Australian health and physical education teachers’ philosophies and pedagogies of health

Focusing largely on the Australian context, this chapter explores the role of
health and physical education (HPE) teachers’ philosophies and pedagogies of
health. We draw upon research findings and existing literature to provide insight
into how health is often conceptualised by both generalist and specialist HPE
teachers, and the implications this might have for student learning. After mak-
ing reference to the Australian policy and education contexts, we introduce the
concept of ‘philosophies’ as a means to understand teachers’ perspectives and
pedagogies as they relate to ‘health’ in HPE. We next illuminate three key ‘prob-
lems’ that characterise the ways in which HPE teachers come to understand and
teach about health, including: (i) valued knowledge in HPE; (ii) the contested
purpose of HPE; and (iii) privileged and marginalised bodies in HPE. Finally,
we make suggestions about how teachers and teacher educators can respond to
these problems, and thus find small and nuanced ways in their teaching practice
to challenge dominant discourses of health and the body. We finish with some
concluding thoughts and reflection points for consideration.