Minas Gerais School Games (JEMG): Educational Sport or Competitive Sport?

Abstract

The Minas Olímpica/Minas Gerais School Games program (JEMG) is one of the main sport-educational public policies of the State Government of Minas Gerais. Given the historical tension between the program's declared educational purposes and its practical implementation, this study aimed to examine, from the perspective of participating teachers, the relationship between the practical actions of the JEMG and the educational sport policies formally proposed by the program, seeking to determine whether it functions, in practice, as educational sport or competitive sport. This descriptive, quantitative study used a non-probabilistic, intentional sample (a census of teachers present), comprising 51 physical education teachers from 35 municipalities in Minas Gerais who participated in the municipal, micro-regional, and regional stages of the 2012 JEMG. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire with 14 closed questions organized into thematic blocks (professional background, participation history, team-selection criteria, perceptions of the event's nature, and program intentionality), administered after signature of an informed consent form, and analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results showed that 94 % of teachers classified the JEMG as competitive sport and 90 % used athletic performance as the main criterion for team selection, revealing a mismatch between the program's educational discourse and its practical implementation. The findings reveal a significant gap between proposed public policies and their implementation, with athletic performance increasingly overshadowing educational objectives. To address this disparity and better evaluate the program's true intent and regional execution, periodic studies are strongly recommended across all state regions to effectively monitor ongoing practices.