An investigation into the challenges facing the implementation of the senior high school physical education programme in Nandom District of Ghana

Abstract

The study examined the challenges facing the implementation of the senior high school physical education programme in Nandom District of the Upper West Region, Ghana. It utilised a phenomenological research design in qualitative approach to the study in two senior high schools in Nandom District. The data were obtained through open ended questionnaire, observation and semi-structured interviews. The purposive sampling technique was used to select 7 interviewees while random sampling technique was employed in getting 433 respondents for the questionnaires. Validity and reliability were achieved through triangulations (methodology, data and member checking) and detailed description of the processes involved in the study that would create room for this study to be replicated. The field data were analysed manually based on themes according to the research objectives. Through the analyses the following were discovered. The physical education programme in the two schools was implemented under time, aspects of the syllabus, facilities and equipment, skilled educators, assessment, follow-up support and extracurricular activities schedules. The barriers affecting the physical education programme included inadequate physical education teachers, insufficient time, lack of supervision and monitoring, lack of funding, no support from other staff and community, teacher absenteeism, sedentary living/lifestyle, and no changing room. Therefore, the study concluded that these barriers culminated into the ineffective implementation of the senior high school physical education programme in the Nandom District. The findings warranted the following recommendations among others: sufficient time allotment for physical education, supervision/monitoring, use of resource persons in the community.