Effectiveness of interdisciplinary professional learning communities on teaching selected body systems and health-related fitness

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2023-2
Kavi Şimşek, Nehir
The purpose of this study was to analyze the impacts of an interdisciplinary professional learning community (idPLC) consisting of a group of different subject matter teachers on:1) teachers' content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge development processes on selected body systems (skeletal, muscular, cardiovascular, respiratory),health-related fitness (HrF) knowledge, 2) their students' HrF knowledge and physical activity levels, 3) the idPLC teachers’ students’ views on interdisciplinary teaching approaches. Mixed-method design was adopted. The sample included one sixth grade in two experimental and two control schools (nexperimental =35, ncontrol =45) and different subject teachers teaching these classes in experimental group schools (n = 10). Two six-week idPLCs were implemented separately for the experimental groups’ teachers. Each idPLC included a facilitator and five different subject matter teachers (physical education, science, English, psychological counseling and guidance, visual arts/Turkish). Qualitative data were collected through idPLC video recordings, semi-structured interviews with teachers, field notes. Findings showed improvement in teachers' content and pedagogical content knowledge of selected body systems and HrF knowledge through questioning, acceptance, practice, and reflection. Quantitative data were collected by HrF Knowledge Test and PAQ-C through pretest/posttest applications. Findings revealed a significant increase in the experimental group students' HrF knowledge and physical activity levels as compared to the control group (p<.05). Focus-group interviews with students, student journals were used to examine how students perceive their teachers’ practices. Their teachers used an interdisciplinary approach in their classes. This approach, from the students' view, supported the course's effectiveness, encouraged creative thinking, developed body awareness, and helped make a real-life connection.

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Citation Formats
N. Kavi Şimşek, “Effectiveness of interdisciplinary professional learning communities on teaching selected body systems and health-related fitness,” Ph.D. - Doctoral Program, Middle East Technical University, 2023.