Background:Teachers of physical education recognise the potential to promote inclusion, equity and social learning in physical education but also acknowledge the difficulties in translating social justice into practice. While there is a growing body of scholarship focused on social justice in K-12 health and physical education, there remains a clear need for evidence-based pedagogical approaches that support K-12 physical educators in confidently and competently educating our pupils about and for social justice.Purpose:The purpose of this research was to examine the realities of enacting a socially-just Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (SJ-TPSR) approach in K-12 physical education (remote, urban; K-3, 4-6, 10-12; medium-large schools).Methodology:We employed a basic qualitative research design. Participants included three physical education specialists teaching in grades K-3 remote, 4-6 urban, and high school urban contexts in Canada. Our team of international teacher educators, co-designers of the SJ-TPSR approach, supported enactment. Applying an interpretivist lens, we collected data through pre-enactment meetings, critical friend meetings, focus groups, and teacher reflections. Data were analysed using Reflexive Thematic Analysis, facilitating the generation of key themes related to the realities of enacting SJ-TPSR in K-12 contexts.Findings:The findings are shared through three constructed themes: (i) teachers' insights and tensions in understanding the 'what' of the SJ-TPSR approach; (ii) sharing the successes and struggles of enacting the SJ-TPSR approach; and (iii) teachers operating between belief and backlash as conflicting perspectives on the place of social justice in physical education is unpacked.Discussion and considerations:Three discussion points are provided: (i) the need to navigate tensions in practice when teaching social justice; (ii) a growing worry of parental/carer and societal influence in teaching social justice; and (iii) the continued need (and priority) to work and research with practicing teachers.Directions for future research:Future research should incorporate diverse perspectives (e.g. pupils, families, and administrators) as well as the adaptability of an SJ-TPSR approach across diverse geographical and educational contexts. Such inquiry is vital for developing culturally responsive guiding principles and influencing broader curriculum policy.Impact statement:This research directly answers the call for evidence-based guidance on translating social justice theory into practice. The findings highlight the critical need for a collective effort across school boards, teacher education programs, and policy makers to support teachers in navigating internal tensions and perceived societal backlash.

The Policy Process Case Method (PPCM) is a recent innovation for (health and physical) education professionals to transform their complex policy experiences into practical insights. This method engages professionals across roles and geographical borders in sustained reflexive dialogue to collaboratively interrogate their policy experiences through policy theories. In this similar to 1.5-year PPCM investigation, our group (i.e. two curriculum officers, one department head, and one researcher, from four nations) engaged in the following process. First, each practitioner shared a policy experience, including advocating for school policy change, developing provincial/state curricula, and implementing provincial/state curricula. The researcher identified relevant policy theories through which the group interrogated those experiences, including Multiple Streams Analysis, Deliberative Policy Analysis, and Enactment Theory. Finally, all members individually coded and collaboratively thematised the meeting transcripts and artefacts (e.g. shared cases) to determine policy lessons learned. A fundamental lesson learned related to the reality of policy processes as messy, unpredictable, and multidirectional rather than idealised depictions of these processes as ordered, rational, and top-down. This broad, perspective-shifting learning served as the foundation for a specific lesson learned about how to better communicate and be understood in complex policy processes; that is, to have a clear and tailored policy problem framing and a well-prepared solution. Lastly, a meta-lesson learned related to how to learn about policy, specifically that engaging in border-crossing forms of policy-focused professional learning, like the PPCM, can build all the competencies of policy preparedness: awareness, knowledge, know-how, as well as motivation and confidence. The geographical, professional, disciplinary, and temporal border-crossings inherent in the PPCM respectively help the process to (a) acknowledge but move beyond local politics; (b) mimic the complex reality of diverse actors in policy processes; (c) challenge assumptions and prompt new ideas; and (d) accommodate the challenging integration of complex policy concepts.

In this paper, we developed guiding principles for the Socially-Just Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (SJ-TPSR) approach, focusing on how these principles were formed and what they entail. Drawing on a 12-month collaborative self-study (consisting of eight teacher educators across three countries), we identified key lessons learned from the enactment of the SJ-TPSR approach. Our discussion provides four guiding principles for enactment: (i) Foster reflexive practice through collaboration and/or theoretical grounding; (ii) Integrate a clear and explicit personal and social responsibility learning intention; (iii) Prioritise responsiveness over fidelity; and (iv) Place the learners (and their social justice matters) at the centre of the SJ-TPSR approach. These principles offer guidance for the enactment of the SJ-TPSR approach, supporting its capacity to advance social justice within educational settings. Our hope is that in providing empirically informed guiding principles, the reader feels encouraged and motivated to enact the SJ-TPSR in their own context.

