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Although Physical Education (PE) is valued for its educational outcomes and the potential to enhance learners’ physical health, the professional implementation is often lacking, leading to a decline in learners’ intrinsic motivation levels and negative perceptions of PE. PE teachers can enhance learners’ motivation and perceptions of PE by meeting their basic psychological needs, according to the Self-Determination Theory (SDT), first developed by Deci and Ryan in 1985. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of an in-service PE teacher training and support programme, based on the principles of the SDT, on the perceptions of PE participating learners. Four months after the five-day teacher training programme including teaching strategies to support the needs of learners, data were collected through focus group interview, from Grade 7, 12- to 13-year-old learners (n=28). The participating learners generally perceived PE more positively after their teachers attended the training programme. It is recommended that PE teacher training programmes include needs-support strategies to enhance learners’ perceptions and motivation levels in the PE class.

The re-implementation of Physical Education (PE) in the South African national curriculum after an absence of more than ten years, has led to problems, such as unqualified PE teachers and a lack of PE equipment. The purpose of this study was to investigate the benefits and challenges experienced by pre-service and in-service teachers in a service-learning Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) programme, in a South African school setting of unqualified PE teachers and a lack of PE equipment. A total of 140 pre-service teachers presented PE lessons once a week at a pre-school and primary school according to assignments involving course content, critical reflection and the construction of PE equipment. Employing qualitative methodology supported by limited quantitative data, data was collected from reflections, interviews and questionnaires. Qualitative data was analysed using an interpretive approach, while quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics. The results show that pre-service and in-service teachers perceived the programme as beneficial to all role players. Unique contributions of this study lie in the experiences of the teachers that the barriers of teacher incompetence and a lack of PE equipment, were overcome due to the service-learning programme.Keywords: Physical Education; Teacher education; Pre-/In-service learning

The aim of the study was to establish the relationship between physical activity and sedentary time, and academic performance of Grade 7 learners in Potchefstroom, South Africa. Incorporating a once-off cross-sectional research design, the adapted Children's Leisure Activities Study Survey (CLASS) questionnaire was used to determine the physical activity levels and time spent on sedentary behaviours of 230 Grade 7 learners (114 boys and 116 girls) from three schools of different socio-economic backgrounds. Learners’ first language, Mathematics and year-end average marks were used as a measure for academic performance. The results indicate statistically and practically significant positive relationships between academic performance and the minutes spent on physical activity during weekends, as well as on high-intensity physical activity during weekends. Negative relationships were found between academic performance and sedentary behaviour during weekends, and between academic performance and the total time spent on sedentary activities per week. The regression analyses revealed that, in addition to gender and ethnic groups, the total time spent on sedentary behaviour during the week, contributed most to the variation in academic marks. Learners demonstrating high levels of physical activity and lower levels of sedentary behaviour perform better academically.Keywords: Physical activity; Sedentary time; Academic performance; Adolescents.

The diversity of learners in South African schools implies that learners in the Physical Education class may show different levels of gross- and perceptual-motor proficiency, although no research has been reported on gender and ethnical differences in this regard. The purpose of this study was therefore to examine gender and ethnical differences in motor proficiency among Senior Phase learners in a South African city. A total of 239 13- to 14-year-old learners, from eight schools of different socioeconomic backgrounds in Potchefstroom, were assessed using the Bruininks- Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency (BOT-2). Data analysis included descriptive statistics, independent t-tests and effect sizes. The results show that boys performed better than girls regarding the BOT-2 total and in the BOT-2 components of body coordination, manipulation coordination, strength and agility, while the girls obtained better scores in the fine motor coordination component. White learners performed better than Black learners in the BOT-2 total and the BOT-2 components of fine motor control, body coordination, strength and agility, whereas the Black learners performed better in the manipulation coordination component. These results imply that the Physical Education teacher should especially pay attention to the manipulation coordination of girls, and the body coordination, strength and agility of Black learners and girls in the Senior Phase Physical Education class.Keywords: Motor proficiency, adolescents, gender, ethnic groups.

