Morality, Medicine, and Meaning: Toward an Integrated Justification of Physical Education

What are the values of physical education (PE)? What is its meaning and possible significance to the individual and society? Should PE be part of a standard curriculum in the education of the young? If so, why? These questions are calls for a justification of PE, which is a socio-cultural construction created by people for people and on the basis of particular human goals and values. Reflection over such views is the topic of this paper. More specifi cally, the paper presents a critical review of what can be considered three ideal-typical justifications of PE: the justifications from morality, health, and meaning. In a final section, a proposal is made for an integrated justification restating and relating these justifications into a consistent whole.