Educating the Body presents a history of physical education in Canada, shedding light on its major advocates, innovators, and institutions. The book traces the major developments in physical education from the early nineteenth century to the present day – both within and beyond schools – and concludes with a vision for the future. It examines the realities of Canada’s classed, gendered, and racialized society and reveals the rich history of Indigenous teachings and practices that were marginalized and erased by the residential school system. Today, with the worrying decline in physical activity levels across the population, Educating the Body is indispensable to understanding our policy options moving ahead.

M. Ann Hall is a Professor Emeritus in the Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation at the University of Alberta, where she taught for over 30 years. She is the author of Feminism and Sporting Bodies: Essays on Theory and Practice, and co-author of Sport in Canadian Society, as well as Honoring the Legacy: Fifty Years of the International Association of Physical Education and Sport for Girls and Women.

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Bruce Kidd is a former Olympic athlete, member of Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame and the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame, and an Officer of the Order of Canada. He has been a lifelong advocate of human rights and has worked with local, national, and international bodies to advance sport for all. A professor emeritus in the Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education at the University of Toronto, he currently serves as U of T ombudsperson.

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Patricia Vertinsky is a professor at the School of Human Kinetics at the University of British Columbia, specializing in the social and cultural history of the body. She is the author or editor of four previous books on sportsand gender.

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