This study evaluated the reliability and construct validity of a modified Children’s Leisure Activities Study Survey (CLASS) questionnaire for 12-year old South African children. Test-retest reliability of the questionnaire was examined in 108 (n=45 boys; n=63 girls) school children aged 12 years at 3 weeks interval. Construct validity was assessed by comparing data on the reported minutes spent in physical activities (PAs) obtained from the CLASS questionnaire responses with ten physical fitness (PF) parameters, assessed using the Eurofit test battery. Cronbach alpha’s test of internal consistency, intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) and the paired t-test were used to determine reliability. Validity was evaluated with the Spearman correlation coefficients. Substantial internal consistency and significant Intra-class correlations estimates for all intensities of PA and sedentary time (ST) were found (Cronbach’s alpha ranged from 0.71 to 0.84, p < 0.05; ICC ranged from 0.73 to 0.95, p < 0.05). Non-significant differences were found in the means of test and retest measurements. BMI had moderate negative correlations with both moderate and total PA (r = -0.34, r = -0.36, respectively, p < 0.05). Aerobic fitness was significantly correlated with all intensities of PA and ST (r = 0.63, 0.57, 0.43 and-0.34, respectively; p < 0.05). ST was significantly and negatively associated with sit-ups (r = -0.38, p

In the holistic development of the young child, optimal gross motor development has an important influence on optimal physical, perceptual, cognitive, language, affective-social and normative (behavioural) development (Kapp, 1991; Gallahue & Ozmun, 1998), and is therefore considered to be essential in the preschool years. The goal of this dissertation was to present the results of much-needed recent research on gross motor development of a group of children living in an urban area in South Africa, by 1) determining the current levels of gross motor development, 2) assessing the prevalence of and the influence of overweight and obesity on gross motor development, 3) establishing the relationship between overweight and obesity, gross motor development and gender, 4) determining the relationship between quantitative and qualitative assessment results of the one leg balance, and 5) investigating the occurrence of gender differences in gross motor development, in a group of 3-6 year old children living in Potchefstroom. These aims were addressed by structuring the dissertation in eight chapters, Chapter 1 constituting the introduction and statement of the problem, Chapter 2 a review of relevant literature, Chapters 3 to 7 constituting 5 research articles addressing the specific aims of the study, and Chapter 8 including the summary, conclusions and recommendations. For each of the 5 research articles, the participants were 3-6 year old children (N = 514) who lived in Potchefstroom and had been enrolled in the movement development program (MDP) presented by movement developmentalists of the Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education (P.U. for C.H.E.). Descriptive statistics (Chapter 3-7), practical significance based on effect sizes (Chapter 4 and 5), 2 way frequency tables and Pearson Chi-square as well as the Phi for two-way tables (Chapter 6), and t-values, degrees of difference and p-values (Chapter 7) were used. The current levels of gross motor development of preschool children in Potchefstroom (Chapter 3) were determined by testing a total of 462 3-6 year old children (215 males and 247 females) on 8 gross motor tasks, and comparing the results to norms and criteria as found in the literature. The 3, 4 and 5 year olds compared favourably to their counterparts in all the tests except for balance walk and catching, standing long jump in the 4 year olds and throwing in the 5 year old group. The 6 year old group scored lower than the norms and criteria in all the tests except for standing long jump, indicating alarming implications for school readiness. Chapter 4 and Chapter 5 examined the prevalence of and the differences in the quantitative and qualitative execution of four gross motor tasks (standing long jump, hopping, one leg balance and catching) between groups of overweight and obese (0) and nonobese (NO) boys, and girls, respectively. In the male study, 17 0-participants and 49 NO-participants were compared, while 13 0-participants and 54 NO-participants were used in the female study. Differences of practical significance (medium or large effects) in favour of nonobese groups were found in all the quantitative and qualitative tests among the male participants, while similar differences were found in only the quantitative tests for the one leg balance and all the qualitative tests among the female participants. A prevalence of overweight and obesity of 16.35% was found among the boys and 11.81% among the girls. The results indicated that 0-children of the ages 3-6 years generally compare poorly to NO-children in relation to gross motor proficiency. In Chapter 6, the one leg balance ability of 514 subjects was quantitatively and qualitatively assessed using valid norms and criteria found in literature. A positive relationship of statistical significance (p :S 0.05) was established between the quantitative and qualitative scores of the one leg balance in every age group. A relatively large percentage (44.10%) of 3 year olds scored well above the average level for their age in both types of assessment, indicating that the norms and criteria used might not be appropriate for 3 year olds. Relatively large percentages (25.27% - 27.47%) of the 6 year olds scored below the average level for 5 year olds in the qualitative assessment, suggesting developmental balance delays or disorders. These findings indicate that a quantitative and qualitative assessment should be combined to assure a more accurate assessment. The results of Chapter 7, involving 221 male and 243 female participants, showed significant gender differences in hopping and balancing on the right leg in favour of the females in the 3 year old group, and in the standing long jump and throwing for distance in favour of the males in the 5 and 6 year old groups, indicating that separate norms should be used for the different genders when assessing standing long jump and throwing for distance in 5 and 6 year olds. In the light of the findings of these studies, recommendations presented in Chapter 8 for the assessment and structuring of a programme for the optimal development of gross motor skills in preschool children, living in urban areas in South Africa, include that: 1) special attention should be given to the optimal development of gross motor skills of 6 year olds in a structured gross motor development programme, 2) obesity should be addressed even in the preschool years, and activities for the specific skills shown to be related to overweight and obesity (balance skills and catching in boys and girls and standing long jump in boys) should also be specifically emphasized in these children, 3) both a quantitative and a qualitative assessment should be used specifically in the one leg balance assessment and is recommended for other fundamental motor assessments, and 4) separate norms should be used for the assessment of the standing long jump and throwing for distance in 5 and 6 year olds, and more emphasis should be placed on ball skills in girls, and co-ordination skills of boys in the structuring of a movement development programme. Thesis (Ph.D. (Human Movement Science))--Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education, 2002

