Swedish PE teachers’ understandings of legitimate movement in a criterion-referenced grading system

Background: Physical Education (PE) has been associated with a multi-activity model in which movement is related to sport discourses and sport techniques. However, as in many international contexts, the Swedish national PE syllabus calls for a wider and more inclusive concept of movement. Complex movement adapted to different settings is valued, and in the national grading criteria qualitative measures of movement are used. This research seeks to examine how the wider concept of movement is interpreted and graded. Drawing on Bernstein’s concept of the pedagogic device, the paper explores teachers’ roles as active mediators in the transformation of national grading criteria for movement and the kinds of movement that are valued in teachers’ grading practices. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate what PE teachers consider legitimate movement in a criterion-referenced grading system and the factors that influence their grading practice. The Repertory Grid (RG) technique was employed in order to access their tacit knowledge. Methodology: Seven Swedish PE teachers were interviewed, all of whom teach and grade years seven to nine in different compulsory schools. Using the RG technique, the teachers were asked to reflect on the aspects they considered important for achieving a high grade. The national grading criteria for years seven to nine were then presented one at a time and the teachers were asked to describe how they assessed and graded each requirement. The teachers were also asked whether any specific factors had influenced their grading. In the content analysis, the second part of the interview was attended to first and the results were interpreted in light of Bernsteins’ concept of the pedagogic device. Findings: Sport techniques and competitive sports influenced the teachers’ interpretations of what constitutes complex movement. The aspect of fitness also appeared to be valued by the teachers in that it facilitates the valued movement. In some cases the difficulty of describing movement qualities in words could reduce the concept of movement to something measurable and quantifiable. The teachers’ concerns about students’ unequal opportunities to develop and demonstrate their skills also influenced the teachers’ interpretation of complex movement. Conclusions: In the transformation of national grading criteria to grading practice, the pedagogic actions taken inform and limit the way in which legitimate movement in PE is conceptualised. Adopting a concept of movement that is wider than competitive sports allows the structures of inequality to be addressed and enables the movements performed by students with other moving experiences than competitive sports to be valued. The tension between the demands of transparency in a high stakes grading system and the inability to articulate the quality of complex movements is problematic. There is a need to verbalise teachers’ conceptions about physical education knowledge to be able to discuss and develop the concept of movement. In this process, the RG technique is a potentially useful tool. Having the language to discuss movement qualities also enables us to strengthen the interrelation between curriculum, pedagogy and assessment.     

The emergence of a new logic? The theorizing of a new practice in the highly institutionalized context of Swedish voluntary sport

The purpose of this article is to contribute to the understanding of the emergence and change in institutional logics by analyzing the theorization (e.g., Greenwood, Suddaby, & Hinings, 2002) of a new and distinctly “different” practice in Swedish voluntary sport: drive-in sport. The article builds on data from 29 interviews with key actors involved in the organizing of drive-in sport in four municipalities. The findings show that two problems were constructed to legitimize drive-in sport: norm-breaking behavior displayed by youth during weekend nights, and organized sport's failure to live up to a sport-for-all ideal. The findings also show that it is perceived that in order for drive-in sport to be the solution to both these problems, the activities need to be arranged in a particular way. The findings are discussed in relation to recent developments in Swedish organized sport as an institutional context. Additionally, the discussion puts forth the value of the theorization concept in terms of furthering our understanding of the social-constructionist interpretive processes that underpin the broader processes of change documented in previous sport-related studies of change in institutional logics.     

Child-rearing in public spaces: the challenging dual-role relationships of parent–coaches and child–athletes of coaches in Swedish team sports

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study was to examine the challenges of being either a parent–coach or a child–athlete of a coach within the context of Swedish youth sport. Conceptually, this paper draws on educational and sociological theories regarding changing perspectives in child-rearing. The results are based on data gathered from interviews with parent–coaches and child–athletes (age 13–15) of coaches involved in team sports. The results indicate that a range of meanings emerged through these unique sets of interactions, resulting in both positive and negative experiences for both children and their parents. To manage the perceived challenges, four behavioural strategies were used including fairness, distancing, defence and quitting. Overall, this study provides a deeper understanding of the challenges of these unique dual roles in relation to contemporary child-rearing perspectives.     

Tensions in stakeholder relations for a Swedish football club – a case study

Swedish football is an industry not yet being as commercial as the big leagues and is regulated in terms of ownership of clubs. This implies a need for management of stakeholder relations for a Swedish football club. This paper identifies important stakeholders in Swedish football and discusses the multitude of – sometimes conflicting – objectives in managing these relations. The empirical base of the study is founded in a case study of Malmö FF, one of the dominant clubs in Sweden, with a qualitative single case research approach. Data are collected by means of semi-structured interviews and participant observations. The results of the study show a number of tensions as paradoxes for stakeholder management, suggest management dispositions to reconcile these paradoxes and suggest areas for further research.     

