Physical activity habits are established in early childhood. Increasing a child's fundamental movement skill confidence and competence may result in a trajectory of increased physical activity and a lower risk of becoming overweight. The evidence upon which the promotion of physical activity in early childhood settings is based is tenuous. This…

The obesity crisis is a hegemonic discourse that has established common-sense understandings that young people are less active and fit than previous generations. Unquestioning acceptance of links between fitness and obesity in turn leads to unproblematic fitness testing of young people. Argument is made that fitness tests motivate and encourage…

This article explores the contradictions and complexities of young people's management of their health and wellbeing. It argues that it is important to understand how young people actively produce health outcomes, drawing substantially on themes developed in my recent book on young people and wellbeing (Wyn, 2009). The background to this…

Background: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of overweight and obesity in children with developmental disabilities attending a metropolitan Diagnosis and Assessment Service. Method: A retrospective chart review was carried out for 98 children (67 male) aged 2-18 years. Data on age, sex, weight, height, and severity of…

In March 2004, Stephen Ball and others presented a symposium at the conference of the British Educational Research Association (BERA) on the necessity of theory in educational research. Like Ball, I have observed that theory, not just social theory, is a difficult space and one that divides researchers (those comfortable with theory and those less…

This study examines the relationship between body image and obesity, among 4367 indigenous and Anglo-European adolescents in Australia in 2006. It shows that indigenous adolescents, male and female, were more likely than their non-indigenous counterparts to desire and pursue weight gain. Indigenous males showed the greatest tendencies to gain…

The aim was to investigate and compare body image, body dissatisfaction, dieting, disordered eating, exercise and eating disorders among trainee health education/physical education (H&PE) and non-H&PE teachers. Participants were 502 trainee teachers randomly selected from class groups at three Australian universities who completed the…

Approaches to weight management have traditionally focussed on caloric intake versus caloric expenditure. Despite a range of interventions based on these approaches, the proportion of overweight children and adolescents continues to rise. There are increasing indications that other factors, such as sleep duration, may be at play. This commentary…

Many Australian children are more sedentary than they should be, and almost one in five are currently overweight or obese. Some children may face difficulties finding opportunities to be active, having poor access to safe public open spaces or having low independent mobility limiting their access to places to play. This study aimed to examine…

In the past 10 years the prevalence of childhood obesity has increased considerably and there is growing recognition of the need to establish positive attitudes to healthy lifestyle practices from an early age if this trend is to be reversed. Childcare centres provide ideal environments from which to develop these positive attitudes. A literature…

An epidemic of obesity has been developing in virtually all OECD countries over the last 30 years. Existing evidence provides strong suggestions that such epidemic has affected certain social groups more than others. In particular, education appears to be associated with a lower likelihood of obesity, especially among women. A range of analyses of…

Aim: To describe sports participation in Australian adolescents. Method: Use of time, demographic, pedometer and anthropometric data were collected on a random sample of 2200 9-16 year olds. Results: Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) constituted 29% of all energy expenditure, and sport 58% of MVPA energy expenditure. Sports…

In recent years research has recognised that notions of body image, body image ideals and body dissatisfaction develop much earlier than was once thought. Forty-seven children (25 male; 22 female) aged between 5 and 6 years were interviewed on three occasions over 12 months regarding their perceptions of body image. The interviews revealed…

Dr Fritz Duras was the first director of a department of physical education in an Australian university. He had a significant influence on the development of the field of physical education in Australia and his legacy is honoured at each biennial ACHPER conference with the Fritz Duras memorial lecture. Recently, the Graduate School of Education at…

Objective: The aim of the current study was to examine the perceptions of classroom teachers regarding the benefits and outcomes of their PE programs. Design: Cross-sectional. Setting: Thirty eight randomly selected primary schools in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Method: A mixed-mode methodology was utilized, incorporating semi-structured…