Trends in the academic profile of students from the Teacher's Faculty of the National Sports Academy in Bulgaria Eleonora Mileva National Sports Academy Bulgaria

EUROPEAN INTEGRATION Snimki ot rabota na studenti v chujbina

FACULTIES NATIONAL SPORTS ACADEMY Coaches Faculty Teacher’s Faculty Kinesitherapy and Sports Animation Faculty

TEACHER’S FACULTY Teachers in physical education in all levels of the system of secondary education; Teachers in higher schools and university colleges; Teachers and instructors at sport clubs, school sport clubs, fitness centers; Promoters and organizers of out-of-class sport activities for children and youths; Experts in state and non-governmental institutions; Expert in the system of the Ministry of Interior and Bulgarian army.

Main reasons Birth rate decrease leading to a serious demographic crisis of the Bulgarian population Reduced physical activity of the population Increased competition between universities to attract students and creation of new professional fields for which there is no real social need The gap between university education and employers' requirements which leads to a high rate of unemployment young graduates A significant proportion of high school graduates who choose to continue their higher education in foreign universities

Aim of the research To determine the key trends in the academic profile of students from the Teacher’s Faculty of the National Sports Academy

Methods Criteria Students’ gender Survey Kind of secondary school they graduated Students’ results from the entrance exam Motivation to study at the Academy Interests to work as PE teacher in the future Level of students’ sports and motor preparation Survey Study of educational documentation Statistical method used is alternative analysis

The subjects of the research were 113 first year students (72 male and 41 female) from the Teacher’s Faculty, specializing in physical education at the National Sports Academy in Sofia, Bulgaria

Gender of students

Kind of graduated schools

Intention of students to become PE teachers

S Social status of PE teacher in Bulgaria

Conclusions There is a new trend in the academic characteristics of PE students in the recent years. There is a significant predominance of men in the professional field, male students show better sports and motor preparation, compared to female. The greater part of first year students from the Faculty of Physical Education have completed vocational schools. At the beginning of their education, the students have a high motivation to study at the NSA. The students are willing to work as teachers in physical education and sport.

Recommendations These results can be used as a basis for future pedagogical work, as well as for further research in the field. It is necessary to examine the changes in students’ motivation and interest in their education during the course of their study. It is important to establish the percentage of students in physical education who start work as PE teachers after graduating the National Sports Academy.

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