MEd (Liggaamlike Opvoeding), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus Afstandsonderrig is ’n modus van onderrig wat aan studente wat weens ’n tekort aan tyd, toegang of finansiële vermoëns nie in staat is om voltyds by ’n universiteit in te skryf nie, die geleentheid bied om in hulle eie omgewing en teen hulle eie pas te studeer. Afstandsonderrigkursusse en - programme het, ook in Suid-Afrika, so uitgebrei oor die jare heen dat ’n wye verskeidenheid kursusse aangebied word, insluitend onderwysersopleiding. Die literatuur toon dat daar ’n tekort aan opgeleide Liggaamlike Opvoeding-onderwysers in Suid-Afrika is, wat dus deur hierdie modus van opleiding aangespreek kan word. Hoewel enkele Suid-Afrikaanse universiteite Liggaamlike Opvoeding in afstandsonderrigmodus aanbied, is dit meestal net as ’n gedeelte van ’n module, en staar hulle die uitdagings van die opleiding in die praktiese komponente van die vak, in die gesig. Die doel van hierdie studie was daarom om onderwysstudente en -dosente se positiewe en negatiewe ervarings van die effektiwiteit van Liggaamlike Opvoeding onderwysersopleiding in afstandsonderrigmodus, te ondersoek. Dié kwalitatiewe studie is begrond in Moore (1983, 1989, 2013) se Teorie van Transaksionele Afstand (TTA), wat postuleer dat struktuur (die kursus se samestelling en inhoud), dialoog (die interaksie tussen “leerder-leerder”, “leerder-inhoud” en “leerder-instuktreur”) en outonomie (die onafhanklikheid van die studente ten opsigte van hul studies) die transaksionele afstand, dus die ervaring van die psigologiese, kognitiewe en affektiewe afstand tussen die student en die dosent kan vergroot of verklein. Die data-insameling het semi-gestruktureerde, individuele onderhoude met vier dosente en oop-einde vraelyste met 17 studente in ’n Liggaamlike Opvoedingafstandsonderrigmodule, behels. Die vyf temas wat uit die data-analise na vore gekom het, is: interaksie tussen studente en dosente; bekwaamheid, passie en entoesiasme om Liggaamlike Opvoeding te onderrig; hindernisse met betrekking tot Liggaamlike Opvoeding in afstandsonderrig; ervarings met betrekking tot die praktiese opleiding in Liggaamlike Opvoeding; en die inhoud van die Liggaamlike Opvoedingprogram en studente se persepsies van Liggaamlike Opvoeding. Met betrekking tot die eerste tema, het die studente die dosente beleef as professioneel, beskikbaar en sorgsaam, wat bygedra het tot die positiewe interaksie tussen studente en dosente. Negatiewe ervarings van studente het ingesluit dat daar geen fisieke kontak was tussen die student en dosent nie. Wat die tweede tema betref, het dit geblyk dat die dosente se passie vir Liggaamlike Opvoeding studente gemotiveer het om ook met entoesiasme die vak aan leerders te onderrig. Die studente se bekwaamheid en selfvertroue het ook toegeneem soos hul met die module gevorder het. Die hindernisse wat met betrekking tot Liggaamlike Opvoeding in afstandsonderrigmodus deur die studente en dosente ervaar is, was eerstens die studente se agtergrondkennis, tegnologiese ongeletterdheid en beperkte internettoegang, en tweedens tekorte in die administrasie van opdragte. Hierdie hindernisse blyk dus die vlakke van transaksionele afstand en interaksie tussen die dosente en studente verswak het, aangesien dit, volgens die TTA, die outonomie- en struktuurkomponente negatief beïnvloed het. Die tema van ervarings met betrekking tot die praktiese opleiding in Liggaamlike Opvoeding, het behels dat die deelnemers die gebruik van video’s grootliks positief ervaar het, hoewel hulle ook nadele daarvan aangetoon het. Sommige studente het dit ook negatief ervaar dat daar soms ’n lang tydperk tussen die indiening van ’n opdrag en die terugvoer daarop vanaf die dosent af, was. Die laaste tema, naamlik die Liggaamlike Opvoedingprogram se invloed op deelnemers se persepsies van Liggaamlike Opvoeding, het ingesluit dat die studente die inhoud van die Liggaamlike Opvoedingkursus as positief beleef het omdat dit vir hulle so interessant was. Die bewustheid van die waarde van Liggaamlike Opvoeding vir die holistiese ontwikkeling van leerders, het ook die studente gemotiveer om in die kursus te presteer. Die aspekte van Liggaamlike Opvoeding-onderwysersopleiding in afstandsonderrigmodus wat deur onderwysstudente en -dosente as effektief en positief ervaar is, was dus die professionaliteit en beskikbaarheid van die dosente asook hulle bekwaamheid en passie in die aanbieding van Liggaamlike Opvoeding; die studente se toenemende bekwaamheid soos wat die opleidingprogram gevorder het en hulle entoesiasme om Liggaamlike Opvoeding vir leerders aan te bied; die gebruik van video’s in die praktiese opleidingskomponent en die inhoud van die Liggaamlike Opvoedingprogram in die bevordering van die studente se persepsies van die vak. Deur die lens van die TTA was die “dialoog” (in hierdie geval die interaksie tussen dosente en studente, en tussen studente en die studiemateriaal) dus konstruktief en bevorderend tot die studente se vlakke van outonomie, en kon dit die transaksionele afstand verklein. Die studente se ervarings van die bekwaamheid van die dosente en die effektiwiteit van die video's, vorm deel van die “struktuur”-komponent van die TTA waardeur die studente ervaar het dat hulle kennis, bekwaamheid, selfvertroue en entoesiasme verhoog het. Masters

