Course Rationale and Aims

The Sports Science course is a comprehensive exploration of the multidisciplinary aspects influencing human performance in sports and exercise. Through a combination of theoretical knowledge, experiential learning, and practicals, this course is organised around the key concepts: 

Optimal Performance: students will discover how individuals can maximise their athletic potential and explore effective preparation and recovery strategies. The multifaceted nature of achieving peak performance involves factors beyond physical training, encompassing aspects of biomechanics, sports psychology, performance-enhancing drugs, and recovery strategies. 

Physiology: students will explore the connections between human anatomy, exercise physiology, and the effects of exercise, emphasising the musculoskeletal and cardiorespiratory systems. Through practical investigation students will collect and analyse data on heart rate and lung volumes, enabling them to draw conclusions about the relationships between anatomy, exercise, and physiological responses.

Health & Well-being: students will examine the interplay between physical, mental, and social factors by exploring active and sedentary lifestyle behaviours like sleep, stress, and physical activity levels. Time will be spent exploring global physical activity trends to provide students with a comprehensive perspective on promoting holistic health through informed lifestyle choices and physical activity practices.

The course emphasises experiential learning designed to provide practical insights into sports science. Students will engage in a site visit to a university Sports Science laboratory, participating in biomechanical analysis and testing equipment operation, and connect with industry experts in recovery management, nutrition, and strength and conditioning programming. The practical component extends to operating fitness testing technologies, such as Vald force decks to collect and analyse data through scientific experiments. Additionally, students will apply their knowledge within the local community by focusing on the role of physical activity for different populations. This community engagement aspect offers students opportunities to contribute to community centres and programs as part of service.

This course can prepare students for the IB Sports Exercise and Health Science course through covering related topics and, familiarising students with handling and analysing data which are essential IB coursework skills. Furthermore, through exploring and reviewing scientific literature students can gain a deeper understanding of a topic area, which can be used to form and test research hypotheses.

Course Aims:

1. Explore strategies that contribute to optimising athletic performance.

2. Examine the interplay between physical, mental, and social factors in health and well-being and how this impacts physiology and performance.

3. Acquire knowledge and understanding of the body's systems and how each responds to being active and sedentary.

4. Facilitate experiential learning through site visits, industry engagement, and practical use of fitness testing technologies.

Integrate global perspectives on physical activity trends by critically reviewing scientific literature about sport science.

Grade 9 Course Content

Unit #1: Force Fusion: Unleashing Speed, Power and Strength

• Components of fitness: (Strength, power, speed)

• Training (Methods, fitness testing)

• Body systems (Musculoskeletal)

• Biomechanics (Forces, lever systems)

Unit #2: Endurance Exploration: Pushing the aerobic limits

• Components of fitness: (Aerobic capacity, muscular endurance)

• Training (Methods, fitness testing)

• Body systems (Cardiorespiratory)

• Ergogenic aids

• Nutrition

• Lifestyle behaviours

Unit #3: Longevity: Prolonging healthspan

• Nutrition

• Recovery

• Lifestyle behaviours

• Disease prevention

• Health & well-being

Given the collaborative nature of the course, students learn to work effectively with others in a range of different contexts, developing problem-solving and interpersonal skills. This provides students with insights into differing contexts and perspectives, adding depth to their understanding of the world around them.

This leads students to become critical, creative thinkers with an enhanced capability to use language to influence the way people think and feel in a range of different contexts. This empowers students to build empathy and perspective-taking in others, so as to make a more peaceful and sustainable world.

Successful completion of this course awards students the UWCSEA Sports Science certificate.

Internal assessment

Internal assessment of student attainment in UWCSEA Courses is reflected on students UWCSEA High School Transcript and contributes to the UWCSEA High School Diploma. 

UWCSEA is accredited by both the Council of International Schools (CIS) and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).

• Attainment is reported using the UWCSEA 1-7 attainment grading scale.

• Approaches to learning are reported using the UWCSEA ATLs (Self management, Communication and Collaboration)

Assessment at UWCSEA is holistic and so the attainment grade and ATLs will be based on a range of formative (ongoing) and summative assessment tools. The common summative assessments allow for standardisation.

More information on general UWCSEA Assessment Principles can be found here.

More information highlighting the general similarities and differences of assessment in UWCSEA courses and IGCSE's can be found here.

Holistic Assessment in the Sports Science Course

• Practical experiment write-ups

• Training programming

• Collaborative group work project and presentations

• End of unit tests