Symeon Dagkas

Young Muslim Women's Experiences of Islam and Physical Education in Greece and Britain: A Comparative Study.

Previous research suggests that Muslim women can experience particular problems when taking physical education (PE) lessons, for example with dress codes, mixed-teaching and exercise during Ramadan; and they can face restrictions in extra-curricular activities for cultural and religious reasons. The area is under-researched and there is little evidence of comparative studies that explore similarities and differences in cross-national experiences, which is the aim of this paper. Two studies conducted in Greece and Britain that explored the views of Muslim women on school experiences of physical education are compared. Both studies focused on diaspora communities, Greek Turkish girls and British Asian women, living in predominantly non-Muslim countries. Growing concerns about global divisions between ‘Muslims and the West’ make this a particularly pertinent study. Qualitative data were collected by interviews with 24 Greek Muslim women, and 20 British Muslim women. Physical education has national curriculum status and a similar rationale in both countries but with different cultures of formality and tradition, which impacted on pupils’ experiences. Data suggested that Greek and British groups held positive views towards physical education but were restricted on their participation in extra-curricular activities. For the British women religious identity and consciousness of Islamic requirements were more evident than for the Greek women. Differences in stages of acculturation, historical and socio-cultural contexts contributed to less problematic encounters with physical education for Greek Muslims who appeared more closely assimilated into the dominant culture.

Multiple voices: improving participation of Muslim girls in physical education and school sport

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 of Muslim girls in physical education and school sport. In-depth interviews in eight case study schools provided a thick description of the lived realities for 19 head teachers and teachers, 109 young people and 32 of their parents. Four additional focus group interviews were held with 36 Muslim young people in community/supplementary schools. Questionnaires were sent to 402 city schools and 12 supplementary schools (50 of which were returned). Methods focused on capturing views on experiences and concerns regarding the inclusion of Muslim girls in physical education. Content analysis and inductive and deductive analyses of data procedures were used. Responses indicated a diversity of positive and negative experiences across the community, with the majority of young people enjoying their school-based physical education lessons. Parental influences were strong across the age phases. Body and religious consciousness increased during adolescence. Common concerns centred on the need to improve recognition of religious requirements in schooling processes, policies and practices to provide inclusive learning environments for some Muslim young people. Problems such as poor communication, inflexible dress codes—particularly concerning wearing of the hijab (headscarf)—gender organisation and use of public swimming pools were identified. Patterns of good practice also emerged from across schools. Flexibility of approach, shared decision-making and situation-specific policies were most successful for supporting the inclusion of Muslim girls in physical education and school sport. Findings informed policy-orientated guidance for city schools.

Children's engagement in leisure time physical activity: exploring family structure as a determinant

This paper draws on Bourdieus key concepts in an effort to understand particular social practices and the effect of family as a social environment and determinant for participation in leisure time physical activity. As an exploratory study, the aim was to elicit childrens subjective views of their engagement in leisure time physical activity settings. Adopting an interpretive perspective, six 11‐ to 14‐year‐old children from intact couple families and single parent families were interviewed in small groups, exploring lived experiences of their participation in physical activity in relation to their family structure. The study suggests that family structure plays a vital role in helping to shape childrens dispositions towards physical activity. All children were subject to the transmission of parental beliefs and values towards physical activity though this was further reinforced in intact couple families through joint participation. Moreover, children from single parent families were seen to exhibit more sedentary dispositions that reflected the environment in which they reside. We argue that childrens individual habitus, as bearing the experiences of their familial backgrounds, provided them with certain desires to participate in physical activity which are mediated by their family circumstance. The study suggests that family structure is becoming a more prominent issue within society, and thus, childrens leisure activity from this perspective requires further research that explores this phenomenon in greater detail.

Incompatible? Compulsory Mixed-Sex Physical Education Initial Teacher Training (PEITT) and the Inclusion of Muslim Women: A Case-Study on Seeking Solutions.

This article addresses the tensions between Islamic requirements and state provision in physical education initial teacher training (PEITT). Physical education has a firm place in teacher training in England because of its status as a National Curriculum foundation subject which guarantees entitlement for all children. The recruitment and retention of ethnic minority teachers have been a national concern for many years and yet remain an under-researched area. Rising numbers of young Muslims, the majority of whom are of South Asian heritage, led to initiatives for attracting more trainees from this group into higher education. In England, the century-old provision of single-sex specialist physical education secondary training (for 11-18-year-olds) finally disappeared by the mid-1980s. Primary PEITT (for 5-11-year-olds) has traditionally been organized in mixed-sex groups. Therefore the current higher education training system for intending teachers provides only compulsory mixed-sex provision in PEITT at every level. The authors argue that the current situation excludes Muslim women who wish to enter the teaching profession and adhere to Islamic requirements. They recount a case study in one university that tracks policy development to make single-sex physical education available to Muslim women on a tradition ally mixed-sex primary course.

