Socio-Cultural Studies (PE)

Physical Activity: Anything that gets the body moving and the heart pumping more than at rest. It is also an umbrella term involving physical and outdoor recreation, physical and outdoor education and sport.

Exercise: Physical activity requiring physical effort that is done to improve heath and fitness.

A healthy/balanced lifestyle is one with:

• equilibrium
• quality
• wellness

A BAHL includes: exercise, nutritious diet, free time, rest/sleep, hobbies, personal hygiene, illness/injury prevention, control of stress/pressure.

Lifetime Sport: Activities that can be enjoyed over the course of a lifetime (e.g. tennis)

Lifelong Physical Activity: Enjoyable health-goving movement that can be continued throughout life (e.g.yoga)

Benefits:

• Physical - improve CV fitness, maintain healthy body weight
• Mental - stress relief, mood enhancement, feel good factor
• Personal - knowing own strengths and weaknesses, self esteem
• Social - healthy relationships, feeling of belonging

Factors contributing to increasing sedentary lifestyle: Britain has gone from rural to urban, today most people see exercise as a choice rather than a nessecity, modern technology has reduced the need to travel anywhere, parents are more fearful of their children walking alone.

Physical activity recomendations: moderate intensity that gets the heart and lungs working.

• Adults: 30 mins, 5 x a week
• Children: 60 mins a day, 2 sessions high impact to increase bone density and reduce osterporosis

Barriers to young people: lack of energy, lack of disposable income, no friends who participate, self concious, dislike getting hot and sweaty, lack of facilities in local area.

Who? 

Available to all who choose to take part, amateurs

Where? 

Decided by participants

When?

Decided by participants in their free time

How? 

Relatively unsophisticated level, limited competition, funding and skill involved

Benefits? 

Learn new skills, healthy and well being, stress relief, relaxation, enjoyment, sociable 

SAME CHARACTERISTICS AS PHYSICAL RECREATION JUST IN THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT.

Benefits?

• Appriciation of the natural environment - a chance to get back to nature/live more simply/escape from moern hectic lifestyles/a time to tune into your own thoughts and feelings.
• Respect for natural environment - being in the natural environment can intensify appriciation of need to preserve, conserve, value and protect the natural environment.
• Gaining a sense of adventure - due to the unpredictable, risky and sometimes potentially dangerous nature of the natural environment. Once all real risk has been eliminated and saftey measures followed, a sense of excitement, exhiliration and adventure can be experienced.

Characteristics:

• School children/young people
• National Curriculum
• Specialist staff
• Oppertunities for GCSE, AS/A level, BTEC etc.
• Variety of practical exams and theoretical exams

Benefits:

• Physical - skill, healh, fitness, physique, agaility, knowledge of activities/coaching/judging
• Preparatory - Preparation for lesuire or sport, a career or work
• Personal (and social) - enjoyment, team work, confidence, leadership, loyalty, responsibility, commitment, overcoming challenges, decision-making, problem solving, respect for others, sportsmanship
• Improved quality of life - balanced active healthy lifestyle, mental well being

When - as part of structure school or college programmes, special trips or visits

Who - young people, qualifies specialist leaders, staff

Where - in the natural environment (hills, lakes, rivers, mountains, caves), sometimes using semi-natural or artificial factilities (climbing wall)

How - According to strict health and saftey regulations. Sometimes by overcoming potential constraints e.g.

• distance from natural environment
• expense of specialist activities
• lack of staff expertise or qualifications
• expense in terms of time
• reluctance of staff with health and saftey concerns

Benefits - physical health and skill learning, personal and sical development, preparaation for active lesuire, enhancement of quality of life.

When - at a designated time, and/or predetermined length of time

Who - those with pysical prowess (skill) and those with physical enveavour (effort and commitment), the elite, some professionals

Where - at a designated place with fixed boundaries, specialist or purpose built facilities

How - with high levels of organisation that is

• with officials and formal rules (written by NGB's)
• high level of competition
• high level of commitment, training and coaching
• with sportsmanship
• media interest and sponcership
• element of chance

Benefits - for intrisic reward (personal satisfaction and sense of achievement) or for extrinsic rewards (money and/or fame)

Characteristics for surviving ethnic sports (FLOR(R)IST(T)):

