Regulated physical education – a well-working solution, but still outsiders: a qualitative study of Norwegian high-school students’ experiences

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study was to explore students’ experiences with regulated physical education (RPE) as a placement option for PE classes. Four students from two high schools participated in in-depth interviews. The data were analyzed in accordance with Ricoeur’s interpretation theory and informed by micro-sociology and phenomenology. The main themes were related to bad memories and lack of self-confidence and mastery in PE and to the importance of involvement and mastery in RPE. The findings reveal a wide range of experiences with both placement options, from disliking and feeling stigmatized in PE to experiencing success and inclusion in RPE. In the discussion, we deepen our understanding of what it means to be negatively exposed and to have feelings of marginalization in PE. We suggest that to facilitate children to grow and learn in Norwegian PE, a re-thinking in order to create meaningful PE classes for all is needed.

KEYWORDS:

• Physical education
• students’ experiences
• narrative methodology
• phenomenology of the body
• stigma

Acknowledgements

We thank the schools that contributed to the study and the students who shared their experiences and thoughts with us.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Norwegian Research Council (259982/H40).