THE SPORT
EDUCATION MODEL
Created by: Daryl Siedentop
FEATURES OF SPORT EDUCATION
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Basic Premise:
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Timing – this model is utilized at both the middle
and high school level.
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Instruction is carried out in a way which simulates
an athletic team and season.
West Hartford, SSW
Middle school sport ed mostly focuses on
traditional team sports which are less lifetime
oriented. Lifetime activities are typically taught
in high school.
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What are some examples of non-lifetime activities,
focusing on team sports?
POSSIBLE ACTIVITIES – MIDDLE SCHOOL
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Basketball
Field Hockey
Fitness
Football
Hockey
Lacrosse
Soccer
Softball
Tennis
Track & Field
Volleyball
Weight Training
Wrestling
FEATURES OF SPORT EDUCATION
Seasons (not units)
1.
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Seasons typically last a minimum of 12 lessons.
This promotes more in-depth understanding of the
material (more depth, less breadth).
Teacher selects sport/activity. May also have
students vote on choices.
Affiliation
2.
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Students quickly become members of teams, the
rosters for which are constant throughout a
season.
Formal Competition
3.
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Sports seasons include formal schedules.
Typically, competitions are interspersed with
practices.
FEATURES OF SPORT EDUCATION
4.
Culminating Event
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5.
Keeping Records
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6.
A competitive event highlights the season and
provides goals for players to work towards.
Records are publicized that provide feedback, define
standards, and establish goals for players and teams.
Festivity
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The festive atmosphere of sport enhances its meaning
and adds an important social element for
participants.
ROLES OF STUDENT
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Students are increasingly responsible for leadership,
instruction, assessing, and performing.
Potential student roles (all students practice and play in
competitions)
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Captain – functions as coach, runs practice/games
Statistician – record and post team and individual results
on bulletin boards
Fitness Instructor – leads warm-up and possibly cool down
(should be specific to the activity)
Manager – distributes and collects equipment, sets up
playing field/court, arranges substitute for absent players
Referee – Referees games and is acquainted with rules and
etiquette of the sport/activity.
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Several team members are assigned the role of referee which
trades-off throughout the season.
Player – no assigned role, participating member of team.
 Scorekeeper – may designate to unprepared students
 Other roles: assistant captain, reporter…
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TEACHER ROLE
 Teachers
shift from teacher-centered to
student-centered instruction.
 Teacher must establish strong managerial
system with rules and routines.
 Teacher then has time to instruct,
facilitate, and assess student learning
more effectively.
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Model works especially well in a teamteaching scenario
TIMELINE OF A SAMPLE UNIT
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Day 1
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Awarding of the captain’s position
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Festive – announce with clapping
Team roster is announced for each captain
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Captains and team members are selected in advance by teacher.
May also have captains select in private.
Class breaks into teams and fills out captain’s packet
 Instruct/remind students of behavioral expectations and
responsibilities for each role.
 Discussion of sport’s rules, etiquette, etc by teacher(s)
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Day 2 – 5 (5 is used for this example, may be > or < days)
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Each team practices separately (teacher checks off each
skill once it has been satisfactorily completed)
Who leads practice? – two choices
Timeline of a Unit: Day 2 – 5 (Practice Only Days)
Teacher:
Explains practice
sequence and activities
at start of class which
captains them
implement.
It
is suggested that
teacher provide all
directions at start
instead of providing
direction prior to each
practice activity.
Teacher rotates helping
each team’s practice.
Captain:
Captains develop practice plan
at home. Plans are reviewed by
teacher prior to each class.
Teacher
should provide materials
(books, internet addresses, handouts of
suggested activities).
May provide a reward/incentive for
captains (bonus points, free PE t-shirt,
release time to prepare, letter home)
 Other incentives?
Teacher picks captain for each team
***May do a combination of the two – some portions of
practice are teacher led, others are captain led
Timeline of a Unit: Day 6-11
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Day 6
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Day 7
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Formal competition
Day 11
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Practice
Day 10
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Formal competition
Day 9
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Practice
Captains focus on deficiencies identified by the 1st day of
competition.
Day 8
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Written assessment of rules, etiquette, and strategies (may include
other elements)
Formal competition
Competition schedule is set by teacher
Practice
Day 12, 13
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Formal competition
Timeline of a Unit: Day 14
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Day 14
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Culminating Event
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Should be festive and fun. Announce the championship
over the school PA, Ss can bring in food/drinks, teacher
distributes awards (most improved, coach of the unit…)
May include rewards such as a T-shirt
May invite students from around school to attend
Competition
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Three options:
1.
Round-robin where all teams play one another in a
tournament format.
1.
2.
3.
May need two days to complete
All teams are assigned an opponent with the top two
teams playing one another in the championship.
Just the top 2 teams play one another while the
other teams watch.
1.
May need to give assignment to spectators.
SCORING
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Teams with most points play in the
championship (depending on how you structure
the culminating event). Points are based upon
the following:
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Motor skill performance of team members
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Based upon psychomotor assessments of students
Great model for authentic assessment (more time for
assessment in this model)
Competition performance (wins v. losses)
 Sportsmanship
 Attendance
 Proper warm-up
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CAPTAIN’S PACKET
Important Points
 Distributed the first day
 Teams cannot move to the next skill without
being checked off by the teacher.
 Includes an advise sheet for captains
SAMPLE PAKCET
OCCURENCE
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Within individual classes (just your class)
Within a class period (classes from multiple teachers)
Across classes (your classes, different periods)
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Can only compete outside of class during lunch,
intramurals, before/after school. The usual scenario is to
have a competition between the champions from each class.
MODIFIED SPORTS
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Competition/sport rules may be modified to promote
participation. You do not need to play the “full” sport using
all rules and regulations. Some modifications include:
6 vs. 6 soccer
 3 vs. 3 volleyball
 3 vs. 3 basketball
 Team tennis
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SETTING UP THE MODEL
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Teach students about the roles prior to start of each
season.
Can invite guest speakers such as a “real” coach, AT,
referee, etc.
 Address handling conflicts between students
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Teacher should conduct mini-workshops for jobs
needed during team practices or another appropriate
time
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Trainings might include rules for referees, field/court setup for managers, score keeping for statisticians
Amount of teacher direct instruction will vary
depending on grade level (older students may get
more autonomy)
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The more ownership students have in the season’s success,
the more they will be motivated to achieve their goals.
SETTING UP THE MODEL
Make necessary modifications to rules and competition
format
 Teacher may want to write a “job description” for each
role
 Equity – all team members get to play the same amount
of time.
 Balance make-up of teams by gender, ability, behavior,
& others
 May preview teams with captains and allow for limited
“trading”
 Identify what skills each team must check off.
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BENEFITS
Allows students to be a part of a team (makes
team membership more likely as adults)
 Captains get to develop leadership skills and
experience the role of being a coach.
 Inclusive learning environment (everyone
participates, not just highly skilled)
 More student centered, utilizes different “voice”
besides the teacher.
 Better avenue for monitoring and promoting
personal growth among all players.
 Teachers and student enjoy this model
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LIMITATIONS AND CAUTIONS
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Introducing the sport ed model for the 1st time 
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Class management skills needed
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Use caution when implementing with a “difficult” class.
Interpersonal conflict
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Start with a highly popular sport/activity to get the model rolling
Start with one class instead of all classes to get your feet wet
Conflict among students is the greatest
danger to effective implementation.
Don’t allow students to focus on what they lack,
focus on each team’s unique abilities.