"Daring to Be Deviant": Gay Males' Reflective Experiences of Physical Education

• In Event: 52.084 - Roundtable Session 18
  In Roundtable Session: 52.084-10 - Negotiating Masculinities

Abstract

Despite a wealth of work in physical education on the exclusion of young people at the intersection of gender, sexuality and other identity positions, with the notable exception of Sykes (2011), there is very little research on the experiences of gay youth in physical education. In this paper, I share the perspectives of young gay men in New Zealand and employ a Foucauldian analysis to understand how the supposed heteronormative environment of PE affects gay students’ subjectivities and their views of themselves as physical. In so doing, I ask whether the field of PE continues to marginalize young people who identify as gay and offer suggestions for future practice.

Authors

• Hayley Jane McGlashan, The University of Auckland

• Katie Fitzpatrick, University of Auckland