An examination of PESSYP in England and in particular to the transition from primary to secondary school (girls) and its potential impact on sports participation.

Abstract

The focus of this study was an examination in to girl’s participation levels in sport and physical activity, both curricular and extra curricular sessions. It looked into what changes occur and the period of time in which this tends to happen, whether it is during the transition period or later in secondary school life. In order to establish the level of participation and the areas that affect it, a combination of Qualitative interviews and focus group interviews were used. Qualitative data was gathered in the form of interviews, these were one to one and undertaken by four primary school teachers both male and female, it wasn’t essential that they had any specific knowledge of Sport in general as the questions were mainly focused on their experiences as a teacher. Qualitative data was also collected from a Focus group of three female secondary school teachers working in the same school, in the same locality as the primary school teachers. Both academic literature and government policy documents were used in the research of this topic. From this it was clear that there was a high level of drop out in girls which is attributed to both the move from primary to secondary school. As well as later in their secondary school experience when there were more significant changes to the girl’s bodies. However from the interviews undertaken it would seem that the schools contacted did not see dropout as a huge problem especially in the primary schools.