Understanding policy: Why health education policy is important and why it does not appear to work

John Evans, Brian Davies, Emma Rich, Laura De Pian

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

25 Citations (SciVal)

Abstract

Drawing on research investigating the impact of health imperatives around obesity, diet and exercise on the actions of teachers and pupils in schools, this paper offers a reflexive account of the relationships between the ‘noise’ of obesity discourse in the public domain, policies forged to tackle health issues and the realities of teaching in schools. Our analyses suggest that intersections of bio-policies, body pedagogies and human agents forge assemblages of meaning that frame and regulate but cannot determine either teachers’ or young people’s lives. Teachers and pupils experience the capriciousness of policies as they flow through specific school contexts and intersect with ‘local’ institutional cultures, expectations and interests. We suggest that Basil Bernstein’s concepts and poststructural social theory prove useful when addressing how the aforementioned processes are emplaced, enacted and embodied.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)320-337
Number of pages18
JournalBritish Educational Research Journal
Volume39
Issue number2
Early online date15 Jan 2012
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Apr 2013

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