• Festival - frequent evidence of pagan or mediaeval ritual in costumes
• Local - often unique to area, increases local pride
• Occasional (annual) - a desire to escape from the pressures of modern living every so often
• Rowdy - traditionally these occasions were associated with drinking, singing and celebration
• Ritual - it can be an old mediaeval ritual
• Isolated - the comparative isolaion and inaccessibility of some rural areas allows local customs to survive
• Social - important social occasions bringing comunities together, often focused on the 'pub'
• Traditional - a celebration of the past
• Tourism - the sports continue to be tourist attractions and even media attractions

Examples:

• The Highland Games (Scotland)
• Cheese Rolling (Gloucestershire)
• Royal Shrovetide Football (Ashbourne, Derbyshire)

How did the 19th century public schools help promote and oragnise sports and games?

• They had plenty of funding to build specialist facilities and employ specilist coaches
• Being boarding schools, there was plenty of time to practice
• There was usually plenty of space e.g. for criket and rugby pitches and for builfing new specialist facilities e.g. squash courts
• Games were usually compulsory every day
• The boys were fully involved with the organisation of the games
• The coaches and pupils made up the rules to the games
• The head master was very supportive of these games
• They often arranged interhourse or interschool competitons
• Ex-pupils or teachers would spread work about the sports and become founders of some of the NGB's

Traditional Amateur to Professional approach:

• In the 19th century, amateurs took part in sport for the love not money. Wealthy upper-middle class men who excelled at games were known as 'gentlemen ameteurs'
• They could afford to spend time awat from work to play sports
• If a working class man excelled in sport, he could get paid to become a 'working class proffesional' but these were looked down upon

There are 4 key areas which it could be argued havebecome more professional in approach:

1. Mass participation

2. Sporting excellence

3. Organisation and administraions of spory in the UK

4. Governement support for sport

The USA is a powerful, relatively young nation.

The USA has a large population.

Native Indians are the indigenous or original population.

George Washington was the first presient in 1787.

Over the past 250 years the USA has been the 'land of oppertunity' for countless immagrants.

The country has a belief in individualism where each person is responsible for their own desitny and success.

The individualism leads to capitalism which is a system based on private or corportate ownership and the investment of money for profit.

Capitalism influences the nature of sport in the USA.

Win Ethic: This ethic dominates sport at all levels in the USA, winning is more important than taking part, the result is what matters, second place is not an option, Vince Lombardi 'winning isn't the most important thing - it is the only thing'.

American Dream: The dream of success, freedom, equality and security, gets you from 'Rags to Riches' prosperity and seccess depend on ability and hardwork not your class, anyone can achieve the dream if you put your mind to it, e.g. the Williams Sister's.

Comercialism: Sport means business, TV and adertising fund top level professions sport with sport, sponcership and the medial. The three was triangle is refered to as the 'Golden Triangle'. Although comparatively few perfomers become super-rich the very best are on multi-million dollar paying contracts. They can also earn nillions from advertising and sponsorship deals.

Orgins and nature of game: In 1800's there were generally no accepted rules, the game developed in the influecial 'Ivy Leauge' universities.

Characteristics: In early days serious injury and death were not uncommon as players wore little protection, it got so rough it got banned in uni's for a short time, characterstics of toughness, endeacour and courage which were needed to be successful in the game reflected the spirit of the USA, after adaptions american football developed its own rules.

Physicality: By 1900 the game had developed so violently that succes was dependant on almost entirely phyisical force. Players must now wear specialist protective equipment to emphasise saftey.

Injury: Injuries are very common, 28 players died from direct football injuries between 2000-2005. It is argued that protective clothing promotes violoence as they can hurl themselves at eachother at high sppeds with less chance of injury.

Commercialism: Is it a multi-billion dollar business. Teams are bought or inherited and run a franchises. Competition for TV coverage inglates cost on NFL franchises.

Superbowl: Showcase for extravagently expensive advert, 30 sec ad will cost $2.6million

Australia is a comparatively young nation.

Australia is sparsely populated with just 21 million people compared with 300 million in the USA and 60 million in Britain.

85% of the population live in only just over 3% of the land.

Colonial influence: Australia adopted many english games and great sporting rivalry developed which continues today, Australian schools have school colours similar in English tradition

Immigration: Many convicts used to be transported as slaves, since the abolition of the 'white australian' policy muliticulturalism has been promoted. More recently Australia embarked on a policy of reconciliation aimed at ending the discrimination against the Aborigional people, which started in the colonial period.

