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Abstract

International research on students’ meaningful experiences in physical education (PE) has led to the proposal of the Meaningful PE approach, aiming to guide pedagogical principles to support students’ meaningful experiences in PE. The approach currently includes democratic and reflective pedagogical principles. With this paper, we aim to contribute to the Meaningful PE approach by emphasizing the need to address a third pedagogical principle that attends to pre-reflective bodily dimensions of students’ meaningful experiences in PE. The democratic and reflective pedagogical principles are based on a reflective interpretation of the significance an experience holds. While this approach is highly valuable, the retrospective nature of these principles may unintentionally overlook significant pre-reflective bodily dimensions of experience. Drawing on a phenomenological concept of embodiment, we use key structures of our pre-reflective bodily engagement with the world to analyse features that young people describe as significantly contributing to their meaningful experiences in PE and youth sport: social interaction, challenge, motor competence, fun, and personally relevant learning. Our analysis reveals that pre-reflective bodily meaningful experiences emerge as something in-between the subject and the world. These experiences can be affected by others in body-to-body encounters and contain a dimension of negativity related to the pre-reflective, relational, and active–passive structure of our lived experience. Based on our analysis, we propose that teaching to support meaningful experiences in PE must address the dialectical interplay between reflective and pre-reflective dimensions. Therefore, we advocate for adding an embodied pedagogical principle to the Meaningful PE approach alongside the reflective and democratic principles.

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Since the 1960s environmental problems have increasingly been on the agenda in Western countries. Global warming and climate change have increased concerns among scientists, politicians and the general population. While both elite sport and mass sport are part of the consumer culture that leads to ecological problems, sport philosophers, with few exceptions, have not discussed what an ecologically acceptable sport would look like. My goal in this article is to present a radical model of ecological sport based on Arne Naess’s version of deep ecology called ecosophyT. After outlining the Naessian ecocentric view of biospheric egalitarianism I present the consequences for sport and physical activities. I also give examples from Arne Naess’s own practice of sport which was guided by the principle ‘Richness in ends, simplicity in means!’ I discuss whether Naessian deep ecological sport is what we will all end up with after the ecocatastrophe or whether it can be an inspiring ideal for many of us right now.
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he radical viewpoint of phenomenology is presented by T 3 Edmund Husser! in his Ideas. This viewpoint seems quite simple at first, but becomes exceedingly complex and involves intricate distinctions when attempts are made to apply it to actual problems. Therefore, it may be well to attempt a short statement of this position in order to note the general problems with which it is dealing as well as the method of solution which it proposes. I shall emphasize the elements of phenomenology which seem most relevant to E. Stein's work. Husser! deals with two traditional philosophical questions, and in answering them, develops the method of phenomenological reduction which he maintains is the basis of all science. These questions are, "What is it that can be known without doubt?" and "How is this knowledge possible in the most general sense?" In the tradition of idealism he takes consciousness as the area to be investigated. He posits nothing about the natural world. He puts it in "brackets," as a portion of an algebraic formula is put in brackets, and makes no use of the material within these brackets. This does not mean that the "real" wor!d does not exist, he says emphatically; it only means that this existence is a presupposition must be suspended to achieve pure description.
Article
The purpose of this research is to review the literature about young people’s meaningful experiences in physical education and youth sport. We reviewed 50 empirical peer-reviewed articles published in English since 1987. Five themes were identified as central influences to young people’s meaningful experiences in physical education and sport: social interaction, fun, challenge, motor competence, and personally relevant learning. These themes provide future direction for the design and implementation of meaningful physical education and youth sport experiences. We also highlight the need for the development of pedagogies that facilitate and promote meaningful engagement in physical education and youth sport settings.
Article
One of the greatest challenges we face in kinesiology is changing behavior--specifically, converting habitually sedentary individuals into active human beings. This task is not an easy one. Thus, when we adopt Easy Street strategies that focus on introducing, informing, and entertaining, we have very little hope of effecting such conversions. Easy Street thinking, I claim, rests on a neglect of our biological roots as embodied creatures who grow both muscles and new lifestyles slowly in the face of some kind of persistent test.
The Reflective Body - Phenomenological and Pedagogical Thoughts on Learning and Embodiment. Keynote at the 4th International Phenomenology and Pedagogy Conference “Circumstance of Phenomenology and Pedagogy: Self-consciousness and Reflection
  • M Brinkmann
Brinkmann M (2018) The Reflective Body -Phenomenological and Pedagogical Thoughts on Learning and Embodiment. Keynote at the 4th International Phenomenology and Pedagogy Conference "Circumstance of Phenomenology and Pedagogy: Self-consciousness and Reflection", 10 October 2018, Capital Normal University (CNU), Beijing, China.
Meaning in Movement, Sport and Physical Education
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Arnold PJ (1979) Meaning in Movement, Sport and Physical Education (1st ed.). London: Heinemann Educational Books Ltd.
Teachers' Experiences of Implementing a Pedagogical Approach for Meaningful Physical Education
  • S Beni
Beni S (2021) Teachers' Experiences of Implementing a Pedagogical Approach for Meaningful Physical Education. Canada: Brock University.
  • T Fuchs
Fuchs T (2016) Intercorporality and interaffectivity. Phenomenology and Mind 11: 194-209.
Being and Time (trans
  • M Heidegger
Heidegger M (1962) Being and Time (trans. Macquarrie J, ed. Robinson E). New York: Harper Perennial Modern Classics.
Mind-body holism, paradigm shifts, and education
  • S Kretchmar
Kretchmar S (2013) Mind-body holism, paradigm shifts, and education. Fair Play 1: 28-43.
Movement and Meaning
  • E Metheny
Metheny E (1968) Movement and Meaning. Pennsylvania, USA: McGraw-Hill.
You Must Change Your Life
  • P Sloterdijk
Sloterdijk P (2013) You Must Change Your Life. Cambridge: Polity Press.