The Meaningful Podcast Experience (MPE)

Send us Fan Mail In the final episode of season 2, we turn the hosting duties over to Dr. Déirdre Ní Chróinín, who takes us on a reflective journey as we consider key takeaways, future directions and conundrums related to Meaningful PE - with lots of laughs along the way.  Show Notes Meaningful PE in Action w/ Grace Cardiff: Student Voice, Choice & Autonomy in Educational Gymnastics Volshoj et...

Send us Fan Mail Nathan is currently based in Singapore, where he teaches Elementary Physical Education. He has previous teaching experience in both national and international schools across Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, Cambodia, and Italy, and is a strong advocate for quality, purposeful physical education for every student. Nathan has shared his ideas at local, national, and internatio...

Send us Fan Mail Our MYSTERY guest recently (and successfully!) defended his dissertation - Moved to Move: Middle School Students’ Stories of Meaningful Physical Education . Our guest’s teaching experiences include stints in Hong Kong and South Korea - he currently is a secondary PE teacher in Alberta and has a surprising amount of podcast hosting experience… You can find him teaching undergraduat...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we return to one of the most popular topics: meaningfulness and the outdoors. Dr. Shannon Kell joins the show to share her research and experiences on outdoor solo time and how nature can foster self-awareness.  Bio: Dr. Shannon Kell is an associate professor in the Faculty of Education at St. Francis Xavier University. Dr. Kell in the Department of Teacher Educat...

Send us Fan Mail In this cross posted episode with the PE Huddle host Aaron Beighle, we chat about all things Meaningful PE. What it is, why you might consider including a lens of  meaningfulness in your teaching and how you might begin - or progress further if you've already started. Just note, if you’re listening to the intro on THIS podcast and worry that you don’t hear Ty or Doug’s dulcet...

Send us Fan Mail Josh Ogilvie is a high school PE teacher in Victoria, British Columbia, with over 24 years in education. Assessment and meaningful experiences in PE have been at the centre of his work throughout his career. In addition to teaching, he works with schools and districts across North America to strengthen assessment and grading practices, with a specialized focus on helping PE teache...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we chat with Mel Hamada, an extraordinary PE teacher turned assistant principal. We discuss learning about and implementing Meaningful PE as a teacher, mentorship, moving to leadership and how meaningfullness (and the Meaningful PE framework) weave through it all. And yes, Mel called us 'sage-like'. We are honoured. Mel's Bio: Originally from Canber...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we chat with Dr. Javier Fernandez Rio about his papers that identify support for new features of novelty, relief and interpersonal style. Dr. Javier Fernández-Río is a full professor in the Department of Education Sciences at the University of Oviedo, where he specializes in physical education, pedagogical models, motivation, and health. His work includes extensiv...

Send us Fan Mail This bonus episode features Dr. Amanda Stanec and Richard Way, authors of the new book, Protect the Joy - A Positive, Collaborative Approach to Youth Sport. We discuss joy, competition, coaches, parents, developmental goals and all things youthy sporty. Dr. Amanda Stanec was born and raised in Nova Scotia, Canada where she attended and played soccer for St. Francis Xavier Universi...

Send us Fan Mail What if the way to help girls love running is to remove the pressure and ask them what a running program that met their needs would look like ? We sit down with Dr. Joanne Hill (University of Bedfordshire), Dr. Laura Gubby (Canterbury Christ Church University), and Mel Bound, founder of This Woman Runs, to discuss how they co-designed a running program with 11-13 year old girls th...

Send us Fan Mail Tim Adams is the founder and Executive Director of Free Play for Kids (started as Free Footie) based in Edmonton, Canada. Their mission is to: Provide programs and spaces that are safe, accessible, and inclusive, where communities are empowered through play.  https://www.freeplayforkids.com/about-us   https://sportforlife.ca/blog/free-footie-program-growing-exponentially/   School...

Send us Fan Mail Josh Berghuis & Rhys Meredith are currently Elementary PE teachers at the American International School in Budapest where they leverage their co-teaching relationship to promote meaningful experiences for their students. Before coming together in Budapest, Josh spent 11 years in Asia (Singapore / South Korea) working as an Elementary Athletics Director, Aquatics Director and P...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we discuss YOUR questions (posted on LinkedIn and X) about Meaningful PE with Dr. Steph Beni. Stephanie Beni is an Assistant Professor at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario. Her research interests lie primarily in understanding the ways young people experience meaningfulness in physical education and physical activity and identifying practical tools b...

