Better Learning with Fair Play in Physical Education?

Fair play is a well-known concept in sports. It concerns rules, norms, etos, and constitutes an established value within organized sports and research related to sports ethics. In the context of physical education (PE) and... [ view full abstract ]

Fair play is a well-known concept in sports. It concerns rules, norms, etos, and constitutes an established value within organized sports and research related to sports ethics. In the context of physical education (PE) and schooling, however, fair play is less known. In Norway, the Ministery of Education and Research introduced fair play as a central element in the national curriculum in 2012.

Taking this as our point of departure, this study set out to explore the understanding and practice of fair play among PE teachers and student teachers. In addition, we aimed to investigate to what extent the strengthened focus on fair play has led to changes in teachers’ practices.

Data was collected through ten group interviews with a total of 19 student teachers and 19 teachers, from 11 different schools. Teacher and students did participate in separate groups.  Conducting the interviews, there was always two researchers involved. The interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. A theoretical framework based on moral and social education and earlier research on fair play were used to guide a thematically analysis of the data.

The results reveals that the PE teachers rarely use the term ‘fair play’ directly in their teaching. However, they take it into account in student assessment, and both teachers and student teachers expressed that the values and philosophy of fair play were central to the subject PE. Rather than a teaching area with learning outcomes, fair play in PE in practice is constructed mainly as a mean for citizenship education, and contextualized within a broader field of moral and social development. We conclude that fair play in PE is understood different from the more technical concept in sports, and that it has the potential to renew and improve working methods and learning processes in PE.