Body and Leisure: A look through the practices and discourses of Physical Education students in the key of Gender

Abstract

The following research work focuses on analyzing the experiences, practices, and discourses that are present around the body practices carried out by students of the Bachelor's Degree in Physical Education in Montevideo, Uruguay. The conceptualizations of Free Time and Leisure in relation to gender are explored, as well as the historical definitions of the body in physical education and its link with the constructions of gender and sexuality. By crossing the dimensions of gender and sexuality, we seek to understand epistemic ideas' impact on the body's historical definitions within physical education, traditionally reproducing binary gender trajectories. The study also analyzes the limitations, tensions, and opportunities within the temporal contexts in which these practices develop. To approach this investigation, qualitative methodology was used, and semi-structured interviews were carried out with physical education students from Montevideo, Uruguay, to reflect on experiences, emotions, practices, and discourses that support the analysis, understanding, and development of said study holistically. The theoretical and conceptual basis supporting the case's interpretation is aligned with feminist epistemologies.