What this project is about 

In light of recent social movements around the world that have led many to speak out and fight against social injustices (e.g., Black Lives Matter, Me Too, School Strike for Climate), there is a need to explore how high school sport can help promote social justice. The purpose of this research project is to reimagine high school sport coaching through a social justice lens. In collaboration with School Sport Canada, we explored Canadian high school sport coaches’ attitudes toward social justice issues (e.g., racism, poverty, activism) through an online survey and individual online interviews.e survey as well as individual online interviews.  

Year 1

We distributed an online survey to high school coaches across Canada. This survey included a variety of closed- and open-ended questions to explore coaches’ attitudes and perspectives on social justice issues. In total, 916 coaches responded to the survey.  

Year 2

We conducted individual online interviews with coaches to explore their attitudes more deeply on social justice issues. These interviews gave coaches an opportunity to talk more about the challenges and recommendations they had for social justice in high school sport. In total, we interviewed 28 coaches from across Canada. 

Year 3

We took the findings from the online survey and the coach interviews and developed resources for coaches, athletes, administrators, and other researchers. These resources include academic papers, conference presentations, infographics, and in-person events.  

Findings

Our goal for this research is to help reimagine high school sport coaching through a social justice lens. Specifically, we want to maximize the role of the coach to teach youth about social justice issues while continuing to create safe, inclusive learning environments. By working with School Sport Canada throughout this project, our goal is to help promote a safer, more inclusive sporting space for all Canadian high school student-athletes across the country.

Knowledge Products

Event Presentation: Promoting Social Justice in the Canadian School Sport System: A View of Current Opportunities and Tensions

In this presentation, which took place at the Canadian Sport for Life Summit in Ottawa in January 2024, the authors created narrative vignettes using qualitative data (i.e., open-ended questions about social justice challenges and recommendations) from an online pan-Canadian survey for Canadian high school coaches. Three coach vignettes were presented: Coach A, who believed urgency regarding social justice issues is overblown; Coach B, who had no social justice challenges or recommendations to share; and Coach C, who believed high school sport faces social justice issues. Findings suggest a one-size-fits-all approach does not approach social justice in sport. Interactive discussion was had with the audience about social justice tensions and potential recommendations to move practice forward. Get access to the presentation by clicking here.

Research Article: Reimagining positive youth development and life skills in sport through a social justice lens

In this paper, the authors argue for more attention to be placed on social justice issues when working with the positive youth development framework and the concept of life skills. This paper was published in the Journal of Applied Sport Psychology in 2022.

If you don’t have access to the manuscript above, you can access the paper through the University of Ottawa’s library repository by clicking the button below.

Research Article: White privilege in Canadian high school sport: investigating white coaches’ perspectives on social justice issues

In this paper, the authors collected quantitative data using an online pan-Canadian survey to explore high school sport coaches’ perceptions of white privilege and social justice. Findings showed how a higher awareness of white privilege was related to higher scores on other measures of social justice (e.g., anti-racism). This paper was published in the journal Sports Coaching Review in 2023, you can access this article by clicking the button below.

Academic Conference Presentation: An investigation into white privilege in Canadian high school sport

Findings from the white privilege paper were presented at the Canadian Society for Psychomotor Learning and Sport Psychology conference in Montreal, Québec, Canada in October 2022. Get access to the presentation and the published abstract by clicking the respective buttons below.

Infographic: White privilege in Canadian high school sport: exploring white coaches’ perspectives on social justice

An infographic illustrating findings from the white privilege paper was created to share findings with School Sport Canada knowledge users. This infographic can be accessed by clicking the button below.

Academic Conference Presentation: A qualitative description of Canadian high school coaches’ perceived challenges and recommendations related to social justice

In this presentation, which took place at the European Congress of Sport and Exercise Psychology conference in Padova, Italy in July 2022, the authors collected qualitative data (i.e., open-ended survey questions) using an online pan-Canadian survey to explore high school sport coaches’ perceived social justice challenges and recommendations. Findings showed how, despite many coaches recognizing the presence of social justice issues (e.g., racism, sexism, poverty), many coaches continue to ignore or discredit social justice efforts. You can access the presentation by clicking the button below.

Blog Article: Using life skills to promote social change

In this blog article, posted on the Sport Information Resource Centre (SIRC) website, the authors make an argument for how focusing on life skills in youth sport can serve as a vehicle for positive social change. Get access to the blog article by clicking the button below.

Meet The Team