Implementing Lifestyle Sports through Meaningful Physical Education in English Secondary Schools: A Mixed-Methods Study of Pupil Experiences

Wintle, Jordan ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1195-4964, Durden-Myers, Elizabeth ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7705-1138 and Lewis, Kiara ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0142-7351 (2026) Implementing Lifestyle Sports through Meaningful Physical Education in English Secondary Schools: A Mixed-Methods Study of Pupil Experiences. Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy CPES. doi:10.1080/17408989.2026.2708322 (In Press)

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Abstract

ntroduction: Despite calls for reform, physical education (PE) in England remains dominated by traditional, performance-focused activities and pedagogies. Meaningful Physical Education (MPE)offers an alternative, emphasising autonomy, relevance, and enjoyment. Lifestyle sports (LS) such as parkour and CrossFit align closely with these principles, yet their integration within secondary PE—and within the English context – remains under explored. Methodology: Adopting a pragmatic, mixed-methods pre-postintervention design, a teacher-researcher (author 1) implemented two LS units (parkour and CrossFit-Kickboxing) in English secondary schools. Pupils (n = 50; aged 11–14) completed a bespoke Meaningful Physical Education Questionnaire (MPEQ)before and after the intervention and participated in post-unit focus groups. Quantitative data were analysed using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests; qualitative data underwent hybrid inductive–deductive thematic analysis. Findings: The parkour unit generated statistically significant improvements across six of nine MPEQ features, including competence, challenge, choice, and overall meaning. The CrossFit-Kickboxing unit showed less overall change but a notable positive response among female pupils, with significant increases in choice and pedagogy-related dimensions. Qualitative data highlighted three themes: (1) Pupil experiences and MPE, (2)Novelty (3) Potential for LS. Together, these themes provided deeper insight into the quantitative findings, illustrating how MPE-informed pedagogies and LS shaped pupils’ experiences of the intervention units. Discussion: Findings support the capacity of LS, when taught through MPE pedagogies, to foster more meaningful, equitable, and motivating experiences, in comparison to traditional activities in PE. The data also extend existing MPE frameworks by demonstrating that novelty is an emergent feature linked to pupil engagement

Item Type:	Article
Article Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Practitioner enquiry; meaningful experiences; physical activity; curriculum design; pedagogical approaches
Subjects:	G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GV Recreation Leisure > GV557 Sports L Education > L Education (General) L Education > LB Theory and practice of education > LB1603 Secondary Education. High schools
Divisions:	Schools and Research Institutes > School of Education, Health and Sciences
Depositing User:	Charlotte Crutchlow
Date Deposited:	06 Aug 2026 11:17
Last Modified:	06 Aug 2026 11:30
URI:	https://eprints.glos.ac.uk/id/eprint/16438

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