Practice Matters

to Facilitate Student-Designed GamesPeter Hastie and Ashley Casey

According to the Qualifications andCurriculum Development Authority(QCDA). the new secondary curriculumin physical education focuses on developingthe skills and qualities that learners need tosucceed in school and the broadercommunity. Underpinning this curriculum arepersonal. learning and thinking skills (PLTS)that are considered essential to successfulengagement in the subject matter.

Achievement of these PLTSshould seestudents as independent enquirers. creativethinkers. team workers. self-managers.effective participators. and reflective learners.In order to achieve these goals. students areexpected to be presented with learningexperiences that allow them to "work withincreasing independence. applying theircompetence and creativity to different typesof activity". "experiment confidently with theirown creative approaches to produce effectiveoutcomes". collaborate with others in workingtowards a common goal". "take personalresponsibility for organising their time andresources". "engage with activities that theyenjoy and have selected for themselves", and"identify for themselves new and improvedtechniques. tactics and strategies:'

A case for student-designedgamesIt is the intent of this paper to present theidea of "student- designed games" as a highlyappropriate. but also stimulating andbeneficial method for teachers in Key Stages3 and 4 to engage students in these PLTS. In

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Using the

addition. we present a technique thatteachers can use to help structure students'first experiences with games making thatallow them to be successful.

In games making. students design theirown games within certain parameterspresented by the teacher. From aconstructivist perspective. Rovegnoand Bandhauer (1994) suggest thatasking students to design their owngames allows them to engage activelywith and explore components of gameplay (skills and strategy) and. in turn. toconstruct a deeper understanding ofthese components. as well as helpingthem to think critically about theirexperiences playing games and sports atbreak and after school.

Games making is not a case where all theteacher has to do is explain the skill. handout equipment. and say. "Make up a game:'Cox (1988) lists three slants to presentinggames making tasks. and describes them asthe "structured choice." "limited choice." and"open choice" approaches. At the most basiclevel (structured approach) the teacher limitsthe number of choices available to thestudents. For example. the teacher may limitthe number of players on a game. and limitthe choice of equipment to no more than fiveitems. Alternately. students can work withgames they already play and makemanipulations to the number of players on aside. the size of the court/field. theimplements and/or balls used. or somesimple rules. Cox (1988. p. 15) suggests thatthe structured approach" prevents the

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