Annette Stride

In September 2018, Alba Palacios made history as the first transgender woman officially registered to play in the Spanish women’s football league. Her entry into the game has been received largely ...

There is substantial international literature on single- and mixed-sex grouping in physical education (PE), much of which focuses on the relative impact on students’ physical activity levels, perceived self-confidence and/or interactions with teachers and peers. A smaller body of research has explored students’ perspectives on single- and/or mixed-sex grouping in PE. However, much of this research is dated, limited in scope to a relatively small number of students from a small number of schools and/or dominated by binary thinking, with little recognition that students may express preferences for a combination of grouping approaches. This study was designed to extend previous research by generating large-scale data relating to cisgender students’ preferences for single-sex grouping, mixed-sex grouping or a combination of these approaches in secondary school PE. The study used an online survey to generate data from 2073 boys and 2161 girls ( n = 4234) from 47 co-educational secondary schools located throughout England. Analysis of responses revealed that, overall, most boys and girls preferred single- (52.7%, n = 2231) to mixed-sex grouping (23.1%, n = 979) or combined arrangements in PE (24.2%, n = 1024). Further exploration of preferences showed variations by demographic and situational factors, including gender, ability, cultural background, familiarity with a particular approach and/or the nature of the learning situation. Discussion pursues the potential benefits and challenges that schools may face in adopting flexible, situation-specific, gendered grouping practices in PE. The paper affirms the importance of student voice in decisions that powerfully shape learning opportunities and experiences and in potentially assisting in advancing gender equity in PE.

This scoping review brings together, for the first time, research spanning five decades focusing on Muslim students’ experiences of physical education (PE). In taking stock of this work, it advances knowledge by mapping how understandings of the relationship between religion and PE have developed, whilst identifying new avenues of inquiry. Therefore, this scoping review is a useful resource for pedagogues and other stakeholders to reflect on current PE policy and practice to ensure they are best serving their Muslim students’ needs. Two questions are addressed: ‘How has research developed understandings regarding Muslim students’ experiences of PE?’ and ‘What lessons can be learnt to support more inclusive experiences for Muslim students?’ A six-stage methodological approach was utilised: (1) identifying research question(s); (2) searching for studies; (3) selection; (4) charting data; (5) summarising results; and (6) expert consultation. A systematic literature search using key words (Islam, Muslim, Physical Education) identified 141 outputs. Using inclusion/exclusion criteria, 47 remained. The findings offer (a) a summary of the characteristics of the work reviewed, including growth of the field, research location, contexts, participants and methodological issues, and (b) a critical commentary, identifying a preoccupation with particular identities, the significance of acknowledging heterogeneity, and the problematic positioning of Muslim students. The paper concludes with some future research recommendations, including the need for research exploring Muslim boys' and young men's experiences, adopting alternative theoretical approaches, exploring different contexts and re-orientating how research is undertaken ‘with’ young people.

In recent years, Physical Education (PE) has seen a growth in the commitment to youth voice research. This approach foregrounds the practice of researching with young people, rather than conducting research on or about them. Whilst we are cognisant of the many possibilities youth voice research offers, we are also concerned that there is a tendency to overlook the challenges of supporting youth voice activities. This paper draws on our collective reflections to bring to the fore some of the complexities we have encountered when attempting to engage in school-based youth voice research. We explore the following questions: How can youth voice research engage with different young people to capture a diversity of voices? What are the challenges of undertaking youth voice research? What are the possibilities of change through youth voice research? We consider these questions by drawing upon four principles of student voice work including communication as dialogue, participation and democratic inclusivity, unequal power relations, and change and transformation. We use these principles to critique our own research and, in doing so, draw on entries from our research diaries. The paper questions whether young people need help to share their insights and experiences about PE, or whether it is us - researchers, teachers and schools - who need help to more readily recognize and be attentive to young people's voices. We also point to the importance of recognizing modest change through youth voice research and the need to secure adult allies to support activities and potential outcomes. Engaging in youth voice research is an immersive and messy encounter that involves navigating a journey that is anything but straightforward. Even though this is the case, our moral and ethical compass continues to point us in this direction and we remain firm advocates of youth voice work. This paper offers a starting point for others to begin to grapple with the pitfalls and possibilities when supporting youth voice research.

