TITLE:
The Use of a Genetic Score in Assigning Students to Classes in PE Teacher Preparation Programs—A Preliminary Study
AUTHORS:
Sigal Ben-Zaken, Ronnie Lidor, Alon Eliakim, Dan Nemet, Yoav Meckel
KEYWORDS:
Physical Education, Genetic Score, Endurance Performance, Power Performance, Teacher Preparation Programs
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Physical Education,
Vol.8 No.2,
May
15,
2018
ABSTRACT: A teacher preparation program for physical education (PE)is typically composed of a number of branches,includingsport and exercise sciences, sport pedagogy, and activity classes. Theactivity classesplay a key role in developing content knowledge that can be implemented by PE teachers in their classes. An attempt was made in thispreliminary study to examine the use of a genetic score that has the potential to assist consultants/instructors in obtaining relevant information on the aerobic and anaerobic abilities of students enrolled in a PE teacher preparation program, as well as in assigning these students to activity classes included in the program. Participants were 219 PE students (111 males and 108 females; mean age = 20-29 yrs.),enrolled in a PE teacher preparation program at The Academic College at Wingate. Genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral bloodsamples. Genotyping of theACTN3R/X andACEI/D polymorphisms was performed using polymerase chain reaction (PCR).Two polygenetic scoreswere computed: Power Genetic Distance Score (PGDS2) and Endurance Genetic Distance Score (EGDS2). The main finding that emerged from our study was that both themale and female PE students were genetically predisposed toward aerobic skill rather than toward anaerobic skill: the students’ mean EGDS2 (52.6+23.0) was significantly higher compared to their mean PGDS2 (36.3+21.9) (p0.001). This finding can be applied by consultants who provide academic/educational advice to PE students for selecting activity classes in the PE program, as well as by the instructors who teach these classes. However, when applying this finding a number of ethical concerns should be taken into account.
