Academic physical education and sports for special health groups: universal competencies building model

ˑ: 

PhD, Associate Professor G.B. Glazkova1
O.V. Mamonova1
M.N. Pukhovskaya1
1Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, Moscow

Keywords: special health group, universal competences, physical education, competency-building approach, modeling.

Background. Modern social demand for the top-skilled, healthy and competitive specialists is getting higher with time, and this is the reason why the national universities give a growing priority to the students’ health programs with the physical education / health competences and personal physical culture encouragement elements [1, 3, 8]. However, more than 50% of national student population is diagnosed with health disorders and, hence, qualified for the special health groups largely released of the standard physical education service [4]. These bachelor groups need special managerial and practical provisions with the special physical education service to give them special knowledgebase, skills and competences in the health rehabilitation and corrective physical education methods and tools to effectively design and manage their self-reliant individual physical progress systems as required by their health issues and progress needs [8, 9].

It may be pertinent to emphasize in this context the following contradictions: between the demand of the modern labor markets for competent and healthy professionals on the one hand and the rapidly sagging psychophysical health standards of the university student population on the other hand;  between the newly introduced competency-building higher education model on the one hand and the still underdeveloped universal competences-7 formation algorithm on the other hand; and between the "physical fitness management skills for full-fledged social progress and professional service" secured by the academic physical education service on the one hand and the actual theoretical and practical physical education service formats to give the self-reliant physical progress knowledgebase and skills on the other hand.

The educational expert community tends to believe that the universal competences indiscriminately set by the Ministry of Education as standard for the higher education system on the whole are still underdeveloped in terms of the physical education missions and progress criteria and, therefore, the faculties have to develop their own universal competences formation and progress rating systems [7].

Objective of the study was to theoretically substantiate the need for the universal competences UC-7 standard being revised (decomposed) and classified into clusters of specific competences including the priority universal competences for the academic special health group to meet the modern social demand.

Methods and structure of the study. Since the universal competences generated by the educational system may be customized for the actual personality and socio-professional situations, we made an attempt to decompose the universal competences UC-7 into a cluster including a pool of the following priority competences for the special health group students:

Corrective/ rehabilitation competence that implies good knowledge, skills and experience in the physical progress control and somatic disorders prevention and correction service;

Leisure-time physical education competence with the physical qualities improvement knowledge, skills and experience and high motivations for habitual physical training/ rehabilitation practices including adaptive team sports like bocce, goalball, bowling, seated volleyball etc.;

Professional applied competence that implies special knowledge, skills and experience in the creative design and management of the individualized physical practices to relieve mental stresses, increase intellectual endurance for daily labor efficiency, prevent postural disorders and occupational diseases and effectively manage health;

Mental health management competence to help the students master efficient mental resetting tools and skills to control the psycho-emotional health for the whole lifetime; and

Reflexive progress control competence that implies good knowledge and skills in the physical health monitoring, test and control domain to effectively manage physical stressors in the academic physical education sessions and other classes on a daily basis followed by the effective and active professional service control and management skills.

Since the universal competences are commonly tested by sets of descriptors i.e. clear manifestations (actions, behavior) indicative of the competence being well mastered, we modeled our set of descriptors as the individual competences rating sample algorithms including theoretical knowledge and physical fitness/ health tests – i.e. physical exercises (with the relevant physical education experiences) to rate every element of the tested competence.

Results and discussion. Having decomposed the standard universal competences UC-7, we produced the following universal competences UC-7 matrix driven by the elementary competences building logics with the health-group-specific universal competences indicators and descriptors: see Table 1.

Table 1. Newly designed universal competences universal competences UC-7 matrix for the special health group physical education service

 

UC-7 elements

Indicators

Descriptors

 

Physical fitness management skills for fully-fledged social progress and professional service

7.1

Corrective/ rehabilitation

Adaptive physical education / rehabilitation service methods customized for the individual physical health correction, rehabilitation and progress needs

Adaptive physical education progress tests:

- 6-min run, standing leans, alternative limbs raising, prone push-ups and Romberg tests;

- Diagnose-specific adaptive physical education practices;

- Rehabilitation adaptive physical education practices.

7.2

Professional applied

Knowledge, skills and experience in the professional applied physical education domain; healthy lifestyle for professional health

- Standard and professional fitness tests, healthy lifestyle surveys;

- 6-min run, standing leans, alternative limbs raising, prone push-ups and Romberg tests;

- Standard physical fitness tests;

- Professional applied physical education tests.

7.3

Mental health management

Knowledge, skills and experience in the mental resetting and positive mindset/ emotionality control domain

 

- Online mental self-control tests;

- 6-min run, standing leans, alternative limbs raising, prone push-ups and Romberg tests;

 - Mental fitness test set;

- Dance plastics physical education test set.

