Teaching in a traditional school setting is usually conducted via the direct instruction pedagogical model (DIPM). Unfortunately, this model was confronted with significant criticism and did not remain a popular choice among researchers, because of its narrow focus on physical education (PE) as sports technique and its one-size-fits-all design that contributes significant gender stereotypes among students. In addition, DIPM does not enhance students' autonomous motivation and satisfaction in PE classes. As an alternative, the advent of second-generation "hybrid" models (Metzler, 2011) such as teaching games for understanding (TGfU) and sport education (SE), grounded in constructivist learning theory (Dyson et al., 2004), have profuse advantages over traditional DIPM. This article discusses a study by Gil-Arias et al. (2021) which capitalized on this interest by examining the effect of a basketball unit taught using either TGfU/SE or a direct instruction model on perceived autonomy support, needs satisfaction, motivation and adaptive outcomes. Specifically, their study sought to answer the question: Do second-generation pedagogical models (TGfU and SE) enhance autonomous motivation for both boys and girls?