Browsing by Author "Toivanen, Antti-Ville"

The immobility of people has increased when the physical load of work has decreased in recent decades. Because most of the children and the youth exercise too little, the meaning of physical education (PE) as pillar of physically active lifestyle has grown. PE became a part of education over 170 years ago and PE lessons resonate somehow with everybody of us. The role of PE has always been significant and its evolution reflects the surrounding society. The ethos of sport has been as well hidden silent partner in PE from the beginning. Historical baggage also includes achievement, nationalism and given gender roles among other things. PE has unnoticed been highly labelled and tunnel-visioned. Thesis method in this study was a descriptive literature review. The purpose of this thesis was to create an overview of the ethos of Finnish PE. I researched PE as subject and social phenomenon, made a review of history and examined the present state. The way I see it, PE has undergone a very significant shift in consequence of the national core curriculum for basic education reform (2014). Self-determination theory is the theoretical framework of this reform. The renewed physical education discourse differentiates sports and PE. There has been a transition in the curriculum approach from Finnish national sports to enhance students’ basic motor skills, qualities and competence. Regarding the well-being of students, PE aims to contribute to an individual’s development of physical, social and psychological abilities along with positive body image. The emphases of this new PE include embodiment, physical activity, cooperation and wider social responsibility. By means of PE the purpose is to promote equality, communality and cultural diversity. An inclusive PE takes account of individual’s various needs, capabilities and skills instead of performance-centric or social comparison. The ideological reform of Finnish PE is extremely significant.