Inclusive physical education modeling for handicapped students

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PhD G.B. Glazkova1
Yu.V. Shakirova1
1Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, Moscow

Keywords: handicapped students, inclusive physical education, modeling, adaptive physical education and sports.

Background. The national academic education system has reported a notable growth in the number of the handicapped students for the last few years. Many specialists believe that the modern physical education service needs to be improved to provide the most efficient health improvement and socializing tools for this health group [2, 5]. As provided by the Instruction Guidelines of 08.04.2014, handicapped and disabled students will be offered a special physical education service with a special priority to the most efficient health improvement and adaptive physical education elements. This means that the adaptive physical education methods, models and tools shall improve the health group adaptability and physicality for active life [3].

The national academic physical education community, however, reports multiple challenges in practical adaptive physical education service due to a wide range of the health issues and needs – that means that the theoretical and practical provisions for the service need to be customizable to the actual health disorders and necessities of the group.

Objective of the study was to develop and theoretically substantiate a new inclusive physical education model for handicapped students.

Methods and structure of the study. At the first stage of the study, we analyzed the existing notional basis for the inclusive education. It may be pertinent to remind that the modern inclusive education concept implies the handicapped students being broadly socialized enjoying a full access to the academic studies on the same basis as their healthy peers [1, 8]. Modern adaptive physical education in this context means the academic physical education service that secures the handicapped students being fully engaged in the educational process and well motivated for physical activity, social integration and professional growth.

Having analyzed the available theoretical and practical literature on the adaptive physical education and sports, we found the following most beneficial practices [4, 7, 5, 9-11]:

– Integrated approach to adaptive physical education and sports service design for handicapped and disabled people;

– Special services offered by the modern health and fitness industries for the integrated adaptive physical education and sports;

– Special mass sport events for handicapped students;

– Sport reserve training for adaptive sports, with the special adaptive physical education and sports / health groups established by the CYSS; and

– Special websites to popularize the most efficient adaptive physical education and sports methods and practices.

At the second stage of the study, we used the above analytical data and own educational experience to develop a new inclusive physical education service model for handicapped students with the inclusive physical education service mission, goals, structure and results: see Figure 1 hereunder. Conception of the new inclusive physical education service model prioritizes the integrated approach that may be defined as the unity of the service mission, goals, structure, content, methods and tools in the educational process. Such integrated approach ensures the inclusive physical education service being effectively customized to every handicapped person’s needs and physical health condition to facilitate the personality progress in many aspects driven by the inclusive physical education service, with all the inclusive physical education service elements being reasonably harmonized as required by the specific service goals [6]. The integrated approach to the inclusive physical education service modeling gave us the means to effectively combine the general and inclusive physical education / adaptive physical education and sports concepts as required by the key logics of the special education services to the handicapped students.

Figure 1. Inclusive physical education service model for handicapped students

The key inclusive physical education service goals may be listed as follows:

– Give the students theoretical knowledge in the modern adaptive physical education and sports within the academic physical education and sports curriculum;

– Cultivate motivations for the health improvement physical education and sports practices and physical activity in the academic adaptive physical education and sports lessons – within the standard academic physical education and sports curricula and in the off-class practices;

– Popularize the adaptive physical education and sports service by the mass academic adaptive sport events, within the academic mass sports calendar; and

– Train sport reserves for the academic and national adaptive sports – in the academic adaptive physical education and sports groups and by the off-class sports services.

The integrated approach to the new inclusive physical education service model for handicapped students implies a reasonable combination of the obligatory and optional (class and off-class) inclusive physical education and sports models and tools. Regular academic inclusive physical education classes include theoretical and practical lessons adaptable to the actual physical needs of the handicapped students, with the theoretical classes giving a special priority to the interactive trainings to encourage active contributions from the handicapped students and their healthy peers, particularly in the problems-solving and project design education formats.

Theoretical and practical sessions: Theoretical and practical sessions prioritize the interactive communication tools classified by the regular domains including the traditional physical conditioning practices, health gymnastics, modern health systems, adaptive sports and industrial gymnastics. The studies are complemented by master classes run by healthy students to facilitate academic and social progress of the handicapped peers and acquire practical didactic skills and experiences. The practical sessions are designed to: correct and excel the key motor skills and abilities (by the traditional physical conditioning toolkit); correct and prevent physical and somatic disorders (by the disease prevention/ health gymnastics); correct and excel the physical abilities (by the adaptive sport games like bocce, golf, goalball, sitting volleyball, bowling etc.); and secure physical progress by athletic gymnastics, aerobics, Sculpt Body, stretching, Mind&Body, fitball gymnastics, Pilates etc. It is also important to have the regular academic physical education and sports curricula sensitively customized to the handicapped students’ needs to help them make progress in the physical education and sports theory and practices and develop an effective foothold for further active adaptive/ recreational physical education and sports. The off-class studies include the health-prioritizing physical education and sports / fitness groups and optional sport groups to train students for the GTO Complex tests and competitions.

