Applying Artificial Intelligence to Primary and Secondary School Physical Education

ABSTRACTPrevious research shows that students have a widespread understanding about the purpose of physical education (PE), including learning about movement, health and also PE as a break from other school subjects. The present study aims at examining more closely the break perspective in light of interview data from 26 students, whose statements in interviews that focused on PE in upper secondary school in Norway, reveal that the view of PE as a break from other school lessons is also a valid understanding among students when they are approaching the end of PE in their schooling. We have asked what kind of learning the students’ views on PE as a break from other school subject are, or may be, in light of the Norwegian curriculum in PE in upper secondary school and to changes in the 2012 curriculum, which aimed to reduce performance stress and too much hunt for good grades. We present two interpretations of the interview texts – PE as ‘the movement moment’ in everyday school life, and participating in fun activities together with good friends, and a third interpretation, which we describe as a relatively invisible view of knowledge goals among the students about training and lifestyle and critical awareness about sport cultures in the society. We argue that a view of PE as ‘a movement moment’ in everyday school life contributes to modifying the view on PE as a break from other school subjects and to seeing it as a relevant learning perspective. On the other hand, a modified break perspective should be merged with knowledge and critical lenses on training, health, lifestyle and sport cultures in society, so that the students’ views on the purpose of PE all in all contain important knowledge and reflections they should have, according to the Norwegian curriculum in PE.

In recent years, upon deepening the reform on physical education (PE) curriculum in collegesi¼Œcolleges in many areas have established sports clubs. It makes PE class teaching and the after-PE class extension be fully combined, promotes the reform of PE curriculum, enhances the teaching efficiency and the sports level of college students, cultivates college students’ life habits of consciously doing sports exercises, and finally provides a solid foundation for students’ life-long sports. Taking the extracurricular sports club teaching of China West Normal University as the starting point, this paper tries hardly to explore the innovative models of physical education (PE) curriculum reform of schools and to provide references for other colleges.

This study reviews the research progress of university physical education curriculum reform in recent years from five aspects: curriculum objectives, curriculum structure, curriculum content and teaching methods, curriculum resources development and curriculum evaluation. It also puts forward five research directions, including the integration of the content of National Students' Physical Fitness and Health Standard into the physical education curriculum teaching, the regional and diverse development of curriculum resources, the promotion of college physical education curriculum reform by network informatization, the integrated development of both inside and outside classes, and the perfect evaluation system of College Physical Education curriculum, to provide some references for the reform of College Physical Education Curriculum in China.

The term hidden curriculum is not new to education or physical education. It is difficult to explain, sometimes hard to identify, but undoubtedly influential to student learning. This paper differentiates the hidden curriculum from an official curriculum. Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) students (n = 35) in an undergraduate Curriculum Design course were asked to recall their experiences with the hidden curriculum in their formal primary and secondary school physical education experiences, identifying negative and positive outcomes veiled at the time. Eight themes emerged from participant responses and are described with specific examples. Five practices are noted for educators to manage the hidden curriculum.

This research was intended to grasp the problems in physical education curriculum in order to develop a pre-service/in-service teacher training in physical education curriculum. To accomplish these goals, I researched the 7th physical education curriculum, interviewed 10 specialist of physical education, and reached the following conclusion. First, the teaching contents need to be composed of smaller scaled changed sports and lifelong sports in various levels developing on student interests and motivation, and physical education environment. Especially, the teaching and learning method needs to focus on making students comfortable in and eager to attend coeducation of classes. Second, the evaluation methods should include a standard of evaluation and a credible and proper evaluation scale measure by finding good evaluation examples on the spot. Such methods should be available to test whether the set goals have been accomplished. These evaluation materials must be available to the physical education teachers. Third, the developments in physical education should be advertised continuously via physical education curriculum meeting and training, mass media, and the internet so that interests in and practices of the new curriculum are increased. Forth, flexible management of the curriculum based on students` ability to finish the required course per semester according to the student situation and the physical education teacher needs and preparation of the system of monitoring per school and exchanging programs, teaching materials, teaching tips and evaluation policies, it is required for sharing method of regional citizen after building sports complex through inducing private capital in school and using the utilities around public places and expanding the expected supply and need of sports equipment based on the research for sports utilities. Fifth, it is necessary to prepare a systematic apparatus to support sports education curriculum meetings, through which sport education curriculum and various physical education curriculum training activities are developed and applied. These developments should be clearly outlined in a written form to aid teachers understand the background for the evolution of the curriculum and the difference between past and present curricula.