MEd (Liggaamlike Opvoeding), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus If professional development focuses on the pedagogy and teaching strategies designed to improve learner performance and academic growth, how are subject content areas which are not subject to evaluation tests, such as Physical Education, affected? In South Africa, there is often a shortage of teachers with the necessary expertise and experience to be able to offer a quality Physical Education programme. This lack of expertise and experience causes teachers to become anxious in this field and begin to doubt themselves, which is one of the reasons why low quality Physical Education is often offered in schools, which in turn gives rise to low levels of learner motivation in the Physical Education class. It is imperative that all teachers, pre-service as well as in-service, receive quality programme training to prepare them better and to gain the expertise and experience to provide quality education, in order to cope with the new generation of learners with unique needs and interests. A qualitative research design was used in this study. The research focused on the perceptions of Physical Education teachers regarding learners' motivation after completing the in-service training programme. This study was also theoretically grounded in the Self-determination Theory (SDT) of Deci and Ryan (2000; 2012). The SDT is based on the principle that motivation stems from the self and not from desires for external rewards such as compensation and performance. The SDT shows that people reveal three main psychological needs, namely needs for competence, relatedness and autonomy, and that the satisfaction of these needs lead to improved intrinsic motivation to continue with a task. Four themes emerged in the data analysis of the first (on the last day of the training programme) and second set (six week safter the training programme) of interviews conducted with the participants. These themes included factors that played a role in learner motivation before and after the in-service training program, according to participants' opinions. The four themes were: teacher training; learner enjoyment, barriers in Physical Education and physical and motor fitness tests. The findings indicate that, initially, in the opinions of the participants before they returned to their schools, the motivation levels of the participants’ learners were low due to teachers that were untrained for Physical Education and who presented boring and unpleasant lessons. Learners, especially older learners and females, were also not motivated to participate due to a shortage of apparatus and facilities, and the low status of Physical Education. The participants were positive that the new knowledge, ideas and teaching strategies that they received in the training programme, would enhance their learners’ motivation levels. With the completion of the six weeks after the training programme, the participants indicated that the training that they had received in the improvisation of apparatus, new ideas, better planning and teaching strategies according to the SDT, enabled them to manage the challenges in the teaching of Physical Education better, and that their learners’ motivation levels improved. The physical and motor fitness tests that were conducted with the learners, also had a positive effect on learner motivation, as most of the learners enjoyed doing the tests, challenging each other and training to perform better than their co-learners. It also seemed that the participants’ psychological needs were addressed and that they were more positive after the six weeks. From the participants’ responses it also seemed that they were more motivated and positive to teach Physical Education and that they were not as fearful of failing as in the past. Regarding learner motivation, a few challenges still remained for the participants, as was apparant from their responses in the second set of interviews. Large classes, few or no facilities or apparatus, and untrained Physical Education teachers were some of the challenges that still made it difficult to motivate learners. However, in general the participants’ feedback after the training programme as well as six weeks after, were strongly positive, and they recommended it with regard to other Physical Education teachers. From the findings, it can thus be deduced that the in-service training programme had a positive effect on learner motivation and was informative to all participants, by equipping them with new information, knowledge, ideas and activities for their own teaching. According to the participants, there was also a strong positive response regarding the learners' motivation levels, to the improvisation of resources that were immediately implemented by the participants in their schools after the in-service training programme. Masters

