Teaching outdoor and adventure activities: an investigation of a primary school physical education professional development p

Lesson Evaluations
 
Teachers
13 (S2)
Lesson Observations
 
Facilitator/researcher
42 (S2)
Field notes
 
Facilitator/researcher
n/a (S1&2)
Quantitative Data Collection 
SOFIT (Stage 1 only).
This study examined the activity levels of students, and 
the various lesson contexts during a specialist taught (as part of the modelling of lessons 
during the PDP) unit of work in outdoor and adventure activities. Data collected from 
the SOFIT observations of the Outdoor and Adventure lessons at Stage 1, although 
process measures of the implementation of the lessons, were used to document some 
potential antecedents to student learning, such as time dedicated to subject matter, 
student activity levels and teacher behaviours. As SOFIT is a validated systematic 
observation tool, its results can be quantified and used to support the qualitative data 
findings. Student activity levels, lesson context (management, knowledge, skills, fitness 
and games) and teacher instruction were quantified using a validated direct observation 
instrument, SOFIT (System for Observing Fitness Instruction Time) (McKenzie, 2005).
All eight years, junior infants to sixth class were observed three times during stage 1 of 
the professional development programme facilitation, giving a total of 24 observed 
classes. The mean and standard deviation for the observations were calculated to 
provide a single measure for i) each class, ii) junior classes, iii) senior classes, iv) all 
classes. Independent sample t-tests were carried out to determine significant difference 
in activity levels between classes. The SOFIT research work was presented at the 
PEPAYS Forum (2007) and the AIESEP World Congress (2008) by Ní Bhriain, Coulter 
and colleagues, 
‘An examination of activity levels of primary school pupils during a PE 
specialist taught outdoor and adventure activities strand of the Irish PE Curriculum’
.
The findings were also published in the PEPAYS Conference Proceedings (2008). The 
full article is available in Appendix C. 

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