Why do we need a project like I-PLAY at all? Traditional games are well loved, so surely they are already part of schools and youth programmes? In April 2026 the I-PLAY partners tested that assumption. Each partner analysed the situation in its own country, and Stowarzyszenie SEDA merged the findings into a transnational State of the Art (SoA) report. The answer was clear – and it shapes everything in this course.

01The common pattern: valued, but not integrated

Despite very different traditions and institutions, Poland, Spain and Türkiye share the same pattern: traditional sports and games are strongly present in cultural life, but not integrated into education systems, inclusion strategies or digital environments. The problem is not a lack of cultural awareness. It is the absence of structures that put these games to work.

02Three countries, three starting points

Across all three countries, the report highlights the same structural gaps: no curriculum-level integration, no structured or accredited training pathways for educators, and weak links between education, sport and cultural heritage policy.

03Unequal participation

Participation in sport is uneven in all three countries. Women and girls, people with disabilities, migrants and refugees, and disadvantaged young people face recurring barriers: cost, access to facilities, lack of adapted programmes, social and cultural norms, and limited capacity of organisations to deliver inclusive activities.

The data show the gender gap in all three countries. In Spain, the PASOS 2022 study (Gasol Foundation) found that 70.1% of girls aged 8–16 do not meet WHO physical activity guidelines, compared with 56.1% of boys. Among young adults, the Youth in Spain Report 2024 found that 43% of young women aged 15–34 do little or no sport, compared with 24% of young men. In Poland, the HBSC 2021/22 survey (WHO Regional Office for Europe) found that only 16% of girls aged 11–15 are active for at least 60 minutes every day, compared with 24% of boys. In Türkiye, WHO estimates for 2022 show that 53.4% of women are insufficiently active, compared with 35.2% of men.

04Health and screen time

All three countries face low levels of physical activity. In Spain, PASOS 2022 found that only 36.7% of 8–16-year-olds meet WHO activity guidelines, with an average of 294 minutes of screen time per day. In Poland, HBSC 2021/22 found that only 20% of 11–15-year-olds are active for at least 60 minutes every day, and the 2022 Eurobarometer found that 65% of adults never exercise or play sport, against an EU average of 45%. In Türkiye, WHO estimates that 44.4% of adults were insufficiently active in 2022, and TÜİK’s Türkiye Child Survey 2022 found that the most common sport among 4–17-year-olds – football for boys, walking or running for girls – is practised by only about one child in seven. These figures come from different surveys and age groups, so they cannot be compared directly, but they point in the same direction. The SoA links physical activity with better psychological well-being, less stress and anxiety and stronger social connection – yet sport is rarely used as a structured tool for youth mental health.

05The digital gap

Traditional games are still passed on mainly by word of mouth. Dedicated digital tools are virtually non-existent in Poland, mostly informational in Spain and fragmented in Türkiye. None of the countries has a complete digital learning ecosystem for traditional games, and accessibility standards such as WCAG 2.1 are not systematically applied. This creates a double risk: knowledge is lost because it is not documented, and people with disabilities are excluded because formats are not accessible.

06What this means for I-PLAY – and for you

The SoA concludes that I-PLAY works in a field with clear, unmet needs. Very few existing initiatives combine traditional games, social inclusion, a structured educational approach and digital accessibility. I-PLAY responds with exactly that combination: a shared training curriculum, an inclusion-focused approach, an accessible digital toolkit and cooperation across three countries.

For you as an educator, the message is encouraging: you are not starting from zero. The games exist, people remember them, and many communities value them. What has been missing is the bridge between that heritage and everyday educational practice. This course is designed to help you build that bridge.