Contemporary Importance and Challenges for HPE Learning Area Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the Health and Physical Education (HPE) learning area, examining its contemporary importance and the challenges it faces within educational settings. It delves into the historical context of HPE, exploring past problems and the evolution of curriculum approaches. The report highlights the new directions of HPE, including the shift towards a comprehensive, physical activity-focused model and the implementation of the Australian Curriculum's five interrelated propositions. It also addresses the ongoing challenges in HPE, such as institutional limitations, teacher-related issues, and student engagement barriers. The report emphasizes the need for schools to integrate HPE effectively, considering the benefits it provides for students' health, wellbeing, and overall development.

RECENT TRENDS ON HEALTH AND PHYSICAL EDUCATION

Introduction
The course of area involving the students in a sensible learning practices to grow
understanding, skills, self-sufficiency, knowledge and characters that will empower young
individuals to be fit and live an energetic life comes under Physical and Health Education
(Australian Council of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, 2019). The aim of the
report is to determine critical understanding of recent movements and curriculum in health,
well-being and physical education around the educational institutions. It also intends to
identify the importance and challenges of Health and Physical Education as a learning area.
For this purpose, this essay will firstly state some literatures for better understanding about
this topic. Then it will identify some importance of Health and Physical Education in an
educational institution. Lastly it will present some changing nature and contemporary
challenges faced in teaching of HPE.
Literature Review
Many research journals, reports and books have been studied to understand and get a better
understanding on the health and physical education in educational institution. As stated by
Leger (2006) regardless of various health promotion schemes and health education events the
initiatives could be enhanced better. They should focus on cognitive results and connecting
suitable mechanisms of Health Promoting School (HPS) agendas. According to the Lambert
(2018) rigidities amongst curriculum strategy improvement is not exceptional to Australia.
Nevertheless, the Australian Curriculum Health and Physical Education guides the teaching
over the acknowledgement of five propositions which are interrelated to each other.
Macdonald (2013) paper propose some primary schemes for the future curriculum, signifying
that the Health promoting education should apply strengths-based tactics; change health

learning aids; embrace an inquiry-based system; emphasis on educative results and value
education about, through and in measure.
Importance and Problems -History of HPE
The Health and Physical Education (HPE) has a significant role in the student’s healthy
lifestyle. It impacts their life by making them a responsible human being and prioritizing their
health. Schools are said to be the best setting for a student to develop knowledge and
understanding about health. The HPE assists students to make well-versed choices regarding
their wellbeing and health (Lundvall, 2015). It is very essential to identify Health and
Physical Education as a learning area. Even though it ensures expansion in facts,
understanding and skills, it is important for a student to make improved selections. A
Physical Education is said to be learning of different body movements, development in motor
skills, a well-planned understanding about sports and games, behavioral knowledges,
biophysical disciplines and sociological skills. (Alfrey, O'Connor, & Jeanes, 2017).
HPE inspires a routine of physical movement. This regular habit will improve the adult life
by decreasing the risk of diseases and improving the quality of life. It has been seen that
activeness in children and in adults leads to benefit in society (Kohl III, & Cook, 2013). A
sole characteristic of HPE is the varied choice of educational situations that offers significant
prospects for evolving collaborative and interpersonal skills, decent communication, and
goal-setting and decision-making skills. The education of HPE results in inculcation of
leadership in an individual, unity and a constructive team behavior. It also leads expansion of
flexibility tactics and assistances for conflict determination and decisiveness. This not only
helps reduce problems and disruptive behaviors in the students but also guarantees a better
outcome in adult life.
History and problems of HPE

the past designs and programs of HPE in a learning area was questionable. Pill (2016)
claimed in his research about the status of HPE, that the indefinite ideas to play sports and
games which are not tolerable by the Australians. Works suggests, little indication of
transformation from initiatives and by individual teacher and a school rarely being motivated
for modification by a lead teacher. It is also pointed out, about the PE crisis as it was
historically found in the boundaries of instructive intensions of schooling. The schools had a
subject created particularly for PE, but it was settled from an unrewarding, undesirable
attachment of the curriculum. Tinning (2006) summarised the problem of PE in the past was,
that it existed in an overriding programming set-up categorized as multi-activity. Here
teacher course strategies cover lots of methods of physical activity but they lack in clear
complexity as the forms are unconnected and often separated. Hence, content of PE programs
lacked consistency and the teacher lacked perspective in their teaching. Thus, this means that
the HPE in the past was characterised by grading students on obedience and efforts, and not
on demonstrations of content. The teachers when asked about the problems in this field, they
pointed fingers at the lazy attitude of the students, insufficient time allotment or the
construction of the HPE (Australian Curriculum 2019).
New Direction of HPE
To teach health and physical education efficiently it requires the teacher to have specific and
vast knowledge about the child’s physical and mental development, anatomy of the body and
development of motor skills. It appears that the physical education programs are turning to a
wide-ranging, physical activity and health-centric model from traditional sports and skill
centric model (Penney, 2018). This transformation is proved to be important for current and
future of the health and physical education. It is showing extension of the education merely
beyond teaching students in evolving communal health goals.

