Combining psychology, a Game Sense Approach and the Aboriginal game Buroinjin to teach quality physical education

ABSTRACT In this research, we show how a quality teaching framework can be used with psychology, specifically self-determination theory (SDT), and a Game Sense Approach (GSA) to plan and teach a unit of work as a context-specific version of quality Physical Education. This unit of work using Buroinjin, an Australian Aboriginal traditional game, was taught to two Year 5 classes (49 students in total aged 10–11 years) at a government school in Australia’s capital city, Canberra. Following unit completion, a qualitative research design was adopted to answer our research question: To what extent do Year 5 students experience basic psychological need satisfaction by playing Buroinjin taught using a GSA? Four semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from 26 of the original students who were taught the unit. Findings suggest the unit was effective in satisfying the participants’ SDT basic needs of autonomy, competence and relatedness.