Suchergebnisse

Purpose
The aim of this personal vision research is to analyse the characteristics of physical education subject to contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through the development of competences in university students. The objective is to reflect on how critical and systemic thinking could be mobilised through the contents and methodologies in physical education to promote the SDGs.


Design/methodology/approach
A conceptual article is proposed in which an active investigation of how physical education could foster critical and systemic thinking has been carried out. For this purpose, articles were selected that have analysed the potential of physical education for sustainability. Databases such as Web of Science, Scopus or Google Scholar have been reviewed through keywords such as "physical education", "sustainability", "critical thinking" or "systems thinking".


Findings
Strategies are presented to enable university students to understand the scope of the subject beyond the physical dimension. This study discusses that it is only through such a change of view of the subject that meaningful learning and learning situations that encourage enquiry and active participation can be introduced. Thus, this paper argues that physical education is a unique area of knowledge for mobilising critical and systemic thinking in the context of sustainable development (SD). Consequently, concrete actions are presented for application in physical education teaching that shows direct connections to specific targets of the SDGs.


Practical implications
This study presents practical implications for higher education leaders and educational policy designers at the national level, as it would help improve initial and ongoing training programs for physical education teachers, focusing on the development of key competencies for sustainability.


Social implications
Physical education has the potential to contribute to the development of vulnerable schools and communities, especially to the health and well-being of children and young people and does not require large financial budgets. Therefore, the recommendations presented in this study can have a positive impact on the well-being of these groups.


Originality/value
This document invites reflection on how, through different teaching strategies, we can produce significant learning that contributes to the sustainability of the planet. All this, trying to mobilise critical and systemic thinking and consequently improving awareness for SD.

In the Spanish context, Sports Sciences education is evolving to emphasize competency-based learning, crucial for adapting to the dynamic global landscape and labor market. This opinion article highlights the shift towards integrating generic and specific competencies, essential for automation and artificial intelligence, aligning with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8's focus on sustainable economic growth and employment. Despite the recognized importance of these competencies for economic sustainability and job readiness, the literature on this framework, particularly within the context of physical activity and Sports Sciences in Spain, remains underexplored. This paper is structured to first address the current state of the problem, followed by a conceptualization of competencies, including types of competencies. It then analyzes professional competencies within the realm of Physical Activity and Sports Sciences in Spain, moving towards the implementation and evaluation of these competencies in the classroom setting. By bridging the gap between educational outcomes and market demands, this work calls for ongoing research and pedagogical innovation to equip future professionals with the necessary skills for success. This approach not only prepares students for the future labor market but also contributes to the broader economic and sustainable development goals envisioned by SDG 8.

The scientific literature has shown the beneficial effects of chronic Physical Exercise (PE) on a wide range of tasks that involve high-order functioning. For this reason, the present study aimed to investigate the effects of active breaks on physical fitness and vigilance performance in high school students through eight weeks of physical training. A total of 42 healthy students (age = 16.50 ± 0.59 years; height = 171.08 ± 8.07 cm; weight = 67.10 ± 13.76 kg) from one Andalusian high school (Spain) were assigned for convenience and matched into two groups, a Control Group (CG) and an Active-Break Group (ABG). The ABG performed two active breaks (based on strength and self-loading exercises) during the school day, first at 10:00 a.m. and second at 12:30 p.m. The participants were assessed before and after the training program using the Alpha-Fitness test battery and the Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT). Significant differences were observed in the post-training PVT results, compared with the pretraining PVT, showing ABG responding faster than CG. Thus, the presents study demonstrated that eight weeks of physical training affects vigilance performance (compared to CG) and improves the efficiency of vigilance in high school students, contributing to enhancement of quality of education. ; The research was supported by the Consejería de Educación, Cultura y Deportes de Castilla-La Mancha, co-financed with European Union ERDF funds, under Grant number: SBPLY/19/1805001/000147). This work is part of a two-year project entitled "Active Breaks Influence on Attentional Primary School Students".