This Special Issue re-imagines Hellison's Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (TPSR) as a viable pedagogy for social justice. We bring together international scholars to explore the opportunities, challenges and transformative potential of TPSR and the Socially-Just TPSR (SJ-TPSR) approach within health and physical education/teacher education. The papers provide historical context for TPSR's connection to social justice, offer empirical insights from diverse international contexts (Spain, Canada, Greece) and provide an autoethnographic account of a teacher's journey toward critical pedagogy (Indonesia). Conceptual papers, comparing TPSR to other models and reinterpreting it through a Freirean lens, are presented. The Special Issue also includes an international collaborative self-study (Australia, Canada and Ireland), which constructed guiding principles for the SJ-TPSR approach. Together, these contributions advocate for a dynamic, equity-oriented framework, offering the SJ-TPSR approach as a clear, actionable model for educators and researchers seeking to explicitly integrate social justice into their teaching and research.

BackgroundAmid the growing theoretical discourse on social justice in education, there are increasing calls for research on how educators integrate social justice pedagogies into their teaching. Systematic reviews emphasise the need for examining how teacher educators' beliefs and positions shape their pedagogical practices, advocating for collaborative, reflective approaches to bridge theory and practice.PurposeDrawing connections between the broader field of teacher education and physical education teacher education, we observed that deep theorisation on social justice often lacks alignment with practical pedagogical implications and the realities of teacher educators. In this paper, four (4) physical education teacher educators examined how we aligned our social justice beliefs with pedagogical practices.TheoryTheoretical frameworks that guided this investigation included the theory of practice [Cochran-Smith, 2009. "Toward a Theory of Teacher Education for Social Justice." In Second International Handbook of Educational Change, 445-467] which emphasises integrating knowledge, interpretive frameworks, and pedagogical strategies for social justice and positioning theory [Harr & eacute; et al., 2009. "Recent Advances in Positioning Theory." Theory & Psychology 19 (1): 5-31] which complements this by exploring how teachers' beliefs and experiences influence social justice practices.MethodologyUsing narrative inquiry and collaborative storytelling, we examined the complexities of translating theory into practice, addressing gaps in research regarding how [teacher] educators navigate personal, socio-cultural, and professional influences on their practice. Data included personal narratives, meeting notes, recorded and transcribed online meetings. Drawing from processes used by others [e.g. Lorusso et al., 2022. "Shifting Policy Perspectives: Revelatory Incident Narratives from Physical Education Stakeholders." Curriculum Studies in Health and Physical Education 13 (3): 284-297], data collection and analysis followed a non-linear process involving articulation, interrogation, dialoguing, reflection, probing, and revisiting parts of the process and data. In addition, inductive data analysis [Charmaz, 2014. Constructing Grounded Theory. Sage] and collaborative live coding [Parameswaran, Ozawa-Kirk, and Latendresse, 2020. "To live (code) or to not: A new method for coding in qualitative research." Qualitative Social Work 19 (4): 630-644], deepened interpretation of the data.FindingsWhile each of us seeks to integrate social justice into our practice, we do so through diverse yet interconnected theoretical frameworks and pedagogies rooted in social justice theory. We discuss these variations through two key themes: (1) the ongoing and complex process(es) of becoming physical education teacher educators for social justice, and (2) the inextricably interrelated and interdependent relationship between pedagogy, theory, and the personal.Discussion and considerationsThis research underscores the ongoing, reflective journey of becoming socially just physical education teacher educators. We invite others interested in becoming a teacher educator for social justice to move beyond the what towards the how and why of social justice through collaborative examination of beliefs, theory, and practice. We encourage teacher educators (and pre-service teachers) to enter the activist space of social justice, a journey that can be facilitated through collaborative storytelling. What this looks like is a personal endeavour, but at its core, is being (and becoming) an activist educator.

