Perception of physical literacy among secondary school physical education teachers

Abstract

Introduction: Physical literacy (PL) is important among children and teenagers. Studies have shown that children with high level of PL tend to be more active and not only is an active lifestyle linked to lower risk of metabolic disease, it’s also associated with better academic results. Physical Education (PE) curriculum in school is aimed to develop PL among school children and PE teachers plays an important role in achieving that goal. Although PE teachers are models of people with good PL, PE teachers in schools does not necessarily take this into account. Aim: The purpose of this study was to identify the level of perception PL among PE teachers in Malaysia. Methods: This quantitative study involved secondary school PE teachers (N=100) from Miri, Sarawak. Physical literacy was measured using the Perceived Physical Literacy Instrument (PPLI). Results: This study found that the overall level of PL is high among PE teachers (M = 4.23 ± 0.39) with no significant difference between gender, location and teaching experience. However, PE teachers who majored in PE have a significantly higher PL compared to PE teachers who were not PE majors. Conclusions: The significantly higher PL among PE teachers who majored in PE shows that they may be more suitable to teach PE. Whenever possible, PE should be taught by subject-qualified teachers for PE to be effective in developing PL among students.