‘Of course I ask the best students to demonstrate’:digital normalizing practices in physical education

In this paper, we focus on the use of digital video technology for instruction in physical education (PE). Physical educators can produce PE instruction videos (PIVs) as educational resources and often use them to enable independent learning situations. Little research has focused on the criteria teachers use to select students for demonstration in such video practices, while such selections may impact the constructions of (un) desirable bodies in PE. The purpose of this study therefore was to uncover discourses that guide teachers in their selection of students to demonstrate in instructional videos and to discuss the possible consequences these selections may have for the privileging and marginalizing of certain students. We recruited six physical educators who participated in a network of early adopters for ICT in PE and we used their own PIV's as instruments for individual stimulated recall interviews. We subsequently discussed issues raised in these interviews with four focus-groups. We analyzed the data inductively by using open, focused and selective coding, looking for themes in the explanations the teachers used about their selection of students. The results suggest that the selection of students to demonstrate was based on a degree of perceived competence to perform well in the video and a degree of perceived resilience to cope with public scrutiny of their bodies. The teachers constructed hierarchies of desirable bodies that were embedded in intersecting discourses of ability, gender and ethnicity. This resulted in the selection of students who primarily embodied practices associated with white, able-bodied masculinities while other bodies were made invisible. We reflect on how these discursive practices may privilege and marginalize certain students and the possible consequences of this and of the use of students in such videos in general

Football and the media construction of Iranian national identity during the FIFA World Cup 2018 and AFC Asian Cup 2019

Elite sport success in international tournaments is supposed to play an important role in shaping national identity. In this article, we explore if and how this applies to the Iranian context. The current study made use of a Google alert with the title of ‘Iran Men’s National Football Team’, and a general content analysis of Iranian national and sport media. The analytic focus was on media coverage of the Iranian national football team at the 2018 FIFA World Cup and the 2019 AFC Asian Cup. All relevant newspaper articles before, during, and after Iran’s matches were reviewed, coded, and analysed. We developed four main themes in the coverage expressing Iranian identity in the context of the aforesaid football events: ‘united passion’, ‘determined and conscientious’, ‘oppressed but great’, and ‘emotion-ridden’. It was concluded that political and historical references used by Iranian media contribute to the invention and reproduction of Iranian national identity through the aforementioned sporting tournaments

Physical literacy:bouwstenen voor een leven lang bewegen van jong tot oud

Hoe mooi zou het zijn als iedereen motorisch vaardig is, een positieve houding heeft ten opzichte van sport en bewegen, kennis heeft over het belang van sport en bewegen en in staat is om een krachtige beweegomgeving voor zichzelf en anderen te creëren. Zou het niet fantastisch zijn als deze grondhouding, kennis en motorische vaardigheden ertoe bijdragen dat alle mensen een leven lang deelnemen aan sport- en beweegsituaties? Dat is wat wij nastreven. Vanuit de gedachte: groot denken, maar klein beginnen, is in mei 2017 een enthousiaste groep mensen met uiteenlopende expertise - de ‘kwartiermakersgroep Physical Literacy’ – gestart met een verkenning naar de meerwaarde van het begrip ‘Physical Literacy’ voor de Nederlandse sport- en beweegpraktijk. In dit whitepaper schetsen we de noodzaak van een aangescherpte koers in het stimuleren van sport en bewegen en geven we aan hoe Physical Literacy kan bijdragen aan deze nieuwe koers

Enhancing disabilities: transhumanism under the veil of inclusion?

Technological developments for disabled athletes may facilitate their competition in standard elite sports. They raise intriguing philosophical questions that challenge dominant notions of body and normality. The case of 'bladerunner' Oscar Pistorius in particular is used to illustrate and defend 'transhumanist' ideologies that promote the use of technology to extend human capabilities. Some argue that new technologies will undermine the sharp contrast between the athlete as a cultural hero and icon and the disabled person that needs extra attention or care; the one exemplary of the peak of normality, human functioning at its best, the other representing a way of coping with the opposite. Do current ways of classification do justice to the performances of disabled athletes? The case of Oscar Pistorius will be used to further illustrate the complexities of these questions, in particular when related to notions of normality and extraordinary performances. Pistorius' desire to become part of 'normal' elite sport may be interpreted as an expression of a right to 'inclusion' or 'integration', but at the same time it reproduces new inequalities and asymmetries between performances of able and dis-abled athletes: we propose that if one accepts that Pistorius should compete in the 'regular' Olympic Games, this would paradoxically underline the differences between able and disabled and it would reproduce the current order and hierarchy between able and disabled bodies. © 2010 Informa UK, Ltd

