‘Choosing to do physical education as sports techniques, or fitness, or as multi activity, or as theoretical knowledge, is a political choice depending on how we view the purpose of education.’ (Mikael Quennerstedt)

The recent strategic review of the Northern Ireland curriculum stresses the need for a knowledge rich curriculum moving forward. But what does this mean for PE, a subject often overlooked for the contribution it can make to children’s learning, development and holistic wellbeing? In this article, we reflect on the current PE curriculum in Northern Ireland, exploring its potential to support the overall education and development of young people. At the same time, we identify some of the challenges faced by both teachers and learners within this context. In doing so, this article offers some suggestions ahead of curriculum reform; to enhance PE and ensure it better meets the needs of all stakeholders in contemporary society.

The role of PE in curricula

PE is widely positioned as the subject to address the lifelong health and wellbeing of young people, as well as identifying and nurturing future elite athletes. As such, it becomes reduced to a focus on either sport, improving performance or physical activity promotion to improve physical health. This narrow, traditional, focus can make it challenging for stakeholders to realise the potential of PE beyond sport, skills, drills and physical activity. While this form of PE can work well for some young people, it can be a marginalising space for others.

Interestingly, this form of PE is not unique to Northern Ireland and reflects how PE curricula are organised and enacted internationally. However, particularly ‘PE as sport’ has become established in NI largely because sport plays such a significant role in the national identity of those living in this context. This is important as it suggests that PE is shaped more by local culture than by the curriculum itself. While acknowledging local cultures and traditions are important, when this dominates it can limit how PE teachers work with the curriculum. Given the curriculum’s ambitious, holistic, connected and process-driven nature in Northern Ireland, this would appear to be a missed opportunity – both for PE and for the learning experiences of young people.

In theory, the Northern Ireland curriculum offers schools the flexibility to tailor their PE programmes to meet the needs of all learners within their specific context - not just elite performers.. But there are perceptible tensions between policy, practice and the traditional contextual factors that frame education in Northern Ireland.

The primary PE curriculum

This tension is played out clearly in PE in primary schools. On the one hand, the structure of the curriculum signals the drive for an interdisciplinary cross curriculum approach, which can play a positive role in providing opportunities for PE to be done differently. For example, a more holistic approach to PE might provide more meaningful movement experiences for learners in contemporary society. However, on the other hand, within the primary PE curriculum, the narrow focus on specific activities (e.g. athletics, swimming, games) reinforces ‘PE as sport’ and offers teachers little autonomy to ensure the curriculum meets the needs of their learners or provides a holistic approach to PE. This sits in contrast with the ‘Big Picture’ curriculum, which aims to be learner-driven. Rather, PE becomes ‘sport-driven’, and so understood as non-education in the traditional sense. This perspective then determines the value that is placed on learning in PE, and young people soon learn that other forms of (more academic) knowledge are more important in schools.

Post Primary PE curriculum

In contrast, within the Key Stage 3 PE documents there is explicit alignment with the wider curriculum, providing holistic, interdisciplinary opportunities for the subject. For example, there is clear reference to the contribution PE can make to young people’s health and wellbeing and how this supports their learning for life and work. This offers teachers opportunities to think differently about PE, to move beyond PE as sport or physical activity – and consider the needs of their learners in their context.

While the intentions of the curriculum are clear, the influence of sport persists, with similar outcomes to primary PE – PE as non-educative and less valued. However, an additional issue in post-primary PE is that PE curricula (and the activities within) are often structured around gender – separating male and female pupils to engage in sports that are perceived to be ‘gender appropriate’. This can be problematic because ‘male’ sports are perceived to be more privileged in Northern Ireland.. This can then influence the (unequal) distribution of power between boys and girls in PE (and likely male and female PE teachers) and could negatively affect how girls and young women feel in this context which, in turn, may influence the effort they apply to their learning.

“So if I get a class full of sporty kids, it wouldn’t be a big ask teaching them new skills or sports that they've never did.  But then I may get a class of girls. Who are unmotivated and aren't into PE [or] sport at all” (PE Teacher interview, 2024)

In attempting to address girls’ disengagement in PE, some might focus on activities aligned with the promotion of physical activity and health (e.g. gym work or walking). While this might be motivated by good intentions it has the potential to also unintentionally reinforce strong boundaries that reproduce inequalities and limit learning opportunities through PE (and sport) for girls and, more broadly, those pupils who do not conform to normative conceptions of masculinity.

The wider educational landscape of segregation and academic selection, coupled with the social and cultural associations with sport and, by proxy, PE, impact how effectively teachers can take up the opportunities afforded by the NI curriculum PE with knock on implications for learners. Schools and PE, therefore, have the potential to create a cycle which is difficult to break.

Conclusion

If there is limited consideration of how we might do things differently and better, this will limit the possibilities of the curriculum to meet the needs of all learners.

Reflecting on the curriculum as researchers and teacher educators within and outside the Northern Ireland context, if done differently – by challenging norms (cultural, tradition, gender, movement, sport) and engaging with the ‘Big Picture’ across all key stages – PE provides a ‘knowledge rich’ space in schools for young people to learn and grow together, focusing on shared objectives and exploring commonalities rather than differences.

Dr Julie Stirrup is a Senior Lecturer in Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy at Loughborough University. Her research focuses on issues of, equity and inclusion and policy and practice, across informal (early years) and formal (primary/secondary) Physical Education.

Dr Shirley Gray is a Senior Lecturer in Physical Education at the University of Edinburgh.  Her research explores how teachers understand and enact curriculum policy, and how they might be supported in their learning to provide their students with positive learning experiences in Physical Education.