Mixing or Separating Students by Sex during PE Classes? Evidence from 3-a-Side Soccer Games

IntroductionIn the context of physical education (PE) classes some learning models derived from empirical research have been suggesting the use of a game-based learning approach (Chow, et al., 2007). This approach may be particularly effective for teaching team games (Werner, Thorpe & Bunker, 1996; Chow, et al., 2009) once the adapted and modified playing activities ensure the intrinsic nature of the competitive and cooperative interactions among team players (Grehaigne & Godbout, 1995). Empirical research has shown that a game-based learning approach may be effective to improve students' tactical knowledge (Rink, French, & Tjeerdsma, 1996), satisfaction and motivation (Lawton, 1989; Griffin, Oslin, & Mitchell, 1995). Moreover, from the physiological point of view, some recent studies revealed that the use of small-sided soccer games SSGs may constitute an adequate physiological stimulus preventing from children unhealthy lifestyles (Krustrup, Dvorak, Junge & Bangsbo, 2010). Significant improvements in intermittent exercise performance, coordination and maximum oxygen uptake of children and teenagers were observed during SSGs practice (Randers et al., 2010). Worthy of note, long-term studies of children and youngsters using small-sided football games at different ages, with proper control groups, revealed evidence of its effectiveness in the early treatment of obesity and related co-morbidities in childhood (Krustrup, et al., 2010a). With obese children, regular practice of small-sided football games is, at least, as effective in improving the physical capacity, health-related fitness parameters and self-esteem as a standard resistance and strength training program (Krustrup et al., 2010b).This scientific evidence emphasizes the role that a game-based approach must have hypothetically in the context of school. Nevertheless, a controversial issue that may influence the effectiveness of a game-based learning approach in the context of physical education is the long debate between coeducation versus single-sex class composition (McKenzie, Prochaska, Sallis, & LaMaster, 2004). Arnett and Lutz (2003) showed that during game-based lessons female students spent enough time into moderate to vigorous physical activity to elicit cardiovascular fitness gains. The idea that female students have less ability to sport compared to boys is incomplete and need clear evidence to implement new strategies in the PE context. For instance, Pritchard, McCollum, Sundal and Colquit (2014) showed recently that game performance for males and females in a coeducational PE class was similar for males and females in a single gender class using three-versus-three basketball games. Despite this data, there is some literature indicating that sport and physical activity may impact differently on girls' well-being (Pipher, 1994) and self-esteem (Jaffee & Manzer, 1992). Indeed, females tend to perceive their learning experiences and involvement in soccer camps in a different way than their males' counterparts (Jones, 2005). As such, class gender composition may be an important factor influencing physical education learning, especially in secondary school where males and females with diverse anatomical and biological capacities, physical skills and interests come into close physical contact when sharing the same PE classes (Hannon & Williams, 2008; Shimon, 2005). Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the influence of coeducation versus single-sex physical education class composition on game performance, physiological and perceptual demands during 3-a-side soccer games. We hypothesized that males would register higher game performance values (Pritchard et al., 2014), while females probably would decrease their intensity levels when playing apart from their male counterparts (McKenzie et al., 2004).Material & methodsParticipantsTwelve PE students were recruited and divided by gender to participate in this study: male group (MG, n=6; 15. …