Not All Bodies are Created Equal: Use of Generative AI in Physical Education

Physical Education (PE) is a process that uses physical activity to help people acquire skills, fitness, knowledge, and attitudes that contribute to their optimal development and well-being. Curriculum-based PE provides children with a planned, sequential and standards-based program of curricula and instruction designed to develop motor skills, knowledge and behaviours for active living, physical fitness, self-efficacy and emotional intelligence. Enhancing a child’s motor skill and physical abilities in the absence of generative AI involves the implementation of various conventional methods and strategies. Due to difficulties with children’s attendance and engagement in PE combined with varying levels of teachers’ teaching ability and knowledge of the scientific principles of human movement, the knowledge and skills that children learn in PE can be limited. Children can spend a lot of time and energy on physical exercise, but if professional theory and understanding is lacking, the final exercise effect may not be satisfactory and even may cause harm. The integration of generative AI in physical activity and sports-specific training in education has emerged as a possible approach to enhancing a child’s development in PE, optimizing training strategies and providing personalised insights for both children and the teacher. The strategic use of generative AI can empower both teacher and children through a ‘learner as a leader’ paradigm. There has been limited attention to meaningful pedagogy PE learning in the generative AI community so far, which is likely due to the lack of appropriate technological support available for movement detection at low cost and with low intrusion. Despite this, generative AI-powered tools could significantly enhance meaning and engagement with both PE and physical activity by identifying patterns and correlations within the data, allowing for the personalized creation of training plans and optimized lesson schedules. This article looks at the rapidly evolving technological resource of Generative AI and how it can be used effectively and ethically within a physical educator’s role and the overall teaching profession.<p></p>