![[PDF]](/pb-assets/Icons/adobe-pdf-icon-1498649896243.png){kind=icon}
Abstract
This article provides an analysis of developmental discourses underpinning preschool physical education in Scotland's Curriculum for Excellence. Implementing a post-structural perspective, the article examines the preschool experiences and outcomes related to physical education as presented in the Curriculum for Excellence ‘health and wellbeing’ documentation. The article interrogates the ways in which developmental discourses are evident throughout this and related documentation and how these discourses might ‘work’ to produce specific effects on practitioners and children as they are deployed and taken up in Scottish preschool education contexts. This analysis involves speculating about potential consequences for practitioners' and children's experiences and subjectivities. In conclusion, it is suggested that practitioners should critically engage with the curriculum, as uncritical acceptance of the discourses underpinning it could lead to practices that may have negative consequences. Furthermore, the article proposes that future research should investigate the ways in which the discourses privileged in the Curriculum for Excellence ‘health and wellbeing’ documentation are taken up and negotiated in Scottish preschool settings.
References
Section:
| Ailwood, J. (2003) Governing Early Childhood Education through Play, Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 4(3), 286–299. http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/ciec.2003.4.3.5 Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | |
| Baker, B. (1999) The Dangerous and the Good? Developmentalism, Progress, and Public Schooling, American Educational Research Journal, 36(4), 797–834. http://dx.doi.org/10.3102/00028312036004797 Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | ISI | |
| Burman, E. (2008) Deconstructing Developmental Psychology. Hove: Routledge. Google Scholar | |
| Burrows, L. (1999) Developmental Discourses in School Physical Education. PhD thesis, University of Wollongong. Google Scholar | |
| Burrows, L. (2004) ‘Developing’ Athletes, in Cassidy, T., Jones, R. & Potrac, P. Understanding Sports Coaching: The social, cultural and pedagogical foundations of coaching practice. Abingdon: Routledge. Google Scholar | |
| Burrows, L. (2010) ‘Kiwi Kids are Weet-Bix™ Kids’ — Body matters in childhood, Sport, Education and Society, 15(2), 235–251. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13573321003683919 Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Burrows, L. & Wright, J. (2001) Developing Children in New Zealand School Physical Education, Sport, Education and Society, 6(2), 165–182. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Cannella, G.S. (2008) Reconceptualizing the Field (of Early Care and Education): If ‘western’ child development is a problem, then what do we do?, in Yelland, N. (Ed.) Critical Issues in Early Childhood Education. Maidenhead: Open University Press. Google Scholar | |
| Carabine, J. (2001) Unmarried Motherhood 1830–1990: A genealogical analysis, in Wetherell, M., Taylor, S. & Yates, S.J. (Eds) Discourse as Data: A guide for analysis. London: Sage. Google Scholar | |
| Cassidy, T., Jones, R. & Potrac, P. (2004) Understanding Sports Coaching: The social, cultural and pedagogical foundations of coaching practice. Abingdon: Routledge. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| City of Edinburgh Council (2012) Pre-school Nursery Education. City of Edinburgh Council. http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/info/851/nurseries_and_playgroups/566/pre-school_nursery_education/1 Google Scholar | |
| Cox, B.D. (2010) Issues of Power in a History of Women's Football in New Zealand: A Foucauldian genealogy. PhD thesis, University of Waikato. Google Scholar | |
| Dahlberg, G. & Moss, P. (2005) Ethics and Politics in Early Childhood Education. Abingdon: RoutledgeFalmer. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Dahlberg, G., Moss, P. & Pence, A. (2007) Beyond Quality in Early Childhood Education and Care: Languages of evaluation. Abingdon: Routledge. Google Scholar | |
| Deegan, J. (2004) ‘Intentionally or Otherwise’: Children and diversity in statutory and policy discourses in Ireland, in Deegan, J., Devine, D. & Lodge, A. (Eds.) Primary Voices: Equality, diversity and childhood in Irish primary schools. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration. Google Scholar | |
