Reviewing the Primary Generalist Teacher’s Role in Teaching Fundamental Movement Skills and Prosocial Behaviour

Evans, Stuart (2025) Reviewing the Primary Generalist Teacher’s Role in Teaching Fundamental Movement Skills and Prosocial Behaviour. GILE JOURNAL OF SKILLS DEVELOPMENT, 5 (2). pp. 116-132. ISSN 2732-3781

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Abstract

The delivery of the primary school physical education (PE) curriculum has been subject to ongoing debate in Western countries. In Australia, the primary school teacher is by and large considered a generalist. Previous research indicates that primary school PE programmes that employ the teaching of fundamental movement skills (FMS) and Hellison’s Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (TPSR) model have a positive impact on children’s development by increasing motor skill proficiency, positive values, autonomy, and prosocial behaviour. While both generalist and specialist teachers are responsible for helping children develop FMS, they are also required to help children identify their emotional, social, physical and intellectual characteristics. While FMS might provide optimal support to the development of motor skills, TPSR can help develop social skills. The challenges involved for the primary generalist PE teacher in understanding the pedagogical content knowledge required to teach and evaluate both FMS and TPSR is an under researched area. Specifically, there is a lack of research on pedagogical content knowledge, the challenges and the content required for primary generalist teachers to implementation both FMS and TPSR. Therefore, the issue of what constitutes effective pedagogical content knowledge along with the organization of the educational process related to the discipline of PE for the primary generalist teacher requires further attention. Structured FMS and TPSR professional development hold considerable promise for supporting active, child-centred learning environments for primary PE teachers and presents an adaptable framework for implementation. This narrative review explores the advantages and challenges for primary generalist teachers in teaching and learning FMS and TPSR. Practical implications to improve the PE profession are suggested to re-focus professional development efforts for primary generalist teachers, locally, nationally and globally, to concentrate on the expansion of a strategic and longstanding program intended at merging FMS and prosocial frameworks.

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