Policy engagement is key to promoting quality physical education yet it has been identified as a 'grand challenge' for Health and/or Physical Education (H/PE) internationally. All H/PE professionals, including teacher educators, have a collective responsibility to engage with policy but existing research tells us little about how H/PE teacher educators (H/PETEs) understand and engage with policy. It is important to examine H/PETEs conceptualisations of policy for a few reasons, not least because teacher educators play a crucial role in supporting future generations of teachers who themselves will need to engage with policy as a core feature of their professional lives. Drawing on figurational sociology, and the concept of assemblage, this paper offers insights into the nature and development - or sociogenesis - of teacher educators' conceptualisations of policy. The data shared in this paper was generated through semi-structured interviews with 12 H/PETE from 7 countries. Inductive-deductive analysis - drawing largely on figurational concepts such as interdependence, power, habitus and sociogenesis - revealed that H/PETEs conceptualised policy as: (i) informing intended action and change; (ii) a way to govern practice; (iii) imposition and possibility. In terms of how these conceptualisations came to be, key features of the H/PETE figuration that were identified as influential include: (i) interdependence with human and non-human elements; (ii) balances of power and (iii) social and individual habitus. It is concluded that capitalising on these elements through professional learning, for example, could support H/PETEs in engaging with policy in productive and meaningful ways. Given that engaging with policy is viewed as a collective responsibility of H/PETEs, and many - if not all - of the H/PETEs felt they needed support in this regard, this should be a key focus for the field.

BackgroundResearch in teacher education practice explicitly highlights how learning to teach teachers is a complex, messy, sophisticated process, filled with uncertainty and perpetual challenges. While this applies to all aspects of teacher education, we focus here on the process of learning to teach pre-service teachers (PSTs) how to teach about, through, and for social justice (pedagogies) by enacting the Socially-Just Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (SJ-TPSR) approach.PurposeThis research was guided by the following research question: What are the realities of enacting a SJ-TPSR approach in physical education teacher education (PETE)?MethodUtilising a collaborative self-study approach two physical education teacher educators, supported by two critical friends, enacted the SJ-TPSR approach in a 10-week outdoor and adventure activities module with pre-service generalist primary school teachers. Data included: critical friend meetings, pedagogical decision-making documents and interviews with the teacher educators and PSTs.FindingsThe findings revolve around three categories: (i) Teaching about teaching and learning about teaching the SJ-TPSR approach; (ii) The importance of learning together; and (iii) A pedagogy of vulnerability needed? The findings demonstrated the need to take a gradual approach to teaching about teaching the SJ-TPSR approach and learning about teaching along with the SJ-TPSR approach. It was a daunting experience but reflection and sharing our thoughts mitigated most of these feelings. The importance of learning together was highlighted by both teacher educators. Co-constructing this new knowledge with the PSTs further supported this process. Finally, when enacting a new pedagogical approach, particularly in the area of social justice, required an additional pedagogical approach that of vulnerability.DiscussionOur collaborative self-study on the enactment of the SJ-TPSR approach is an explicit example of reframing pedagogy and practice not only from a social change and social justice perspective, but about, through, and for social justice and change. We first reconceptualised the TPSR approach to the SJ-TPSR approach from a social justice perspective, but then examined our practice and developed practices that also support the teaching and learning about, through, and for social justice. The practices developed have implications for the enactment of the SJ-TPSR approach which hold possibilities for other innovative practices (e.g. layering), and also for self-study research, namely ways in which collaborative self-study can be conducted and in which self-study can work from a social change and social justice perspectiveConclusionWe trust that sharing our journey thus far will support others interested in enacting the SJ-TPSR approach, and that we, in turn, can learn from others enacting, examining, and articulating their experiences with the approach.

Background Social justice as a concept and a pedagogy has (and is) gaining traction in physical education teacher education [Walton-Fisette, J. L., and S. Sutherland. 2018. "Moving Forward with Social Justice Education in Physical Education Teacher Education". Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy 23 (5): 461-468] and school physical education [Philpot, R., G. Gerdin, W. Smith, S. Linner, K. Schenker, K. Westlie, K. M. Moen, and L. Larsson. 2021. "Taking Action for Social Justice in HPE Classrooms Through Explicit Critical Pedagogies." Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy 26 (6): 662-674]. Despite this growing body of research, there seems to be a lack of understanding around the 'how' question; 'how' can we teach about, through, and for social justice (pedagogies) in PETE (in preparing pre-service teachers) and in school physical education? Reflecting on a number of papers as part of a Special Issue in Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, [Flory, S. B., and D. Landi. 2020. "Equity and Diversity in Health, Physical Activity, and Education: Connecting the Past, Mapping the Present, and Exploring the Future." Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy 25 (3): 213-224, 221] suggest the need to re-think and re-imagine physical education curriculum, practice and policy by making new connections and relationships between models-based practices and sociocultural theories. Purpose Guided by asking 'What is worth doing?' and 'Is it working?' [Hellison, D. 2011. Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility Through Physical Activity. 3rd ed. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics], we explore, re-conceptualise, and re-imagine the Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility (TPSR) model as an approach to teach about, through, and for social justice (pedagogies). Discussion A Figure, consisting of three strands, was constructed to visualise the socially-just TPSR approach. As part of this, we have reconceptualised the TPSR levels to 'spaces'. As spaces, students can start in different (and multiple) spaces and move between spaces throughout the lesson. The first two strands of the Figure (social justice topic and the TPSR spaces) inform the pedagogical approaches (strand three) and the pedagogical approaches are underpinned by the teaching about (social justice topic - strand one) and through (TPSR spaces - strand two) social justice. The alignment of the three strands can therefore lead to meaningful, informed, and socially-just learning experiences. Conclusion The need for social justice education is clear. And yet, teachers and teacher educators remain uncertain about how to implement social justice content and pedagogies into physical education contexts such as the field and gymnasium. Honouring Hellison's forty years of (re)developing the theory of TPSR based on what is learned in practice, we suggest this socially-just TPSR approach may open possibilities and potentialities in which educators (i.e. teacher educators, in-service teachers, and pre-service teachers) can learn to teach about, through and for social justice (pedagogies). We have used the litmus test of 'What is worth doing?' to guide us. We truly believe providing educators with a socially-just TPSR approach which may enhance the teaching about, through, and for social justice (pedagogies) is worth doing.