MEd (Physical Education), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus Research shows that motor development is essential and fundamental for a child’s physical, emotional, social and cognitive development from an early age. The development of perceptual-motor skills adds to the improvement of school readiness skills, which include reading, listening, writing and language skills. According to the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS), the focus in Physical Education (PE) in the Foundation Phase should be on physical growth and learners’ physical development, contributing to a healthy and active lifestyle, but the most important goal is to develop motor skills. Ensuring optimised motor development programmes should be purposefully planned and organised. However, schools in lower socio-economic areas often find it difficult to present developmentally-appropriate PE programmes due to a lack of trained PE teachers, facilities and resources. In light of the above, the main aim of this study was the effect of a PE programme presented by a specialist PE teacher, on the perceptual motor skills of selected Grade 1 learners. The objectives of the study were as follow: Firstly, to determine the effects of a PE programme on the perceptual motor skills of Grade 1 learners; and secondly, to determine the levels of perceptual motor skills of Grade1 learners, in comparison to that of the age norms, before the intervention. The study was based on quantitative research within the theoretical perspective of the positivistic approach, which is a research philosophy known for its objectivity based on independent variables. The quantitative data collection included conducting standardised perceptual-motor tests before and after the ten-week- long intervention programme. A convenience sample (N=103) was selected from the participating school in a lower socio-economic area and divided into an experimental-(n=78) and a control group (n =25). The weekly PE lessons consisted of a warm-up, a variety of fundamental movement and perceptual-motor skills, and a cool-down activity including a game. Improvised apparatus were made from scrap materials and used in the PE programme. The data analysis included descriptive statistics and inferential statistics including t-tests and ANCOVA. After the second round of perceptual-motor tests had been conducted, the PE programme was presented to the control group. The results of the pre-test showed that the perceptual-motor skills of both the experimental and control groups were below average compared to their age norms. After the intervention, the experimental group’s balance walk forward and backwards, ball catching, ball kicking and hopping skills showed statistical and practical significance while the control group’s perceptual motor skills did not improve. It can be concluded that the 10-week PE programme had a positive effect on the perceptual-motor skills of the Grade 1 learners. It is, therefore, recommended that scientific, developmentally appropriate PE programmes should be presented by trained PE teachers, to improve the perceptual-motor skills of young learners. PE programmes can make a positive contribution to the academic, social, psychological and physical development of Grade 1 learners in South African schools in lower socio economic areas. Masters

