Physical Education

What does studying this subject involve?
Physical activity is an essential part of leading a balanced, active and healthy lifestyle. The areas studied during the AS and A2 PE courses will include physiological, psychological and socio–cultural aspects that have an impact on participation and performance in physical activities. The topics covered in Physical Education are wide ranging from how sports developed, to how your body responds to exercise and why you do not always perform at your best when you are playing in an important match. You will develop an understanding of how to apply this knowledge to your chosen practical activities through experiencing a variety of roles including performer, coach and official.

How will I know if I would be successful at it?
You need to have a genuine interest in sport and enjoy watching and participating in a wide range of activities. You need to be up to date with sporting news and enjoy researching current issues in PE which you can then relate to the theory you will be learning in your lessons.

What skills will I develop and where could studying this subject lead me?
Through following the PE course you will develop a wide range of skills. In the practical area you will develop leadership, communication and organisational skills as you will have the opportunity to teach others the skills of your sport. In the theoretical areas you will develop your ability to research and analyse topic areas. You will also need to develop strong organisational skills to enable yourself to successfully manage your class notes for three very different theoretical areas. You will have to meet deadlines and will be expected to prepare for your lessons in advance.

Many of our past students have gone onto university to study sports related courses such as sports science, sports rehabilitation, physiotherapy, sports management, sports coaching and sports psychology. A’ Level PE can also lead into careers in the leisure and recreation industry, the police or the army.

AS and A2 Physical Education will provide you with a valuable and in depth insight into the many different areas of sport and is the ideal preparation for a wide variety of careers.

Important things to consider/Information that students need to know.
The course is 60% theory and 40% practical – very different to GCSE PE. This means that the majority of your lessons will be in a classroom and will not be practically based.

You will be expected to be regularly participating in two different sporting activities at club level out of school. You are unlikely to spend much time in your lessons working on your practical activities.

When you do have practical sessions you will be expected to wear kit that consists of a white collared polo shirt, black or navy tracksuit bottoms or shorts, white socks and trainers.

There is a demanding biology component in part of the Physical Education A’ Level so it is important that you have a strong understanding of these areas from your GCSE Science and GCSE PE.

There are many extra-curricular PE clubs on offer at Coombe and we compete in all of the major Borough events. As a PE student we would like to see you representing Coombe and helping out with training sessions for younger pupils or even helping out in Year 7 and 8 PE lessons.

Entry Requirements
Five A* - C grades at GCSE including English Language and Science.
GCSE PE at Grade C or above.

It is extremely beneficial to have GCSE PE before undertaking AS level PE; however we have had students in the past who have not done GCSE PE. With a lot of extra work and reading around the subject many of them have done extremely well.

Which other subjects does it combine well with?
There is an obvious link between PE and Biology and many students find it useful to be taking both of these subjects. There is also a large psychological aspect to PE and Psychology is another subject which many PE students also choose to study.

Similarities between the subject at GCSE and A Level
The course is made up of both theory and practical areas however the percentage of theory work increases, 60% of the final AS PE grade is theory and 40% is practical ( the opposite to GCSE PE). This means that the majority of your lessons will be based in a classroom.

You will only need to select two practical activities rather than the four which you would have chosen for GCSE PE. At AS level you can chose to perform one practical activity and to either coach or officiate for a sporting activity rather than performing in two practical activities. You are expected to be participating in your chosen sporting activities at club level outside of school.

In A Level PE some of the topics from GCSE PE are developed such as physiology, for example, you will learn about the heart, muscles and movements and how your body responds to exercise in much more detail. New theory areas are also introduced such as skill acquisition where you will study how you learn new skills and how factors affect the motivation of sports performers. You will also look at socio-cultural studies where you will consider factors such as the media, National Governing Bodies and reasons why people choose not to participate in sport and physical activity.

Progression in the subject between AS and A2
As there is a step up in the difficulty of the subject between GCSE and AS Level again there is another increase in difficulty between AS PE and A2 PE. The theory areas are developed further in the A2 PE course and build upon the knowledge you will have gained during AS PE. There is a definite difference in the difficulty and complexity of the theory aspects for those students who chose to continue to A2 level.

Modules and assessment information
The three theory areas will be examined in one 2 hour written paper in the summer of Year 12 making up 60% of your final grade. Your practical activities (40%) will be continually assessed throughout Year 12 and 13 starting on PE moderation day which takes place in October. A moderation of practical activities will be held by the exam board in May which you may be called to participate in.

Examination board
OCR

Other useful information
Exam board website: www.ocr.org.uk

Recommended text books:

OCR PE for AS – Hodder Education ISBN N0: 9780340958698
OCR PE for A2 – Hodder Education ISBN N0: 9780340958704

Useful websites:

www.peworld.com
www.brianmac.demon.co.uk