Essential Skills to Teach APE 1

Essential Skills to Teach APE

Luis Cruz
California State University, Long Beach
Essential Skills to Teach APE 2

Overview of Adapted Physical Education

Adapted physical education (APE) is a physical education program designed for individuals

with disabilities. The California Department of Education Special Education Division (2012)

states “The program is adapted to meet the needs of each students through modifications and

accommodations” (p.9). To be an effective APE teacher, one must be well versed in many areas

besides just physical education subject matter knowledge. Knowledge of the physical education

curriculum is just the first part of the process. The adapted physical educator is knowledgeable

about subject matter content and follows the best practices described in the “highly qualified”

physical education teacher document (National Association of Sports and Physical Education,

2007) , the “highly qualified” APE teacher document (AAPAR & NCPERID, 2007), the

Adapted Physical Education National Standards (Kelly, 2006), and other specific state and local

district school policies or guidelines (Lytle, et al., 2010).

A physical educator is responsible for teaching physical and motor fitness, fundamental

motor skills and patterns, skills in aquatics, dance and individual group games and sport

(including intramural and lifetime sports). Essential skills an APE teacher must possess is the

ability to effectively collaborate with other professionals, provide consultative support, teach

cross-disciplinary material, and behavior management. The adapted physical educator has to

work with other professionals such as physical therapist, occupational therapist, special

education teachers as well as others. Providing consultative support to general physical education

teachers often is part of the position to assist them in providing the most effective instruction to

students they may have with disabilities.

Children who cannot successfully participate in general or specially designed physical

education programs, even with accommodations and modifications may need services. The needs
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for APE may be a result of movement delays or difficulties, physical or neurological disabilities,

health and physical factors, emotional disorders, behaviors difficulties or cognitive delays

(California Department of Education Special Education Division, 2012). It is important to have a

teacher that is a trained APE teacher work with students with disabilities. Sometimes children

with disabilities are integrated into physical education classes with teachers that do not have the

knowledge and experience to successfully include them. APE teachers have a degree in

kinesiology with a specialization in pedagogy and a focus in adapted physical education (Lytle,

et al., 2010).

Belief Statements:

1) Teaching students enjoyable and practical ways to stay active is important so students are

encouraged to stay fit throughout their life.

a. If students find an activity or style of exercise they enjoy doing and is practical

for them to do outside of school, they will be more likely to engage in that

activity. Fitness is the most important aspect of health and preventing injury and

disease as we age.

2) Students will rise to the standards educators hold them to.

a. Holding students to high standards will instill in them a sense of confidence. This

confidence allows students to take on the challenges of life outside of school.

There needs to be educated instructors that know the capabilities of the students

as well as the limitations. Having educated instructors that understand capabilities

and limitations will allow the teacher to write appropriate objectives.

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Physical Education Subject Matter Knowledge; Curriculum Knowledge, and Instructional

Practices Knowledge
Adapted physical educators teach from the same California Content Standards as general

physical education teachers do. Though adapted physical educators teach the same standards,

they may have to make modifications for their students. Students who are in adapted physical

education may not be working at grade level standards. The California Content Standards are in

place for grades kindergarten through twelve. This allows teachers to assess students and have a

reference to where students are at developmentally. Physical educators will also use Physical

Education Framework for California Public Schools to teach from as well. This is another

resource to teach standard based instruction to students.

In addition to the two California state standard books that California physical education

teachers base their instruction from, there is also the National Association for Sport and Physical

Education (NASPE) standards as well as the California Adapted Physical Education Guidelines

(CA APE Guidelines). The NASPE standards can be conceptualized as long-range goals or

desired outcomes (Sherrill, 2004). The CA APE Guidelines were written to identify program

guidelines that clarify APE services. Individuals who are provided this service are the ones who

require highly specialized services to meet their individual goals for physical education. Physical

Educators design their curriculum based off Individuals with Disabilities Education

Improvement Act (IDEIA, 2004) definition of physical education which includes physical and

motor fitness, fundamental motor skills and patterns, and skills in aquatics, dance and games and

sports (both intramural and lifetime sports). The recommended amount of physical education

minutes for elementary is 200 minutes every 10 days and 400 minutes every 10 days for high

school.
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Adapted physical educators use a variety of instructional practices. Universal design for

learning (UDL) is an instructional model where there are alternatives for everyone, it is not a one

size fits all. “UDL is a framework used to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all

people based on scientific insights into how humans learn” (Cast, 2020). This allows for

differentiation where the students are all learning similar content but through different strategies

based off their learning styles and needs.

