Development of Teaching Competency in Physical Education Teacher Education Students Through Critical Pedagogy: A Mixed-Methods Analysis

Purpose : This study aimed to analyze the benefits of critical pedagogy regarding the development of teaching competency (TC) of Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) students ( n = 20). TC represents the complex processes and determinants of adjusting lesson planning and implementation to the diverse students’ needs. Method : Mixed methods with methodological triangulation were used. Quantitative analysis involved pre- and posttest comparisons implementing the TC/MSBLG-R (Teaching Competency while performing Motor Skills and Body Language Games Rubric). Qualitative analysis was undertaken analyzing 20 reflective journals. Results : Quantitative results provide significant evidence regarding the positive effect of critical pedagogy on developing PETEs’ TC, while qualitative interpretation complements this view, showing how this outcome was achieved. Discussion/Conclusion : These original results show that critical pedagogy appears to be effective to enhance the TC of the PETEs; thus, bringing forth an educational experience with great academic value representing a new benchmark in PE and Sports research. Personal features, such as motivation, confidence, and leadership were identified as supplementary outcomes.