Sport Education and Society 

About: Sport Education and Society is an academic journal published by Taylor & Francis. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Physical education & Curriculum. It has an ISSN identifier of 1357-3322. Over the lifetime, 1217 publications have been published receiving 37383 citations.

Stepping into Active Leisure? Young Women's Perceptions of Active Lifestyles and their Experiences of School Physical Education

Abstract: This paper reports the findings of a qualitative study which aimed to explore young women's perceptions of and attitudes towards involvement in physical activity and physical education (PE). Drawing on group and individual qualitative interviews with 21 15-year-old young women, it explores the nature, purpose and experiences of their physical activity involvement, both in and out of school. It examines how, in both settings, young women make conscious choices about their physical activity involvement. The data showed that although there were qualitative differences between the individual choices of different girls, many of these were made within a negotiation of gender relations. Contrary to much of the recent concern about girls' 'dropout' from physical activity and a perceived disinterest of young women in physical activity and sport, the young women in this study were involved in a range of physical activities outside of school and defined themselves as active. They also appeared to be positively influ...

Constructing expert knowledge: A case study of a top-level professional soccer coach

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to provide an in-depth understanding of some of the ways in which one elite soccer coach has constructed, and continues to construct, his professional knowledge. By adopting a life-story approach the paper problematises the predominant rationality of much existing coaching research and questions the role of coach education programmes in the development of coaching knowledge. To accomplish this, the paper focuses on the life events of Steve Harrison, a 48-year-old professional soccer coach who currently works at Middlesborough Football Club. Specifically, it illustrates some of the dimensions of the dynamic social construction of coaching knowledge in a highly challenging, competitive environment. The paper is organised into three sections. In the first section, a rationale for a focus on coaches' knowledge is followed by a brief overview of the life-story method as used in this study. Second, Steve's story is presented, drawing upon excerpts from field-notes, interview transcr...

Creating a Culturally Relevant Curriculum for Disengaged Girls

Abstract: Findings from physical education research conducted over the last two decades suggest that girls' experiences in and perceptions of physical education in many team sport-based programs are less than satisfactory. Team sports taught within a traditional multi-activity format often permit dominant aggressive male players to control the game, marginalizing and alienating low-skilled girls and boys. This paper critiques the circumstances often found in sport based physical education and reports the use of an innovative approach to team-sport curriculum entitled, 'Sport for Peace', to enhance girls' levels of engagement and satisfaction in urban high school physical education. In this research, seven teachers and 15 girls were involved in the curriculum innovation in three urban high schools. Teachers trained and mentored using the curriculum implemented the program in two classes in each school. The implementation process was described using observation protocols and the teachers and girls were interviewed formally at the conclusion of the observation period. Data were analysed using constant comparison. Findings suggested that the Sport for Peace curriculum improved the sport environment for girls by enhancing their perceptions of success, promoting ownership of the sport content and the class processes, creating authentic cooperative environments for boys and girls, and encouraging the use of second chances to promote understanding and learning. Boys' attitudes towards girls' ability and motivation became more positive and girls indicated that they enjoyed participating with boys in these sport programs. The findings were analysed within Ladson-Billings' conceptualization of culturally responsive pedagogy.

'It's All About Getting Respect': The Coaching Behaviors of an Expert English Soccer Coach

Abstract: In light of the paucity of research addressing the critical concerns of social interaction at the micro level of the coaching process, this study aimed to generate an in-depth understanding of the coaching behaviours utilized by a top-level English football coach. A mixed-method approach was used to not only identify the pedagogical behaviours used by the subject in the practice environment, but to also generate an in-depth insight into the rationales that underpinned their use. Using the concepts of 'social role', 'power' and 'the presentation of the self' [E. Goffman (1959) The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life (Garden City, Doubleday)] to analyse the data, it is suggested that the subject's coaching practice was influenced by his perceived need to establish a strong social bond between himself and his players; a bond founded on the players' respect for his professional knowledge and personal manner.

Another bad day at the training ground: Coping with ambiguity in the coaching context

Abstract: The purposes of this paper are twofold. First, we argue that the rationalistic assumptions on which dominant conceptions of the coaching process rest are rather unrealistic. We therefore hold that they have relatively limited potential either for a theoretical understanding of coaching or for guiding practitioners. Second, we tentatively offer the alternative metaphor of ‘orchestration’, derived from research on the management of complex change, as one starting point for developing a more realistic conception of coaching. We assert that this way of thinking about coaching has greater potential as a basis for future research and theorising, with the longer-term aim of informing efforts to improve the practice of coaching and of coach education.