Teachers’ Perspectives of Enacting Student Voice in Primary Physical Education

Abstract

Purpose: Broadly speaking, student voice can be defined as initiatives that involve consultation of, feedback from, and engagement with students regarding their own education. This study’s aim was to explore teachers’ experiences and perceptions of enacting student voice in primary physical education. Method: Participants included six primary school health and physical education specialist teachers within Victoria, Australia. Data were collected via six rich and detailed one-on-one semistructured interviews. Results: Three main themes include: (a) “same-same but different” highlighting participants’ varying conceptualizations and enactment of student voice, (b) “language matters” emphasizing the importance of language used when discussing and implementing student voice, and (c) “barriers and challenges to implementation” capturing participants’ experience and limiting factors to the enactment of student voice practices. Discussion/Conclusion: Grounded in education for transformation and patterns of partnership theories, the discussion focuses on the disassociation between teachers’ perceived understanding and enactment and the implications for students resulting from the misalignment.