‘That is a big passion of mine as a typical Kiwi’: Primary school principals’, teachers’, and students’ perspectives on physical education in New Zealand

Abstract

A critical element in the provision of physical education in primary schools is the perspectives of principals, teachers, and students. Little is known how their perspectives mediate the nature, frequency, and valuing of physical education. In this study, I used a qualitative research design to investigate their perspectives on physical education. I recruited six principals, eight classroom teachers, and 24 students (aged 9-11 years old) from four primary schools in the Waikato District, New Zealand. I collected data from semi-structured interviews, focus group interviews with photo-elicitation, class videos, non-participant observation, documents, and other resources such as emails with participants. I completed thematic analysis and cross-case analysis. I reported and discussed the participants’ views on (1) holistic development in physical education, (2) we valued the NZC, but we taught physical education in our ways, and (3) perceived barriers and challenges. The findings showed the importance of physical education in the primary school curriculum and provided information about what happened to physical education in primary schools. The participants valued physical education and believed that it can promote students’ interpersonal skills, physical and psychological well-being, and academic achievement. The implementation of physical education in the four primary schools was viewed as cultural reproduction based on seasonal sports and local events, and was influenced by multiple factors such as facilities, teachers’ content knowledge, and time. Overall, the participants asserted that physical education plays an important role in the primary school curriculum.