Assessing Declarative Tactical Knowledge in Physical Education: Theoretical Model and Practical Perspectives

The chapter seeks to resolve two important educational issues in order to make the use of tactical knowledge assessment tools simple and intuitive: 1) How can we characterize and contextualize the definition of tactical knowledge in the learning environment? 2) What are the tools adequate to assess the students' development related to the tactical knowledge in a simple and ecological way? Replies to these questions are proposed alongside the four sections of this chapter. The first one introduces the auxology of cognitive development through Jean Piaget's theory of developmental stages. The second section focuses on cognitive learning in physical activity and sports sciences. The third section provides a definition of the proceduralization of declarative tactical knowledge (DTK) in open-skill sports. The fourth section provides the readers with some practical suggestions about the procedures for assessing students' development related to the cognitive domain and presents some tools for measuring the DTK level among students and players.