• Fitness & Health
• Sport & Exercise Science
• Physical Education
• Strength & Conditioning
• Sports Medicine
• Sport Management
• Dance

Chapter eight’s opening scenario

This is an excerpt from Strategies for Inclusion 4th Edition With HKPropel Access by Lauren J. Lieberman,Cathy Houston-Wilson & Michelle Grenier.

Marita is a ninth grader who is blind. When Marita was in middle school, she was placed in a general physical education (GPE) class; however, her teacher was afraid she would get hurt, so he let Marita sit in the locker room and read during class. As we know from previous chapters, this is an unacceptable option for students with disabilities because IDEIA requires access to the GPE curriculum. Over the summer, Marita attended a camp for students with visual impairments, became more physically active, and made the cross country team. Upon her return to school, she was determined to participate in physical education with her peers in high school.

Marita’s PE class was scheduled at the same time as her paraeducator’s mandatory break. Her physical education (PE) teacher was uncomfortable working with Marita because he had little knowledge about students with visual impairments. As a result, Marita was once again sidelined, and her hopes of participating in physical education with her peers were shattered. Marita’s parents were upset that Marita was still being excluded from physical education. They called the school and set up a meeting to discuss the situation. In addition to violating the law and the terms of her individual education plan (IEP), the situation compromised the confidence Marita had gained over the summer. The meeting consisted of the parents, the director of PE, the PE teacher, the district’s new adapted physical education specialist, the paraeducator, and Marita. The meeting was productive, resulting in several viable options to support Marita in physical education. First, they would train several of Marita’s friends to serve as peer tutors in class. Second, they paired her with a different paraeducator who was available during the PE period and was also trained to work with her in physical education. With additional modifications included in her teacher’s universally designed lesson plan, Marita was able to successfully participate in the inclusive PE class with her peers, and she has decided to go out for the track team in the spring.

More Excerpts From Strategies for Inclusion 4th Edition With HKPropel Access

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