| Derri, V., Tsapakidou, A., Zachopoulou, E. & Kioumourtzoglou, E. (2001) Effect of a Music and Movement Programme on Development of Locomotor Skills by Children 4 to 6 Years of Age, Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, 6(2), 16–25. Google Scholar | |
| Fleer, M. (2005) Developmental Fossils — Unearthing the artefacts of early childhood education: The reification of ‘child development’, Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 30(2), 2–7. Google Scholar | |
| Fleer, M. (2006) The Cultural Construction of Child Development: Creating institutional and cultural intersubjectivity, International Journal of Early Years Education, 14(2), 127–140. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09669760600661294 Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Foucault, M. (1973) The Birth of the Clinic: An archaeology of medical perception. London: Tavistock. Google Scholar | |
| Gard, M. & Wright, J. (2005) The Obesity Epidemic: Science, morality and ideology. Abingdon: Routledge. Google Scholar | |
| Gore, J.M. (1995) On the Continuity of Power Relations in Pedagogy, International Studies in Sociology of Education, 5(2), 165–188. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0962021950050203 Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Jess, M., Dewar, K. & Fraser, G. (2004) Basic Moves: Developing a foundation for lifelong physical activity, British Journal of Teaching Physical Education, 35(2), 24–27. Google Scholar | |
| Jones, L., Hodson, E. & Napier, N. (2005) The Politics of Play, in Jones, L., Holmes, R. & Powell, J. (Eds) Early Childhood Studies: A multiprofessional perspective. Maidenhead: Open University Press. Google Scholar | |
| Kirk, D. (2005) Physical Education, Youth Sport and Lifelong Participation: The importance of early learning experiences, European Physical Education Review, 11(3), 239–255. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1356336X05056649 Google Scholar | SAGE Journals | |
| Learning and Teaching Scotland (LTS) (2004) A Curriculum Framework for Children 3–5. http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/Images/CF3to5_tcm4-115469.pdf Google Scholar | |
| Learning and Teaching Scotland (LTS) (2009a) Curriculum for Excellence. http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/Images/all_experiences_outcomes_tcm4-539562.pdf Google Scholar | |
| Learning and Teaching Scotland (LTS) (2009b) Curriculum for Excellence: Health and wellbeing, principles and practice. http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/Images/health_wellbeing_principles_practice_tcm4-540107.pdf Google Scholar | |
| Learning and Teaching Scotland (LTS) (2009c) Curriculum for Excellence: Health and wellbeing, experiences and outcomes. http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/Images/health_wellbeing_experiences_outcomes_tcm4-540031.pdf Google Scholar | |
| Learning and Teaching Scotland (LTS) (2011) Physical Education: Supporting high quality physical education in the primary school. Glasgow: LTS. http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/Images/pe_dvd_booklet_tcm4-651368.pdf Google Scholar | |
| MacDonald, D., Kirk, D., Metzler, M. (2002) It's All Very Well, in Theory: Theoretical perspectives and their applications in contemporary pedagogical research, Quest, 54(2), 133–156. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00336297.2002.10491771 Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| MacLure, M. (2003) Discourse in Educational and Social Research. Buckingham: Open University Press. Google Scholar | |
| MacNaughton, G. (2005) Doing Foucault in Early Childhood Studies: Applying poststructural ideas. Abingdon: Routledge. http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9780203465332 Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Martin, E.H., Rudisill, M.E. & Hastie, P.A. (2009) Motivational Climate and Fundamental Motor Skill Performance in a Naturalistic Physical Education Setting, Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, 14(3), 227–240. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17408980801974952 Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| McEvilly, N., Verheul, M., Atencio, M. & Jess, M. (forthcoming) Physical Education for Health and Wellbeing: A discourse analysis of Scottish physical education curricular documentation, Discourse. Google Scholar | |
| O'Flynn, G. (2010) The Business of ‘Bettering’ Students' Lives: Physical and health education and the production of social class subjectivities, Sport, Education and Society, 15(4), 431–445. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13573322.2010.514736 Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