What is valued in friluftsliv within PE teacher education?—Swedish PE teacher educators’ thoughts about friluftsliv analysed through the perspective of Pierre Bourdieu

The value assigned to friluftsliv (activities similar to outdoor education) in physical education teacher education (PETE) and in the physical education (PE) syllabus in Sweden does not seem to result in the implementation of friluftsliv in the practice of teaching in Swedish schools. This study investigates how the identified values of friluftsliv, expressed in interviews with 17 PE teacher educators in Sweden, reflect struggles for legitimate and privileged knowledge in PETE. The exploration of friluftsliv within PETE reveals positions that appear to be an effect of the dominating logic of sport within Swedish PETE and the limited influence of the academic field. The educational consequences of the identified values are analysed and discussed from a socio-cultural perspective.     

Female jockeys in Swedish horse racing 1890–2000: From minority to majority – complex causes

The aim of this paper is to describe and explain the changes in the gender balance of jockeyship in Swedish horse racing in the period 1890–2000. The change in gender coding, and its causes, are both complex. Two distinctive periods of change are argued to have been crucial, the 1940s and 1970s. In the first period women were given permission to ride in amateur races; in the second period they were allowed to become professionals. It is suggested here that the changes in the gender balance are explained by male support, the intersection of gender and social class and gender coding.     

The Contents of 2007's Journal of Harbin Institute of Physical Education

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Force–velocity property of leg muscles in individuals of different level of physical fitness

The present study explored the method of testing muscle mechanical properties through the linear force–velocity (F–V) relationships obtained from loaded vertical jumps. Specifically, we hypothesised that the F–V relationship parameters depicting the force, power, and velocity of the tested muscles will differ among individuals of different physical fitness. Strength trained, physically active, and sedentary male participants (N = 10 + 10 + 10; age 20–29 years) were tested on maximum countermovement and squat jumps where manipulation of external loads provided a range of F and V data. The observed F–V relationships of the tested leg muscles were approximately linear and mainly strong (median correlation coefficients ranged from 0.77 to 0.92; all p < 0.05), independently of either the tested group or the jump type. The maximum power revealed higher values in the strength trained than in the physically active and sedentary participants. This difference originated from the differences in F-intercepts, rather than from the V-intercepts. We conclude that the observed parameters could be sensitive enough to detect the differences among both the individuals of different physical fitness and various jump types. The present findings support using loaded vertical jumps and, possibly, other maximum performance multi-joint movements for the assessment of mechanical properties of active muscles.     

Does size of one’s community affect likelihood of being drafted into the NHL? Analysis of 25 years of data

Abstract

The consistency of community size effects in North American contexts but not elsewhere, reinforces the notion that the effect is driven by socio-cultural factors specific to the country under examination. In order to identify and understand the various forces driving the community size effect, it is important to determine whether the effect has changed over time. Stability or instability over time would assist researchers in identifying the specific socio-cultural mechanisms driving these effects. This study compared the influence of community size on the likelihood of being drafted into the National Hockey League (NHL) among Canadian ice hockey players drafted to play in the NHL between 1985 and 2009. Although there was some variability over the timespan examined, most notably in communities with between 250,000 and 499,999 inhabitants and over 1,000,000 inhabitants, trends were generally stable over time, suggesting that the socio-cultural mechanisms may have also been relatively stable, although further work is necessary to confirm this assumption.     

Specificity of Individual Differences of Relationship between Forearm “Strengths” and Speed of Forearm Flexion

Abstract

Forearm flexion strength of 65 college men was measured at two distances from the elbow at each of three angles of the forearm. The speed of forearm flexion movement was measured through an arc of 85°. Ebel intraclass reliabilities for strength and speed were high, i.e., .95 to .99. The extremely low correlations between limb strength and speed of movement, which ranged from —.06 to .14, are in agreement with the majority of the low correlations reported in earlier studies. The findings of this study support the theory of specificity in that individual differences in the speed of a limb involving a single joint are predominantly independent of strength measures associated with that limb and joint.     

Quantification of the physiological loading of one week of “pre-season” and one week of “in-season” training in professional soccer players

Abstract

The aim of this study was to quantify the physiological loads of programmed “pre-season” and “in-season” training in professional soccer players. Data for players during each period were included for analysis (pre-season, n = 12; in-season, n = 10). We monitored physiological loading of training by measuring heart rate and rating of perceived exertion (RPE). Training loads were calculated by multiplying RPE score by the duration of training sessions. Each session was sub-categorized as physical, technical/tactical, physical and technical/tactical training. Average physiological loads in pre-season (heart rate 124 ± 7 beats · min^?1; training load 4343 ± 329 Borg scale · min) were higher compared with in-season (heart rate 112 ± 7 beats · min^?1; training load 1703 ± 173 Borg scale · min) (P < 0.05) and there was a greater proportion of time spent in 80–100% maximum heart rate zones (18 ± 2 vs. 5 ± 2%; P < 0.05). Such differences appear attributable to the higher intensities in technical/tactical sessions during pre-season (pre-season: heart rate 137 ± 8 beats · min^?1; training load 321 ± 23 Borg scale · min; in-season: heart rate 114 ± 9 beats · min^?1; training load 174 ± 27 Borg scale · min; P < 0.05). These findings demonstrate that pre-season training is more intense than in-season training. Such data indicate that these adjustments in load are a direct attempt to deliver training to promote specific training adaptations.     

