Aesthetic experience as an aspect of embodied learning: stories from physical education student teachers

In this article we explore aesthetic experience as an aspect of embodied learning with focus on the moving body. Our theoretical framework is mainly based on the work of John Dewey. In the first part of the article we identify our understanding of central concepts and draw some lines to their implication for physical education (PE). In the second part we then use the theoretical framework in an empirical study inspired by the tradition of pragmatism. The aim is to study how physical education student teachers (PETE students) feel when participating in ball game, and how their feelings are related to the moving activity. Empirical data were mainly generated through observations from two ball game lessons and stories written by 16 PETE students. All stories were subjected to a categorical analysis of content. After analysing the empirical material, four categories emerged built on two pair of words: familiar or unfamiliar, and pleased or displeased. In the discussing section of this article, we put forward that moving activities in PE often are regarded as being technical or instrumental. By using an aesthetic perspective on embodied learning, however, we can go beyond that impression and show other dimensions of participation in ball game. It may become an important shift from exploring performance only to studying learning connected to feelings.