Teachers’ representations of the distribution of students by sex in Physical Education classes

Abstract

The goal of this case study is to identify how physical education teachers at a public school in the State of Rio de Janeiro represent the distribution of students by sex in physical education classes. We worked with focal group interviews and participant observation as well as theses and dissertations on the topic. According to these teachers, mixed classes favor socialization and discourage conflict and the manifestation of differences in motor skill and strength, while sex- separated classes place priority on performance and reflect “sportization”. In the case of “flexibilized classes”, teachers combine both types of organization. The results suggest that we should seek to overcome binary divisions and look for other criteria for distributing students.