Abstract

An array of teaching styles is available to elementary school teachers of physical education. Often, however, teachers employed to work in elementary schools are generalist trained. The instruction offered by these teachers throughout the school year encompasses all subject areas. Many generalist trained teachers do not generally feel confident teaching physical education (Morgan & Hansen 2008). Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine different teaching styles (e.g., Mosston & Ashworth’s Spectrum of Teaching Styles) and to identify how student learning can be enhanced through the varying learning opportunities. An investigation into different styles will be conveyed and practical teaching examples will be shared throughout the paper. Describing the strengths and weaknesses of available teaching styles in physical education may help generalist trained teachers develop a more thorough understanding towards the effectiveness of different styles for different learning purposes. After all, in elementary school physical education, specific learning objectives require different pedagogical approaches (Fishburne 2005). Whilst enhancing the levels of confidence toward teaching elementary school physical education, it is hoped that such newly acquired knowledge of potential teaching styles will enable teachers to better identify how their teaching practices can be modified to enhance student learning.