TGfU SIG 40th Anniversary Conference- Tse Sheng et al.

Описание: TGfU SIG 40th Anniversary Conference:

Unlocking the potential of TGfU: Developing the whole child

Authors: Teng Tse Sheng [1], Dr Kanae Haneishi [2], Dr Linda Griffin [3], Dr Bruce Nkala [4] & Dr Korey Boyd [5]

[1] Physical Education and Sports Teacher Academy, Ministry of Education, Singapore
[2] Western Colorado University
[3] University of Massachusetts Amherst
[4] Sandy Spring Friends School
[5] Springfield College

Abstract:
Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU) was born out of a concern by a group of educators in the late 1970s that the traditional way of teaching over-emphasised techniques, leaving students not knowing what to do when playing the game (Bunker & Thorpe, 1982). TGfU’s focus on developing students’ decision-making, skill execution and tactical awareness through playing specially designed games with embedded game situations quickly gained popularity as an approach to teach games. Different versions of TGfU, now known as Game-Based Approaches, soon began to appear around the world in the 90s and early 2000, like the Tactical Games Approach, Game Sense and the Games Concept Approach,. While the various versions offered a slightly different take on game-based teaching, they largely follow the pedagogical principles of TGfU and the intent of developing thinking players who are able to solve problems they encounter in games.

40 years on, the world has become more connected and complex. Hyper-politicization of school curriculum content, injustice practices and oppression toward persons of minoritized backgrounds (i.e., race, gender, language, age, religion, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, nationality, ability, and sexual orientation) have challenged physical educators to expand the Physical Education (PE) learning environment and promote equitable and just practices. PE educators, thus, play a unique role in the social justice movement as they address human dynamics and complexity in our society during their lessons. The educational landscape has shifted, and so must our practice. We are reminded that learning cannot be compartmentalised into the cognitive, affective and psychomotor domain because human systems are nested and interconnected (Butler, 2016). But while the TGfU curriculum values collaboration, thinking critically and making democratic decisions as much as it does the performance of physical skills (Butler, 2016), it is implicit, and acquiring these important learning may be left to chance if PE educators are not deliberate in their planning and teaching.

By reframing the 6 key stages of TGfU, and making the implicit explicit, we believe that we can position TGfU as the approach that can truly develop the whole child and prepare them for the future. Watch how we reframe, analyse, unpack the key stages of TGfU and its pedagogical principles, and debate on the points, uncensored!

For more information visit http://www.tgfu.info/