University of Otago College of Education

Physical Education 1.6

University of Otago College of Education

Health and Physical Education Department

MIND GAMES

GETTING YOUR BRAIN INTO THE SWING OF THINGS

Whaia te iti kahuranga ki te tuahu koe me he maunga teitei

Unit focus, purpose and rationale:

1.  Key Area of Learning and specific aspects taught

·  Physical Activity

Physical Education Achievement Standard 1.6

AS90967: Demonstrate strategies to improve the performance of a physical activity and describe the outcomes

The development of personal and interpersonal skills relating to goal setting, cooperation, communication, achievement, decision making and problem solving to strengthen students awareness of personal identity and relationships with others. Students will also develop knowledge of scientific and cognitive influences on physical activity and performance.

2. Purpose and rationale

Sport psychology and psychology in general is an area that is somewhat forgotten about in young people. By using the context of sport, this unit will help to develop student’s mental strength and give them skills and strategies to enhance the performance in all aspects of their lives. The skills that will be discussed can be transferred into cultural performances, sporting events, exam preparation and into a classroom setting. Being mentally strong can be a major benefit when in comes to performance, and if a person can perform well under pressure, then they are at a massive advantage. I want students to understand how athletes use their mental strength to achieve to a high level, and also for the students to realise that it does not have to be complicated. Simple strategies can be of huge benefit. I aim to teach the unit in a practical way so that students can get opportunities to familiarise themselves with the various concepts and strategies that are related to sports psychology. When watching sport on television, commentators are regularly talking and discussing an athlete’s mental strength, as well as the preparation that they put into events. This unit help to answer the students’ questions about sports psychology so that they can relate to the sportsmen and women on television as well as improve their own sporting endeavours. The assessments are aimed directly at the SLO’s so that students understand what is expected of them and therefore work towards a high standard. There are plenty of mind games, mind tricks and brain activities that will be used as a way to incorporate psychology into the classroom and get the students to think about the mental challenges.

2.  Underlying Concepts

·  Attitudes and values

Attitudes and values will be influential when learning about sport psychology. Being open to methods and strategies is important in the development of knowledge in this field. Students will need to show initiative towards psychological factors so that they can gain full benefit and therefore improve their performance.

·  Socio-ecological perspective

Students will develop understanding about the decision making process involved with sporting performance and participation. They will discuss how personal, interpersonal and societal influences affect their performance from a psychological point of view.

·  Hauora

Sport psychology incorporates all aspects of hauora. The way the body moves (taha Tinana), thinking processes (taha hinengaro), team dynamics (taha whanau) and self-awareness (taha wairua) are essential aspects of sport psychology. A major part of the unit will be about goal setting, concentration, stress management and motivation. These aspects play a major part in a person’s well-being and overall Hauora. The students will gain skills that will assist them in the future, not only in a sporting environment, but all aspects of life.

·  Health promotion

Healthy minds relate to healthy bodies. Throughout the unit, students will be able to participate in activities that promote positive attitudes, physical activity and healthy, strong minds. There will be an emphasis on Hauora and the concept of well-being of the whole person. Stress management and relaxation is part of the unit and it will provide students with knowledge that they can use during exams and other stressful situations. It will be encouraged that the students show skills to the wider school community so that other students can benefit.

The learning focus:

1. Achievement Objectives

6A1: Personal growth and development

Investigate and understand reasons for the choices people make that affect their well-being and explore and evaluate options and consequences

6B2: Positive attitudes

Demonstrate and examine responsible attitudes in challenging physical situations

2. Specific Learning Intentions (Outcomes)

AO / SLO
6A1
6B2 / ·  Explain factors and strategies that influence individual self-management during sporting performance
·  Demonstrate psychological strategies that assist in an improved performance of a skill or activity
·  Demonstrate consistent effort and encouragement of others during class
·  Demonstrate the concept of kaiawhina towards others, and kaitiaki when dealing with equipment and resources

3. Key Competencies

Managing Self: Using psychological skills throughout the unit in both classroom and practical applications.

Thinking: Understanding strategies, mental skills and psychological concepts that can be used to increase performance in a sporting, cultural or academic context

Relating to Others: Showing understanding towards others and providing support where required.

Using Language Symbols and Text: Using correct vocabulary and terminology in relation to sports psychology

Participating and Contributing: Consistently getting involved and showing determination to achieve. Showing initiative when needed and demonstrating positive work habits.

4. Assessment.

There will be various formative assessment tasks throughout the unit including goal-setting progressions, scenarios, quizzes, discussion and performance based activities. During the unit, student swill be expected to apply key strategies in the classroom as well as outside the school environment. This can include their own sporting commitments or other interests that they might have. The assessment tasks are aimed at developing the students knowledge and skills around sports psychology in an applied setting. It is important to relate the content to relevant example and base assessment tasks that will benefit the students once they complete the unit of work. In terms of the SLO’s, the criteria that relates to AO 6B2 are going to be assessed by using the goal setting assessment task as well as teacher observation. Whereas, AO 6A1 is going to be the criteria used to assess the students knowledge and performance of psychological strategies and ideas.

·  Goal Setting:

For this assessment, students will have a session on goal setting. The session is the second lesson in the unit so that the goal setting process can begin. During the lesson, expectations of the unit will be explained and they will be based around the key competencies as well as the concepts of kaitiaki, kiawhina and manaakitanga. This is a self-assessment and students will need to be conscious about how they manage themselves, relate to others, and participate as well as using terminology and concepts from the unit. Goals will be set in the second lesson of the unit and then monitored throughout the unit. This assessment directly relates to the SLO’s involved with A06B2. The emphasis will be placed on setting realistic goals that are challenging but achievable so that the students develop skills for goal setting, which they can use in the future.

