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Chapter 1 Meaning and Scope Chapter Overview Contemporary physical education, exercise science, and sport are rapidly changing within the broader field of kinesiology and includes both disciplinary and professional dimensions. Physical education is defined as an educational process that uses physical activity as a means to help individuals acquire skills, fitness, knowledge, and dispositions that contribute to their optimal development and well-being. Exercise science is the scientific analysis of exercise or, more inclusively, physical activity. Sport is a highly organized, competitive physical activity governed by rules. Rules standardize the competition and conditions so that individuals can compete fairly and achieve specified goals. Athletics refers to highly organized, competitive sports engaged in by skillful participants. At this level, coaches play a significant role, athletes are highly skilled, specially trained officials ensure the fairness of the competition, records are kept, events are promoted through the media, and spectators assume an important role. Physical education, exercise science, and sport include both disciplinary and professional dimensions. The discipline is the body of knowledge of the field. Scholars and researchers engage in activities designed to provide greater scientific understanding and insight. The professional dimension of the field focuses on providing services to people of all social identities in many different settings. Professionals use the body of knowledge and specialized skills to meet the unique needs of people and help them improve their health and quality of life. The growth of knowledge in physical education led to the change in the field to kinesiology as well as to specialized areas of study, such as sport and physical activity psychology, sport sociology, physical education pedagogy, sport philosophy, sport biomechanics, exercise physiology, motor development, motor learning, adapted physical activity/physical education, sport history, and sport management. Each practitioner should be knowledgeable about these specialized areas of study as well as appreciate their interrelatedness and their contribution to the discipline as a whole. The field of kinesiology, and specific to this text, the prof
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