7.4

Leisure-time physical education

Knowledge, skills and experience in the adaptive recreational sports for physical fitness and intellectual efficiency

- Online adaptive recreational sports basics tests;

- 6-min run, standing leans, alternative limbs raising, prone push-ups and Romberg tests;

- Adaptive recreation toolkits;

- Adaptive recreation toolkits.

7.5

Reflexive progress control

Progress self-testing mobile applications: usage skills and experience

- Mobile applications and tools knowledge tests online;

- Health Portfolio check.

 

For the universal competences UC-7 test purposes, we detailed the progress levels and test criteria with the observation protocols to profile the students’ progress by the universal competences indicators and descriptors, with the progress scored by experts based on the tests [2]. The UC-7 cluster with the competences ranked by the functionalities was developed on a complementary basis to secure the desired combined outcome – i.e. good occupational health standards for professional service and social progress: see Table 2.

Table 2. Special health group competences formation on an integrated basis by the education service

 

Note:  – Professional applied competence;  – Corrective/ rehabilitation competence;  – Leisure-time physical education competence;  – Mental health management competence;  – Reflective progress control competence; 1-13 – practical training sessions in every module

Academic year

It should be emphasized that the above competences will be formed not only by the special physical education service, but also on an extracurricular basis with application of the modern IT/ digital technologies.

Conclusion. The universal competences for the academic special health group will be designed to secure good knowledgebase, skills and experiences in the health management domain with the self-reliant physical training/ health management elements, professional service specific mental and physical health control skills, plus well-rooted healthy lifestyle with due motivations for healthy and productive service and social progress for the whole lifetime. The standard universal competences UC-7 decomposing attempt to form a cluster of specific priority competences made it possible to develop the competency-building adaptive physical education model for the special health group students.

References

  1. Andryushchenko L.B., Filimonova S.I., Glazkova G.B. et al. Physical education of special health group students. Textbook. Moscow: Ruscience publ., 2020. 356 p.
  2. Glazkova G.B., Mamonova O.V., Gracheva D.V. et al. Physical education of special health group students: competency-building approach. Moscow: Plekhanov Russian University of Economics publ., 2020. 160 p.
  3. Gracheva D.V., Mikhaylova A.A., Saetgalieva D.R. et al. Role of adaptive physical education in inclusive educational process (case study of Plekhanov Russian University of Economics. Izvestiya Tulskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Fizicheskaya kultura. Sport. 2018. No. 4. pp. 20-26.
  4. Mamonova O.V. Special applications for students with special educational needs: innovative approach. Izvestiya Tulskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Fizicheskaya kultura. Sport. 2019. No. 11. pp. 37-42.
  5. Pukhovskaya M.N., Andryushchenko L.B. Anti-doping culture in individual culture system. Kultura fizicheskaya i zdorovye. 2019. No. 4 (72). pp. 12-14.
  6. Filimonova S.I., Andryushchenko L.B., Averyasova Yu.O. et al. Innovative content of physical education and sports training for future entrepreneurs. Kultura fizicheskaya i zdorovye. 2020. No. 3 (75). pp. 73-76.
  7. Glazkova G., Mamonova O., Gracheva D., Pukhovskaya M. Social aspects of physical education of students with deviations in health status. Journal of Physical Education and Sport, 2020. No. 20 (5). pp. 2545-2553.
  8. Shutova T.N., Kondrakov G.B., Averyasova Y.O., Filimonova Y.B. Student health management model: group/ individualized training modules. Theory and Practice of Physical Culture. 2018. No. 9. P.10.
  9. Shutova T.N., Andryushchenko L.B. Digitalization of physical education and sports educational process at university. Theory and Practice of Physical Culture. 2020. No. 9. P. 22.

Corresponding author: glazkova_fitnes@mail.ru

Abstract

Objective of the study was to theoretically substantiate the decomposition of universal competence into a cluster of detailed competences of top priority for the special health group students in the modern university environment.

Methods and structure of the study. The analysis of specialized literature and first-hand teaching experience enabled to decompose universal competence into the following competences: correctional-and-rehabilitation, applied professional, mental health improvement, sports-and-recreational, reflexive-and-self-control. We modeled the descriptors to indicate how to test each indicator (competence): theoretical tests (knowledge), physical fitness tests (physical health level), exercise complexes (training experience) of different orientations aimed to build certain competences.

Results of the study and conclusions. During the decomposition of universal competence, we developed a universal competence matrix reflecting the logic of its formation through a set of incoming competences, their indicators and descriptors that result from the physical education of the special health group students. The level of universal competence formation was assessed based on the detailed elaboration of the levels and criteria of its evaluation. We drew up the protocols for monitoring the indicators on development in students of the competence indicators and descriptors, based on which we conducted an expert evaluation. The universal competence decomposition provided a means for simulating physical training of the special health group bachelor students to improve their psychophysical conditions, increase their motivation to physical activities, and build the associated competences.