Discussing Sport in Class

Following are some sample questions that you might use in class to discuss issues
related to sport. These questions are geared toward getting students to reflect on what it means
to have a good sport experience; what good and bad sport practices are, and what they can do
to ensure that sport is conducted in a fair manner. Some questions are more appropriate for
high school students while others may be more appropriate for upper elementary school
students.

a. How is Sport Education different from sport in the community, College,

and professional sport as we see on TV?

b. Why do we have the “everyone participates” rule in Sport Education?

c. What is the reason we use small-sided games, modified equipment and

different rules?

d. What does it mean to lose with grace?

e. What does it mean to win with grace?

f. Why do most sports have referees/umpires/judges?

g. How do teams create unfair advantages?

h. Why do girls and low-skilled students oftentimes get left out of the
action of the game? What might we do to change this?

i. Why is sport such an important institution in this culture?

j. What does “Fair Play” mean? Why is it important to aim for balanced
teams?

k. What makes sport enjoyable for some but not for others?

l. Why do/should we have “drug-testing” programs in the Olympics? In

professional sport? Collegiate sport? And in High School sport?

m. What makes sport an enjoyable experience?

n. What have you learned from participating in sport that is positive? What
contributed to that?).

o. What have you learned from participating in sport that is negative? What
contributed to that?).

From Complete Guide to Sport Education by Daryl Siedentop, Peter A. Hastie,

and Hans van der Mars, 2004, Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.