Physical education in Tunisia: teachers' practical epistemology, students' positioning and gender issues

Figures & data

Table 1. Observed students

	Students designated by each teacher in relation to their attributed gymnastic skill level
Teachers	High-skilled female (FH)	Low-skilled female (Fl)	High-skilled male (MH)	Low-skilled male (Ml)
Mohamed	Ouissal	Sonia	Ilyes	Salim
Nada	Faten	Fatma	Amine	Sami
Riadh	Hana	Imen	Khaled	Hichem

Figure 1. Handstand stations

Table 2. Condensed matrix display of the 12 students' cases

Teacher	Student	Handstand attempts	Teacher student interactions	Teacher's privileging during interactions	Gender positioning when performing the handstand	Students' engagement within the Differential Didactic Contract
Mohamed setting	Ouissal FH	24	4	Acrobatic	Female gender positioning in all trials as she never experiments the acrobatic dimension of the handstand.	She engages in a didactic contract that limits her learning of the handstand to its aesthetic dimension.
	Sonia Fl	4	0	–	No gendered position activated due to a lack of supervision and a discrepancy between her actions and the teacher'sexpectations.	She never enters into the didactic contract due to her reluctance to engage in the learning process. For the teacher, she is a transparent student.
	Ilyes MH	24	5	Acrobatic	Male stereotyped gender positioning reinforced by teacher's comments during the joint action.	In line with the teacher's expectations, he fits in with the didactic contract but performs the handstand forward roll without body alignment and tightness.
	Salim Ml	26	4	Aesthetics	Male stereotyped gender positioning that prevents him improving.	He stays on the border of the didactic contract. Despite numerous attempts, he does not find support in teacher's interactions.
Nada setting	Faten FH	62	13	Aesthetics	Balanced gender positioning allowing her to improve in the two dimensions of the handstand.	She decodes the implicit dimensions of the didactic milieu beyond the aesthetic expectations privileged by the teacher.
	Fatma Fl	46	25	Aesthetics	Feminine gender positioning helping her to improve in performing a tight handstand with a perfect body position.	She is consistently engaged in the didactic contract; following teacher's expectations, she improves in the aesthetic dimension of the handstand.
	Amine MH	67	6	Aesthetics	Masculine gender positioning that evolved into a more balanced one during the lessons, thanks to the teacher's expectations	He is the only male student who cooperates with the teacher, enrolling himself in the didactic contract due to his high skill level.
	Samy Ml	36	6	Aesthetics	Masculine gender positioning that cannot fit the teacher's expectations in the handstand tasks.	As other male students, he progressively disengages himself, finally being out of the didactic contract.
Riadh setting	Hana FH	47	14	Acrobatic and aesthetic	Balanced gender positioning through her successive trials to perform a proper handstand in both dimensions.	She decodes the implicit demands of the two didactic milieus.
	Imen Fl	32	6	Aesthetics	No gendered position activated despite the learning environment and interactive context.	She enters sporadically in the didactic contract.
	Khaled MH	40	9	Acrobatic	From a male stereotyped gender positioning activated at the beginning of the unit to a balanced gender positioning at the end.	He decodes the demands of the didactic milieus and learns to perform a proper handstand in both dimensions despite having few interactions with the teacher.
	Hichem Ml	63	20	Acrobatic	Male stereotyped gender positioning systematically favouring acrobatic actions.	In line with the teacher's expectations, he benefits from the differential didactic contract.