SHN4032 - Sociology and Psychology of Physical Education and Sports Coaching

Objectives:

On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:
Analyse the social and psychological factors influencing pedagogy within physical education and sports coaching.
Comprehend the needs of the learner from a sociological perspective.
Comprehend the needs of the learner from a psychological and emotional perspective.
Interpret how research methods contribute to our awareness of social and psychological factors in physical education and sport coaching.

Content:

This module develops students' awareness and understanding of the role played by psychology and sociology within physical education and sports coaching leading to the psychosocial development of the individual.

From a social perspective, students' awareness and appreciation of others will be enhanced. This includes understanding and evaluating the role that physical education and coaching can play in fostering social equality and social inclusion. In particular also, students will study the effects of race, ethnicity, gender, disability, sexuality and socioeconomic class and how the application of this knowledge may lead to more effective practitioners. Other potential influences are included such as the role of the family, geographical location and finance. Students are encouraged to comprehend potential equality and inequality and to what extent environmental aspects affect success within physical education and sport.

Students will investigate how psychology interacts with social constructs within physical education and how this impacts upon performance and physical activity adherence. Topics covered include aspects such as motivation, arousal, anxiety, self-confidence, self-efficacy and the impact that the teacher /coach, task and learning environment can have upon these. With particular reference to outdoor education and dance students will examine the role of resilience and group cohesion within physical education. Additionally, motivation will be examined through consideration of how competition and co-operation impact upon the learner.

Learning and Teaching Information:

Students will experience a variety of teaching and learning methods which includes lectures. Additionally, there will be workshops and seminars where learning can be more interactive. Practical sessions will also be present where we apply theory to practice. For example, sociology topics such as gender, etc. will be taught in lectures and seminars but also discussed within practical sessions in order to apply theory in a contextualised setting.

Lectures
Hours: 20
Intended Group Size: 60

Seminars
Hours: 8
Intended Group Size: 20

Practicals
Hours: 12
Intended Group Size: 20

Guided independent study
Hours: 160

Further details relating to assessment
Integrated assessment (IA) : This will consist of a an assessment drawing on the skills and knowledge developed in both this module and Ethics Society and Employability, in particular focussing on how knowledge of sociology and psychology can be applied in the professional setting.

The magnitude of the IA component for this module is 1,000 words. This will combine with 500 words from Ethics, Society, and Employability to form an overall IA assessment magnitude of 1,500 words or equivalent.

Formative assessment will take place in this module.

The coursework assessment will comprise an essay in order to assess learning outcomes 1, 2 and 3. The practical will be in the form of an interview conducted by the student.

Assessment:

Fact File

Module Coordinator - PRS_CODE=
Level - 4
Credit Value - 20
Pre-Requisites - NONE
Semester(s) Offered - 4S2

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