ABSTRACT
Like in many countries around the world, such as the Scotland and New Zealand, a broader notion of ‘health’ was introduced in the Swedish Physical Education and Health (PEH) curriculum several years ago. The current Swedish PEH curriculum includes not only a focus on physical but also mental health, as well as social well-being, along with aspects of democracy and societal values. Importantly, this broader notion of health is directed towards enhancing pupils' capacity to contribute to the development of society, where the core Swedish societal values of democracy, equity and social justice are particularly emphasised. Furthermore, the focus of Swedish PEH is not only on being physically educated but also enhancing pupils' awareness of, and critical reflection on, how their participation in different movement contexts impacts on others’ health. In this chapter, we provide an overview and critical interrogation of Swedish PEH with a particular focus on how notions of health underpinned by societal values of democracy, equity and social justice work together to produce PEH curriculum and practice in Sweden. At the same time, we provide a critique of such curricula and practices related to health within Swedish PEH by illustrating how this can still, at times, result in pupils being positioned as solely responsible for their own health. Towards the end of the chapter, we report on and discuss an international research project that has explored what PEH that embraces democracy, equity and social justice in relation to health can look like, before offering points for reflection.
