Physical education teacher training in Sweden − challenges and possibilities for a future re-orientation

The rationale for teaching Physical Education (PE) in the Swedish school system has, like in other countries, changed over time, from solely including physical cultures like sport, gymnastics, outdoor life, and dance, to acquiring a broader role following society’s changing needs. The paper’s overall aim is to contribute to the discussion about strategies and content for future quality in PETE and PE by using the Swedish PETE training, PE-practice, and international literature as a fond. The paper gives a short historical background of the development of the PETE field. Since mid-1990s the name of the subject changed to Physical Education and Health (PEH), an amendment triggered by young peoples’ growing physical inactivity. Since then several curricula reforms have continued to be implemented to find solutions to problems often formulated by external stakeholders. But PETE-training and the PEH have remained surprisingly unchanged in form and content. By highlighting critique and tensions within the PE field, the educative role of PETE and PEH is discussed in the frame of didactical questions and aspects of professional knowledge. The paper ends with an example of a possible re-orientation of PETE and PE with a forward-looking perspective: PEH and sustainable development.