Parental Role and Influence in the Teaching-Learning of Physical Education: Perceptions of Physical Education Students in Kenya’s Universities

Abstract

Parental role and influence can contribute immensely towards the adoption and promotion of teaching of PE for their children in educational institutions in various countries of the world. The involvement of parental support in the teaching-learning of PE is particularly relevant to the Kenyan situation where the subject seems to be given relatively low status as it is considered non-academic, and as such, it is not examinable. This study therefore, targeted 103 PE students-teachers in Kenya’s universities for information on their perception of their parents’ role and influence in the teaching and learning of PE. A validated questionnaire was used to collect data. Majority of the respondents (87.05%) indicated that PE was their most favourite subject. A larger proportion of them (65.0%) were encouraged by their female parents to pursue the subject than those who received such encouragement from their male parents (27.7%). In terms of material support, majority of the students (64.7%) indicated that their parents provided their personal requirements for their PE studies and facilitated their participation in out-of-class PE-related physical activities (74.5%). Minority of the students (28.2%) were of the view that they did not learn how to be physically from their parents because they (parents) were physically inactive. A higher proportion of (48.0%) of them indicated that their parents monitor, minimize and discourage inactive lifestyles, while highest proportion (85.3%) indicated that their parents’ role of encouraging healthy habits. Therefore it is recommended that parents need to be enlisted by universities in Kenya in influencing and supporting their children to pursue PE as an academic subject in university.