| Priestley, M. & Humes, W. (2010) The Development of Scotland's Curriculum for Excellence: Amnesia and déjà vu, Oxford Review of Education, 36(3), 345–361. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03054980903518951 Google Scholar | Crossref | ISI | |
| Robinson, K.H. (2008) In the Name of ‘Childhood Innocence’: A discursive exploration of the moral panic associated with childhood and sexuality, Cultural Studies Review, 14(2), 113–129. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Robinson, K.H. & Díaz, Jones C. (2006) Diversity and Difference in Early Childhood Education. Maidenhead: Open University Press. Google Scholar | |
| Rønholt, H. (2002) ‘It's Only the Sissies …’: Analysis of teaching and learning processes in physical education: A contribution to the hidden curriculum, Sport, Education and Society, 7(1), 25–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13573320120113558 Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Rossi, T., Tinning, R., McCuaig, L., Sirna, K. & Hunter, L. (2009) With the Best of Intentions: A critical discourse analysis of physical education curriculum materials, Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 28(1), 75–89. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Scottish Executive (2004) A Curriculum for Excellence: The Curriculum Review Group. Edinburgh: Scottish Executive. Google Scholar | |
| Scottish Executive (2006) A Curriculum for Excellence: Building the curriculum 1: The contribution of curriculum areas. Edinburgh: Scottish Executive. http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/Images/building_curriculum1_tcm4-383389.pdf Google Scholar | |
| Scottish Executive (2007) A Curriculum for Excellence: Building the curriculum 2: Active learning in the early years. Edinburgh: Scottish Executive. http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/curriculumforexcellence/images/Building%20the%20Curriculum%202_tcm4-408069.pdf Google Scholar | |
| Scottish Government (2008) The Early Years Framework Part II. Edinburgh: Scottish Government. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/257007/0076310.pdf Google Scholar | |
| Sorin, R. (2005) Changing Images of Childhood — Reconceptualising early childhood practice, International Journal of Transitions in Childhood, 1, 12–21. Google Scholar | |
| Stephen, C. (2006) Insight 28: Early years education: Perspectives from a review of the international literature. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/90566/0021792.pdf Google Scholar | |
| Thorpe, S. (2003) Crisis Discourse in Physical Education and the Laugh of Michel Foucault, Sport, Education and Society, 8(2), 131–151. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Weedon, C. (1997) Feminist Practice and Poststructuralist Theory. Oxford: Blackwell. Google Scholar | |
| Woodrow, C. & Press, F. (2007) (Re)Positioning the Child in the Policy/Politics of Early Childhood, Educational Philosophy and Theory, 39(3), 312–325. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-5812.2007.00328.x Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Wright, J. (1997) The Construction of Gendered Contexts in Single Sex and Co-educational Physical Education Lessons, Sport, Education and Society, 2(1), 55–72. Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Wright, J. (2004) Post-structural Methodologies: The body, schooling and health, in Evans, J., Davies, B. & Wright, J. (Eds) Body Knowledge and Control: Studies in the sociology of physical education and health. London: Routledge. Google Scholar | |
| Wright, J. (2006) Physical Education Research from Postmodern, Poststructural and Postcolonial Perspectives, in Kirk, D., MacDonald, D. & O'Sullivan, M. (Eds) The Handbook of Physical Education. London: Sage. http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781848608009.n4 Google Scholar | Crossref | |
| Yelland, N. & Kilderry, A. (2008) Postmodernism, Passion and Potential for Future Childhoods, in Yelland, N. (Ed.) Critical Issues in Early Childhood Education. Maidenhead: Open University Press. Google Scholar | |
| Zachopoulou, E., Tsapakidou, A. & Derri, V. (2004) The Effects of a Developmentally Appropriate Music and Movement Program on Motor Performance, Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 19, 631–642. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2004.10.005 Google Scholar | Crossref |