Physical literacy in Europe: The current state of implementation in research, practice, and policy

Background/objective The holistic concept of physical literacy (PL) embraces different person-centered qualities (physical, cognitive, affective/psychological) necessary to lead physically active lifestyles. PL has recently gained increasing attention globally and Europe is no exception. However, scientific endeavors summarizing the current state of PL in Europe are lacking. Therefore, the goal of this study was to comprehensively assess and compare the implementation of PL in research, policy, and practice across the continent. Methods We assembled a panel of experts representing 25 European countries. Employing a complementary mixed-methods design, the experts first prepared reviews about the current state of PL in their countries (categories: research, practice/policy). The reviews underwent comparative document analysis, ensuring a transnational four-eyes principle. For re-validation purposes, the representatives completed a quantitative survey with questions reflecting the inductive themes from the document analysis. Results The document analysis resulted in ten disjunct themes (related to “concept”, “research”, “practice/policy”, “future/prospect”) and yielded a heterogenous PL situation in Europe. The implementation state was strongly linked to conceptual discussions (e.g., existence of competing approaches), linguistic issues (e.g., translations), and country-specific traditions. Despite growing scholarly attention, PL hesitantly permeates practice and policy in most countries. Nevertheless, the experts largely anticipate increasing popularity of PL for the future. Conclusion Despite the heterogeneous situation across Europe, the analysis has uncovered similarities among the countries, such as the presence of established yet not identical concepts. Research should intensify academic activities (conceptual-linguistic elaborations, empirical work) before PL may gain further access into practical and political spheres in the long term

How to Influence National Pride? The Olympic Medal Index as a Unifying Narrative

Elite sport is often regarded as one of the main vehicles for articulating national pride and stimulating national cohesion. In this article, we explore a variety of different notions of pride and nationality as related to success in elite sport. We present the results of a public survey, which measured some of the effects on national pride in the Netherlands, related to the men's European Football Championships, the Tour de France, Wimbledon and the Olympic Games in Beijing (all in the summer of 2008). The results suggest that a sense of belonging is a necessary condition that precedes rather than results from sport-related pride. This supports the notion of national pride being a rather stable characteristic of countries, notwithstanding specific situations (such as sport success) that may lead to minor and temporary fluctuations. There seems to be no empirical evidence for the - primarily quantitatively understood - concept of pride (as a 'bucket-notion'), which is often implicit to the political rhetoric used to increase sport funding with the aim of winning more medals to generate an increase in national pride. © The Author(s) 2010

Sport & bewegen als primaire levensbehoeften

In een tijd waarin basale menselijke behoeften (zoals direct contact, afleiding en vermaak in groepsverband, gezamenlijk sporten) op de proef zijn gesteld, is des te duidelijker geworden waaruit dat gemis bestaat. Verschillende sectoren die geraakt zijn door de Corona maatregelen kozen hun eigen woorden om het belang te benadrukken van het opheffen van de restricties. Dat geldt ook voor de sport. In mei was in een landelijke oproep om de sportscholen weer te openen op een paginagrote advertentie te lezen: We willen: minder stress. Meer weerstand. Minder kilo’s. Meer bewegen. Minder eenzaamheid. Meer verbinden. Minder zorgen. Meer gezondheid. De boodschap was dat Nederland sportscholen nodig heeft om gezond en fit te blijven. Dat was een heldere boodschap, waarin vooral ook het instrumentele karakter van bewegen en sport werd benadrukt. Hoewel begrijpelijk in tijden van crisis, waarin uiteenlopende belangen scherp moeten worden gewogen, was hier ook sprake van een beperkte duiding van de waarde die sport kan hebben