Send us Fan Mail Ingrid Elnan works at the Department of Teacher Education at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, Norway. She is currently working on a doctoral project titled 'Meaningful Experiences in the Context of Outdoor Aquatic Education.' In 2020, the Norwegian curriculum for physical education moved parts of aquatic education outdoors to let pu...

Send us Fan Mail Nicola Cosgrove is a passionate Physical Education educator with over 13 years of experience, including nine internationally. Currently teaching at Leysin American School in Switzerland, she emphasizes learner agency and process-driven growth. Nicola has worked as a department head, mentored new teachers, and volunteered with NEASC accreditation teams. She champions holistic learn...

Send us Fan Mail This episode features Professor Déirdre Ní Chróinín and Dr. Richard Bowles from Mary Immaculate College in Limerick, Ireland. We talk about their Erasmus+ research project on Meaningful PE, student and teacher reflection and more of their initial findings.  Show Notes: Erasmus+ https://erasmus-plus.ec.europa.eu/   https://www.mic.ul.ie/research/research-at-mic/research-projects/ch...

Send us Fan Mail O professor Marcos Godoi é docente na Faculdade de Educação Física da Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso (UFMT), localizada em Cuiabá, Brasil. Marcos também trabalhou como professor de Educação Física em escolas por vinte anos e, atualmente, orienta quatro alunos de mestrado interessados em explorar a Educação Física Significativa (Meaningful PE) em seus contextos. Seus interesse...

Send us Fan Mail Dr. Marcos Godoi is a professor at the School of Physical Education at the Federal University of Mato Grosso, located in Cuiabá, Brazil. Marcos also worked as a PE teacher in schools for twenty years, and currently supervises four Master's students who are interested in exploring Meaningful PE in their contexts. Marcos's research interests are related to the analysis of...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 2 features Dr. Kristi Mally (bio below). We talk about all things Meaningful PE, PE Teacher Education, a romantic view of movement/ PE and dive into Kristi's methods, passion, excellence and heart! Kristi is a professor at Winona State University in Winona, MN, where she prepares future physical education teachers. Before joining WSU, she taught at the University of W...

Send us Fan Mail Jorge Rodriguez is originally from McAllen, Texas. He attended the University of Houston where he was a high jumper on the track team and earned his bachelor's degree in Kinesiology . Jorge later went to receive his Master's degree in Educational Leadership from American College of Education. Jorge spent time as a PE teacher and Activities Coordinator in his 7 years at t...

Send us Fan Mail Will is a veteran elementary Physical Education teacher who presents on the Meaningful Physical Education framework across the United States. Additionally, Will has a background in Human Motor Learning, research, sports coaching, and strength & conditioning. All these experiences put together give Will a unique ability to make movement science practical. Come listen to how Wil...

Send us Fan Mail Well folks - that's a wrap to Season 1! This episode features Ty and Doug recapping our first (but not the last!) season of the podcast. We share some details about Season 2 (yes, there will be a Season 2!) and then leave listeners with reflections on Meaningful PE from participants in the recent ‘Champions Sharing Day’ at Brock University.  A brief reminder about the FANMAIL...

Send us Fan Mail Spencer Briggs is a former physical education (PE) teacher with five years of international teaching experience in Sweden and Australia. He completed his Master’s degree at Brock University (Ontario, Canada) in 2022, where his research explored the professional transition from classroom PE teacher to teacher educator through the lenses of teacher identity and self-compassion. Spen...

Send us Fan Mail Zack Smith has been an international early childhood educator since 2005. He taught preschool homeroom and early years PE at Shanghai Community International School between 2005 and 2014. From 2014 to 2024, he was an early years PYP PE teacher at the KAUST School in Saudi Arabia. In the 2024-25 school year, he is excited to take on a new challenge in upper elementary PE at Korea I...

Send us Fan Mail This episode features a recording from the Research Forum at PHE Canada's recent National Conference in Niagara Falls. This is our first time trying a 'live' event like this so buckle up! The session was presented by Tim (mostly) with help from Déirdre and Anita - all friends of the podcast! What is a ‘champion’ teacher and why does it matter? Implications for innov...