Effective implementation of the Sport Education Model in physical education: A meta-analysis of participant and intervention characteristics

PLOS One | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0331228 October 16, 2025 1 / 17 OPEN ACCESS Citation: Yao G, Zhang J, Soh KG, Bai X, Xiao W, Anuar MAM, et al. (2025) Effective implementation of the Sport Education Model in physical education: A meta-analysis of participant and intervention characteristics. PLoS One 20(10): e0331228. https://doi. org/10.1371/journal.pone.0331228 Editor: Mert Kurnaz, Haliç University, Faculty of Science, TÜRKIYE Received: March 13, 2025 Accepted: August 12, 2025 Published: October 16, 2025 Peer Review History: PLOS recognizes the benefits of transparency in the peer review process; therefore, we enable the publication of all of the content of peer review and author responses alongside final, published articles. The editorial history of this article is available here: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal. pone.0331228 Copyright: © 2025 Yao et al . This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, RESEARCH ARTICLE Effective implementation of the Sport Education Model in physical education: A meta-analysis of participant and intervention characteristics Gege Yao1, Junlong Zhang 2*, Kim Geok Soh2*, Xiaorong Bai3, Wensheng Xiao3, Mohd Ashraff Mohd Anuar4, Lixia Bao2 1 The 19th Middle School, Qinhuangdao, Hebei, China, 2 Department of Sports Studies, Faculty of Education Studies, University Putra Malaysia, Seri Kembangan, Malaysia, 3 School of Physical Education,

Huzhou University, Huzhou, China, 4 Department of Professional Development and Continuing Education, Faculty of Education Studies, University Putra Malaysia, Seri Kembangan, Malaysia * zhangjunlong2413@gmail.com (JZ); kims@upm.edu.my (KGS) Abstract Despite substantial evidence supporting the positive effects of the Sport Education Model (SEM) on students’ physical abilities, mental health, and social skills, signif- icant knowledge gaps persist regarding the moderating variables that influence its effectiveness. This study investigates the facilitative effects of SEM on students’ physical education learning and examines the Participant and Intervention Charac- teristics that modulate its impact. Following the PICOS framework, two researchers independently conducted a comprehensive literature search across Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, and EBSCOhost (CINAHL with Full Text and SPORTDiscus with Full Text) databases. The quality of the included studies was assessed using the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions, and a meta-analysis was performed on the selected studies. A total of 15 studies involving 2,890 partici- pants were included in this meta-analysis. The results indicate that SEM significantly improves students’ physical education learning outcomes (Effect size = 0.590, 95% CI: 0.284–0.897, P < 0.001). Subgroup analyses revealed that SEM intervention was particularly effective for secondary school students (Effect size = 1.055, 95% CI: 0.361–1.759, P = 0.003), those in small class sizes (Effect size = 1.058, 95%

CI: 0.314–1.802, P = 0.005), and students without prior SEM experience (Effect size = 0.604, 95% CI: 0.136–1.072, P = 0.011), and the most effective SEM interven- tion plan comprises 2 sessions per week (Effect size = 1.820, 95% CI: 0.486–3.154, P = 0.008), with each session lasting at least 60 minutes (Effect size = 1.002, 95% CI: 0.437–1.568, P = 0.001) and a total of no more than 18 sessions (Effect size = 0.654, 95% CI: 0.297–1.010, P = 0.001). SEM effectively enhances students’ physical educa- tion learning and positively influences their cognitive and non-cognitive abilities. The most effective intervention includes two weekly lessons of at least 60 minutes each, totaling no more than 18 lessons, targeting secondary students without prior SEM