Children’s Attitudes towards Inclusion of Visually Impaired Students in Physical Education Classes: Gender Differences

Abstract

Study purpose. The study purpose was to investigate gender differences in children’s attitudes toward the inclusion of a student with visual impairment in physical education classes.
 Materials and methods. The study sample comprised 419 able-bodied primary school students in 6th to 9th grade (boys, n=204, mean age 13.23±1.17 years; girls, n=215, mean age 13.08±1.19 years). A modified version of the standardized attitudinal questionnaire CAIPE-R for the inclusion of visually impaired (VI) students was used as a research method. The internal reliability of CAIPE-R was measured using Cronbach’s α. The Shapiro-Wilk test was used to assess the normality of sample distribution. The non-parametric Mann-Whitney U-test was used to assess differences between boys and girls, and the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test assessed differences between general and sport-specific attitudes.
 Results. Boys presented rather neutral or indifferent (mean scores 3.19, 3.44 points) attitudes, and girls had slightly positive (mean scores 3.59, 3.74 points) attitudes toward inclusive physical education (PE). Girls, compared to boys, expressed more positive general (U=16786, p=0.000) as well as sport-specific (U=16586, p=0.003) attitudes towards the inclusion of the VI student in PE classes. Both groups of children declared more positive general attitudes than sport-specific attitudes towards the inclusion of VI students (boys, Z=-4.230, p=0.000; girls, Z=-3.015, p=0.003).
 Conclusions. Girls expressed more positive general and sport-specific attitudes towards the inclusion of VI students in PE classes than boys. Boys’ attitudes were only neutral or indifferent, and girls’ attitudes were only moderately positive. Both genders declared more positive general attitudes towards the inclusion of VI students in PE classes compared to sport-specific attitudes. Taking into consideration the above, to find the most appropriate solutions as regards the inclusion of students with different kinds of disabilities in PE classes, it is necessary to learn more about the attitudes towards inclusion from students, teachers, and school management.

Leveraging Experiential Learning to Foster University Students’ Proficiency in Engaging with People with Disabilities

“…Following the implementation of inclusive physical activity sessions, in our research, students demonstrated a significant improvement in their perception of learning related to disability. These findings endorse the notion that inclusive education, especially inclusive physical activity, can effectively changing attitudes and perceptions towards disability have an impact on other variables, as noted in studies such as that of Nemček (2022). Additionally, the outcomes emphasize the fundamental role of educators in endorsing and executing all-inclusive knowledge.…”

“…There is a growing number of initiatives, including lectures, seminars and workshops, aimed at developing inclusive perspectives for future teachers, involving people with and without disabilities (Campos et al, 2021). Exposure to first-hand experiences fosters positive attitudes towards disability, which are later applied in the teaching profession (Abellán et al, 2018;Kwatubana & Bosch, 2019, Nemček, 2022. In this way, a continuous cycle of improving general perceptions of disability is created (Duk et al, 2019).…”

Education for Sustainable Development: Understanding by Physical Education and Sports Specialists

“…For example, there are respondents who say that Goals 5 and 10 are not related to physical culture and sport. However, the issues of social equality and gender have been facing society for decades and are very relevant and discussed in the field of physical culture and sports (Kempe-Bergman et al, 2020;Eime et al, 2021;Nemček, 2022). Paralympic sport is also gaining ground and is a way to reduce social inequality (Foster et al, 2019;Goh, 2020).…”

Children with Disorders (ASD/ADHD) in Inclusive Physical Education from The Perspective of Church School Students

“…The description of the students with disorders was followed by statements that were summarized in two parts; (1) statements related to social interactions between students with disorders and ablebodied students in inclusive PE and (2) statements related to modifications of sports game rules for students with disorders. The social interactions domain contained 5 statements, such as If Silvia was with me in PE, I would have fun with her, and I would be her friend; and the rule modification domain also contained 5 statements, such as It would be good if nobody could take the ball away from Boris after the pass (Nemček, 2022(Nemček, , 2024. The attitudes, reflected in the degree of agreement with the statements, were rated by able-bodied church school students on a 4-point Likert scale as follows: score 1 -disagree, score 2 -rather disagree, score 3 -rather agree, score 4 -agree.…”