These individuals are left out in physical education lessons

When traditional ball games and high-intensity training dominate PE lessons, girls with minority backgrounds are often left on the sidelines.

Girls with minority backgrounds are frequently viewed as a challenge in PE lessons. This emerged when researchers interviewed five PE teachers at upper secondary schools in Southeastern Norway.

(Stock photo: iStockphoto)

Walter Norman Wehus Walter Norman Wehus Walter Norman Wehus COMMUNICATIONS ADVISER

Presented by: Presented by: Presented by: University of Agder

Published 7 April 2026 - 00:01

“If we want physical education to become a more inclusive subject for everyone, we need to question the familiar ways of teaching,” says researcher Erik Aasland at the University of Agder.

In a new research article, Aasland and his colleagues analyse interviews with five PE teachers working in upper secondary schools.

The researchers have specifically looked at how teachers, often unconsciously, treated white Norwegian body culture as a natural standard.

“I was surprised by the extent to which the clothing of minority girls was viewed as a problem in physical education lessons,” says researcher Erik Aasland.

A self-reinforcing cycle

Although the study involved only a small number of teachers, Aasland believes the findings will be recognisable to many.

“These girls are seen as a problem by the teachers: they wear the wrong clothes, they lack experience with sport and exercise, and they are passive in class. The teachers do not mean any harm, but they contribute to reproducing a form of structural discrimination,” he explains.

Aasland adds that other research also confirms that these are familiar assumptions and stereotypes.

Us and them

All the teachers described challenges related particularly to the clothing worn by Muslim girls in PE lessons.

Long dresses were described as impractical for participation, for example because the fabric could get caught in the pedal of an exercise bike.

Clothing was also an issue during outdoor activities. One teacher said the girls often arrived for hikes wearing the same clothes they had worn at school, without suitable footwear or extra gear.

“We saw very clearly how the teachers spoke in terms of ‘us’ and ‘them’. ‘Our’ way of doing things is the correct one, while ‘they’ are not used to being physically active. One teacher said, ‘They’re not used to going for walks the way we do in Norway’, as if everyone in Norway shares the same experiences of outdoor life,” Aasland says.

“Passive and inexperienced”

The teachers also described girls with minority backgrounds as lacking basic knowledge and skills in sport, which they felt affected the rest of the class negatively during ball games.

“By contrast, boys with minority backgrounds were described as almost too active, while white Norwegian girls were portrayed as having grown up with sport and therefore being more experienced,” Aasland says.

“Girls with minority backgrounds were also described as passive, uninterested, and a little shy. Teachers said they contributed little to group tasks, and that it was difficult for the Norwegian, white pupils to get them involved,” the researcher says.

Favours some over others

Diversity and inclusion are part of the curriculum in teacher education. Aasland believes the problem arises when the physical education curriculum meets long-standing traditions and the mindset of 'this is how we’ve always done it.'

“Traditional ball games and high-intensity training dominate PE lessons. Faced with this kind of teaching, girls with minority backgrounds are perceived as pupils who do not fit into ‘our subject’. This form of teaching, however, favours slim, well-trained bodies and those who are good at ball games,” says Aasland.

He hopes the study will spark discussions both in teacher education programmes and in schools.

Aasland explains that research shows that physical education can be organised in ways that make the subject meaningful for girls with minority backgrounds.

“Designing teaching so that these pupils also have positive experiences is important if physical education is to help everyone develop a physically active lifestyle based on their own abilities,” he says.

Reference:

Aasland et al. Teachers’ constructions of female Students of Color as ‘the other’ in physical education, Sport, Education and Society, 2026. DOI: 10.1080/13573322.2026.2625140

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Read the Norwegian version of this article on forskning.no