‘Physical Education demands a lot of your gender identity because you show yourself in motion – The construction of (gendered) body in physical education from the perspective of trans students

One characteristic of Physical Education [PE] is its body-relatedness. A binary gender logic is pervasive in PE, shaping the perceptions, thoughts, and behaviours of both students and teachers. From a cis- and heteronormative perspective, this binarity goes along with inequality and discrimination. PE can be an especially sensitive context for trans* persons, whose gender and body identity differs from the sex assigned at birth. The body is seen as a medium, in which the consequences of a gender binary and heteronormative system is visible, represented and produced through performativity. Simultaneously, socially constructed bodies influence subjective experiences and practices. This interview study provides insight into trans* students’ perspectives regarding their embodied experiences and their construction of their (gendered) body in PE. Semi-structured interviews with five trans* women and seven trans* men were conducted. The interviews included topics related to their gender biography and their experiences in school, PE and extracurricular sports. The data analysis is based on Grounded Theory. The inseparable interplay of gender and body, which affects the trans* students’ gender identity, was highlighted in the perception and construction of PE and the body. The trans* body in PE is construed in a functional, symbolic and aesthetic dimension. These bodily experiences and constructions cannot be separated from incorporated gender and body norms which are actualised through performativity. The intersection of gender, body and identity paints a complex picture of trans* students’ bodily experiences in PE, where affirmation, but also self-doubt and degradation of one’s gender identity occur. Based on the results, pedagogical and didactic considerations for more trans* inclusive PE can be derived.