If ‘the medium is the message’, what do students learn to do in NLP and GBAs within physical education?

ABSTRACT

Building on the original work of Bunker and Thorpe and their Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU) approach to physical education, there is now a proliferation of Game Based Approaches (GBA) in the research literature (Bunker & Thorpe, 1982, A model for the teaching of games in secondary schools. Bulletin of Physical Education, 18, 5–8, 1983). Unlike other approaches to games teaching and coaching which trace their roots to TGfU, Non Linear Pedagogy (NLP) has been defined as distinct from, and even an alternative to, TGfU (Renshaw et al., 2016, Why the constraints-led approach is not teaching games for understanding: A clarification. Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, 21(5), 459–480. https://doi.org/10.1080/17408989.2015.1095870). Although comparisons between approaches have arisen at a theoretical level, there is no comparison of the influence that these approaches have on learners. Addressing this issue, we turn to Postman and Weingartner’s (1971, Teaching as a subversive activity) pedagogical use of the famous aphorism of Marshall McLuhan, that ‘the medium is the message’. Deploying this concept, we ask: what is the message that the use of these approaches sends? First, we identify the main features of NLP and TGfU. Second, we compare their media with reference to two empirical studies. Third, we identify and discuss questioning and decision-making as two key differences between these otherwise similar approaches. Finally, we consider the implications of these results for teaching and learning of games under Mcluhan’s aphorism.

KEYWORDS:

• TGfU
• sport pedagogy
• teaching-learning process
• games learning

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by Ayudas complementarias de movilidad destinadas a beneficiarios del programa de Formación del Profesorado Universitario (FPU); Ministerio de Educación y Formación Profesional: EST22/00716; Ayudas para la Formación de Profesorado Universitario; Ministerio de Universidades: FPU17/00606.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 In the present work we will refer to GBAs because it is stated by the AIESEP TGfU SIG (2021), however in other works it can also be found under the name of Game Centred Approach (GCAs) which seems to be the most widespread in the literature according to Harvey and Jarrett (2014).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Carmen Barquero-Ruiz

Carmen Barquero-Ruiz is Lecturer BB in the Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, at University of Limerick. Her main research interest is on improving the teaching-learning-assessment process of games, particularly under different pedagogical models. Her most recent works focused on assessment as a vehicle for fostering learning both in physical education and physical education teacher education.

David Kirk

David Kirk is Professor of Education at the University of Strathclyde and Honorary Professor of Human Movement Studies at the University of Queensland. In addition to his continuing interest in approaches to teaching and learning of games in physical education, he has been advocating pedagogies of affect as physical education’s response to precarity and the increasing prevalence of health and wellbeing issues for children and young people. His most recent book (co-authored with Ashley Casey) is Models-based Practice in Physical Education.