Sociology of a scandal: the emergence of ‘FIFAgate’

This article examines the social forces underlying FIFAgate. Why do corrupt practices, which are often highly consolidated or even institutionalized, suddenly become scandalous? What is a scandal? Why did FIFA fall into crisis in 2015 and not before? To answer these questions, it is necessary to look at the sequence of thrusts and parries between all the parties involved. Our analysis embraces the notion that social processes are based on relationships in order to provide insights into why and how denunciations can lead to long-tolerated corrupt practices suddenly becoming compromising enough to force an organization’s leaders to implement measures that would have previously been unimaginable. We use multiple sources to examine the emergence of FIFAgate and the way FIFA overcame previous critical situations, describing how FIFA neutralized earlier allegations and developed a remarkable ‘resilience’ to scandal. Finally, we analyse the successive mobilizations whose domino effect led to the emergence of FIFAgate and the measures FIFA took to contain the scandal. Our research enabled us to draw up a new theoretical model for analysing corruption scandals.     

A history of rowing in the north‐west of England

Open-boat sailing boomed in Sydney, Australia, during the 1890s, as a number of new sailing clubs emerged in the city's working waterfront suburbs. Open boats have since been remembered as ‘typically Australian’, radically opposed to the forms and ceremonies of the yachting establishment, and even as sharing the characteristics of the bushman, an archetype of Australian national identity. This article traces the rise of open-boat sailing as a working-class spectator sport and the associated image of an ‘open boat legend’. It argues that open-boat sailing remained a Sydney legend in the 1890s. However, links to working traditions and place have made it possible for popular histories of sailing and yachting to present the open boats and sailors of the period with identifiably Australian characteristics.     

Time of Our Lives

懒懒地坐在电脑前,和平常一样为自己泡一杯Black coffee,然后打开音乐播放器,任意大利之夏的音符在耳朵里畅游。咖啡、音乐和足球就这样糅合在一起,糅合进我的生活里,时间阃工作突然不再沉闷,一切都变得富于激情和幻想。回想起1990年那个夏天,我跟世界杯的第一次,正是乔吉奥·莫罗德尔(Giorgio Moroder)和吉娜·娜尼尼(Gianna Nannini)沙哑而又激昂的嗓音,带着我走进意大利,走近世界杯。音乐和足球,像两个孪生的兄弟,不可分割。他们把世界缩小,让所有的语言都成为多余。在16年之后,我同样期待着夏天的来临,期待着那些振奋人心的旋律……     

60 Years of Lakers

西方社会的生活方式在50年代得到了很大的改变。美国人自由、开放的生活方式正在深入社会。50年代,各种职业运动开始显露萌芽,世界一级方程式率先在英国鸣枪;1950年,世界杯的冠军奖杯被命名为“雷米特杯”,以纪念世界杯发起人法国人雷米特执政国际足联25周年。1950年以前,职业篮球运动员中,清一色的全是白人,波士顿凯尔特人队和华盛顿首都人队引进了黑人球员后,该消息成为报纸的头条新闻。 50年代,罗切斯特皇家队,福特韦恩佐勒活塞队、印第安纳波利斯考特斯卡斯队(后来更名为喷气机队)、纽约尼克勃克斯队(又译灯笼裤队)、波士顿凯尔特人、费城武士队是美国篮球传统强队。     

Jordan''''s Announcement of Retire

Iamheretoannouncemyretirementfromthegameofbasketball．Itwon’tbeanotherannouncementtobaseballoranythingtothatnature．Ithinkeveryonehastheirownrcasons．Therehasbeenalotofspeculationintermsofwhy．IamprettysureIwillgettothatpointonceyouguysgettheopportu...     

Getting to the heart of the matter: A diary study of swimmers’ appraisals of organisational stressors

Abstract

We explored sport performers’ cognitive appraisals of organisational stressors. The relevant demands and transactional alternatives that athletes experience in relation to the situational properties were identified. Thirteen national standard swimmers completed semi-structured, interval-contingent daily diaries for a 28-day period. A combination of inductive and deductive content analysis was used to organise and analyse the diary entries with a focus on the following areas: organisational stressors, their underlying situational properties, and the swimmers’ transactional alternatives. One hundred and thirty-one of the organisational stressors were appraised as threat, 41 as challenge, and 83 as harm/loss. Support was found for the majority of Lazarus and Folkman's (1984) situational properties with the only exception being temporal uncertainty. Imminence was associated with the greatest number of threat appraisals (47), novelty was associated with the greatest number of challenge appraisals (17), and duration was associated with the greatest number of harm/loss appraisals (22). It is concluded that appraisal plays a pivotal role in sport performers’ experiences of their organisational environment. Swimmers’ transactional alternatives are influenced by the situational properties of the stressors encountered.