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FrancoAngeli Journals

Articles/Articoli

Vol. 17 No. 1 (2026): Educating for Complexity: Intersectionality, Decolonial Approaches to Teaching, and Practices of Care in Education

The body as an epistemic device: decolonial, intersectional and enactive perspectives in the teaching of physical education and sports

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3280/ess1-2026oa22576
Submitted
aprile 15, 2026
Published
2026-07-28

Abstract

This paper offers a theoretical reflection on the decolonisation of teaching practices in physical education, bringing together decolonial and intersectional perspectives. By questioning the presumed neutrality of embodied knowledge, the body is understood as a situated entity shaped by cultural, social and power relations that influence educational experiences and students’ participation.
The analysis focuses on assessment practices and educational relationships as key contexts in which inclusion and exclusion are produced and where implicit criteria of competence are constructed. From this perspective, assessment is not merely a tool for measuring outcomes, but a process that shapes recognition and contributes to the formation of hierarchies among students.
Drawing on enactive approaches, the paper highlights the embodied and relational nature of learning, emphasising the role of the body in meaning-making processes. It thus points to the need to rethink physical education teaching towards more inclusive and reflective practices, capable of recognising diversity and valuing different forms of participations.

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