In this paper we offer practical suggestions for integrating social justice content into physical-activity based physical education, namely, through a socially-just TPSR approach. We first address the challenges of using pedagogies for social justice in physical education. This is followed by a brief overview of TPSR (the what) and a re-imagined TPSR approach from a social justice lens. Next, practical examples for developing a socially-just TPSR approach are offered such as ways to a) examine and practice socially just behaviors, b) include transfer and advocacy, and c) use a five-part TPSR lesson plan to integrate social justice issues into physical-activity-based physical education settings. Final thoughts include a) being patient and kind to yourself when implementing unfamiliar approaches and issues, and b) making decisions about the inclusion of social justice issues based on what's personally meaningful for students as well as context, and c) using a TPSR approach to enact social justice content requires a reconceptualization of the model through a social justice lens.

Ideas and beliefs about teaching, profoundly influenced by observations and experiences as K-12 pupils, are not easily disrupted. Physical Education Teacher Education, when beliefs might be examined, has long been criticised as a weak intervention to combat the powerful influence of K-12 socialisation. The purpose of this research was to gain insights into teacher educator practice by describing the influence of pre-service teachers’ (PSTs) occupational socialisation on their learning about and through Models-Based Practice (MBP). Multiple forms of qualitative data generated by nine PSTs enrolled in courses founded in MBP were analyzed using a deductive approach to map concepts from occupational socialisation theory onto the data. Two ways of disrupting PSTs’ ideas and beliefs about teaching are offered: (a) making the unfamiliar familiar and (b) a modest critical approach to innovation. The articulation of such practices holds possibilities for ways in which teacher educator practice might influence PSTs’ socialisation.

Purpose: Models-Based Practice (MBP) has been suggested as one possible physical education future. However, there are few examples that consider the challenges faced implementing MBP. The purpose of this research is to develop and articulate principles of practice for implementing MBP in physical education teacher education. Method: Self-Study of Teacher Education Practice methodology guided collection of teacher educator and preservice teacher (n = 9) data. Results: Principles of practice are identified: (a) providing opportunities for beginning teachers to analyze their learning about and through MBP provides unique insights into using MBP, (b) experiencing and examining alternatives to MBP provides preservice teachers with opportunities to practice pedagogical decision making, and (c) individual and group meetings support teacher educators and preservice teachers in crystallizing understandings of MBP implementation. Conclusion: The articulation of principles of practice offers insights into how teacher educator practice might be examined, developed, and shared for use by others.

As teachers and researchers of teaching, teacher educators are essential to education reform. Yet, what is known and understood about the ways in which teacher educators develop their personal pedagogies of teacher education using innovative practice is under-researched. In my research, I used self-study of teacher education practice (S-STEP) methodology to examine the development and articulation of my personal pedagogy of physical education teacher education (PETE) using innovative practice in the form of Models-Based Practice (MBP). I focused specifically on teaching pre-service teachers about and through four pedagogical models: Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility, Cooperative Learning, Peer Teaching, and Teaching Games for Understanding. Participants included me as the teacher educator-researcher and nine pre-service teachers (PSTs) enrolled in three distinct PETE courses. Over the course of 18.5 months, the following data were gathered: a reflective teacher journal, 79 annotated learning plans, course artifacts (e.g., syllabi), participant and non-participant observations, 27 PST individual interviews, two PST focus group interviews, and PST work samples (e.g., 16 PST reflective writing assignments). I used a deductive approach to map concepts from occupational socialization theory and pedagogy of teacher education theory onto the data. The main findings included: (a) implementing MBP in PETE is complex and fraught with challenges, (b) developing teacher education practice is a multi-layered and problematic undertaking, (c) PSTs’ voices are essential in developing deeper and richer understandings of teacher educator practice, and (d) the development and articulation of principles of practice and a pedagogy of teacher education have fundamental implications for both the teacher educator-researcher engaging in S-STEP but also for other teacher educators. My research findings offer insights into how principles of practice and a pedagogy of teacher education might be examined, developed, and shared for use by other teacher educator-researchers. In addition, my research builds on the limited understanding of MBP implementation and influential factors that contribute to the challenges that teacher educators face in its enactment in PETE. Findings from my research also build on the crucial role of interaction in S-STEP by establishing the value of PSTs as critical contributors in the development of teacher educators’ personal pedagogies.

