As we know, the educational approach of the European Higher Education Area requires that Spanish universities adapt to a common European model in higher education. In this context, the practice is considered essential in order to strengthen the student learning to make easier it’s approach to reality (Espuny, 1999). Unfortunately, in many cases, Spanish Faculties of Education have not yet managed to integrate situated practices since the early years of their initial training, and this ends in a crisis and academic failure in the education system. Along these lines, this paper presents the experiences of early observation of students in 3rd Grade in Physical Activity and Sports Science, in the subject of Programming and Curriculum Design in Physical Education Teaching in theUniversity ofAlicante (Spain). This is a mandatory subject of 6 credits, whose overall goal is to understand and apply the elements of the teaching and learning of Physical Education and Sport.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the views of students on the in situ observation of teaching and learning of the subject of Physical Education and if bringing students to the practice of this reality can help developing professional skills. This experience, which allowed them to test the knowledge acquired at the university, was a first approach students with the educational reality.

Our work is framed on the theory of situated learning (Daniels, 2003; Dewey, 1938; Lave & Wenger, 1991; Rogoff, 1993), which seeks to legitimize the mix of cognitive - individual with the situational context, integrating the subject as cognitively active in a socio-cultural environment, their needs and demands. His basic fundamentals argue that learning is a social experience that is located on both the experience of others, with shared resources and common social practices. Consequently, education should focus on authentic educational practices determined by the degree of cultural relevance of social activities and shared practices. Similarly, following the model of the experimental learning cycle developed by Kolb and Fry (1975), we point on the observation and reflection as one of the most important elements of experiential learning in higher education. Kolb maintains that any person having a certain experience generates a self-reflection that attempts to describe or theorize, to apply it to new situations. This theory, continued by Shön (1983) demonstrated, evidently, the importance of observation for reflection and for the generation of new knowledge. Based on these premises, we think the college education of future teachers of physical education should be focused on developing critical skills in real contexts, from the first moments of their initial training. We think that this early foray into teaching practice is a necessity and an opportunity to learn to know and understand (theoretical knowledge), know how to act (application of knowledge in certain situations) and to know how to be (integrated values ).

Coulter, C. A., & Smith, M. (2009). Discourse on narrative research. Educational Researcher, 38(8), 557-590. Daniels, H. (2003). Vigotsky y la pedagogía. España: Paidós. Dewey, J. (1938/1997). Experience and Education. NewYork: Simon and Schuster. Espuny, M. J. (1999). Ficha 5 Experiencias. Docencia de Calidad Seminario Permanente. Barcelona: Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona. Huber, G. L. (2012). AQUAD Seven. Manual for the Analysis of Qualitative Data.Tübingen: Ingeborg Huber Verlag. Kolb, D., & Fry, R. (1975). Toward an Applied Theory of Experiential Learning. Theories of Group Process. London: John Wiley Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated Learnig Legitimate Peripheral Participation. USA, Cambridge University Press. Liesa, M., Otal, P., & Julián, J. (2009). Valoración de los profesores y alumnos en relación al practicum en el Grado de Magisterio. En M. Rapaso, M. E. Martínez, L. Lodeiro, J. C. Fernández de la Iglesia and A. Pérez (Coords.), El practicum mas allá del empleo: Formación versus training (803-824). España: Universidad de Vigo. Rogoff, B. (1993). Aprendices del pensamiento. Barcelona, Paidós. Santoyo, M., & Arellano, J. (2009). Significación de un grupo de alumnos de Sociología sobre su aprendizaje de las competencias profesionales de su especialidad en un entorno real. Práctica de campo a Tlacotalpan, Veracruz. En M. Rapaso, M. E. Martínez, L. Lodeiro, J. C. Fernández de la Iglesia and A. Pérez (Coords.), El practicum más allá del empleo: Formación versus training (1131-1142). España: Universidad de Vigo. Schön, D. (1983). The reflective practitioner. How proffessional think in action. New York: Basic Books, Harper Colophon.