Social and cultural reasons for Australia's preoccupation with sport:

• Favourable climate
• Accesible natural resources, like beaches and seas
• Sport is fashionable
• Halthy lifestyle is important
• Political support and funding
• Success of Australian elite performers as role models and representatives of the country
• Relatively young population
• Sport and PE have a high status in schools
• Plenty of space
• Healthy economy
• Media interest
• Traditional respect for stamina and pioneering spirit (bush culture) suits sport

Origins: Strongly reflects Australian society and culture. It is played on gigantic cricket 'ovals' with 9 officials and 22 player per side. It was the idea of English-born TomW WIlls and winter training for cricketers. Wills combined the Aborigional leaping game with what he had seen as a school boy of Rugby.

Factors that have shaped the development the game: australians travelling abroad have taken the game with them, it is widely taught in Australian schools and there are extensive pathway programmes, the game appeals to all, it can be played by both men and women, it can be played successfully by all body types.

Commercialism and impact of the media: Aussie Rules football is a multi million dollar business that has blossomed as a reult of commercialism. Interest in the gmae is at an all time high making it the most highly attended spectator sport in Australia. The game is a great media product with regulat commercial breaks. Modern day players are attracted by the financial rewards from advertising and sponcership.

There are 3 types of funding:

Public:

• Centural Government: IN = taxes, gaming duties, National Lottery ticket sales                         OUT = local authorities, awards to grants
• Local authorities: IN = government, council taxes, grants from central government and lottery, chages for facility use                                                                                                                 OUT = cost of schools (staff and facilities), community sports facilities and grants to local clubs

Private: IN = business profit, ticket sales and sales of TV rights                                                      OUT = cost of sponcering of individuals and teams, running and maintaining private sports clubs and facilities, buying TV rights, grants

Voluntary:(donations from donations or charities or private clubs) IN = from natioanl lottery grants, local authority grants, NGB's, fundraising, members sbscriptions,                                                  OUT = cost of maintenance and delvelopment of facilities, coaching fees and running the club

Overall Aim - To develop elite sport in the UK

What does UK Sport do?

• manages and distributes National Lottery funding through the World Class Programme
• promotes ethical behavious (has anti-doping programme)
• co-ordinates work to attract major sporting events
• manages the UK's iternational sporting relationships
• helps elite persomers development of sporting lifestyle
• supports world class coaches
• manages the Talented Athlete Scholarship System

Overall Aim - to provide Britain's best performers with the practical support needed to compete and win at the highest level.

What do they provide?

• sport science and sports medicine
• medical consultaion and medical screening
• physiology
• biomechanics
• nutritional advice
• performance analysis and planning
• psychology
• physiotherapy
• stength and conditioning
• career, educational and lifestyle advice
• sports massage

• Sport England aim - to get people more active and involved
• What Sport England does - promotes volunteering, coaching, leadership and officiating, focuses on prioity groups (e.g. disabilities), works closely with local, regional and national partners and brings together NGB's, develops school/club links, works with partners to ensure that the LONDON 2012 games leaves a lasting sporting legacy, it is responsic for fundinh elite performers in sports such as squash and netball that are non-olympic.
• Sports Council for Northern Ireland aim - increase participation, improve performance and management
• What Sports Council for Northern Ireland does - increase participation is disadvantages areas and improves knowledge and skills enabling more poeple to contribute to long term sport
• SportsScotland aim - increase participation and performance
• What SportsScotland does - develops facilities and creates pathways of oppertunities at any level
• Sports Council for Wales aim - get people more active more often
• What Sports Council for Wales does - gives high levels support, encourages more active young people

Each sport is controlled by its NGB.

NGB's map out their vision and get people to start, stay and succeed in their sport.

NGB's recieve funding from their home country councils.

They work with mass particiants as well as elite performers.

e.g. British Gymnastics

Mass Patricipation - clubs all over the country with open days to promote first time comers

Elite Performers - provide funding and specialist coaches and training days for the performers at the top of their game. They even have a national institute of sport which is the top facilities in Lilleshall.

