The Scientization of Physical Education: Discourses of Performance

Abstract

Abstract This paper examines the content and context of changes in the dominant discourses of physical education. It begins with an analysis of the role of language in publicly defining a role for new professions and defining the nature of that profession's expertise. It then briefly traces the reconstruction of university physical education as sports studies, sport sciences, and sport management and situates these discourses in a political and historical context. The final sections proceed to deconstruct the languages of sport science and sport management, to connect these with struggles to redefine the profession, and to point to some issues for professional education if physical education is to retain any of its traditional humanistic meanings. The argument is grounded in an interview study of technical and administrative professionals in Canadian high performance sport.