Liggaamlike opvoeding in junior primêre opleiding aan Blanke onderwyskolleges

Abstract

It was the purpose of this study to evaluate teacher training in physical education in the Junior Primary course in the various teachers training colleges in the Republic of South Africa and South West Africa. Such a study required descriptive research. A literature study of the development of the child in the junior primary school classes (between the the ages of six and nine years) was conducted. This developmental scheme is discussed under the headings of the physical, perceptual-motor, emotional, social and cognitive development of the child. Many researchers have pointed out that the importance of movement in the child's early learning experiences cannot be over emphasized. Lack of a movement repertoire during childhood can have serious ramifications, for it is through participation in locomotor skills that much of the social and emotional development of childhood is shaped. The preliminary stages of all fundamental motor skills are commonly established before the sixth year. It has been determined that the progression from level to level in these patterns depends on ample opportunity for practice under guidance. A survey was conducted in which the questionnaire method was mainly used. This produced the following results. Physical education is presented as a subject in the junior primary curriculum by all the teachers training colleges. The syllabuses of physical education as a subject in the junior primary course vary widely. Also, in some cases it is a compulsory and in others a specialisation subject. This lack of uniformity among the various teachers training colleges also applies to the duration of training, amount of periods allocated, as well as the content of the course. It is recommended that physical education be implied as a compulsory subject of the junior primary course of all teacher training colleges in the Republic of South Africa and South West Africa. The duration of training should be three years, with a minimum of forty training hours per year. A model is proposed of the theoretical and practical contents of physical education as a compulsory subject of the junior primary course. It is recommended that institutions which train teachers should provide opportunities for the understanding of motor development, if perspective teachers are to utilize this knowledge in their teaching.