Elite

• highly skilled performers at national/international level
• high levels of coaching
• fully commited perfomers (some may get paid)

Performance

• club participation, district or regional level
• emphasis on competition or winning
• performers who train regulaly and are keen to improve

Participation

• school or club participation, for enjoyment
• non-competitive or extra curricular involvement

Foundation

• being introduced into sport, learning basic skills

OPPERTUNITY (having the chance to take part and/or get to the top): Mass participation - disposable income, ability, skill, health or fitness, the amount of time available after work and other commitments, do you actually want to take part? Are suitable and appealing activities available? Sporting Excellence - funding and financial support, chance to train full time, whether individuals choose to make sacrifices and give the all round commitment needed to get to the top.

PROVISION (having the conditions or physical tools to take part and/or get to the top): Mass participation - presence or absence of suitable equipment and facilities, access (e.g. wheelchair), availability or suitable transport, suitable clubs, the right coaching with the right level qualifications. Sporting Excellence - availability of world class facilities, availability of sports science, distance from national institute centres, suitable and regular competitions, the right qualified coaches.

ESTEEM (issues to do with respect, confidence, admiration and value): Mass participation - self confidence and self belief, respect from others and social acceptance or everones right to take part in sport, positive or negative perceptions of certain activities, status in society (e.g. minority group) Sporting Excellence - self confidence and self belief, respect from others (team mates, media), recent results, status in the sporting world.

Factor affecting participation in sport:

• Where you live - will affect your choices and oppetunities
• The Gevernment - politics affects funding for public facilities
• Your family - parent and siblings are first positive or negative role models and will affect your participation and attitudes
• Your race/religion - some ethnic groups still hold negative attitudes to sport e.g. Asian women may not take part dut to belief's and also their atire
• Your gender - more men take part in regular participation than women
• Stereotyping - when certain groups are considered to have particular strengths (e.g. basketball you have to be tall)
• Ability or disability - is their access if you are disabled?
• Your age - some sports are not available to different age groups
• Socio-economic status - imcome and employment status will affect participation because it depends on how much you can afford a certain sport
• Your friends - peer groups often have influence over your choice
• Your school - a positive or negative school experience can affect lifetime attitudes towards participation

Limiting factors:

• Relatively few role models
• Younger leaders may be unclear of the needs and abilities of older clients
• Their friends dont participate
• Poor self image and belief they are no longer suited to physical activity
• Lack of transport
• Caution of illness and injury
• Limited disposable income
• Difficulty of getting active after having a long period of inactivity
• Poor health
• May have had negative previous experiences

Limiting factors:

• society contrinues to discriminate against disabled people
• people impose barriers on people with disabilities
• 75% of disabled adults rely on state benefits so they have little disposable income
• there is a stereotype that disabled people struggle with physical activity
• many have been integrated into mainstream schools, which could have had some negative experiences
• access to sporting facilities may not be available (e.g. wheelchair access)
• may not be suiatble facilities that can be adapted to their disability

Limiting factors:

• bad experiences in schools
• they only do it when they are told so as soon as they leave school they are inactive
• young people get bored of the same activities and need a varied and interesting prgramme at all levels of the performance pyramid
• some schools only accomodate certain sports which many may not enjoy and may not want to participate in

Limiting factors:

• women are seen as through they have to stay at home and do all the house work
• some women feel intimidated doing exercsie if there is men there aswel
• there are not as many sports that are as open to women as there are men
• there are less role models for women
• some women are not allowed to do sport because of their religion, and they may have to be fully covered at all times so could not wear the sporting atire

Limiting factors:

• Racial discrimination can make some people choose not to take part in sport
• Lack of role models for ethnic groups
• Media may present them inaccuratly
• Due to religious belief, they may have o stay fully covered so there is no way that they are allowed to wear typical sporting attire

Possible ways to promote participation and excellence:

• Set up more schemes for different minority groups
• Decrease fees to participate (elderly)
• Ensure equality and ease of access (disabilities)
• Increased child care (women)
• Stop stereotypical thinking
• Promote positive role modela (ethnic groups)
• Increase choices of activities (elderly and disabilities)
• Provide specialist coaches (disabilities and elderly)

Physiological reasons:

• To build muscles,
• Increase oxygen transported,
• To loose weight,
• To be able to train harder and longer,
• To mark injury and pain

Psychological reasons:

