Özet:
The purpose of this study is to determine the general characteristics of the physical education classes in early republican period in Turkey by examining the photos taken at schools in various cities in those times. The document analysis technique, which is one of the qualitative research methods, has been adopted in the study. The data of the study have been obtained from 37 physical education classes photographs, preserved in the Ministry of National Education, General Administration of Innovation and Education Archives, and which were taken between the years 1926 and 1927. The analyses of the photographs were made by using the four predetermined themes (the curricula of the classes, the clothes used in the classes, sports branches, and the instructors of the classes). When the data obtained with the analyses are examined, it has been determined that the curricula of the classes were characterized with the Gymnastics of Sweden and scout applications, which is in agreement with the soul of the period; the clothes were preferred as school uniforms and casual wear; the sports branches were preferred as cricket, tennis and basketball. The teachers are visible in 26 of the photographs (18 male teachers, 8 female teachers), and there are only the students in other photographs. As a consequence, it may be suggested that the physical education classes in the early years of the Republic in Turkey has -in the light of the photographs- a variety in the contents, the applications and the clothes; the participation of the students -rather than their sportive performances- is cared for; and the instructors are not specialized as the physical education teachers.
