Sport education model versus traditional teaching in secondary-school Physical Education: a systematic review and meta-analysis
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v82.119521Keywords:
sport education model, traditional teaching, motivation, basic psychological need satisfaction, secondary schoolAbstract
Introduction: Secondary-school physical education needs teaching models that can support students’ motivation, psychological need satisfaction and engagement.
Objective: This review examined whether the sport education model produced more favourable outcomes than traditional teaching in secondary-school physical education.
Methodology: Searches were conducted in Scopus, PubMed, Google Scholar and SPORTDiscus for peer-reviewed studies published from 2016 to 2026. Eligible studies compared the sport education model with traditional teaching, direct instruction or similar teacher-centred approaches. Risk of bias was assessed with design-specific tools. Random-effects meta-analyses were conducted using Hedges’ g.
Results: Eleven studies met the inclusion criteria. Six studies were included in the motivation-related meta-analysis. The pooled result favoured the Sport Education Model after the intervention (Hedges’ g = 0.95, 95% confidence interval 0.59 to 1.31), although heterogeneity was high. After excluding Baş and Cuevas et al., the effect remained significant and heterogeneity decreased. The primary analysis of basic psychological need satisfaction included two studies. It favoured the sport education model under DerSimonian–Laird estimation, but was not significant under Paule–Mandel estimation with Hartung–Knapp adjustment.
Discussion: Engagement evidence was limited. Two studies reported positive within-group changes, but no clear post-test advantage over traditional teaching.
Conclusions: The sport education model appears promising for motivation-related outcomes, while evidence for basic psychological need satisfaction and engagement remains preliminary.
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