‘What makes you the boss?’ Understanding student perceptions of social status in sport education

Student's social status within the context of physical education group work can influence engagement and behaviour during group tasks (Cohen [1994]. Restructuring the classroom: Conditions for productive small groups. Review of Educational Research, 64(1), 1–35. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543064001001). According to Bourdieu ([1985]. The forms of capital. In J. G. Richard (Ed.), Handbook of theory and research for the sociology of education (pp. 241–258)), this phenomenon is due to the group creating a doxa, or hierarchy, of social capital brought forth by each group member. Research shows social status can influence the experiences of students within group tasks, indicating the potential for unequal participation and interactions during group work (Brock et al. [2009]. The influence of student status on student interactions and experiences during a sport education unit. Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, 14(4), 355–375. https://doi.org/10.1080/17408980802400494; Cohen & Lotan [2014]. Designing group work: Strategies for the heterogeneous classroom (3rd ed.). Teachers College Press). In the sport education model, students experience affiliation with their teammates to build their sense of belonging and investment (García López & Kirk [2022]. Empowering children from socially vulnerable backgrounds through the use of roles in sport education. Sport, Education and Society, 27(6), 676–688. https://doi.org/10.1080/13573322.2021.1897563; MacPhail et al. [2004]. Sport education: Promoting team affiliation through physical education. Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 23(2), 106–122. https://doi.org/10.1123/jtpe.23.2.106). Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore students' perceptions of status, roles, and team dynamics while participating in a sport education unit. Participants were eight fifth grade students representing two teams participating in a 20-lesson sport education floor hockey unit. Data collection included individual semi-structured interviews based on critical incidents as stimulated recall from GoPro recorded lessons. Results indicated students perceived their status to be based on their skill ability, used a more passive approach to group discussions to avoid conflict, and expressed frustrations with lack of contributions by teammates. Through transcendental phenomenology, this article reveals the perceptions of students' experiences related to their group identities and socialisation as they participate in physical education group work.