Mind-body Holism, Paradigm Shifts, and Education

In this essay, I examine claims made for the significance of mind-body holism. I look for thepromised earthquake-like impact of holism on sport pedagogy by reviewing concepts of special education,curriculum development, and assessment. By relying on holistic insights generated by Husserl, Merleau-Ponty, Polanyi, Sheets-Johnstone and others, I attempt to show how traditional pedagogies are turned, as itwere, upside down by holism. I discuss play handicaps, the reciprocal process of growing players andplaygrounds, and the need for ambiguous, meaning-inclusive play assessments. I conclude by underliningpedagogical ironies generated by an earthquake of holism that many have never experienced

Assessment of Colombo’s Education Argument

Recent proposals by John Colombo (2009) have important implications for athletic reform. He recommends using the tax code to effect changes in the way big-time athletic departments operate. One leg of his three-part proposal places an emphasis on the educational value of athletics. Specifically, Colombo identifies broad-based athletic participation as one condition for meeting the letter and spirit of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. In this essay, I analyze the two key components of this proposal—the requirements of participation and the nature of educational value. I review current athletic policies and practices and then speculate on changes that might be needed if Colombo’s proposal were adopted

Ontological Possibilties: Sport as Play

It is often thought that sport is highly incompatible with play, since the competitiveness of sport requires a degree of seriousness and commitment that are at odds with the freedom of play. However, this paper will argue that the competitive fullness of sport is compatible with play, even if not perfectly coextensive with it