A Clear Understanding of the Adapted Physical Education - Research Paper Example

Introduction: Assessment of physical education is a very essential aspect. This in the case of adapted physical education becomes very important due to the nature of the education. This study is to understand what adapted physical education means along with understanding the assessment in the setting where adapted physical education is included. In order to go ahead with this topic, firstly we would require discussing the meaning of adapted physical education. Following which the discussion of the how the assessments are made in a setting which includes adapted physical education will be made. Adapted Physical Education: This is a sub topic of physical education. Here children with special needs are taken care off, and it provides individualised programs for these kinds of students. These programs in a lot of cases last for over thirty days. There are a number of different aspects that are included within these programs, like the physical fitness, fundamental motor skills, motor fitness, dance skills, sports, individuals, group games aquatic skills and also lifetime sports. This program has been devised to help people with physical disabilities. It allows for these people to have safe and individualised attention while physical education (APEAS). This has proved to be quite satisfying for the people and also allows the physically challenged people to be able to relate to physical activities rather than missing out on them and participating only in other desk bound activities. Adapted physical education has proved to be very useful and it is essential to understand that this is not a related service, but is a direct service. This is generally taught by a person with a background in the physical therapy. This is majorly so that the trainers can correctly design the study for each student. A great deal of care is required while designing a curriculum for the students with special needs in terms of the physical education (APENS, 2008). The trainers require having a strong background so as to provide, safe, appropriate, and therapeutic schedules and work out for every individual student, based on their special need. These classes can be undertaken in gyms where the regular students also have their classes, as this could be used as a positive for the students with special needs. The trainers can include the interaction of the classes to an appropriate level which will help motivate the students to a greater extent (Winnick, 2005). Under the federal law, it is essential that any person with a physical disability is required to undergo these trainings to assist them improve on the following areas: a) Physical and Gross Motor Skills: Gross motor skills in general involve the large muscles of the body. These include the muscles which allow for walking, kicking, sitting upright, lifting and throwing the ball. These are essential for major movements. The gross motor skills also allow for creation of a connection with the other physical activities and physical functions of the body. Any individual with a lack of strength and poor gross motor skills generally have a difficult time doing simple activities like writing on the blackboard or even maintaining the upper body support, which affects the ability to write. b) Fundamental Motor skills: By law it is also essential that students with any special needs require learning fundamental motor skills like throwing, catching, walking, running etc. These are extremely essential for every individual in life. A person with low fundamental motor skills as a child is more likely to not be a part of any exercise or sport once they grow up. This is majorly because the fundamental motor skills together form the sport specific skills and it is difficult to obtain proficiency in sport skills if the prerequisite fundamental skills are not present. Hence the government has made it mandatory for parents to ensure that their children are taught the fundamental skills, to ensure better futures for the children. These skills are generally taught at the early stages of childhood and are vey influenced by the environment like the form of practice, the type of teacher and the learning process. It is important to understand that these skills do not emerge automatically and they are required to be taught well. c) Skills like dancing, aquatics, games and sports are also by law mandatory for the students. This is majorly because it is the duty of the parents to find out the child’s skills at childhood and help nurture the skills. There has been a set of disabilities that qualify for the special services, under the Individual wit Disabilities Education Act (1990). The following fall into this category (APENS, 2008): Autism Deaf – blindness Deafness Hearing impairment Mental retardation Multiple disabilities Orthopaedic Impairments Other health impairments Serious emotional disturbance Specific learning disability Speech or language impairment Traumatic brain injury Visual impairment including blindness Children with any of the above mentioned disabilities classify to be part of these kinds of classes and undertake these training programs by law. Standards of Specialised Knowledge: There are a set of fifteen standards that have been set down as the national standards. Trainers and teachers for these kinds of courses are required to undertake certification examinations. The following are the fifteen standards: Human Development, Motor behaviour, Exercise Science, Measurement and evaluation, History and Philosophy, Unique attributes of learners, Curriculum theory and development, Assessments, Instructional design and planning, Teaching, Consultation and staff development, Student and program evaluation, Continuing Education, Ethics, and Communication (APENS, 2008) Assessment in the Inclusion of Setting: As discussed previously the students are generally provided with sessions in different rooms or in the same gyms as the normal children however with little interaction among the children. Assessment is a very essential process. The main aim of this is to provide accurate and complete data as possible so that the placement can be appropriate and instructions can be provided. Inclusion refers to the attitude, a value and also a belief system; it does not include just an action or even a set of actions. Inclusion does have a different affect on the students and their levels of performance as well. When we speak of inclusion it mainly refers to understanding all children and accepting them as they are. The main aim is to ensure that creation of meaningful opportunities for learning and to provide a place for the students where they feel wanted and they also learn in these communities (Auxter, et.al., 2009). Students also require feeling the absolute right to belong within these communities which thereby allows for better performance of the students. In the case of an inclusive physical education program, there is a case of interdependence as well as independence of the values. These programs value the teachers, the students, faculty and parents and they classify all the members to be learners. These programs also allow for a better understanding of the student diversity apart from the disabilities. This is considered to be an opportunity to for learning about the ways for everyone to become more physically active, which can be done with the help of a variety of movements and fitness activities. There are two major forms of inclusion settings: Partial