It is the adapted physical educator’s responsibility to create an environment where the

students can be successful. The ecological task analysis (ETA) is where teachers assess student’s

movements and abilities and place them in environments that will allow them to be successful.

This can be accomplished by changing the equipment, group or area where the student is

performing at. In APE it is more beneficial for teachers to use a functional approach (Top Down)

that is more socially significant to the students. The Top Down approach is where students focus

on meeting desired goals that are age appropriate skills that they would be performing in their

natural environment. These are referred to activities of daily living (ADLs). The idea is to teach

student functional skills that would be useful for them in everyday life. Examples of this would

be walking up and down stairs, getting dressed and feeding themselves.

There are different teaching styles an adapted physical educator will use depending on

the situation. Teacher-centered styles (reproductive) is typically better for APE than student-

centered styles (productive) that typically require a higher level of thinking. Examples of a

teacher directed approaches used in APE is the command and practice style. The command style

would be used when the teacher is leading warmups and stretches. This allows the teacher to

have the students all performing the same task while being able to observe them and make

corrections if needed. The practice style allows the teacher to demonstrate a task, then give the
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students an opportunity to practice with partners, while the teacher assesses them. This approach

works well when students are working on throwing and catching. A student-centered approach

that can be used is guided discovery which is when the teacher asks students questions that lead

up to an answer. This allows student to think about concepts and come up with answers on their

own.

Disability Specific Knowledge

Students that qualify for adapted physical education services do not all have similar

disabilities. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) has

recognized 14 different categories of disabilities. An adapted physical educator has to not only

be familiar with each disability but know the most effective modifications and accommodations

for students with each of these disabilities. “Such knowledge should include an understanding of

effective programming for various disabilities, safety consideration, contraindicated activities”

(Lytle et al., 2010, p.42).

When teaching students with disabilities there are going to be certain activities that the

teacher cannot do with them depending on their disability. Students with Down syndrome may

have lax joints in the neck which is called atlantoaxial instability. In order to protect any students

with Down syndrome from getting injured, the teacher would avoid inverted activities that could

potentially put pressure on their necks. APE teachers could possibly have 12 students with 12

different disabilities. It is important that in order to keep the students safe, the teacher always

checks the equipment, facilities, and knows any type of allergies the students may have along

with any medication that they take. The adapted physical educator must continue to research and

stay up to date on the latest information regarding disabilities and best practices for teaching

students with disabilities.

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It is important that adapted physical educators know various accommodation and

modification for each skill and activity they teach. Most students who have a disability that

would qualify them for APE services are going to require accommodations and modifications to

some degree. Modifications can involve changing rules, equipment, movement patterns and

players during games and activities. In order for students with disabilities to reach their

maximum potential, APE teachers must have the ability to make modifications as necessary. In

addition to the content standards that are taught, APE must incorporate educational objectives

from physical, social and cognitive domains of behavior.

Assessment Practices and Procedures

Assessing students is the first step for an APE teacher. The students are assessed in order to

qualify for adapted services and once the students qualify, the teacher will use their assessment

data to design instruction for them. This is where disability knowledge is important so the

teacher can create objectives for the students based off their disability and age. The assessment

data that teachers collect on the students is what they use to write reports on the students and use

for their individualized education program (IEP).

There is no single assessment that is used for all students with disabilities. For younger

children in elementary school, teachers may use the Test of Gross Motor Development (TGMD)

to assess the students. The TGMD test is used to identify students with gross motor deficits.

There are two subtests: locomotor and ball skills. The locomotor test measures the gross motor

skills that require fluid coordinated movements of the body as the child moves in one direction or

another. The ball skills test measures the gross motor skills required to throw, strike and catch.

Project MOBILITEE (Movement Opportunities for Building Independence and Leisure Interests

through Training Educators and Exceptional learners) is an APE project dealing with moderate
Essential Skills to Teach APE 8

and severe handicapping conditions. MOBILITEE contains an assessment and curriculum guide

designed to help teachers in developing physical education programs for students who are

moderately and severely disabled.

Legal Knowledge of Special Education Legislation

All physical educators need to understand special education legislation and how it

pertains to physical education. Under IDEIA, all students regardless of disability are insured an

education without any additional cost for accommodations. “At no cost means that all specially-

designed instruction is provided without charge, but does not preclude incidental fees that are

normally charged to nondisabled individuals or their parents as a part of the regular education

program” (California Department of Education Special Education Division, 2012). The purpose

of IDEIA is to ensure that students with disabilities have the same access to physical education

that nondisabled students do, along with any accommodations they need in order to assist them

with meeting the standards. The goal is to place the students in the least restrictive environment.

