Significativo na Educação Física: How meaningful physical education is represented in curriculum and interpreted by teacher educators in Portuguese-speaking countries

There has been a recent increase in attention to meaningful experiences in physical education (PE) in English-speaking countries. This has led to calls for greater attention to be paid to the role of meaningful experiences in other contexts, given the different interpretations of the term ‘meaningful’ alongside other contextual priorities in PE. Thus, we examined meaningful experiences in PE in the Portuguese-speaking countries of Brazil (BR), Mozambique (MZ), and Portugal (PT) through the lenses of (a) curriculum and (b) teacher educators. Data were gathered through interviews with 12 teacher educators (BR = 4, MZ = 4, PT = 4) and analysis of curriculum documents. The PE curriculum documents did not explicitly reference meaningful experiences, though they do contain principles that teachers could use to foster them. In order to facilitate meaningful experiences, teacher educators indicated that PE teachers should apply democratic and reflective principles to make PE relevant to students’ lives, foster positive social interactions, offer appropriate challenges, enhance motor competence, and provide enjoyable and fun classes. Additional features were noted including novelty, competition, outdoor physical activity, and teacher professionalism. Teacher educators emphasised that meaningful experiences in PE arise from quality pedagogical practices but precarious teaching conditions can hinder this potential. In such circumstances, it is essential to seek creative solutions and advocate for improvements in working conditions and PE teaching in schools, while also integrating pedagogies of meaningfulness and social justice.