On Wednesday, 4 November 2026, social media took centre stage at the 29th Münster School Sports Forum (Münsteraner Schulsportgespräch). The topic, “#Fitspiration – Opportunity or Risk? Exploring the Links Between Health Promotion and Critical Media Literacy in Physical Education”, attracted considerable interest. More than 30 participants, including teachers, trainee teachers and even several school students, engaged in lively discussions about the research findings and practical approaches presented by Dr. Marion Golenia and Junior Professor Dr. Helga Leineweber.
In October 2026, a German-Czech conference on physical education was held at Charles University in Prague, bringing together researchers to discuss current topics and developments in physical education. Prof. Dr. Nils Neuber, Martin Grauduszus, Prof. Dr. Helga Leineweber and Prof. Dr. Roland Naul attended from Münster and presented their own contributions. The German delegation also included Prof. Dr. Erin Gerlach (Hamburg) and Prof. Dr. Anne-Christin Roth (Freiburg). Special thanks go to Kateřina Jasanská from Charles University in Prague for organising the event.
Whether playing ball games in the park, skateboarding after school or cycling at the weekend, informal sport is an important part of how many children, young people and adults spend their leisure time. But what exactly does the term “informal sport” mean? What role does informal sport play in Germany? We would like to explore these and other questions at the discussion event “Informal Sport” on Thursday, 3 December 2026, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. in room H101. We are pleased to welcome Dr. Christian Hübner, Sebastian Gies, Josefine Paul and Robin Schneegaß as our panellists and look forward to seeing many of you there!
As part of an Erasmus+ exchange, we had the pleasure of welcoming Prof. Dr. Serkan Taş, Res. Asst. Ece Ekici, and Ass. Prof. Dr. Ümit Yüzbaşioğlu from Toros University, Mersin. During their stay in early November 2026, they engaged in an intensive exchange with our team. They also held a LabTalk on the topic "Advancing Rehabilitation Research: Musculoskeletal Imaging, Biomechanics, and International Collaboration Opportunities".
To mark the 20th anniversary of Prof. Dr. Nils Neuber’s service at the University of Münster, a conference on physical education teacher education was held at the Institute of Sport and Exercise Sciences (IfS) in early October. The Department of Education and Teaching in Sport presented its approach to experiential learning for discussion. Around 20 sport pedagogy scholars from Germany and Switzerland attended and engaged in intensive discussions about the concept over two days. The outcomes are to be documented in a volume of the Bildung und Sport book series.
At the invitation of the Rhineland-Palatinate Ministry of Education, Prof. Dr. Nils Neuber delivered a keynote lecture atthe Day of School Sports entitled “Education Needs Movement – How to Make Learning at School More Engaging!”. Inhis lecture, he demonstrated how the interplay between education and physical activity can promote cognitive learning,health, democratic competencies, and enjoyment of school. Ultimately, this approach can help make schools moreenjoyable and dynamic places for all children and young people.
On 23 September 2026, two engaging presentations were delivered and discussed at this year’s Research Day of the Centre for Educational Research in Sport (CeBiS). Anaïs Bachmann (Department of Education and Teaching in Sport) gave a presentation entitled “The Body of the Physical Education Teacher as a Medium of Democratic Interaction”, while Stefan Schröder (Leuphana University Lüneburg) presented findings on the challenges and factors contributing to the successful development of school steering groups in the context of SPORT VERNETZT all-day schools.
Hannah Hüttemann, doctoral candidate at the Department of Sports and Exercise Psychology, was selected for the fifth cohort of the program „Durchstarten. Von der Promotion zur Professur“ by the Equal Opportunity Office of the University of Münster. The program supports female doctoral candidates on their path into academia over the course of two semesters and offers them the opportunity to explore the various perspectives and demands of an academic career at an early stage. In addition to topics such as career planning, presenting oneself in academic contexts, and balancing work and family life, the program provides opportunities to network with other female doctoral students beyond one’s own department.
