Guide

How to get a H1 in your Leaving Certificate PE Performance Assessment Project

By Karen Lynch - 9 minute read

This guide to the Leaving Certificate Performance Assessment Project (PA) is written by PE teacher, Karen Lynch.

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Introduction

The Performance Assessment (PA) is a practical assessment worth 30% of your overall Leaving Certificate grade. You will complete your PA in one of the three physical activities chosen with your teacher and class at the beginning of 5th year.

The project will take place between mid-January and the end of March. During the weeks leading up to the PA, you will practice your performance and use planning templates to guide you in creating your video. PAs will take place during school hours when supervised by your class teacher. Work will be submitted in video format, not exceeding 8 minutes long and must be stored as an MP4 file. This guide will bring you through the steps you need to follow for this project.

Choosing your activity

The activity chosen for your PA should be from the different physical activity areas chosen for your PAP. Likewise, your reasoning for choosing the activity for the PA cannot interfere with the same physical activity area of your PAP, i.e. games/athletics/aquatics, etc.  

Important

If you choose weightlifting for your PA and Gaelic for your PAP then you cannot say the reason you are choosing weightlifting is to help improve your performance in Gaelic. Instead, you must choose a different activity outside of the games such as running/sprinting/swimming, etc.

Choosing your scenario

Scenario one

In a nutshell, if you have chosen either of these activity areas (games, aquatics, adventure activities or athletics), you will work with scenario one (taken from the LCPE Guidelines for the Performance Assessment, 2018):

"The learner, in consultation with the teacher, plans how the learner can demonstrate their best performance using different performance contexts, e.g. fully competitive; conditioned practices; individual and group performances. The video should include evidence of the following:

  • skills and techniques as outlined for the selected physical activity in the specification;
  • tactics and/or strategies;
  • awareness of safety-safety issues around availability/choice of equipment and its use; adherence to the relevant rules; regulations and codes of practice in a fitness training setting.

The video will be introduced by the learner detailing the particular performance characteristics to which they wish to draw attention".

Scenario two

If you have chosen an activity from the artistic and aesthetic movement, you will work with scenario two (taken from the LCPE Guidelines for the Performance Assessment, 2018):

"The learner, in consultation with their teacher, plans how the learner can demonstrate their best performance in two of the following performance contexts (individual/pair/group). The video should include evidence of the following:

  • proficiency in imaginative combinations of skills and techniques in the appropriate style of the gymnastic event; OR
  • proficiency in imaginative combinations of movements demonstrating technical competence in the appropriate style of the dance event;
  • compositional and/or choreographic design including the use of props and/or costumes where appropriate;
  • creativity;
  • awareness of safety-safety issues around availability/choice of equipment and its use; adherence to the relevant rules, regulations and codes of practice.

The video will be introduced by the learner detailing the particular performance characteristics to which they wish to draw attention".

Scenario three

Finally, if you have chosen personal exercise and fitness (the most common choice) then you will work with scenario three (taken from the LCPE Guidelines for the Performance Assessment, 2018):

"The learner completes the Performance Assessment in the physical activity area - personal exercise and fitness. In this scenario, the learner is required to demonstrate a personal exercise and fitness programme designed to enhance one of the following:

  1. performance-related physical fitness in a physical activity;
  2. health-related physical fitness.

In their chosen personal exercise and fitness programme, the learner is required to choose one method of aerobic training and one conditioning and resistance activity (Leaving Certificate Physical Education Specification, pages 44-45). The learner is expected to apply the following training considerations to both methods selected:

  • principles of training;
  • training zones;
  • thresholds;
  • work-recovery intervals;
  • warm-up/cool-down".

Below are some LCPE Specification guidelines, 2017:

Personal exercise and fitness activities.
"Active and purposeful participation in a personally-designed exercise and fitness programme that reflect personal interests, goals and principles of training.

Learners may choose one method of aerobic training and one other conditioning and resistance activity".

Aerobic training Method
Continuous training
  • Constant intensity
  • Purpose
  • FITT formula
  • Intermediate slow distance (20-60 mins)
  • Long slow distance (>60 mins)
Interval training 
  • Readiness
  • Work: recovery ratios
  • Interval duration
  • FITT formula
Fartlek training
  • Readiness
  • Terrain
  • Interval duration
  • FITT formula
Aerobics/step aerobics
  • Technical description of skills
  • Routine
  • Transition
  • Timing and rhythm
  • Training zones
  • FITT formula
Spinning
  • Spinning techniques
  • Workout intensity
  • Session design
  • Training zones
  • FITT formula
Indoor rowing
  • Time
  • Distance
  • Targets
  • Resistance
  • Session Design
Conditioning and resistance Method
Weight training
  • Upper extremity pushing
    • Pressing
    • Extensions
  • Upper extremity pulling
    • Rows
    • Curls
  • Lower extremity exercises
    • Squats
    • Lunges
Core stability
  • Relaxation and breathing
  • Control
  • Routine
  • Alignment
  • Flow
Circuit training
  • Exercises specific to:
    • Themes
    • Equipment
    • Work-recovery intervals
Further guidance

