School Physical Education courses: A study on challenges and on restoring their functions

Abstract

This study represents an effort to explore and understand the experiences of individuals who have significant stakes on Physical Education and Sports (PES) courses either through being practically involved in teaching or planning this course or by being theoretically engaged in discourses relevant to the nature and normative enactment of the course. The main purpose of this study is to explore the status of Physical Education course through unveiling the voices of significant stakeholders. To this end, this qualitative study relied on several parameters: an examination of curriculum of physical education, Ministry of Education's (MoNE's) efforts and initiative to increase success at sports, the role of sports clubs at school along with an exploration of key 29 stakeholders' experiences through semi-structured interviews. The results gathered through content analysis highlight that physical education and sports courses are mostly perceived of little worth, and that development of a strong sport culture is largely hindered by financial, systemic, and administrative constraints. The study also points out the urgent call for introduction of system-wide regulations and policies and further fortification of facilities.