ABSTRACT
Games continue to have a pre-eminence in the National Curriculum for PE. It is the only aspect that is required to be taught from Key Stage 1 to Key Stage 4. The Physical Education, School Sport and Club Links (PESSCL) Strategy (DfES/DCMS 2002) has continued to develop the idea of competitive school sport. However, it could be argued that although there has been a range of developments in the way PE is structured (e.g. increased use of coaches in primary schools, the role of school sports coordinators and sports colleges, the development of competition managers) the actual content of games teaching at Key Stages 2 and 3 has changed very little. Games continue to be taught in the traditional way. A warm-up is followed by a skills session that is then put into a games situation. Furthermore, the way PE has been taught has changed very little. Physical education teachers continue, on the whole, to use the instructional model of teaching. This is, of course, very effective in terms of time and resources. There is also, however, much innovative practice taking place within the profession. The teaching of games for understanding (Thorpe, Bunker and Almond 1986) has certainly made an impact on the delivery of games in secondary schools. Many schools are looking to extend their PE curriculum and offer a wider range of activities.
