The teachers’ perceptions and attitudes toward Physical Education as a subject in Namibian secondary schools

Abstract

This paper reports on the teachers' perceptions and attitudes toward Physical Education as a subject in Namibian secondary schools. The paper presents the curiosity surrounding whether Physical Education to be strictly implemented within the educational curriculum at Secondary phases or not. Drawing from the newly designed Namibian curriculum policy during the covid-19 pandemic, some of the subjects were regarded valueless and Physical Education (PE) was part of that, although it has a big role to play as it enhances life-long health amongst the children. This study sought to answer the following questions: What are the perceptions of teachers towards PE as a Secondary school subject in the O-regions in Namibia? What are the attitudes of teachers regarding the inclusion of PE as a subject in Secondary schools in the O-regions in Namibia? And what are the challenges faced by PE teachers in Secondary schools in the O-regions in Namibia? The study adopted a qualitative research approach while snowballing was employed for the selection of the participants. Data was collected through telephonic interviews with selected Physical Education teachers in four regions of Namibia. These were the central northern regions of Namibia namely; Oshana region, Ohangwena region, Omusati region, and Oshikoto region (also known as the four O-regions). The data gathered were interpreted through the theoretical lens of reasoned action theory with the study’s main focuses that were extracted from the interpretation to formulate conclusions and recommendations. The findings revealed that secondary school teachers perceive Physical Education as an important subject that lacks implementation and qualified teachers to teach it. The study has also revealed that majority of the teachers have positive attitudes regarding incorporating Physical Education into the secondary school curriculum during the pandemic, while a minority of teachers suggests a total removal of the subject from the curriculum at secondary level. Following this, teachers recommended that the Ministry train and employ qualified teachers to teach and incorporate multi-disciplinary subjects.