in the first World War)…

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This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This web site reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.