TOKYO, 18 February 2022 – Nippon Sport Science University (NSSU) and University of Tsukuba co-organised an online workshop to promote Physical Education (PE) Teacher Education and Sport for People with Disability (SPD) with support from the Japan Sports Agency (JSA) and ASEAN Secretariat from 14-18 February. The workshop is part of the ASEAN-Japan Actions on Sports Phase II project, funded by the JSA.

Over 30 participants from ASEAN Member States (AMS) and Japan, consisting of government officials, representatives of sports federations, professors and researchers with expertise in PE teacher education and SPD, gathered online to develop action plans and policy guidelines to improve policy and programme implementation in each AMS.

JSA Director of International Affairs Division Arai Tomohiko opened the workshop. Participants joined interactive lectures by NSSU and University of Tsukuba on PE in school curriculums, which covered the application of quality physical education, teachers’ competency requirements and licensing programmes, issues affecting PE teacher education in each country, and PE for students with disabilities.

Participants identified shared concerns on physical education which include; limited time allocation by the schools, the insufficient number of PE teachers, and the lack of infrastructure to facilitate students’ PE participation.

Experts and practitioners recommended ASEAN to make continuous efforts in improving PE syllabus and pedagogy, standardisation and revisions of new curriculums, and stronger collaboration between the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Sports.

In her closing remarks, Rodora T. Babaran, Director of Human Development Directorate of ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community Department highlighted that ASEAN-Japan cooperation on sports have brought fresh perspectives, new opportunities, and intensified valuable exchange of experience across a wide range of areas of sports.

Meanwhile Prof. Dr. Yoshinori Okade, NSSU Project Leader and Dean of the Faculty of Sport Culture noted that, “improving the quality of PE and PE teachers’ education, while also discussing critical issues (surrounding it) would contribute to the enhancement of holistic development of children, including persons with disability.”

ASEAN-Japan Actions on Sports Phase II is a project under the ASEAN Plus Japan Senior Officials Meeting on Sports. It aims to strengthen cooperation and establish sustainable ASEAN-Japan networks on PE Teacher Education and SPD among ASEAN Member States.

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