Some LCPE guidelines for the Performance Assessment, 2018:

"Where the learner chooses to demonstrate a personal exercise and fitness programme designed to improve performance in a physical activity, the activities chosen should enhance performance in some or all of the following areas depending on the requirements of the activity:

  • Speed
  • Agility
  • Co-ordination
  • Power
  • Reaction time
  • Balance

Where the learner chooses to demonstrate a health-related fitness programme, this should include activities designed to enhance performance in each of the following areas:

  • Cardiovascular endurance
  • Muscular endurance
  • Strength
  • Flexibility
  • Body composition

Learners are expected to demonstrate the ability to apply the following aspects to each method of training:

  • Principles of training - readiness, specificity, progression, overload, rest/recovery. 
  • Training zones
  • Thresholds
  • Work-recovery intervals
  • Warm-up/cool-down

Learners are required to show evidence of their capacity to perform elements of a personal exercise and fitness programme designed to enhance either performance in a physical activity or health-related physical fitness.

The performance should include a:

  • five-minute warm-up including the necessary elements of a warm-up;
  • fifteen-minute development section: this section would include a cardiovascular section and a muscular strength and endurance section. The development section could include a circuit format.
  • five-minute cool-down including the necessary elements of a cool-down.

Learners are required to demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of relevant progressions and adaptations and safe practice in the selected activities".

Planning

Once you have chosen your activity and agreed on a scenario with your teacher, you will need to begin planning for your performance. You will need to address the following areas:

  • Focus

    The skill or strategy you want to demonstrate in this activity.

  • Method of presentation

    How you are showing that skill or strategy in action be it isolated, conditioned or open practice.

  • Method of capture

    What you will do in order to make an accurate record of the quality of your performance.

  • Equipment

    What you will need to use or set up in order to complete the practice demonstration successfully.

  • Instructions

    Notes that assistants can read so they know what they need to do to make the demonstration effective.

  • Timing

    How long do you expect the set-up, execution and take-down of the demonstration to take? These must fit into your allotted overall time frame.

Templates such as the one shown below may be used (PDST, 2022):

View PDST 2022 template
Remember

There are no marks going for planning documents but you will need to display some information in your video.

Storyboards

Your teacher may provide you with similar storyboards as the ones below to help you develop your programme/games/race, etc. It’s important to indicate important factors in your video such as safety considerations, warm-ups, cool-downs, tactics and strategies, etc.

The performance

Your teacher is responsible for the arrangements on the day of your performance assessment. This may require you to leave the school grounds and travel to a local athletic track/playing field/swimming pool, etc. Your entire performance must be recorded to include snippets of your warm-up and cool-down videos. The order on the day is not important, provided everything is captured at appropriate angles. You will use these videos to create a short movie later on.

Creating your movie

On completion of your performance assessment, you must create a short movie of no longer than 8 minutes. You may use video editing software such as Adobe Spark, i-Movie, Vimeo, etc.

Remember

With whatever editing software you choose, be sure to convert the file to MP4 prior to submission.

Your video must include the following over a maximum of 6 slides (you can copy and paste from PowerPoint or Google Slides). Slide 1 (cover slide) must include:

  • Your exam number

  • PA activity

  • PAP activity

  • Your reason for choosing PA activity

  • Performance details as required (finishing time/position/distance, etc.)

  • How you will be identified in the video (coloured bib/vest, etc.)

  • Your personal details, e.g. weight/height (optional)

Sample Cover

Here is a sample cover slide from the SEC: https://www.examinations.ie/misc-doc/BI-EX-12744675.mp4

You then have another 5 slides to work with and these can be in whatever order you prefer. Slides must contain all information displayed on your storyboard such as details of warm-up exercises, cool-down exercises, training programmes, strategies and techniques, etc. Each activity will require specific information to display, depending on the scenario.

To organise your information, tables such as the one below are recommended, particularly when working with personal health and exercise. Your table must clearly show adaptations and progressions and state how you will differentiate between these and the main exercises, i.e. various coloured bibs, etc.

You may choose to use tables such as the one below:

Conditioning Programme

 

Exercise type
(e.g. upper push/pull)

 Exercise name: orange bib CoF targeted:  Adaptation: pink bib Progression: green bib Reps/sets/rest
1            
2            
3            
4            
5            

 

Some important things to note regarding your performance:

  • Don't edit your performance

    Your video of the performance itself cannot be edited in any way. You must show the performance in its entirety and you must be seen clearly until the performance comes to an end.

  • Use Variety

    You may show your performance from a variety of angles as long as the entire video is presented.

  • Only use text

    You may not add images or sound to your slides. These may only contain text.

  • Save in MP4

    Videos should be saved in MP4 form at and not exceed the 8-minute or 6-slide deadline.

By Karen Lynch

A PE and Geography teacher and graduate of UL, Karen works at St Declan’s college in Dublin. She has been teaching 5th and 6th years for the past 2 years and is passionate about the new course.

Related subjects & topics
Higher Physical Education
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