There are some things we learned - that we hadn´t thought of: experience of and learning in the subject of physical education and health from a student perspective

Physical education and health [PEH] is a popular school subject, but the aims and purposes of the subject are not so evident. How do the students experience the subject? In this study ten female students who passed their mandatory PEH program are interviewed regarding how they experienced the subject and what they learned after twelve years of mandatory lessons in PEH. The interviews are analysed using Merleau-Ponty’s (1997) theory of the lived body. The results show that PEH is experienced as two distinct subjects: physical education and health education. The physical education part is mainly sport activities and is considered not serious, in comparison with club sports. Health education is taught as a theoretical subject and is rejected because theory does not belong to PEH. When the subject is taught in a dualistic knowledge tradition, the learning of PEH is neither theoretically nor practically satisfactory. The students vaguely suggest a more integrated approach to learning.