This study aims to address the research questions of how aware are teachers of their own need-supportive teaching behaviour and why do they behave in the ways they do in practising pedagogies of affect. Data were generated through filmed videos and self-confrontation interviews. We filmed two indoor lessons which the same teacher delivered to the same classes. Within a month after the observations, the teachers participated in the self-confrontation interviews about their teaching behaviour and concerns that arose during the observed lessons while watching selected recorded video clips. The scenes were selected when teachers were offering meaningful choices of activities, offering feedback including either aspect of need-support or control, and interacting with pupils individually. This paper reported data from five physical education teachers in Scottish secondary schools. Thematic analysis was used to identify themes in relation to teachers’ awareness of observed teaching behaviour.
Findings: We highlighted how the teachers responded through the following three themes: (1) recognised benefits of offering meaningful choices; (2) different intentions of offering feedback and individual interactions; (3) the need for supporting pupils with behavioural issues. The first theme indicated teachers’ knowledge in terms of being able to explain why offering meaningful choices works effectively in terms of pupils’ affective learning. The second theme demonstrated teachers’ intentions behind offering feedback and individual interactions. There were teachers’ intentions of securing their pupils’ confidence, motivation, positive mindset, and wellbeing as prioritised outcomes. In contrast, teachers offering feedback to keep running a lesson might not be effective for pupils’ affective learning. The third theme highlighted teachers’ expectations of pupils’ behaviour to implementing need-supportive teaching, especially for pupils with additional support needs. Meanwhile, we remain alert to the possibility that some of the teachers’ interactions with pupils who have additional support needs could be construed in SDT terms as controlling teaching.
