ABSTRACT
Earlier chapters in this book have provided detailed insights into ways in which Sport Education may be developed and evaluated in schools as a curricular innovation. Many of the units described were taught by experienced teachers who participated in Sport Education professional development activities. Significantly, these activities have not been ‘one-off’ sessions. Instead, several of the developments described have progressed within a framework of ongoing support for the teachers involved, and a sustained partnership with university based staff. The success of this approach has reaffirmed that maintaining quality programmes of physical education and sustaining innovation ‘requires substantial long-term investments, both logistical and human’ (Siedentop and Locke, 1997: 26). Further, it has lent support to Armour and Yelling’s (2004) recent emphasis that, to be valued and productive, professional development work needs to:
Particularly in our work with Mountbatten School and Language College (see Chapters 10, 11 and 12), we have seen the ways in which very positive ‘professional learning’ relationships can be established over time. Notably, the partnership with Mountbatten provided the basis from which to extend the Sport Education professional learning community to involve local teachers from neighbouring schools. Given that schools in England continue to effectively be set against one another through ‘league tables’ of achievements and ‘standards’, we should celebrate collaboration and, more specifically, teachers’ willingness to share professional knowledge and experiences.
