Evaluation of Student’s Attitudes from Conventional Primary Schools toward Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in Physical Education after the Implementation of a Program

Anna Panagiotou, Christina Evaggelinou, Agapi Doulkeridou, Eirini Koidou, & Katerina Mouratidou Laboratory of Adapted Physical Activities, Department of Physical Education and Sport Science, Serres, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Hellas

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of the "Paralympic School Day" (PSD) program on the at- titudes of 5th and 6th grade students of conventional schools toward inclusion of children with disabilities in physical education classes. 310 children from seven primary schools of two different districts in Νorth Greece were divided into two groups: an experimental (n = 181) and a control one (n = 129). The experimental group received a day program PSD, aimed at creating awareness and understanding of people with disabilities, while the control group followed the conventional physical education program. For the assessment of children’s attitudes, the CAIPE-R questionnaire (Block, 1995) modified for Greece (Panagiotou, 2006) was used. The questionnaire consisted of two attitude subscales: the general (attitude toward inclusion of a child with a disability in a physical education class) and the specific (attitude toward inclusion of a child with a disability in adapted sports). A 2X2 repeated measures analysis of variance was used to examine the differences in pre and post tests between the two groups. Results showed statistical significant differences on the experimental group only to the general attitudes (p < .05), while there was no differences to the specific attitudes. Conclusively, it is seemed that similar programs should be implemented and assessed, focusing on participation in specific sports and not on the win.

Key words: disability, physical education, education, attitude, inclusion, programs