Revitalizing the physical education social-justice agenda in the global era: where do we go from here?

ABSTRACT Critical theorists have called attention to the intensification of diversity that is now occurring inside and outside of school, while critically engaging with the detrimental effects of globalization on equity, diversity, and social justice. Globalization presents new challenges to education and to issues of social justice. In this article, we argue that there is a need for scholars in the field of physical education to re-think and re-frame the social-justice agenda to address current inequalities produced by globalization. To support this argument, we first reflect on the impact of global neoliberalism on physical education; second, we discuss the ways in which, as a result of global neoliberalism, public health discourses have an “othering” effect on ethnically diverse young people; third, we propose a theoretical shift from a focus on equality to a focus on difference; and finally, we conclude with considerations for future research and curricula in school physical education.

The Olympic Movement and Islamic culture: conflict or compromise for Muslim women?

This discursive article critiques the interface of religious and secular values through analysis of Islamic culture and the Olympic Movement. Recent resurgence in religious interest gives importance to this topic. The authors address the paradox between Olympic ideals for inclusion and sport policies that exclude, in this case, particularly Muslim women. For example, the Olympic Charter commits to universal human rights to participate in sport and be free from discrimination on the grounds of gender and religion; and yet Olympic sport dress code regulations can deny Muslim womens religious requirements of modesty in covering the body. Diverse effects of conflicts between religious and secular values are illustrated through sociological studies into the lives of Muslim sports women and recent events in sport. Different paths to influencing policymakers to become more inclusive of Muslim women in sport are examined. Recommendations propose using the global power and reach of the Olympic Movement in order to move towards negotiated compromise and greater flexibility for more inclusive sport policy and practice.

‘Olympism’ and education: a critical review

The Olympic Games. The Olympic Games. As London 2012 approaches, it becomes increasingly difficult to think of this mega event as ‘games’ or even ‘sport’...or even (incredibly) medals. Instead, these Games seem to be about a host of wider concerns, and particularly about ‘Legacy’. Of course, all Olympic Games are accompanied by legacy plans of one form or another. It is no longer enough, it seems, to organize the biggest and most complex sports competition in the world and to do it well. Nor is it enough to offer the world a sporting spectacle that, although fleeting, provides sports fans and Olympics fans (not always the same thing) with moments of delight, wonder and even awe. No. Sports mega events have to offer more... and ever more... for the money spent on them. Furthermore, it appears to be largely irrelevant whether an individual citizen enjoys sport or not, or plans to watch every single moment on TV or no moments at all. Either way, the organizers are determined to ensure that everyone will be sprinkled with Olympic legacy dust. Education and educators are implicated in Olympic legacy aspirations because all host cities are expected to prepare an Olympic education strategy. Note: this education strategy is not defined merely in terms of providing information about the Olympics for critical scrutiny, although this would be fascinating in itself. There is no doubt, for example, that the staging of an Olympics offers opportunities to teach young people about different sports, new developments in training, the technologies underpinning sport performance, engineering, ecology, economics and much more. Olympic education, however, goes far beyond information and critical analysis. It is a deeply pious and expansive philosophy, rooted in strong beliefs about the character-building properties of sport and sports participation, particularly team sports. For London 2012, the proposed education legacy is particularly extensive. It is claimed, for example, that enthusiasm for sport and the Olympic spectacle will inspire a generation of young people to make healthy lifestyle choices and to aspire to achieve their potential. Yet, in an educational context, it could be argued that legacy is a curious term. Commonly defined as a bequest or an inheritance – something handed down from the past, and from one generation to the next – legacy is passive at the level of the learner. It is a bequest that springs from the ambitions of the legacy initiator, usually to prove a political point or fulfil an economic pledge. In England, for example, the desire to leave a legacy has underpinned the Coalition Government’s ‘School Sports’ strategy, which is promoted specifically as an Olympic legacy activity. The Government claims that children, especially those who dislike traditional competitive sport, need more opportunities to engage in sport (and, presumably, to fail at it) to strengthen their resolve to achieve. This could be regarded as an odd strategy if inspiration is the main goal, but perhaps it makes some sense when set against the Olympic imperative to strive to do one’s best against all odds. Yet, Educational Review Vol. 64, No. 3, August 2012, 261–264

