Skill-building and safety-related considerations for junior high school students learning judo for the first time: A complete survey of physical education teachers in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan

Abstract

Problem statement and approach: Martial arts such as Judo are incorporated into sports education in Japan only from junior high school. Thus, unlike the other sports such as ball games or swimming, no systematic curriculum from the elementary to the high school level exists for Judo. To ensure the safe implementation of Judo lessons, it is also vital to ascertain the views of health and physical education teachers about the degrees to which Judo lessons and the sports skills developed at the elementary school level are correlated. Purpose: This study surveyed health and physical education teachers in Japanese junior high schools to understand the safety and skill-building considerations of in Judo lessons. It also surveyed the opinions of teachers on the connection between junior high school Judo lessons and sports skills acquired at the elementary school level. Method: The survey was administered to health and physical education teachers between July and August 2017. The questionnaire was sent by post to all 186 schools at which a health and physical education teacher was employed in Kagoshima, a prefecture in which many schools selects Judo from martial arts. The questionnaire encompassed 44 items requiring responses on a 4-point scale. It probed three aspects: (1) safety in Judo classes, (2) skill instruction in Judo, (3) introducing Judo at the elementary school stage. Findings: The analysis results revealed that: (1) around 70% of the respondents stated that the fear of potential danger or injury to students prevented them from introducing students to the unique features of Judo. Teachers also tended to consider differences in the physical sizes of paired participants rather than physical fitness in practice sessions involving throwing and bracing techniques; (2) according to most of the teachers, it is more difficult to teach throwing techniques to the tori (the person executing the technique) than to the uke (the person receiving the attack). Conversely, it is more difficult to teach bracing techniques to the uke than to the tori; and (3) many teachers, especially those who were younger, responded positively to the idea of introducing Judo in elementary schools. Conclusion: In sum, it was found that Judo instructors in school physical education were more distracted by the risks and dangers associated with their activity than other sports teachers. Many teachers believe that the