University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Open Access Dissertations 9-2011 Fifth-Grade Students' Tactical Understanding, Decision-Making and Transfer of Knowledge in a Tactical Games Model Net/Wall Sampling Unit Heidi Renee Bohler University of Massachusetts Amherst, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/open_access_dissertations Part of the Education Commons Recommended Citation Bohler, Heidi Renee, "Fifth-Grade Students' Tactical Understanding, Decision-Making and Transfer of Knowledge in a Tactical Games Model Net/Wall Sampling Unit" (2011). Open Access Dissertations. 426. https://scholarworks.umass.edu/open_access_dissertations/426 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Open Access Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. FIFTH-GRADE STUDENTS’ TACTICAL UNDERSTANDING, DECISION- MAKING AND TRANSFER OF KNOWLEDE IN A TACTICAL GAMES MODEL NET/WALL SAMPLING UNIT A Dissertation Presented By HEIDI R. BOHLER Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION September 2011 Education © Copyright by Heidi R. Bohler 2011 All Rights Reserved FIFTH-GRADE STUDENTS’ TACTICAL UNDERSTANDING, DECISION- MAKING AND TRANSFER OF KNOWLEDE IN A TACTICAL GAMES MODEL NET/WALL SAMPLING UNIT A Dissertation Presented By HEIDI R. BOHLER Approved as to style and content by: ______________________________________ Linda L. Griffin, Chair ______________________________________ Patti S. Dodds, Member ______________________________________ Daniel S. Gerber, Member ______________________________________ Christine B. McCormick, Dean School of Education DEDICATION This work is dedicated to my family. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to acknowledge all of my family, friends and colleagues for your support and encouragement throughout this endeavor. Thank you for believing in me. I could not have done this without you! I especially want to thank Mom, Dad, Jamie, Randy, and Deb for your unconditional love and understanding. You have been a much needed support network and a source of strength. I want to thank my dear friends Ruth Arnold, Deb Fox, and Diana Demetrius for all you have done! I want to thank my friends and colleagues Karen Meaney, Kent Griffin, Melanie Hart, Sandy Reeve, and Karen Pagnano-Richardson for your friendship and wisdom. I also want to thank my classmates and colleagues at UMass who have cheered me on: Suzanne Scallion, Tara Nappi, Linda Rhinehart Neas, Kirsten Helmer, Eric Carpenter, Kent Divoll, Brian Boisvert, and Barbara Madeloni. Patt Dodds, thank you for your sincere guidance, support, and feedback, and thank you for challenging me and pushing me! I would like to thank Linda Griffin for chairing my committee and seeing this difficult process through. Dan Gerber, thank you for joining my committee and reading my papers in the final phase! I would also like to thank all the students and teachers at the school where these data were collected for their involvement and participation. v ABSTRACT FIFTH-GRADE STUDENTS’ TACTICAL UNDERSTANDING, DECISION-MAKING AND TRANSFER OF KNOWLEDE IN A TACTICAL GAMES MODEL NET/WALL SAMPLING UNIT SEPTEMBER 2011 HEIDI R. BOHLER, B.S., TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY M.S., TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY Ed.D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Linda L. Griffin The Tactical Games Model (TGM) is an instructional model in which the primary assumption is to facilitate students’ tactical understanding of games (i.e., response- selection and execution processes). Additionally, there is speculation that tactical understanding of one game transfers to other tactically similar games (Mitchell, Oslin & Griffin, 2006, p. 20). Limited research has been conducted regarding student response selection processes, problem representations, knowledge base development, or transfer of learning in this model. Griffin and Patton (2005) called for examination of TGM through an information processing lens. Examining action, condition, and goal responses of novice physical education students could provide significant insight to students’ improved game performance. Also, examining students’ engagement in particular tactical problems across diverse activities in a single game category could provide insight into how and which knowledge structures transfer. The purpose of this study was to examine fifth-grade students’ tactical understanding and decision-making in a net/wall unit. A second purpose was to analyze the transfer of knowledge structures across the unit. vi Participants included an elementary school physical educator and purposively selected students (n=16; M=8, F=8) from a fifth-grade physical education class (N=50) at a suburban elementary school in the northeastern United States. Appropriate permission was obtained from the university’s Institutional Review Board. The unit consisted of 20 lessons (50 minute classes). Select students remained in a cohort, participating with and against each other throughout the unit. Data was collected using multiple sources: (a) game performance (pre-post-unit), (b) situational knowledge quiz (pre-post-unit), (c) formal, semi-structured teacher interviews/written response to structured questions (pre- post-unit), (d) descriptive field notes, (e) video-taped and audio-taped teacher/student performances, (f) student think-aloud reports during the second game of each lesson (McPherson & Thomas, 1989), and (g) student focus group interviews (post-unit). Interviews were transcribed, open, axial, and selectively coded, then triangulated to develop categories. Situational quizzes, verbal recall data, and focus group interviews were micro-analyzed using a protocol analysis developed by McPherson and Thomas (1989) to examine action, condition, and goal orientations of students. Video taped game performances were analyzed using the Game Performance Assessment Instrument (Griffin, Mitchell, & Oslin, 1997). Results contribute to the empirical support for TGM, as well as contribute to what is known about knowledge structure development and transfer of learning for 5th grade novice games players. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................v ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... vi LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................... xiv LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................... xvi CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................1 Research Questions ..................................................................................................6 Significance of this Study ........................................................................................6 2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE ..................................................................................8 Introduction ..............................................................................................................8 Let’s Play the Game .................................................................................................9 Play, Games, Sport and Athletics ..........................................................................10 Play ............................................................................................................11 Voluntary .............................................................................................12 Fixed Time and Space ..........................................................................12 Rule Structure ......................................................................................13 Unusual Awareness: Complete Involvement .......................................14 Social Relevance of Play .....................................................................19 Games ........................................................................................................21 Sport ...........................................................................................................25 Athletics .....................................................................................................26 Games in Physical Education ...............................................................................27 Mastery Learning .......................................................................................28 Direct Instruction ................................................................................29 Concepts and Theory Underlying Mastery Learning ..........................30 Research on Mastery Learning ...........................................................32 Concluding Thoughts: Mastery Learning and Associated Research ...........................................................................43 viii The Sport Education Model (SE) ...............................................................45 SE Instructional Features ....................................................................49 Research on SE ...................................................................................51