The culture of physical education (PE) has been identified as needing transformation because traditional PE practice privileges competitive sports, rigid requirements and uniformity. These practices marginalize and alienate ‘lower skilled’ participants, and result in a negative influence on students’ self-concepts, providing a sense of alienation within physical education. A recent pan-Canadian analysis of PE policies confirmed that curricular philosophies included critical considerations, however, learning outcomes continued to reflect primarily traditional PE models. Models-Based Practice (MBP) focuses on student-centred learning across multiple learning domains (i.e., affective, cognitive, psychomotor), an approach that strongly influences the likelihood that students will engage in active lifestyles. In a literature review on Canadian PE, 60 sources were identified, where 59 focused on singular pedagogical models while only one addressed MBP: “Teaching Games for Understanding” (TGfU) (54), “Cooperative Learning” (2), “Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility” (2), “Sport Education”(1), and MBP (1). This literature review reveals that although a range of pedagogical models could form the basis of MBP as an innovative approach to the teaching and learning of PE, TGfU dominates the Canadian pedagogical model literature. Results suggest that empirical research needs to be undertaken for MBP to achieve its theorized potential in order to achieve meaningful physical education curricular change.

This self-study provides insights into my experiences as a learner and teacher of dance education. The purpose of the research is to consider ways physical education (PE) teacher educators can reconsider and recontextualise their students' perspectives about learning PE subject content through the lens of dance education. Data consisted of multiple qualitative sources such as reflective teacher journals, lesson plans and yearly block plans, and student feedback. The main finding revealed that understanding one's teacher socialisation can be used to inform pedagogies of teacher education (e.g. articulating the how and why of teaching practice, making implicit knowledge of teaching explicit, prioritising community building and inclusion). As well, this research revealed the possibility that some students' perceptions and perspectives around offering dance as part of a comprehensive curriculum can be positively influenced during a relatively short 13-week course, despite negative socialising experiences with dance.

This research investigates how teacher candidates in a primary physical education curriculum and methods course learned about and were influenced by efforts to emphasise classroom community and organisation. Qualitative data in the form of interviews, focus groups, and course artefacts were gathered from nine participants throughout one academic term. Analysis of data suggested that most teacher candidates came to recognise pedagogies that fostered a sense of community; however, only a few were able to connect this to their developing visions for teaching. Despite this, all participants came to view the development of a sense of community as one of the most important aspects of their evolving teaching practice.

Background: Models-Based Practice (MBP) represents an innovative approach toward meaningful pedagogical and curricular change in physical education. However, little is known about the ways pre-service teachers (PSTs) learn about multiple models (theories and benchmarks), while also learning through the models (experiencing the models as learners) during Physical Education Teacher Education programs. Purpose: Drawing from Loughran’s (2006) pedagogy of teacher education theory, the purpose of this paper is to understand PSTs’ experiences learning about and through MBP focusing specifically on the following models: Teaching Personal and Social Responsibility, Cooperative Learning, Peer Teaching, and Teaching Games for Understanding. Method: Participants were PSTs enrolled in three distinct PETE courses. An ethnographic approach was used to provide rich description and interpretation of data, uncovering shared meanings of nine PSTs' experiences of MBP. The following data were gathered: 27 individual interviews, 2 focus group interviews, and 16 reflective journals. Using content structures from pedagogy of teacher education theory, data were analysed by coding and comparing participants’ responses. Results: Many PSTs gave positive responses to MBP after enrolling in one relatively short 13-week course. Yet, PSTs suggested that increased experiential learning through multiple models over several courses led to increased understanding of MBP and identification as prospective teachers who could use MBP in the future. Discussion: The results of this research support suggestions that PSTs should be provided with extended opportunities to learn about and through several models during PETE programs. Program-wide adoption offers the greatest promise in supporting future implementation of MBP.