This research aimed to improve the high-order thinking ability of students by applying PBL model in Environment Pollution of 10<sup>th</sup> MIA 3 graders of SMA Negeri 2 Sukoharjo. This study was a classroom action research followed the Kemmis and Mc. Taggart’s, and conducted in two cycles, from April to May 2016. Each cycle consisted of 4 stages: planning, acting, observing, and reflecting. The participants were 31 students (18 female and 13 male students) of 10<sup>th</sup> MIA 3 graders of SMA Negeri 2 Sukoharjo. Data was obtained using essay test on the high-order thinking ability, interview, observation sheet on the implementation of PBL syntax, observation sheet on affective and psychomotor aspects of students. Essay test of high-order thinking ability includes: analyzing (C4), evaluating (C5), and creating (C6) based on Bloom’s revised taxonomy. Data analysis was descriptively. The target of research was the improvement of students’ high-order thinking ability in every aspect more than 23% from based line to the end of research cycle. The result shows that the PBL model in environment pollution material is able to improve the high-order thinking ability of students by ≥23% from based line to the end of research cycle. The increase of percentage gain in each aspect of high-order thinking ability from pre-cycle to cycle II was as follows: 1) the analyzing aspect increased by 25.16%, 2) the evaluating aspect increased by 26.66%, and 3) the creating aspect increased by 23.95%.

Objective: This study examines global interest in physical education (PE) curricula from 2015 to 2025, analyzing how public engagement has evolved in response to health crises, technological advancements, and policy shifts. The research aims to identify key trends and disparities in PE priorities across regions, providing insights for future curricular development and policy reform. Methods: Using Google Trends data, the study analyzes search volumes for "physical education curriculum" and "PE activities," normalized on a 0–100 scale. Temporal, geographical, and related-query analyses were conducted to assess fluctuations, regional interest patterns, and conceptual associations. Data were collected on June 10, 2025, covering a decade of search behavior. Results: The findings reveal distinct trends: (1) a sharp 2020 surge in "PE activities" searches during COVID-19 school closures, contrasting with steady policy-focused interest in curricula; (2) regional divides, with low-income nations prioritizing curricular frameworks and high-income countries focusing on implementation; and (3) conceptual gaps between formal policy language ("health curriculum") and practical terms ("PE games"). Japan emerged as a model for integrating both approaches. Conclusion: The analysis emphasizes the increasing importance of PE in comprehensive schooling, while also highlighting the disparity in resource allocation and focus that still exists. It demands flexible, inclusive paradigms that not only reduce theory-practice gaps but also extend them across regional disparities, utilizing digital engagement to inform evidence-based reforms in accordance with global health purposes.

Physical education curriculum policies, like other government policies, are influenced by historical and societal contexts. This study reviews the literature on a range of approaches to physical education from traditional models to critical physical literacy, creates a policy analysis framework and uses it to examine Canadian Physical Education (PE) curriculum policies. The policy analysis framework and discourse analysis are combined to determine the dominant messages in Canadian PE policies and to determine relative areas of emphasis. The findings indicate that most policies include critical approaches in the policy rationale but the learning outcomes reflect primarily traditional models of physical education. This research is intended to encourage a national dialogue about PE policies in order to encourage a broader range of approaches, including more empowering approaches in PE curriculum policies.

An inverse approach to validate the importance of motor ability and sport on purposeful play and lifelong vigorous physical activity

This paper is the first study that exclusively explores the structure and discourses evident within the physical education (PE) curriculum in Northern Ireland (NI). In doing so, it highlights the opportunities and challenges of the PE curriculum within this unique segregated school system, addressing a gap in the literature. For decades, research has recognised that many PE curricula are organised and delivered around units of games with a focus on the skill/sport performance. This study utilised a discourse analysis to identify the key discourses within curriculum documents whilst also drawing on the work of Penney and Chandler to explore the structure of the curriculum and how it, along with contextual factors, shapes the opportunities and challenges of the NI PE curriculum. Our findings illustrate the possibilities offered by the holistic, interdisciplinary ‘Big Picture’ approach in policy while acknowledging the potential challenges of this in practice, given the complex political and religious context of NI. Further work in schools, with teachers, is needed in this novel area moving forward, to build a richer body of knowledge and better inform future policy and practice.

This study aimed to examine the healthy nutrition outcomes gained by curriculums introduced and implemented in 2018, focusing on grades and lesson durations. Designed with a qualitative research approach, the study employed the document review technique. Data collected from the analysis of six different curriculums were evaluated using content analysis. Through analysis, 38 healthy nutrition outcomes were identified and categorized under themes after coding. Findings from the evaluation of lesson durations and class levels indicate that healthy nutrition outcomes are not evenly distributed across class levels. The Science Curriculum(SC) does not include any healthy nutrition outcomes for the 5th grade, and the Physical Education and Games Curriculum(PEGC) excludes them for the 2nd grade. Similarly, the Secondary School Biology Curriculum(SSBC) includes such outcomes only in the 9th grade. Regarding lesson durations, the average time allocated to healthy nutrition outcomes was determined as 2.5–3 hours in the Life Sciences Curriculum(LSC), 1.5–3 hours in the SC, 1.5–2.5 hours in the Secondary School Physical Education and Sports Curriculum(SEPESC), and 8.5 hours in the SSBC. However, lesson durations were not specified for the outcomes in PEGC and SEPESC. These results emphasize the need to distribute outcomes more equitably and systematically across class levels in alignment with pedagogical principles. Furthermore, organizing healthy nutrition outcomes with spiral structure is recommended to ensure learning continuity and prevent incomplete understanding. This study highlights the importance of adopting planned and systematic approach in curriculum design to enhance the effective integration and balanced distribution of healthy nutrition outcomes.