Any student who receives special education or adapted services must have an IEP. The

IEP creates an opportunity for teachers, parents, school administrators, related services

personnel, and students when appropriate to work together to improve educational results for

children with disabilities. This team looks at the unique need of the student and creates a plan to

help the student progress in the general curriculum. It is the responsibility of the educational

team to do everything they can to ensure the student meets the appropriate objectives set for

them. The Supreme Court ruled in the Endrew F v. Douglas County School District case that

schools must give kids with disabilities more than a de minimis, or minimal, educational benefit.

504 plans are another plan that APE teachers may be involved in. They are not part of

special education so it is not common that students with 504 plans would be in APE but it does
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happen sometimes. 504 plans come up with accommodations that would assist the students in

being successful and there are no set rules to what 504 plans will look like. The Americans with

disabilities act (ADA) is a civil rights law that prohibits the discrimination against individuals

with disabilities in all areas of public life. The civil rights protections that ADA gives to

individuals with disabilities are similar to those given to individuals on the basis of race, color,

sex, national origin, age, and religion. This law ensures that students with disabilities have the

same rights and opportunities as everyone else.

Behavior Management Procedures

In physical education, behavior management is important because if students are not

following directions, it could lead to potential injury. The APE teacher uses various teaching

strategies, including proactive methods such as clear, concise rules and routines, to help prevent

problems before they occur; methods to maintain and increase desirable behaviors such as varied

reinforcements; and, when necessary, methods and consequences to decrease inappropriate

behaviors, such as timeout (Lytle et al. 2010).An example of establishing rules could be making

a poster with the rules on it with visuals the students can refer to and reviewing them before class

each day. The teacher should do the same thing with the consequences so the students can see

them as a reminder. APE students work best with visuals. The APE teachers should have as

many visual resources as possible. This ties in to making the activities and class as enjoyable as

possible for the students.

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Rewarding the students is a strategy that has been found to be very successful. “Catch ‘em

being good” is a strategy that is used in many classes where a teacher rewards a student with as

little as a kind word (e.g. thank you or good job) or with something they can have (e.g. sticker or

points). With difficult students, teachers can use the Premack principle where students have to do

a certain activity first, something that is typically not desirable to the student, before they can

move on to the second activity that is more desirable. This can also be done by allowing the

student to do an activity they like, if they follow the rules first.

Collaboration/Consultation & Advocacy Practices

APE teachers have to have strong collaboration skills because they will be working with

many different professionals as part of a student’s IEP. Professionals that APE teachers could be

working with are the special education teacher, physical therapist, occupational therapist, and

speech therapist. APE teachers have to have good listening skills and be willing to learn from

others as well as share ideas of their own. The goals that will be discussed by the IEP team are

assessments, behavior management, social skills, and academic goals. Together the team will

come up with strategies for the student to meet the objectives that have been set for them. When

these professionals effectively collaborate, students are more likely to meet their standards.

Assistive Technology
Assistive technology is something that APE teachers need to be familiar with in order to

help students in and outside the classroom. Assistive technology can be low tech or high tech.

Students using a pen to communicate can be a form assistive technology as well as a tablet.
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Assistive technology can be effective in helping students meet their objectives and reach the

standards that the teachers hold them too as well as making the class more enjoyable for them.

Types of assistive technology that could be used in class are screen readers, bolsters or wedges,

walkers and wheelchairs, prosthetics, mobile standers, and specialized sporting equipment.

Sporting equipment can include sport wheelchairs, sit-skies, sledge hockey, or adapted bikes

(Kelly, 2006).

Specialty equipment is an effective modification for getting students with disabilities to

enjoy physical education. Examples of specialty equipment are slomo soccer balls. They are

effective for students who are not capable at keeping up with the speed at which a soccer ball

travels. This slows down the game and gives the students an opportunity to get more activity

time kicking the ball. Bowling ramps are useful to students who are in a wheelchair and cannot

bend down to properly bowl. Using specialty equipment is a great way to help students work

towards meeting their standard and allowing them to have success which will make the activities

enjoyable.