Inclusion and Full Inclusion. The assessment of these steps and inclusion settings are extremely essential to provide for better performance by the students and a more organised and well devised structure for each student. There are a total of steps that are required for the program planning. Firstly, it is essential to create an individualized education plan, following which an individualised family service plan is required. Lastly, an individualised transition plan is devised. The assessments at every level require to be well planned with a detailed care to the needs of the student. In the first step which deals with an individualised education plan, this is one of the most important steps that need to be discussed. Here the trainers in accordance to the student need to form a strong educational plan for each student. This is done keeping in mind the students individual needs and also the student’s ability to learn. Here the trainers form the plan and are required to pass on a copy to the parents in writing. Also as mentioned earlier, this is done after a through analysis of the child’s needs which is got through a formal assessment (CCTC, 1994). Also a lot of care and precision is required while creating this plan. Hence this is normally developed by a team of people, who expertise in a number if different areas and also can provide different viewpoints. Here the trainers are also required to organise staffing conferences to which the parents are required to be present. This is a conference where the students are allocated with their trainers who are chosen based on the assessment that has been made of the students. Following the well designed educational plan, it is also essential to build an individualised Education plan. These plans require defining, what should be taught and how they plan to teach it. Also who plans to teach it is and where the class will be held is required to be decided within this plan (Freeman, 1999). Also other elements like when the classes will begin, and how long it might take for every class and how much time would be spent in the regular classroom and most of all why this plan is required. This will provide a clear picture of what is going to be done and how the trainers aim at pursuing the classes for the students. Since the students require special care and assistance, hence it is important that all the schedules are planned well and need to be followed to ensure a smooth flow in the entire process. This plan also describes and highlights the goals set down by the team for the students and this also allows for arrangement of any special needs that will be required for the year (Hinkle, 2002). These plans are devised after a lot of care and a good analysis of the child. This forms a strong and beneficial plan as a number of aspects like the present level of performance, the disability affects on the performance, and other aspects similar to this. The last step for the team requires undertaking is the individualised family service plan. This generally includes a justification of the proposed plan, also includes the plan and date for periodic review (Freeman, 1999). This includes a clear plan for the physical education needs, meetings for transitional needs and all the details of the special education service, behaviour plans and the modifications and accommodation that are needed. The assessment inclusion of setting is mainly to ensure that the children are slowly included into the groups of individuals who are normal with no issues of discomfort for the child. Since the children have special needs, it is essential to understand that they require their space and time to be able to come up to the level of that of the normal children. Since there are a number of new steps that are being included in the lives of the children, it is essential to rightly assess each of the steps to ensure a better and more detailed assessment of the children and their progress (National Association for Sport and Physical Fitness, 1995). Once the children are included within the mainstream an extra effort is required to be undertaken to assess they performance. That is the major reason for two steps i.e. the partial inclusion and the full inclusion is to allow for the children to slowly get used to the environment. In the partial inclusion, this is the first step for the children. Here the children are firstly trained and then they are slowly introduced into the class with the normal children. This is similar to as we have discussed previously, where the children with special needs are taught in the same gym as the normal children (Seaman, 1995). This allows for a slow interaction among the children. This would also allow for the children to slowly and gradually meet up with the normal children. The assessment of children is required to be made here, as this will allow a better understanding of the improvement seen in the children. If an improvement is seen with the children and if there is betterment in the progress of their education, then the trainers can make a decision, to either move the children to a full inclusion. This is a very big step for the students. Here the students are coupled with other students for the classes. At every stage of process it is essential that the students are correctly assessed, as this is a very crucial change for the children. Assessments at this stage are very essential and all these assessments include those from the child’s parents as well. As discussed earlier, the children have adapted physical education and over all education is a combined effort from the side of the parents as well as the teachers. Hence the assessments require a clear feedback from both to gain a sure view where the child stands and whether or not the child is ready for a move to a higher inclusion into the society. Conclusion: The above discussion has allowed for a clear understanding of the adapted physical education. It has also provided for a good understanding of the various steps that are involved in creating the plan of study for a child with special needs. This has highlighted that the transition of the child from one who requires an individual approach to moving into a partial inclusion. Also with the improvement in the child’s progress, all efforts are generally made to move the child into a full inclusion. The normal transition and bettered physical education for the children can be attained by the age of six; however this differs to a great extent in terms of the disability suffered by the children. This is a great step undertaken by the government to ensure that by law, parent of special children, ensure that the children are put into schools to enable them to do the basics of life. This includes aspects like writing, walking, throwing a ball, etc. this allows for all individuals to have the bare minimum and allows for all to live an independent life. Bibliography Adapted Physical Education Assessment Scale (APEAS), Los Angeles USD, Los Angeles, CA APENS. (2008). What is Adapted Physical Education. Adapted Physical Education National Standards. Accessed on 3rd March 2009. Retrieved from http://www.apens.org/whatisape.html. 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Moving Into The Future: National Standards for Physical Education: A Guide to Content and Assessment. Mosby-Year Book, Inc. Seaman, J.A. (1995). Physical Best and Individuals With Disabilities. AAHPERD, Reston, VA Winnick, J.P. (2005). Adapted Physical education and Sport. 4th edition. Human Kinetics Publishers. Read More