Areas of Knowledge for Model-Based Instruction in Physical Education

Physical educators must have expertise in many areas that determine how they instruct and how well students will learn in each content unit and lesson. It is an oversimplification to suggest that teachers need to know about their students, physical education content, and instructional models. Effective teachers do need to know these things—but in much more sophisticated and interactive ways. The sophistication comes from having extensive knowledge in many areas of teaching; superficial knowledge is not enough for most physical education teaching settings. The interactive part happens when a teacher must apply several types of knowledge at the same time, often with little opportunity to consider the options or to consult with others.