HISTORICAL FOUNDATION OF PES,

RECREATION AND LEISURE EDUCATION

PRESENTATION CONTENTS:

Early Culture/Primitive Society

Egyptians

Indians

Chinese

The Homeric Greeks

The Spartans

Greece

Rome

DIFFERENCE OF RECREATION AND LEISURE:

Recreation – indulging in thrilling and

exciting activities, to derive some pleasure

and have fun in one’s leisure time

Leisure – the spare or rest time in the daily

life of a person when he is not occupied by

work, studies, sleep etc

EARLY CULTURAL AND PRIMITIVE SOCIETY

Beginning-6000 B.C.

(Physical Education for

Survival).

Aims: increase group

survival and

improvement of youths.

EARLY CULTURAL AND PRIMITIVE SOCIETY:

Program – Unorganized. Games of war,

chase, tag, ritual dancing.

Methods – Imitation, Indoctrination, Trial and

Error.

Two main activities are hunting and fishing.

EGYPTIANS (3000-1100B.C.)

They believed in living a full life (a life full of

physical activities).

Aims – Vocational, recreational, and

religious.

Program – Swimming, dance, archery, lion

hunting, fishing, stick fighting, acrobatics, ball

games, wrestling, etc.

EGYPTIANS (3000-1100B.C.)

Methods – Apprenticeship.

Young boys are instructed

to use: Bow & arrow,

lance, shield, battleaxes,

and mace. They are

required to participate in

exercises and activities for

the body’s endurance and

stamina.

INDIANS

Their religious belief stressed reincarnation

of the soul before being united finally with

Brahma, the supreme God.

Aims – They believe solely on the spiritual

rather than physical needs.

INDIANS

Program – Hindu Dance as their oldest

organized dance; Yoga is a great contribution

which is composed of exercise in posture

and regulated breathing.

Methods – Throwing balls, dice, tumbling,

chariot races, marbles, riding elephant,

plowing contest, horse riding, wrestling,

swordsmanship, and boxing.

CHINA (1700-800 B.C)

Ancestor worshipping was the characteristics of their religious belief. They were also into sedentary living because of memorizing the teaching of Confucius.

Aims – earlier times states bodily conditioning is more important than later times.

CHINA (1700-800 B.C)

Programs – Music, dance, archery(military

purposes), polo, swimming, flying kites, light

exercises (ex. Cong fu), wrestling, water

games.

Methods – Little is known. Probably by

learning by doing and by following the

examples of elders.

Different skill dances: split and whole feather dance, battle dance,

humanity dance.

Cong fu: was found as early as 2698 BC and also called as the earliest

exercise recorded in history.

HOMERIC GREEKS

This era was named after

the Greek poet HOMER.

He wrote the Iliad and

Odyssey which included

the earliest records of

athletic competitions.

Aims – To develop the

man of action. Every

citizen was a soldier and

physical fitness was a

necessity.

Homeric era developed the Greek Ideal

> ARETE – All around mental, moral and

physical excellence

“Man of Action” “Man of

Wisdom”

HOMERIC GREEKS

Programs – Chariot race, foot race, javelin

throw. Dancing was another activity they

participated before. Some sports activities

were reserved for the Aristocrats, like boxing,

wrestling, and running.

Methods – Imitating adults, pay attention to

the feast or funeral games, listening to

exciting tales of the gods, memorizing the

great epics, and absorbing wisdom of the

council meetings.

SPARTAN GREEKS

Their objective is to contribute to a strong

and powerful army.

Aims – Their P.E was designed to develop a

man of action who possessed brute strength,

physical endurance, unflinching courage and

military skill. The mother was responsible to

train the child until the age of 7.

AGOGE – formal education system

supervised by the paidonomus

(superintendent).

SPARTAN GREEKS

Stage in education:

Birth – examined by elders if weak or healthy. If weak, thrown in Mt. Tygetus and let die; if not it will be trained.

3-4 – taught value of obedient soldiers, girls learn about bearing healthy children and participate in gymnastics and other activities like horseback riding, wrestling and swimming.

7 – began military training in barracks with jumping and running for body conditioning.

20 – engaged in intensive military training and actual warfare.

30 – qualified for citizenship and were expected to marry. They also train the youth.

SPARTAN GREEKS

Programs – their curriculum consists of military training. Gymnastics exercise were main P.E for youths. Also running, fighting, leaping, swimming, hunting, wrestling, hiking, boxing, playing ball, discus and javelin throw, competing in arena.

Methods – periodic testing by the ephors (state officials) was administered to evaluate the boy’s physical capacity and citizenship, praise and punishment used. Flogging was the universal penalty.

Pancratium - a combination of wrestling and boxing.

ATHENS GREEKS

They focus on intellect and educational system rather than power. They believed in music as “SOUL” and gymnastics as “BODY”.

Aims – P.E was an integral part of national life not only in the need to prepare citizens for war, but also in the Greek ideals of Aesthetic (beauty and harmony).

The state gave no financial support to formal education.

ATHENS GREEKS

Father determines the child’s physical fitness.

Girls remained at home until they are married.

They have 2 kinds of private elementary schools: Palaestra (wrestling) for P.E and Didascaleum (music) for literature and arithmetic.

Paidotribes – first physical education in palaestra.

Gymnasiarch – Chief official at the gymnasium.

ATHENS GREEKS

4 special festivals in name of 4 Gods:

Olympia – in honor of Zeus, the supreme God. Held in western peloponnesus district.

Pynthia – in honor of Apollo, the God of light and truth. Held in north of the Corinthian Gulf.

Nemea – in honor of Zeus, held at Argolis near Cleonae.

Isthmia – in honor of Poseidon, the God of Sea. Held at Isthmus of Corith.

Olive Branches – awarded for the victor/winner of the event.

ROMAN REPUBLIC (500 BC TO 27 BC)

They focused singularly in serving the state.

Campus Martius – Military camps.

Aims – Their P.E was designed to develop a good and obedient soldiers.

Programs – All sons were taught to become citizen-soldiers including their education in mental and physical readiness for war, respect for the law and reverence for Gods.

ROMAN REPUBLIC (500 BC – 27 BC)

17 years old – men were drafted for active duty until the age of 47 (if needed).

Daughters were educated to assume vital role in raising children.

Religious festivals for honoring Gods is important.

They don’t participate in athletic contest and dance; rather they offered sacrifices to their Gods and then a spectator.

This festival serves no educational purposes.

ROMAN EMPIRE (27 BC TO 476 AD)

Under Augustus Caesar, a hardy peasant who have gained land in exchange for military services.

Coliseum became the favorite site for gladiatorial contests.

Animal fights.

Gladiators fought each other for freedom and for money.

Roman men participated in health gymnastics or ball games to over come indolent lifestyle.