The number of children educated within maintained Special Educational Needs (SEN) Schools, known as special schools, in England has continued to rise since 2006, yet the 'pupil voice' of children and young people with severe learning difficulties and those attending special schools remains limited in current research. Drawing on Gramsci's theory…

The purpose of this study was to privilege the views of both pupils and staff in one school's adoption of the Daily Mile Challenge (DMC). Listening seriously to the views of pupils, who are often the unheard subjects in whole school exercise interventions, the aim was to understand the meanings derived from the requirement to practice the DMC.…

In turning a spotlight on students in physical education, this paper seeks to extend applications of policy enactment theory, and particularly, the policy actor framework. Following the lead of Stephen Ball and colleagues, the research that this paper draws on examined the various dimensions of context shaping policy enactment in different…

New interdisciplinary approaches including fat studies, fat pedagogy, critical weight studies and critical health education have attempted to challenge forms of weight-based oppression associated with obesity discourse within education settings. Very little is known about young people's views of these alternative critical approaches. Theoretically…

Physical education (PE) in England, has historically been and is increasingly seen as a subject in which political agendas can and are being enacted (Penney, [2008]. Playing a political game and playing for position: Policy and curriculum development in health and PE. "European Physical Education Review" 4(1): 33-49) as health, sport and…

Young people's experiences of, and (dis)engagement with, physical education has received considerable attention in recent years. Yet one 'group', "care-experienced young people", remain 'hidden' within the prevailing literature. In light of their apparent invisibility within research, this novel, exploratory study seeks to gain some…

The potential benefits of physical education (PE) are universal for all pupils. However, facilitating such benefits in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) requires careful planning. This paper reports on a small-scale case study at one school in eastern England, exploring physical education through the eyes of children (n = 5), aged…

There is currently a distinct dearth of research into how sports students' career aspirations are formed during their post-compulsory education. This article, based on an ethnographic study of sport students in tertiary education, draws on data collected from two first-year cohorts (n = 34) on two different courses at a further education college…

A legacy emphasis was one of the fundamental pillars of the London 2012 Olympic Games. The notion of an Olympic legacy was predicated on assumptions that the event's value would not purely derive from the sporting spectacle, but rather from the "success" of enduring effects met out in London and across the country. For physical education…

Frequently an unquestioned belief is held in British schools in the value of "normalized" ability in physical education (PE). Consequently inclusion of disabled students can be problematic. Negative perceptions of disability are rarely challenged. This study investigated the embodied experiences of 49 non-disabled secondary school pupils…

Connections have been drawn between masculinity, muscularity and physical or social status in sport. Not only are sporting bodies often related to masculinity but also to whiteness, leading to the devaluing of Asian boys' bodies and sporting experiences. This paper draws on three British Asian teenage boys' visual and verbal narratives to enquire…

Despite reported increases in higher education (HE) sports coach education provision there are very few studies which have investigated student self-learning curricula as a mechanism to prepare sports coaches with the complexities of learning how to coach. Using an action research methodology, this article examines how case-method teaching (CMT)…

Research suggests that girls are disengaged in physical education due to the "traditional" way that it is taught, i.e. teacher-centred approaches with a primary focus on motor performance. In contrast, Cooperative Learning, a student-centred pedagogy focusing on learning in multiple domains, has had success in engaging girls in physical…

The growing incidence of withdrawal of Muslim girls from physical education prompted this study into tensions between religious freedom and educational practices. It was located in a city in the West Midlands of England. Data on experiences, issues, concerns and solutions related to participation of Muslim girls in physical education were…

This study reports on data from a larger-scale research project in one city in the West Midlands, England. The study was commissioned by the local education authority because of the rising incidence of parental withdrawal of Muslim girls from physical education. The aim was to provide evidence-based guidance to schools on improving the inclusion…