Advocacy & Inclusion

Inclusion is a term that can be misunderstood in physical education. What most people

view as inclusion is actually integration. Inclusion is educating all students regardless of ability

or disability and providing support and accommodation to allow all students to be challenged and

successful. Integration is simply placing all students together in a general physical education

class without support. IDEIA states that students with disabilities should be placed in the least

restrictive environment. When possible, inclusion classes can be great for them. When students

with disabilities are included in the same class as students without disabilities, both students

benefit. As long as all students have the accommodations and modifications to be successful
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while still being challenged, all students can physically, cognitively and socially benefit. It is the

responsibility of the APE teachers to advocate to schools for students with disabilities to have the

appropriate support to be able to reach the highest standards possible.

Community & Family Resources

Reaching out to families and providing them with support and information is an

important responsibility of an APE teacher. APE teachers should start the year out by sending a

welcome letter home, providing the family with information about the activities in class, ways to

contact the teacher and activities and affordable equipment that can be used at home. IEP

meetings and Open House is a good opportunity for APE teachers to introduce themselves to the

parents and answer any questions they may have. It is always helpful for teachers to send

progress reports out throughout the year so families are aware of the student’s progress. APE

teachers have a responsibility to inform the families about opportunities for them to be active

outside of school such as: community centers, 5ks and sports leagues that accommodate children

with disabilities. Teaching families enjoyable and practical ways to stay active with their child is

just as important as teaching the child.

Knowledge of the Cultural Heritages of Different Ethnic Groups

Most classes are going to be diverse. It is important that teachers are aware to the

diversity and embraces it. Being knowledgeable about different cultures will help the educator

understand the students in their class better. In some cultures, it is disrespectful to look in the

eyes of adults. Being aware of cultural norms like this will help the teacher interact better with

the students. Lots of visuals and resources are effective for English learners. Teachers should
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think about culturally responsive units when they are deciding what activities to teach, like

certain cultural dances,

for example. During instruction, the teacher can choose group leaders to encourage

responsibility. Pictures and posters are a great way to make the students feel comfortable and

grab their interest as well. It is all about making physical education more enjoyable to the

students.

Professional Development
It is part of the professional responsibility of the APE teacher to continue to learn. ”This

individual makes it a practice to learn and network with other professionals, especially veteran

teachers, through communication at in-services and professional conferences or through the

Internet, by viewing web sites, using email, and participating in chat rooms (e.g., PE Talk, APE

Talk)” (Lytle et al. 2010. p.43). Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly, Palaestra and JOPHERD

are three of the many professional journals that APE teachers can subscribe to. The APE teacher

should make it a point to join national and state organizations as well as attend conferences

annually. Two future professional growth goals are to subscribe to JOPHERD and to join the

SHAPE America organization.

Summary

My beliefs are: one, teaching students enjoyable and practical ways to stay active is

important so students are encouraged to stay fit throughout their life and two, students will rise to

the standards teachers hold them to. In order to make physical education enjoyable and get

students to rise to the standards you hold them to, teachers must implement everything that was

talked about in this paper. Perhaps the most important of all of these is to effectively collaborate
Essential Skills to Teach APE 14

with the professionals of the IEP team, parents, paraprofessionals and the community. APE

teachers need to be willing to listen and share ideas with the professionals and people close to the

students like the family and paraprofessionals because when these people work together to come

up with a plan for the child, that’s when the child can get the most benefits.

An APE teacher has to be a very well-rounded individual. They have to know educational

laws regarding students with disabilities, content knowledge for physical education, knowledge

about various disabilities along with how to assess and modify for each one, and know how to

use assistive technology for the students. During Mr. Cruz’s time in this class, along with

coteaching an APE class, he has realized how important it is to collaborate and build

relationships with the students and staff that you work with. Getting to know the students is the

most effective way to being able to create lessons that they are going to enjoy and to get them

engaged. Another thing that is equally important for an APE teacher is to continue to learning

through reading journal articles, networking with other professionals and attending conferences.

Never stop learning!

Essential Skills to Teach APE 15

References
California Department of Education Special Education Division. (2012). Adapted physical

education guidelines in California schools (p. 9). N.p.: California Department of

Education

Cast (2020). About universal design for learning. http://www.cast.org/our-work/about

udl.html

Kelly, l. (2006). Adapted physical education national standards (2nd ed.). Human Kinetics

Lavay, B., Lytle, R., & Rizzo, T. (2010, February). What is a highly qualified adapted

Physical Education Teacher? Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 81(2),

40-44

National association for sport and physical education. (2007). What constitutes a highly

qualified physical education teacher? Retrieved April 21, 2020, from

http://www.aahperd.org/naspe/pdf_files/HiQualified.pdf.