Abstract
Lifestyle sports can contribute to national sport and physical activity agendas. However, schools in the United Kingdom (UK) have generally resisted the implementation of such activities within the physical education (PE) curriculum. This may stem from PE teachers’ limited knowledge and restricted engagement with lifestyle sports continuing professional development (CPD), coupled with the dominance of traditional team sports within the PE curriculum. Consequently, the aim of this research was to explore the opportunities and challenges PE teachers in the UK encounter when delivering lifestyle sports, in addition to understanding their current professional development needs to enhance their practice. Data were collected via an online qualitative survey involving 53 UK-based PE teachers. Following a reflexive thematic analysis process, three themes were developed: (1) PE teachers’ understanding, conceptualisation, and delivery of lifestyle sports; (2) challenges to delivering lifestyle sports within the PE curriculum; and (3) the learning needs and CPD preferences of PE teachers. Findings indicated that the participants possessed diverse conceptualisations of lifestyle sports, while faced with logistical, contextual, and personal factors which impacted their practice. Furthermore, the participants outlined their preferences towards lifestyle sports CPD and the challenges restricting their engagement with learning opportunities. Recommendations for future research are discussed.
Highlights
IntroductionThe phrase ‘lifestyle sports’ describes a range of new and established sports and activities that were (re)developed out of the counter-culture of the 1960s, the Californian surfing scene [1,2]
Within the physical education (PE) literature, the term lifestyle sports has been extended beyond the action and adventurous sports and activities listed above to include recreation-based activities that are taught in PE lessons
Lifestyle sports can be defined within PE settings as any conventional and regulated sports and activities, which extends beyond action and adventure sports, to include recreation-based activities that are taught in PE lessons
Summary
The phrase ‘lifestyle sports’ describes a range of new and established sports and activities that were (re)developed out of the counter-culture of the 1960s, the Californian surfing scene [1,2] These activities are considered different to traditional. Western mainstream achievement sports in that they are usually participated in individually (or at least in small groups), with a focus on enjoyment and the pursuit of technical competence or skill [2,3,4,5] Those who engage in lifestyle sports typically adopt a Do-ItYourself (DIY) ethos, an ideology of ‘grassroots’ participation, are exposed to greater risks and trills, and perform in non-competitive and non-aggressive environments [2,5]. Over the last 30 years, lifestyle sport participation has moved beyond its initial developments in North America, Australia, and Western Europe at such an increased rate that it is considered a truly global phenomenon and one of the most important ‘mega trends’ of the twenty-first century [6,7,8,9,10]
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