·  Scenarios:

In session 10, students will be given a few scenarios that they have to assess, as well as effectively employing some sport psychology strategies. The scenarios will be a range of situations such as sport events, races, cultural competitions and exam situations. Students will need to show understanding of the strategies that they use, and explain the reasons for using each strategy.

·  Presentation:

In this assessment, students will present an activity that they have incorporated sport psychology strategies in. This can be any activity within reason, but it will be encouraged that a sporting example is used. It can be presented in a number of ways, including PowerPoint’s, videos, practical session or various other activities. The idea of this assessment is to demonstrate that the students have found a practical application for what they have learnt in class. The marking will be based on the students’ knowledge of the content, their reasons for using particular strategies, as well as their overall presentation.

·  Performance:

This is the main assignment for the unit. Students will have to apply appropriate strategies during 9 holes of golf. Although the golf score is not the main objective, it is important for students to understand that using the strategies effectively will improve their performance. There will be a peer-assessment component to the assessment as well as a written component discussing the golf and how they used various strategies during the assessment.

·  Quizzes and Discussion:

During the unit, there will be a range of small quizzes, tests, discussions and debates about some of the content. This will be used as a way to monitor progress of the students and also to keep them thinking about what is being learnt.

Other considerations:

1. Assumed prior learning/student needs/special needs and abilities

This topic can be easily adapted to all levels depending on the activities that are used and the depth to which the content is taught. There might be some students who are representative athletes and already use sports psychology in their performance. They will be able to assist throughout the unit and provide good insight to practical uses for the strategies. They might also develop further skills to assist them in their chosen sport. On the other hand, there may be students with limited sporting experience. However, applying the psychological strategies to other interests or to sports that they want to get more involved in. Making the subject relevant is the important aspect.

2. Curriculum integration. Possible links to other subject areas

The topic of psychology is fairly unique and is only really covered in Physical Education when it is looked at as sport psychology. However, aspects such as critical thinking, visualisation and vocabulary relate to subjects such as maths, English and the arts. The use of Maori concepts will be scattered throughout the unit so that they will become part of the learning process and not just one off words. This includes ideas of kaitiaki, manaakitanga (fostering and nurturing relationships and caring for others), pumanawa using the strengths and abilities of others), hinengaro and hihiwatanga (concentration).

3. Structure of the unit/series of lessons

The unit will consist of eighteen lessons and will include teacher directed, student directed and self directed learning. The unit is based around golf but will include a wide range of sports and activities throughout as well as relating to other aspects of the students lives. The students will gain knowledge about mental preparation, skills and ideas that relate to sports psychology. It is a great subject for the students to learn about and it is relevant to the classroom with topics such as concentration, routines and stress management. It is important for the students to gain theoretical knowledge about sport psychology. At the beginning of most lessons there will be a more teacher directed approach. However, once the particular topic has been discussed, the class will shift to a more student directed approach where the students complete activities and openly discuss thoughts and ideas. The use of outside providers will be used to educate the students about certain topics such as stress management and relaxation. For example, a yoga instructor will take a practical session on breathing, centring, relaxation techniques and stretching. We will also be using a golf course for some of the assessment components.

This topic is very individualistic in some respects due to everyone adopting different systems, routines and methods for their personal use. Therefore it is important to give students the opportunity to try different approaches and methods so that they can find the ones that they feel comfortable with. Practical applications are important in understanding concepts and students will be able to explore how sports psychology is used in a practical setting.

Unit Overview

1.  Introduction into Sports Psychology

2.  Goal Setting

3.  Motivation

4.  Performance Assessment (initial)

5.  Focus & Concentration

6.  Preparation & Routine

7.  Progress Report & Golf Skills

8.  Visualisation

9.  Stress Management & Relaxation

10.  Scenarios & Strategies

11.  Golf Skills (Attitudes & Beliefs)

12.  Golf Skills (Kinaesthetic, Body Awareness)

13.  Anxiety/Arousal & Activation

14.  Golf Practice

15.  Skills Transference Presentation

16.  Practical Performance

17.  Final Assessment

18.  Goal Setting Review and Conclusion

4. Key Vocabulary

Goal Setting
Motivation
Anxiety
Arousal
Hinengaro (mental)
Upoko maro, tukaha (head strong) / Concentration
Focus
Relaxation
Stress Management
Visualisation
Hihiwatanga (concentration)
Rangimarie (tolerance)

5. Literacy Strategies

Students will be exposed to various literacy strategies. For example:

·  Flash card and memory games which develop some key vocabulary skills that directly relate to the content of the unit.

·  Students will develop a glossary of the key terms throughout the unit so that they can refer back to it whenever they need to.

·  Students will improve their subject specific literacy by making use of the correct terminology and vocabulary that are developed throughout the unit.

6. Consideration of logistical and safety aspects

Physical safety will be based around the use of equipment such as golf clubs as well as education outside the classroom in unfamiliar environments. Managing self will provide a construct for the expectation of the students at times of relative risk. There will be an effort made to ensure the emotional safety of the students so that they can develop opinions, knowledge and independent thought in a supportive environment.

7. Teacher references

·  Hardy, L., Jones, G., Gould, D. (1998). Understanding psychological preparation for sport: Theory and practice of elite performers. Wiley, England.

·  Hodge, K. (2004). Sport Motivation: Training your mind for peak performance. Reed Publishing, New Zealand.

·  Syer, J. & Connolly, C. (1998). Sporting Body, Sporting Mind: An athletes guide to mental training. Simon & Schuster, London.

·  Youtube videos