Leisure and sport: the view of sports lectures from the physical education program

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to diagnose and to analyze the presence of leisure knowledge in sports courses in the physical education program at Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil, from the instructors' perspective. In regard to the methodology, the study combined a bibliographical research about Physical Education, sport, leisure and professional formation, with semi-structured interviews with eight lectures from the analyzed program. These professors were selected because they were responsible for sports courses in the second semester of 2007. Data were qualitatively analyzed, and it was identified that most of the lecture (60%) declared that they approach leisure in their courses, whereas about 40% declared that they do not. The lecture identified the presence of leisure in sports courses in different ways. Some pointed out that leisure is one of the possibilities to experiment sports; others associated leisure with the idea of games that can be played in classes. Furthermore, leisure was seen as compensation for work; as a way to form athletes, as well as an opportunity for children to play.