This study focused on lessons learned from the Physical Education Curriculum under the reign of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). We conducted an unprecedented analysis of ISIS primary school physical education curriculum. The research objective focused on describing and analyzing the context and intentions of the document as well as its content (didactic, pedagogy, learning assessment, among others). We also analyzed the general scientific quality of the curriculum of physical education targeting fitness preparation by the instructor in charge of the education of the youth. In addition, our analysis focused on the philosophical and contextual issues of the manual. Findings revealed an incomplete and a rapidly developed textbook where several essential elements related to pedagogy, didactics, learning, and assessment were missing or inconsistent. The logic of military preparation under the guise of preparing the student’s physical condition was an important finding without being explicitly mentioned. Integration of religious content was present without being affirmed in the content of the lessons. We argue that the ISIS physical education curriculum appears to be committed to an absolutist/theocratic ideological or propaganda program that, among other things, promotes the preparation of the future soldiers of the ISIS army. Recommendations about secularization and the reconstruction of post-ISIS education systems are formulated.

Background: In the physical education (PE) domain, teachers are given the freedom to make important educational decisions. Because of the common assumption that the decisions teachers make are based on a set of educational perspectives, a considerable number of studies have addressed the importance of studying the thinking and beliefs of PE teachers on teaching. However, it is revealed that only a limited amount of works on the perspective or teaching beliefs of pre-service PE teachers has been conducted.Chinese context: In 2002, comprehensive PE curriculum reform was conducted in China. The reform focused on the evolution of PE from sport skill-related objectives to fitness, health, cognitive, and affective outcomes. Many local Chinese studies suggest that the teaching perspectives of PE teachers should be aligned with these new objectives to implement the new PE curriculum effectively. However, evidence-based studies on the teaching perspectives of Chinese PE teachers are lacking.Purpose: This study focuses on PE teacher education (PETE) students in Shanghai, China and has the following aims: (i) to examine the teaching perspectives of PETE students, (ii) to explore the differences in teaching perspectives based on demographic differences (i.e. gender, year in school, participation in a teaching practicum), and (iii) to examine the correlations among five teaching perspectives of PETE students.Method: A survey-based study design was employed. The participants were 349 PETE students (185 males, 164 females) from two universities in Shanghai China. The Teaching Perspective Inventory was adopted to assess five teaching perspectives of PETE students. Surveys were distributed by PE faculty in each of their classes in the two universities. Descriptive statistics were used to describe five teaching perspectives and teaching beliefs of PETE students (what they believe about instructing or teaching), intentions (what they try to accomplish), and their action (what they do within their classrooms). Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was performed to examine the main effects of PETE student demographics on their teaching perspectives. A bivariate correlational procedure was used to test the relationships among five teaching perspectives.Findings: PETE students clearly exhibited a common pattern of a single dominant teaching perspective. They highlighted the importance of the subject matter, but focused less on changes in society and learner's thinking. These findings are incongruent with recent trends and innovation in the Chinese PE curriculum. Furthermore, the findings indicate significant differences in some perspectives by gender and years in school. However, no significant effects on field-based practicum experience were observed. Finally, significant positive correlations were observed among most of the five teaching perspectives, which indicate that a comprehensive consideration of the five perspectives in the teacher education program is necessary.

In this paper, we present the findings from our critical analysis of the health discourses evident with physical education (PE) curricula in each UK home nation—England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. We carried out a critical discourse analysis of those curriculum documents that talk directly to PE teachers about how to organise, enact and assess PE curricula in schools. The results from our analysis uncovered that, with the exception of the curriculum in England, all PE curricula conceptualise health and wellbeing holistically. However, our analysis also uncovered complex health landscapes within curricula, where discourses move from notions of supporting and enabling pupil health and wellbeing towards a more concrete (and measurable) concept of health‐related learning, often associated with public health goals of promoting physical activity. Furthermore, although the public health discourses are presented in a way that suggests that young people will develop knowledge and skills to support their health, closer scrutiny reveals that they may be more associated with discourses of risk, promoting ‘healthy’ behaviours to avoid ‘ill health’. We conclude by suggesting that PE teachers need to develop a critical understanding of the health discourses within their PE curriculum. This will help them to navigate, interpret and enact curricula in an informed way, enabling them to challenge discourses that are deficit in nature, where pupils are taught how to be healthy, rather than having the freedom to learn about themselves and their health.

The purpose of this paper is to explain the trend of school physical education reform in U.S.A. in the relation with the educational reform. After 1990 years, NASPE established a goal for the physical education of “A Physically educated Person” to do a school physical education reform. Then, NASPE showed the figure of the new physical education by the National Standard with making a goal for this physical educateon develop concretely.When future Japanese school physical education was built, the next two points of suggestion could get it as a result of the examination by this paper.1) A future physical education curriculum is intellectual, and it must contain recognition-like contents of learning. Then, a physical education curriculum must be composed of the thing which balance often contains intrinsic value and extrinsic value of the movement and sport.2) Before the physical education curriculum preparation, extensive argument in the various levels about the curriculum is indispensable. The academic society about the physical education and the sport education should shoulder responsibility for the preparation of the physical education curriculum at the same time.