# Gendered perspectives of yoga in the Key Stage 1 classroom: Qualitative content analysis indicates contrasting views of teachers and pupils

## TL;DR

This study explores how teachers and young students in England view yoga through a gender lens, finding that while children don't see it as feminine, teachers notice some male students are reluctant.

## Contribution

The study introduces new insights into gendered perceptions of yoga among Key Stage 1 pupils and teachers.

## Key findings

- Young pupils do not consistently view yoga as a feminine activity.
- Teachers observe reluctance from some male pupils during yoga activities.
- The non-competitive nature of yoga may influence gendered perceptions in the classroom.

## Abstract

The gendering of physical activities is ubiquitous, with those involving strength, endurance, and physical contact considered masculine, and those involving concentration, presentation, and flexibility considered feminine. Yoga, for instance, tends to be regarded by adults and adolescents as a feminine activity for women/ girls, however, it is not known whether younger children share this view. Using data from six individual teacher interviews and a child-friendly task with 23 pupils (working in four separate groups), qualitative content analysis (QCA) was used to identify and explore the gendered perspectives of yoga held by Key Stage 1 teachers and pupils in schools across the North East of England. Data were considered according to Gender Schema Theory (GST) and indicate that, although young pupils seem to hold no consensus view of yoga being a female/ feminine activity, teachers observe reluctance from some of their male pupils during yoga activities in school. As previous research has revealed that teachers generally expect male pupils to be more competitive than their female peers, the findings are discussed in relation to the non-competitive nature of yoga.