The Academization of Physical Education Teacher Training a Discourse Analysis Case Study

Abstract

This article reports a case study of the rhetoric means used to construct and present an "academic" program of teacher training in physical education. It examines the struggle of the physical education teachers in Israel for professional recognition as a discoursive event:The introduction of a new degree, and a new institutional name, together with newly defined goals, entry requirements and curriculum, and the use of new terms, borrowed from the university lexicon, such as "academic", "discipline", "seminar", "methodology", "empirical" "science" etc. -all create a new semantic system which helps to present the physical education teacher training as more academic and more professional. Discourse analysis has been used by sociologists, economists and other social scientists (Hall 1985;Postman 1985; McClosky 1985;Brown 1987;Wexler 1987) to show how language is used to construct social reality. Following text analyses of Wittgenstein (1953), Foucault (1972) and others, these social scientists undertake to understand how discourse constructs knowledge and thus serves a specific ideology. Hall (1985) argues that discourse serves ideology by presenting allegedly necessary relationships among facts or ideas, which relationships have social and political consequences. Kirk (1992) applies this concept to physical education and exercise activities.He argues that in the last decade, a very specific discourse was established, that implied a strong relationship between exercise, health and body shape. This discourse, used in print media, television and exercise videos, becomes part of the culture. It influences peoples' lives, so they invest time, money and energy in exercise. Therefore, the discourse has social and market effects.Kirk suggests using discourse analysis to discover hidden agendas in physical education research, teaching and learning. Such analysis may help us understand possible effects of the &dquo;hidden curriculum&dquo; (see Jackson 1968), not only in terms of the value system which underlies it (Bain 1975), but also in terms of the power relationships which it supports. Such analysis may also help us understand that agenda's consequences for particular individuals and social groups.* The analysis in this paper partially draws on a study

Analyzing Talk in Qualitative Inquiry: Exploring Possibilities, Problems, and Tensions

“…Although still relatively rare, a number of researchers in the domain of sport and physical activity have begun to utilize DA of one form or another (e.g., see Clarke, 1992;Eskes, Duncan, & Miller, 1998;Fejgin, 1995;Prain & Hickey, 1995). As an exemplar, Rønholt (2002) utilized a version of critical discourse analysis (CDA) as developed by Fairclough (1995) in order to explore teaching and learning processes in Physical Education (PE) at schools in Denmark.…”

Chapter 2 From Practice to Academia: 50 Years of LIS Education in Australia

“…As a result, the first LIS programs were developed by academics from a professional practice education perspective rather than from an academic education perspective. This professional practice education perspective was shared with fields such as social work, and the teaching and health professions which also have had difficulty in establishing their positions in academic institutions; particularly institutions with a strong research focus (see for example, (Fejgin, 1995;Maurana, Wolff, Beck, & Simpson, 2001;Murray & Aymer, 2009;Newland & Truglio-Londrigan, 2003). This practice perspective and lack of research training was in contrast to academics from more traditional areas of learning and research who typically had undergraduate and postgraduate degrees including research masters and/or doctorates, and pursued career paths balancing the 'academic triad' of teaching, scholarship and service.…”