The three-contemporary practice for the PE teacher is said to are adopting Constructive
perspective, Model based Practice, and Arnoldian practice (Pill, 2016). The Constructive
Practice is based on 3 activities- identifying the wanted standard or outcome; essential
strategies and question to guide the learners; Focusing on the evidence of learning. The
Arnoldian concept stated that the curriculum should have deeper knowledge, skill and
understanding that will empower innovative learning and develop new capability and
enhance them practically. The Model-Based practice is reflection of pedagogical principles
and suggests that the teacher should shift from Teacher-centre pedagogy. These models are
not properly initiated in many schools but if they are introduced efficiently it will lead to
development of HPE in all the institutions of Australia (Tinning, & McCuaig, 2006).
Victorian Curriculum- 5 interrelated propositions
Five interrelated proposals that shapes the Australian Curriculum: Health and Physical
Education have been described. It is derived by a string and varied research work so that the
future results guarantee positive results (Wright, 2014).
Focus on educative purposes-
The main duty of the HPE curriculum is to track the development and advancement of the
corrective information, assistance and understanding on the health and physical education. It
also focuses on the way students will utilize this knowledge about this field in the
contemporary movement and health setting. The importance of the HPE is to provide
continuous knowledge and progress on different health techniques and movements. Its
curriculum attracts and guarantees the students a best learning experience and opportunity to
apply, create, evaluate, practice and understand the knowledge provided in this learning area
(Macdonald, 2013)

Take a strengths-based approach-
Instead of focusing individually on probable health hazards or a deficit-based model, it takes
an informed approach of strength-based. Thus, it strongly motivates and support the students
to enhance their understanding, skills and knowledge, to make them safe, strong and
energetic in every field (Wright, 2014). This will help them to make better life choices thus
enhancing their own and other wellbeing and health. This method sustains a better
understanding among the children and they will develop their own sense of strengths and will
nurture it. This will help them to make a well-informed decision that will impact the society.
Value movement-
HPE totally focuses on the emergence of movements understanding and skills to attain better
knowledge on the area of movements. This enhance the confidence in students and inspire
them to participate throughout their lives to be a refined, valued and established individual, a
student must possess a level of fitness and confidence. (Leahy, et.al. 2013) HPE also
encourages an obligation, that in what way movement is fundamental in everyday life of an
individual such as providing prospects for energetic living to encouraging participation in
sports and physical activities as a substantial social and cultural practice. The study of
movement helps and individual to enhance its physical performance and also improve their
social and personal skills (Lambert, & Penney, 2019).
Develop health literacy-
Health literacy is said to be and ability of an individual to gain knowledge and a better
understanding about one’s heath. It helps in promoting and maintaining better health and
wellbeing. This curriculum focuses on enhancing the knowledge and skill in three
dimensions.

Functional Dimension- it provides knowledge and understand about, how to respond health-
related questions. Interactive Dimensions- it entails more progressive knowledge and skill of
an individual, in health activities and applying fresh understanding to transform the current
situation. Critical Dimension – it is a capability to critically access and analyze all the health-
related information from a different source to take proper action (Wright, 2014).
Include a critical inquiry approach-
This will help the students to critically examine, evaluate and analyses circumstantial aspects
that effect the behaviors, actions and decision-making process, and discover
comprehensiveness, assumptions, different social justice and power inequalities. These
Health and Physical Education curriculum identifies the values, behaviors and actions in
relation to physical activities. it reflects different which effects the way of living. This
approach helps in developing a proper understanding on the interest of individual and social
group related to health practice and participation in physical activities confidence (Australian
Curriculum, 2019).
Contemporary challenges of HPE
It has been seen in many researches that the five propositions are recommended in all the
educational organization to be implemented and practiced (Lambert, 2018). Yet there are
some hesitations that can be seen. Some challenges faced by the health and physical
education curriculums are sometimes caused by institutions, sometime by the teachers and
even by the students (Lynch, 2014). The hindrance created by the educational institutions
are: that they lack facilities; bad time management; curriculums are crowded and the large
class size create a barrier; proper funding facilities; do not have proper equipment; does not
get required support from the staffs and administration to advocate the health and physical
education in the institution; other academic subjects are prioritized; they do not have proper

infrastructure; lack level of professional development; and the most important factor is
insufficient health and physical education teachers (O'Flynn, Wright et.al 2013).
The hindrance caused by the teachers are that they lack effective knowledge and training;
they cannot plan a safe and well-structured lesson; gender stereotyping is also seen in some
institution; the undervaluing of this education impacts the confidence of the teachers and also
diminishes their enthusiasm; and the diminishing in qualifications of the health and physical
education teachers (Leahy, Burrows, et.al 2015).
The students also create barriers as they lack engagement; they express their disliking toward
these activities; they lack extrinsic and intrinsic motivations; their ability for fitness is
diminishing and lack potential encouragement and motivation from peers. These challenges
are possessing as a barrier and hindrance in the field of health and physical education in an
educational institution (Lund, & Tannehill, (2014).
Conclusion
Hence it can be concluded that the health and physical education enhances the student’s
health and well-being. It also broadens the scope of the society and will transform the well
knowledgeable student into a better adult. The education supports the decision making and
enhances their knowledge and understanding about a better a healthier future. But the recent
challenges these curricula are facing is leading to decline in the physical development of a
student. Hence it is essential for all the educational institutions to accommodate health and
physical education curriculum in its daily routine. The institutes should try and manage the
barriers and develop a better strategic plan to create these curricula for a better future
development of the students.

Reference List
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