The academic mass sport events will include:

– Adaptive physical education and sports / health festivals with a free access to promote the modern adaptive sports and healthy lifestyles;

– Open adaptive physical education and sports championships with prior briefings on the rules of the games, sample games with participation of the sport elite of the university and the handicapped students;

– CTO Complex test competitions and adaptive physical education and sports tournaments for the handicapped and disabled students qualified for the events by doctors, with the healthy peers providing a refereeing service.

Physical and functional progress of the handicapped students will be tested on a post-semester basis by the relevant sensitive test toolkits customizable to the actual contraindications/ health issues of every student, with the test data fixed in the Self-control Diaries to keep track of and analyze the individual physical progress/ fitness.

Conclusion. The inclusive physical education model for handicapped students analyzed herein sets the institutional and educational provisions for the inclusive physical education service; drafts a physical education curriculum for handicapped students plus extra health/ sporting programs; and offers a plan of mass sport events for this health group. The inclusive physical education model for handicapped students was tested to: facilitate the cross-cultural communication framework; meet the social and cultural needs of the handicapped students; encourage the personality physical education process; secure physical progress by the customizable adaptive physical education and sport tools; and improve health standards and socializing process of the health group.

References

  1. Evseev S.P. Theory and organization of adaptive physical education. Textbook. M.: Sport publ., 2016. p. 616.
  2. Mamonova O.V., Glazkova G.B. Organizational and substantial structure of additional education program in physical education for students with musculoskeletal disorders. Teoriya i praktika fiz. kultury. 2019. no. 4. 11 p.
  3. Methodical recommendations on organization of educational process for people with disabilities in higher education institutions, including academic facilities (approved by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation on April 8, 2014 N AK-44 / 05vn) [Electronic Resource]. Available at: https://base.garant.ru/70680520/
  4. Ministry of Sport and Tourism of the Udmurt Republic [Electronic Resource]. Available at: http://sportturizm.udmurt.ru/documents/norma/regional/
  5. Parfenova L.A., Makarova E.V. Health and fitness interaction of students and people with disabilities based on socio-cultural integration. Teaching aid. Ulyanovsk, 2014. 140 p.
  6. Pugachev A.S. Integrated approach to training and upbringing of students with hearing impairment. Molodoy ucheny. 2012. no. 9. pp. 301-303.
  7. Yugra Center for Disabled Sports, information site [Electronic Resource]. Available at: http://www.csi-ugra.ru/dokumenty/vnutrennie/ godovoy-otchyot/2012-god.
  8. Chekanushkina E.N., Mikhelkevich V.N., Shinkarenko O.V. Inclusive approach to teaching Physical Education to students. Molodoy uchenyiy. 2016.no.16.1. pp. 62-65.
  9. American Association on Health and Disability [Electronic Resource]. Available at: http://www.aahd.us
  10. British Paralympic Association [Electronic Resource]. Available at: http://www.paralympics.org.uk
  11. Disability Sports Australia – DSA [Electronic Resource]. Available at: http://www.sports.org.au

Corresponding author: glazkova_fitnes@mail.ru

Abstract

The national academic education system has reported a notable growth in numbers of the handicapped students for the last few years. Many specialists believe that modern physical education service provide the most efficient health improvement and socializing tools for this health group. New legal and regulatory provisions for the educational service and social security of handicapped and disabled people urged the national universities offer the inclusive education models including the adapted curricula, medical, psychological and social support for this health group. Objective of the study was to develop and theoretically substantiate a new inclusive physical education model for handicapped students. The study included analyses and summaries of the relevant theoretical and practical literature and modeling concepts. The inclusive physical education model for handicapped students analyzed herein sets the institutional and educational provisions for the inclusive physical education service; drafts a physical education curriculum for handicapped students plus extra health/ sporting programs; and offers a plan of mass sport events for this health group. The inclusive physical education model for handicapped students was tested to: facilitate the cross-cultural communication framework; meet the social and cultural needs of the handicapped students; encourage the personality physical education process; secure physical progress by the customizable adaptive physical education and sport tools; and improve health standards and socializing process of the health group.