A Critical Analysis of Issues and Challenges of Sport and Physical Education in Sri Lanka

Abstract

The objective of this research was to elaborate on the contemporary issues and challenges of Sports and Physical Education (PE) in Sri Lanka and by accompanying the current state of problems and to identify the forthcoming issues and challenges. Physical Education is the teaching of all physical activities, starting from the simplest physical skills to the most competitive sports. The teaching strategies and skills learnt in PE are used in the form of practice or competition in sports. In the Sri Lankan context, many issues and challenges related to Sports and PE exist. The key issues are evident in many ways such as, low level of recognition, lack of an effective school curriculum, lack of facilities for athletes, lack of a proper management scheme for differently-abled athletes, limited career opportunities for PE graduates, appointment of non-qualified teachers for the teaching of PE in Schools, negative effects of stereotypical ideas of sports for gender, social class and cultural beliefs. So the research questions was critically discussed and the conclusions were derived by thoroughly analyzing the data from both primary and secondary resources. When the absolute negligence of Sports and PE occurs, no citizen will have either faith or an interest to engage in sports, which may contribute to the degradation of sports. Considering these factors, it is recommended that drastic and rapid developments in the Sport and PE sector are required to elevate Sri Lankan standards to the international level.