Abstract
The purpose of this research is to pursue new possibilities of physical education by incorporating concepts traditionally excluded from education such as “illness/aging/death”, “experiences of failure/setbacks”, “negative feelings”, etc.
This research stems from the symposium of JSPSPE held between 2005 and 2007, of which the grand theme was “Consider the Positives, Bodies and Physical Education: Philosophy of Physical Education through Practice”. The research is mainly based upon the theme “Consider Positives, Bodies and Physical Education from Illness/aging/death” in 2007. Dr. Endo, the coordinator of the symposium expressed his expectations to do pioneering work in new problem areas and this research is one of such attempts.
The following are examined in this research: Studying “illness/aging/death” as part of the curriculum would help one understand “the relationship with others” and “the fact you are not alone”. Concepts such as “illness/aging/death”, “experiences of failure/setbacks” and “negative feelings” are important in order to understand other people. One should understand that people cannot control their entire life by the concepts of “illness/aging/death”, “experiences of failure/setbacks” and “negative feelings”. A fortuity that one could have been someone else should help develop sympathy for others, possibility to care for others and imagination of others' bodies.
The starting point is the positive acceptance of the existence of one's individuality, rather than searching for individuality itself, and importance should be placed upon evaluating concepts such as “experiences of failure/setbacks” and “negative feelings” positively after various actual experiences. Acceptance of a person as he is, evaluation of a person as he is, and attaching great importance to experiences are difficult in fields of education other than physical education. Therefore, this research concludes that this area is one possibility for physical education to explore.