Problematizing Social Justice in Health Pedagogy and Youth Sport: Intersectionality of Race, Ethnicity, and Class

Social justice education recognizes the discrepancies in opportunities among disadvantaged groups in society. The purpose of the articles in this special topic on social justice is to (a) provide a critical reflection on issues of social justice within health pedagogy and youth sport of Black and ethnic-minority (BME) young people; (b) provide a framework for the importance of intersectionality research (mainly the intersection of social class, race, and ethnicity) in youth sport and health pedagogy for social justice; and (c) contextualize the complex intersection and interplay of social issues (i.e., race, ethnicity, social classes) and their influence in shaping physical culture among young people with a BME background. The article argues that there are several social identities in any given pedagogical terrain that need to be heard and legitimized to avoid neglect and “othering.” This article suggests that a resurgence of interest in theoretical frameworks such as intersectionality can provide an effective platform to legitimize “non-normative bodies” (diverse bodies) in health pedagogy and physical education and sport by voicing positionalities on agency and practice.

Levels and patterns of physical activity and sedentary time among superdiverse adolescents in East London: a cross-sectional study

ABSTRACT Objectives: Little is known about the physical activity (PA) and sedentary time (ST) habits of adolescents from superdiverse communities in the UK. The objectives of this study are to examine and report the patterns of PA/ST among adolescents in East London living in superdiverse communities, to identify opportunities/barriers to PA and inform policy/practice. Design: A total of 1260 young people (aged 11–13 years) from seven secondary schools in East London completed a questionnaire on PA/ST over the past seven days as part of the Newham’s Every Child a Sports Person (NECaSP) intervention. Socio-demographic and anthropometric data were obtained. Significance tests were conducted to determine differences between socio-demographic and anthropometric predictors and PA/ST. Multinomial logit regression was used to explore the effects of ethnicity, sex, and body mass index (BMI) on PA levels. Results: Males were significantly more likely to engage in PA at least five times during school in the past week (U = 5.07, z = −11.76, p < .05). Obese participants were less likely to report engaging in PA five times in the past week (U = 4.11, z =−1.17, p < .05). Black Caribbean girls (U = 5.08, z = −1.92, p < .05) were significantly more likely to report engaging in no activity. Multinomial logit regression analyses revealed that girls with higher BMI were less likely to engage in PA at least four times after school in the last week than boys (b = .11, Wald X2(1) = 9.81, p < .01). Walking (36.4%), jogging/running (29.9%), and football (28%) were the most frequently reported activities. Conclusion: Engaging girls in PA during and after school is important and making sports clubs and activities available and attractive to this target group may help increase engagement in PA and reduce ST. Findings support the need for more sex-specific and culturally responsive pedagogy in schools with curricula that respects diversity and individuality and has meaning and value amongst superdiverse young people. Finally, we need to extend current work presented and provide substantial evidence of the ways young people from minority ethnic groups process and act on the public health policy and the ways they understand and enact PA.

Informal mealtime pedagogies: exploring the influence of family structure on young people's healthy eating dispositions

Families are increasingly recognised as informal sites of learning, especially with regard to healthy eating. Through the use of Bourdieus conceptual tools, this paper explores the role of family meals within different family structures and the informal pedagogic encounters that take place. How they help to construct young peoples healthy eating beliefs, values and dispositions, together with what influences their ability to conduct healthy lifestyle practices within different social and material conditions, is also considered. This study draws from semi-structured interviews with students (n =62) from three inner city comprehensive schools in the Midlands, UK, who were invited to interview with a friend from the same family structure. The interview protocol sought to uncover how often young people ate with their family and elicit their subjective views of family meals as a social context (pedagogical field) in which health messages were conveyed. Corresponding interview data were analysed using thematic analysis which revealed two main themes: (1) the importance of family meals as a pedagogic context for the (re)production of health-related beliefs, values and dispositions and (2) the influence of family structure on individual agency. The narratives illustrate the varying role of family meals for young people in different fields and suggest that family (as a primary field) with its particular practices can act as a site of informal pedagogy, but crucially, only for those whose social and material conditions allow. We should therefore not assume that family meals are ‘normative’ for all families and may serve different functions for different families. Hence, in a period of economic depression and prolonged austerity, encouraging family units of any structure to invest in family meals from an early age will help to enhance young peoples healthy dispositions.