Low cardiorespiratory fitness and inactivity are strong health predictors associated with excessive fatness. The objective of this study was to determine the associations between physical activity (PA) and cardiorespiratory fitness and body fatness in South African adolescents. A cross-sectional study was performed with a subsample of 149 school-going adolescents (58 boys and 91 girls) with a mean age of 15.7 ± 0.8 years whom were participating in the Physical Activity and Health Longitudinal Study (PAHLS). Body mass, height, and skinfolds were assessed according to the standards of the International Society for the Advancement of Kinanthropometry (ISAK). Subsequently, body mass index (BMI) and percentage of body fat (%BF) were calculated. Cardiorespiratory fitness was derived from predicted VO2max, and PA assessed by combined heart rate and accelerometry (ActiHeart®, CamNTech). Physical activity was classified according to activity categories. Out of 149 participants, 100 (67.1%) had normal body mass; 26 (17.5%) were underweight and 23 (15.4%) were overweight. Seventeen (18.7%) girls and six (10%) boys were overweight or obese. The prevalence of underweight in boys was 29.3% and 9.9% in girls. A total of 102 (68.5%) participants were sedentary and 47 (31.5%) were active. The overweight group was significantly (p

The effect of movement on academic performance has lately become a topic of interest in literature, as it is widely accepted that there is a strong relationship between motor and cognitive development. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between motor proficiency and academic performance of Senior Phase learners in Potchefstroom, an urban region in South Africa. A total of 236 children between the ages of 13 and 14 years were randomly selected out of eight schools. The Bruininks–Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency 2 was used to assess motor competency. The learners academic performance was measured by making use of their average end–of year academic marks and the marks of English and Mathematics. Significant correlations were found between fine motor control and the end–of–year average marks and English and Mathematics marks in some of the groups. Similarly, correlations were found between the scores of the manipulation coordination items and the English marks of most of the groups, while the end–of–year marks, English and Mathematics marks correlated with body coordination scores in most of the groups. The strength and agility items showed the strongest correlations with the end–of–year marks in all the groups, and the total motor proficiency score showed significant correlations with the end–of–year marks in all the groups. The results of this study imply that motor skill development and maintenance should be incorporated in the Physical Education curriculum for learners of this age group.

Background: Worldwide, the health risks of decreasing physical activity levels and increasing sedentary behaviour among adolescents are a raising concern.Objective: To determine the types and levels of physical activity as well as that of sedentary behaviour of a group Senior Phase learners in South Africa.Methods: The adapted Children's Leisure Activities Study Survey (CLASS) questionnaire was used for determining the types and levels of physical activity and sedentary behaviour of 230 Grade 7 learners, from three schools in Potchefstroom. Data were analysed by means of the SAS statistics programme, and descriptive statistics, as well as independent t-tests and effect sizes (ES) were used.Results: Moderate to high-intensity physical activity levels of between 334 and 361 min per week were found, and sedentary behaviour of between 3077 and 3410 min per week, which implies that between 70.7% and 71.9% of the participants, did not meet the recommended health-based guidelines. Higher activity levels were shown during weekends, where the boys were significantly more active than girls (p < 0.001; ES between 0.21 and 0.56), and girls showed more sedentary behaviours than the boys (ES between 0.18 and 0.20). The leisure time physical activities with the highest participation were soccer, recreational swimming, jogging and dancing, while the sedentary activities were listening to music, riding a vehicle and being busy on the phone.Conclusion: Strategies need to be implemented to raise the physical activity levels of Senior Phase learners, especially during weekdays, and to decrease sedentary behaviour. With this view in mind, recommendations are made for Physical Education teachers.Keywords: Physical activity, Sedentary behaviour, Adolescents, Genders