Transgender inclusion has become a prominent issue on the agendas of policy makers in education and sport in recent years. Despite this, teachers face continued challenges in providing inclusive experiences for transgender young people. This is particularly apparent in PE, which is a unique subject in its potential to perpetuate gender norms. There is a growing body of literature exploring LGBTQ+ issues in PE. However, there is a need to consider how trans* young people’s experiences may differ from their LGB counterparts. A small number of existing studies offer insight into the experiences of trans* youth in PE. However, comparatively little is known about the challenges faced by PE teachers in providing inclusive PE experiences for trans* young people. This paper presents a creative non-fiction monologue that reflects findings from seven interviews with secondary school PE teachers about their experiences of working with trans* young people. We draw on a ‘feminist-queer’ theoretical approach to examine the potential for PE pedagogies to reproduce, disrupt and transform binary gender discourse. Findings present three key themes: (1) teachers’ knowledge and understanding of trans* identities in PE; (2) trans* challenges to PE practice; and (3) moving towards trans*-inclusive PE. We conclude by arguing that the benefits of trans*-inclusive approaches to PE are far-reaching, and extend to all young people.

This paper focuses on part of a research project that considers women’s sports volunteering experiences. Specifically, we draw on interview data with four women boxing volunteers. Research focusing on boxing and gender has largely been preoccupied with the politics of women’s inclusion in competitive boxing, media coverage, and women boxers’ gendered identities. Less attention is given to women who volunteer within boxing clubs. Theoretically we use feminist-queer thinking, which challenges structural constraints whilst incorporating post-structural and queer deconstructive approaches towards understanding the gendered body. To re-present the women’s accounts we offer a story, ‘The boxing gym: A women’s volunteering story’, and discuss three themes: women as an exception in boxing; women having to prove themselves; and women’s sense of belonging within their boxing community. Our closing remarks highlight the precarious position of women volunteers in boxing and reiterate their role as pivotal constituents in sustaining the future of boxing communities.

Scraton’s [1992. Shaping up to womanhood: Gender and girls’ physical education. Open University Press] ground breaking research highlighted how Physical Education (PE) contributed to the reproduction of gender power relations; more specifically, how three messages around motherhood, sexuality and physicality, reflected through PE’s structures, activities and delivery, contributed to young women’s sense of self. Twenty five years on, this paper explores how contemporary PE reproduces and challenges gender power relations in four English secondary schools. Data were generated from eighty hours of observations of PE lessons, and eight semi-structured interviews with PE teachers. Guided by Hill Collins’ [2000. Black feminist thought: Knowledge, consciousness, and the politics of empowerment. Routledge] four domains (structural, disciplinary, hegemonic, interpersonal) underpinning the matrix of domination the findings demonstrate that gender remains a visible organising feature in the structural arrangements of PE. Moreover, teachers’ gendered beliefs and assumptions circulating within the hegemonic domain, and actions in the disciplinary domain, ensure that students embody their gender in appropriate ways. Furthermore, a consistency of practice was evident in teachers’ pedagogy despite differences in the schools’ cohorts. Similar blocks of teaching activities and a performance-based pedagogy failed to include difference. We suggest this is unsurprising and unlikely to change with the current National Curriculum promoting a performative, PE as sport discourse, and teacher training not conducive to developing teachers who can engage with difference and challenge inequalities. As such, PE continues to reinforce gender power relations and gender differences. By drawing upon the matrix, the need for change to occur at different levels and contexts is identified. To this end, teacher training must do better in developing the next generation of teachers who are willing and able to critique the status quo and work with girls to advocate for change. Relatedly, we draw attention to what can be achieved when power is shared through a democratic pedagogy that values girls’ voices and recognises them as co-collaborators in curriculum design.