Primary Sports Technology

Sports technology harnesses the power of digital devices and apps to enhance performance. What is the potential of sports technology at primary level, when children's PE lessons provide them with vital time being outside, being active and developing communication skills?

Sports technology in professional sports

The margins in professional sports events are tiny, yet incredibly significant. Sports technology is used to measure the performance of athletes, provide data for analysis and offer targeted solutions for improvement.

Ways that technology is used in sport include:

• Video analysis of games and passages of play, highlighting individual and team positioning strengths and weaknesses

• Measurement of body metrics, including heartrate, breathing and perspiration

• Data relating to movement, participation in a game, speed, distance covered, passes, number and accuracy of shots

• Analysis of posture and technique

• Automated practise systems, such as reaction training systems, batting machines and exercise machines

• Precise and immediate measurements and data including time, distance, speed and scoring

• Assisted refereeing or scoring of games, such as VAR in football

It is important to remember that sports technology is a valued field in itself. The value of sporting performance means that individuals who learn to harness technology to improve the performance of athletes highly sought after. Similarly, companies and individuals earn large amounts of money from selling products and services that improve performance.

Sports technology in primary schools

To what extent can and should sports technology be used in primary PE lessons, sporting events and fixtures? Which of the benefits to professional sports can be replicated by using technology at primary level?

At primary level, as well as developing children's fitness, physical skills and sporting ability, PE lessons also develop a number of vital interpersonal skills. These are referenced in the primary national curriculum, which states,

'Opportunities to compete in sport and other activities build character and help to embed values such as fairness and respect'

There is a strong case that PE lessons should prioritise opportunities for children to develop their physical and interpersonal skills.

However, I would not go so far as to say that use of sports technology can never be a focus in primary PE lessons.

The national curriculum also states,

'They (children) should develop an understanding of how to improve in different physical activities and sports and learn how to evaluate and recognise their own success.'

Some PE lessons might be focused on teaching children effective ways to utilise technology to record, evaluate and improve their performance. Although the above statement can be achieved through means such as peer review, data collection and self-evaluation, use of technology seems to offer a valuable means of self-evaluation, as we will see with examples below.

Use of simple sports technology at primary-level prepares children for using sports technology at secondary-level and beyond.

iPads, Cameras and Markup

iPads are a good solution for schools that wish to incorporate sports technology into PE lessons. They are lightweight, portable and quick to open and use at short notice in a lesson.

iPads also have a number of apps and features that make them well-suited to use in primary PE lessons. The reality of a busy primary PE lesson is that for sports technology to be used, it needs to be simple and operate seamlessly in the lesson without distracting from the physical activity taking place.

Camera

Using the iPad camera, children can watch videos of themselves performing movements and sporting activities. This is particularly effective if the iPad is on a fixed position, such as mounted on a tripod.

Children can film themselves and other performing almost any aspect of movement or sport. Examples of activities that benefit from filming and viewing include:

• Shooting, throwing, striking the ball in football, netball, rugby, tennis or hockey

• Gymnastics, jumping, balancing

• Running, long jump, extending and stretching, using the whole body

• Technique in sports that require repetition and precision such as archery

Markup

Once teachers or children have taken photos of themselves or others, they can save photos and use Markup to annotate and draw on them.

This can be a useful tool, particularly for teachers pointing out accuracies or areas for development in technique. Teachers can combine Markup with screensharing, to project the Markup of student photos onto a teaching screen.

Markup might be particularly useful when annotating crucial movements, such as a jump, throw or piece of gymnastics. However, teachers could also set up cameras and use Markup to show good technique in kicking or striking balls.

Slow Motion

The slow motion tool on the iPad camera can be a useful tool for students and teachers to use when reviewing their movements. Using the slow motion tool, students can watch and re-watch their movements, looking for areas for development.

Measurement apps

There are measurement apps such as the AR Measure app, which allows for measurement by holding up an AR ruler. It is difficult to imagine how, in a primary PE lesson, this would be a superior tool to a tape measure, which through its tactile nature, also teaches children about precise measurement.

There are apps that measure speed available for iPad. Some are free and some are paid, and some are more suitable for use in primary education that others. Measuring the speed of a shot or strike of the ball, or a run can be a fun and motivational use of sports technology in primary schools.

Data collection and analysis

Using technology to collect data in sport means that visuals about that data can be generated very quickly. This is what we see with data collected in sports matches on TV.

A simple way of collecting data can be entering scores or times into a spreadsheet. This can then be displayed during or after sports activities. Spreadsheets can be set up that instantly calculate minimum times, maximum distances and averages. Tables can be generated to keep track of scores and points in games, even generating live league tables. Children find displaying data accurately very motivating, although displaying data may not be appropriate in every sports lesson

Of course, when data is entered into a table, graphs and charts can also be generated instantly, showing data visually to children.

Physical Computing (Microbit, Crumble)

It is possible to combine programming, engineering and sports technology using basic devices commonly used in schools.

Children can cerate variables that change depending on sensor inputs. In the Microbit example below, the variable 'steps' changes when the device shakes, creating a simple step counter. A Microbit programmed in this way can be worn by children during sports events to give a basic indicator of performance. Simple maths could be used to convert steps into distance covered, by dividing the number of steps by steps in a kilometre.

This simple Microbit program works as a step counter and could be a good introduction to performance measurement in primary sports.

Crumbles feature a greater range of sensors, including light and distance sensors. Children can use the distance sensors to build simple devices that measure movement, such as press-ups or sit ups.

Children can program the smart crumb to display the variable 'reps', which changes when the distance sensor is triggered (i.e. by doing a press up)

Technology use to promote sorts

Alongside technology being used in sports events, children can also use technology to promote sports events, plan for events and promote sporting behaviours. Some examples of this include:

• Teamsheets - children can plan their line up and positions for sports games, even changing this during games

• Motivational posters

• Adverts for sporting events

• Films about sporting events or interviews

My experience with sports technology

I have never played sport at a high standard, but I have seen the effects of simple uses of sports technology. Several years ago, I started archery as a hobby and progressed to beginner-level competitions. At that point, I saw the value of video analysis of technique, using a simple camera on a mobile phone. This allowed me to correct flaws in technique that I would never have realised without this analysis.

It is this simple, seamless use of technology that is likely to be most useful in primary settings, leading to improvements in technique, awareness of areas for development and curiosity in the exciting and important field of sports technology.

Simple uses of sports technology has huge potential in sports that require precision, such as archery, gymnastics and field events.