Beyond the BEEPs: affect, FitnessGram®, and diverse youth

Abstract

This paper draws on two separate research projects, one with Black and Latinx youth in the United States and another with LGBTQ+ youth in New Zealand, to explore the affective experiences of young people with the FitnessGram® assessment. We specifically use affect theory through poetic inquiry to entangle interview data from young participants about their experiences with FitnessGram®. We then (re)present the data through poetic forms. We argue the turn to affect and poetic inquiry allows us, as researchers, to respond to dominant discourses around FitnessGram® (and young bodies) in critical and creative ways. And, we embrace the experimental, open-ended potential of poetic (re)presentation to bring awareness to the youths’ experiences and to encourage others (researchers, educators, practitioners, policymakers) to engage differently as well. We hope, through such aesthetic forms, we can start to value the affects of FitnessGram® on youth and think divergently about this popular practice.