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This paper is a reflection, a critique, and, hopefully, an inspiration to think about how future generations can reshape physical education in the United States. To do so, we first pay homage to our pioneers, who, we argue, were transformative leaders because they used research to respond to the sociopolitical issues of their time. In saying this, we reflect on how these ideas from that time were critically important but have also been developed for a different time, place, and demographic of people. We then trace the social justice research in the United States by highlighting the promises and pitfalls of current scholarship because it often asks “tough questions” but provides “weak solutions.” To conclude, we believe that the future of physical education needs to be about allowing those “new voices” to become the future leaders of our field. In so doing, they will change the landscape of physical education knowledge, movement, and practices.

In this paper, we provide an overview of physical education (PE) policy and advocacy research in the United States. We examine the past policy and advocacy work that has been completed in the field and make connections to international policy work. We examine the potential changes the future holds for developing scholarship in the area. We define policy and advocacy and explain how teachers as policy actors are key figures in any policy enacted. The paper also examines the relationship between PE and the public health arena, which completes a lot of PE-focused policy research. The paper concludes with a focus on PE teacher education and the work that higher education must do to help educate future professionals to be advocates for policy change.

The purpose of this article is to overview the history of research in physical education teacher education (PETE), discuss contemporary trends, and identify future directions for scholarship and teacher education practice. Teacher education is defined as formal and informal experiences that contribute to teachers’ education across their careers. Using the phases of occupational socialization and Kosnik and Beck’s “seven priorities of teacher education” to frame an analysis of literature from the 1980s through to the present, a brief summary of research on PETE is provided, using the chronological categories of past and present. The analysis takes into account implications for PETE that were left by the global pandemic, where traditional PETE practices were significantly disrupted by a shift to online learning. The chapter is concluded by listing questions regarding PETE that researchers and teacher educators might tackle in the future.

Occupational socialization theory has been used to guide research related to the lives and careers of teachers and, more recently, teacher educators for around 50 years. Across this time, much has been learned about the factors that attract or deter prospective recruits from seeking occupations in the field, the effectiveness of professional development programming, and individuals’ experiences working in educational systems or scholarly contributions toward larger institutional missions. In this paper, we provide an overview of research stemming from occupational socialization theory before presenting and discussing vignettes that provide illustrative examples of the socialization of physical education teachers and faculty members in action. Building from the discussion across these vignettes, we describe lessons learned related to applying the findings of socialization research in practice before closing with research recommendations. We emphasize topical and methodological diversity in socialization research and provide example studies linked to the current literature.

Research exploring motivation has yielded a robust body of evidence to guide efforts to improve teaching and learning in physical education (PE). We begin by defining motivation and achievement within the context of PE. Given the extensive and diverse motivational perspectives, we purposely selected three widely studied theories in PE, achievement goal theory, self-determination theory, and interest theory, as the focus of our review. These theories have guided many investigations and the development of pedagogical practice over the past 3 decades. We elaborate on these theories and then synthesize recently published intervention studies to provide an interpretive analysis of the literature. This analysis has enabled us to identify gaps that need to be addressed in future research and efforts to improve practice. We conclude with the proposition calling for innovative, theory-driven, evidence-based research and practice to foster adaptive student motivation for optimal educational, behavioral, and health outcomes in K–12 PE.

Pedagogical content knowledge is an incredibly useful construct to examine teaching and to design teacher education for preservice and continuing education settings. Although it has been central to discussions of teaching effectiveness since Shulman first proposed it in 1986, pedagogical content knowledge has been subject to considerable criticism and elaboration since then. In this paper, we discuss the research on pedagogical content knowledge in physical education, criticisms, and how it has been shaped by those criticisms. We examine pedagogical content knowledge beyond the traditional focus of pedagogy and content, discussing the role of knowledge of students, context, and curriculum as influences on pedagogical content knowledge. In doing so, we identify the strengths and weaknesses of the literature and propose directions for future research.

In this article, the authors examine the idea of social and emotional learning (SEL) and discuss ways it can contribute to a favorable future for physical education. While physical education has a long history and best practices aligned with this initiative, there is certainly room to improve. Not only can practitioners be more intentional and explicit in the ways SEL is promoted, a favorable future for physical education would involve a transformative approach that helps students develop SEL skills while also addressing institutional and systemic barriers that limit opportunities for social and emotional development. As the authors explain, transformative SEL in physical education would be characterized by student empowerment, culturally responsive teaching, and students applying these lessons in other settings for the betterment of themselves and society. The article concludes with a discussion of what it would take to move in this direction with regard to theory, policy, research, and practice.