Arts-based learning in Physical Education: sharing philosophies and practice in Higher Education

Abstract

This chapter reports on a long-term intervention in teaching (24 years - ongoing) through an arts-based pedagogy across a range of Physical Education degrees, including; Sport Studies, Sports Journalism, Sports Coaching and more recently Outdoor Education at the University of Central Lancashire, UK. The focal point of the chapter is the Sporting Image module and its evolution across three generations of educators in sport and PE. (The Sporting Image is a year-long module at Level 6, 3rd year degree). We will reveal some of the teaching processes which guide the students towards an independent and critical point of view about an aspect of sport of their choosing. Then, by way of illustration, we share some of the products that are having such a deep impact upon learners both in the classroom and far beyond, as they create and physically manifest their sporting ideas to communicate their beliefs to the world. A feature of best practice in Higher Education is the broadcasting and
sharing of these valuable learning products through student-centred publication; publication and academic literacy being the ‘learning currency’ of Higher Education. To date, some 300+ chapters of staff-student collaborative writing and artworks have been published across six volumes, and shared on the internet through open-access websites, making them free to all. Through these learning products, the student-and-teacher impart their wisdom and philosophical critiques using the medium of art; the language of art being accessible across international boundaries and thus, free to make connections through common experiences in sport and in learning at university.