The Tennis for Schools programs adopt the game-based approach focus of the Game Sense Approach (GSA) central to the Australian Sports Commission (ASC) sporting philosophy of ‘Playing for Life’. Game Sense (or game intelligence) is knowledge in action and is defined by three key elements:
- Knowing what to do in the context of play (decision making)
- Know how to do it (movement capability)
- Being able to execute the how and what successfully (movement capability)
The pedagogical approach to the GSA involves:
- Guided play using questions to shape, focus and make visible student learning
- Deliberate modification of tasks and environmental constraints to meet the learning needs of the students at the different stages of game development
- A tool to create the right challenge point for student during practice, and direct instructions to promote tactical understanding and technique development where appropriate