Contested knowledges’ and leisure studies provision

Bibliographic Data

ID11437232
AuthorsBarbara Humberstone (0000-0002-8732-7211, Buckinghamshire New University, corresponding author), LAURA KIRBY (Buckinghamshire New University)
Year2003
Volume22
Issue1
Pages51-64
Publication date2003-01-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueLeisure Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0261-4367 • E-ISSN: 1466-4496
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/02614360306573
OpenAlexW1980730810
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited33

This paper discusses an initial exploration of some of the processes of leisure education. Focusing upon a level 2 module titled Gender, Difference and Leisure (GDL), which is concerned not only with developing knowledge but also critical reflection, it examines a number of interrelated emergent issues. These issues are concerned with formal and informal affects/outcomes of the provision of a module concerned with ‘contested knowledges’. The research examines a number of undergraduate student experiences of undertaking the module, which at times necessitated discussions of a sensitive or contentious nature. The majority of students undertaking this module were young men, many taking a sports specialization. The paper considers the module's impact upon students' perceptions. Rather than assessing students' experiences of the module in a quantitative manner, the research adopts a qualitative approach to interpreting students' understanding and experiences of the module content and its delivery, through the use of participant observation and interviews. Furthermore, it examines interactions in seminars, highlighting different perspectives on the relative significance of sex and ‘race’ issues. The problematic of the ‘silencing’ of ‘race’ and the strategies some students adopted to resist challenges to their gendered values and beliefs are examined. The findings show that making available ‘contested knowledge’ within a culture heavily steeped in masculinist, racist and positivistic discourses is difficult, beset with tensions and requires considerable sensitivity in approach and an awareness of current popular discourses

Leisure studies · Political science · Social science · Sociology · Sociology of leisure · Tourism · Gender Studies · Recreation, Leisure, Wilderness Management · Sport and Mega-Event Impacts · Sports, Gender, and Society

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