The effect of the Olympic Values Education Program on social emotional learning in primary school

The aim of this research is to reveal the effect of the Olympic values education program on social emotional learning, which is the self-management, self-awareness (self-regulation), social awareness, relationship building (peer relationships) and responsible decision-making (task definition) skills of primary school 4th grade students. The research was designed in a nested mixed design in which quantitative and qualitative research methods were used together. The research was conducted in the first semester of the 2021-2022 academic year during the physical education and play lesson period at a primary school in Şehzadeler district of Manisa province. The sample group for the quantitative data of the research consisted of 216 students in the 4th grade, 108 in the control group and 108 in the experimental group. The study group for the qualitative data of the research consisted of the classroom teachers of the experimental group students. The quantitative data of the study were collected with the Social Emotional Learning Scale (SELS) as a pretest before the Olympic values training program and as a posttest after the program. Qualitative data was obtained with a semi-structured interview form. The quantitative data of the research were analyzed with SPSS Statistics 25.0 program. Qualitative data were analyzed using the content analysis method. The findings obtained in the quantitative dimension of the research were aimed to test whether there is a significant difference between the two pretest scores and the posttest difference scores between the experimental group students to whom the Olympic values education program was applied and the control group students. As a result of the independent samples t-test, it was found that there was a statistically significant difference between the two groups, t=8,768, p<,05. This difference is in favor of the experimental group. As a result of the related sample t-test, which was conducted to test whether there is a significant difference between the pretest scores and posttest scores of the experimental group students in SELS, it is seen that there is a statistically significant difference (t= 8,623, p<,05). This difference is in favor of posttest scores. The themes and codes obtained in the qualitative part of the research reflected the students' SEL skills, supporting the quantitative findings. Self-efficacy skills as they express themselves; The fact that they gained discipline and increased their motivation was reflected in their self-management skills. It has been determined that they exhibit social awareness skills such as respect, empathy, and understanding others' emotions and perspectives. The research results have been determined with quantitative findings that the Olympic values education program is effective in all sub-dimensions of students' social emotional learning skills. The findings were similarly supported in interviews with classroom teachers. For this reason, it is recommended that the Olympic values education program be used as a supporter in physical education and game lessons in schools affiliated with the Ministry of Education.