Objective: The population of young people most vulnerable to low levels of physical activity (e.g. urban/minority/low socio-economic status/female/non-athletes) often has the least access to physical activity opportunities and resources. It has been suggested that a comprehensive, school-based approach, including prudent use of time before, during…

Grounded in social cognitive theory, the purpose of this study was to examine leaders' and students' perspectives of factors that contribute to effective voluntary after-school physical activity clubs. Data were collected over two-years via field observations (n= 115) and interviews with students (n= 278) and adult leaders (n= 126). Results…

Objective: In the USA there are rising rates of obesity among children, at least in part due to unhealthy eating and physical inactivity. Implementing school-based health interventions with elementary school children focused on youth empowerment could lead to improved health environments and behaviours. The purpose of the present study was to…

The purpose of this study was to examine boys' perceptions of masculinity hierarchies in adventure physical education in relation to past experiences in sport-based physical education and their evolving views about physical activity in their lives. Theoretical principles of masculinity guided this study. Data were collected with 55 male high…

Health disparities related to food choices, nutrition behaviours and smoking habits in urban communities in the United States signal the importance of health education (HE) in schools, yet educators in urban communities face unique cultural challenges often unaddressed in professional development (PD). The purpose of this study was to use a…

Despite the expansion and diversification of contemporary physical activity culture, curricula of many secondary physical education programs remain narrowly comprised of sport content. Given the personal and contextual nature of teaching and the immense amount of control teachers exercise over their programs, we examined how a group of 15…

Background: Offering physical activity clubs (PACs) for students in urban high schools can provide avenues for increased physical activity (PA); however, little is known about why some clubs are not successful. Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine leaders' and students' perspectives on the challenges faced when…

Although nutrition-related health education policies exist at national, state and local levels, the degree to which those policies affect the everyday practices of health education teachers who are charged with executing them in schools is often unclear. The purpose of this study was to examine the nutrition-related health education policy matrix…

This study used hegemonic masculinity theory to examine the intersection of masculinities and school physical education from the perspectives of boys who embodied masculinities that were marginalized. Over a 13-week period using present-focused, student-centered, qualitative methodological approaches, we observed, interviewed, and worked in small…

This study used an emotional geographies theoretical framework to analyze the emotional dimensions of urban teacher change. Fifteen urban physical education teachers involved in a comprehensive curriculum reform project were interviewed and observed multiple times across one school year. Data were analyzed using inductive analysis, and…

The purpose of this study was to understand factors that make teacher professional development successful and what success might mean in terms of teachers' instructional practices and feelings about change. Specifically, this study focused on the impact of instructional resources on the large-scale curricular reform of 30 urban physical education…

Background: As the conversation regarding gender and physical education has evolved, a great many suggestions have been offered that reflect ways of designing more gender sensitive environments. The problem now turns the transformation of theoretical suggestions into real change in the practices of schools. Purpose: The purpose of this study was…

The purpose of this study was to examine how a teacher understood her students and then thought and made decisions about content, curriculum and pedagogy. Pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) and Deweyan philosophies of experience and education provided the theoretical frameworks. Data were collected through observations (N = 38) and interviews (N…

This study used cognitive developmental theory to analyze how teachers learn to teach sport education. Two groups of undergraduate pre-service teachers were studied, one group during their secondary methods and corresponding field-teaching courses, the other during an independent teaching course. Data were collected through ethnographic…