• To steady nerves,
• To increase motivation

Social reasons:

• Pressure to win from coaches, peers and media
• By winning they can earn more money
• They are prepared to win at all costs
• The belief that everyone else is taking drugs

Health and wellbeing:

• Can be addictive
• Lower life expectance or death
• Can supress growth
• Lead to liver disorder or heart disease
• Cause sexual problems
• Cause depression

Legality:

• Fined for breaking rules
• Jailed for using banned substances

Role modelling:

• You will loose your role model status
• Gives bad image to your name and your sport

Possible solutions to prevent drug use:

• Stricter, more rigorous and out of season testing
• Stricter punishments and life bans
• Co-ordinated eduction programmes for athletes and coaches that highlight health and moral issues surrounding drugs and sport
• More money for increasingly efficient and effective testing programmes
• Unified policies about the issue
• Role models to reinforce their 'no drugs' position

Saftey: gum sheilds, cricket head gear, padded equipment for hockey players

Technology: gym equipment (treadmills), arenas with retractable roofs, ball feeding machines

Materials: carbon fibre and titanium poles for pole vault, foamed sprung floors, soft landing areas

Officiating: electronic timing equipment that measwures fractions of seconds, hawk eye in tennis

Shoes: boots with bladed studs, track shoes that dampen muscles vibration

Clothing: hydrodymnaic swimming caps, full body suits for swimming, hooded siuts for athletes

Motion analysis: e.g. golf swings which can be computorised to look at technique

Comfort: new fabrics that draw sweat away from the body, insulate, cool or breathe as needed

Science/medicine: improved physiotherapy and sports medicine (ultrasound), improved surgery  

The media has four key roles:

1. To inform - e.g. informing about a match result, team anaylsis or player preparation or behaviour, or any drug abuse articles.

2. To educate - e.g. on global sporting issues, sport, skills, coaching techniques, sporting issues or local sporting provision.

3. To entertain - e.g. with live coverage of an event or infomation about a stars private life, or a documentary on a particular teams pre-competition preparation.

4. To advertise - either directly or indirectly through sponcerships.

Positive impacts of the media:

• balanced active healthy lifestyle promoted
• lifelong involvement in physical activity increased
• a small number can become millionares
• professional sporting career oppertunities for a greater number of performers
• myths and stereotypes can be broken
• advanced technology can increase entertainment and interest (goal line cameras)
• rules, timings, seasons, format, and structure of sport can be changed in a positive way to speed up action and scoring
• minority sprots and minority groups can be highlighted
• more money goes into sport
• positive role models creased and on show
• sport is more serious with fewer draws and clear results
• sproting standards are improving

Negative imapcts of the media on sport:

• loss of privacy
• only very few get high financial rewards
• increased win at all costs ethic/loss of enjoyment
• audiences may suffer from sporting overload and boredom
• media focus on negative aspects and behaviour
• you may have to 'pay to view'
• media can put pressure on athletes to come first, may cause drug issues
• bright lights/intrusive cameras could put performers off
• myths and stereotypes can be reinforced
• rules, seasons and formats could be changed negatively, e.g. more ad breaks
• reduced participation as people prefer to sit and watch

Sport and Media: high level sport is a media commodity, sport is available almost 24/7, media controls some aspects of sport, celebrities are created through media

Media and Sponcership: when sports are covered by the media (especially TV) sponcership  increases e.g. England Netball

Sponcership and Sport: Sponcership increases poplarity and stability of sport, sport is realatively inexpensive form of advertising, money from sponcership can help improve spectaor provision

Possible causes by players:

• Importance of result
• Provocation or 'sledging'
• Dissapointment and frustration
• Crown behaviour
• Nature of game

Possible causes by crowd:

• The score or result
• Alcohol or drugs
• Importance of event
• Players behaviour
• Poor policing
• Pre-match hype

Possible solutions to player violence:

• Technology - video playbacks to adjudicate fair play
• Rule changes - to combat ways that players find to dodge the rules
• More severe penalties - e.g. sending aplayer off for violence
• Education - NGB's educate on fair play in perfromers
• More officials - so there is more authority on the pitch

Possible solutions to crowd violence:

• Control of alcohol
• Promotion as family entertainment
• Responsible media coverage
• Use of CCTV
• More severe punishments
• Separation of fans