Inclusive Physical Activity Practices for Disabled Children and Adolescents

The field of adapted physical activity (PA) spans across various disciplines that aim to promote PA participation among disabled individuals across different settings. Of these settings, there is particular interest in educational systems, as many disabled children and adolescents rely on schools to obtain their PA opportunities. The quality of PA opportunities for disabled children and adolescents, however, vary within educational systems due to the complex relationship of the professionals (i.e., educators, therapists) who provide services to them as well as the overarching historical, philosophical, and societal structures that exist around them. This chapter provides considerations and guidance to inform educators and practitioners to critically analyze what services they provide, why it is important to provide those services, and how to effectively provide services alongside disabled children and adolescents. A focus is placed on key considerations surrounding terminology in the field of adapted PA (i.e., disability, ableism, inclusion), how societal understandings of disability have been routed in dominant historical and philosophical discourses, the significance of PA for disabled students, and implementation and evaluation strategies to support school-based PA for disabled students. The chapter also aims to challenge professionals to understand the importance of centering the voices of disabled children and adolescents in the services they provide and to deconstruct discussions surrounding one-size-fits-all educational strategies for disabled students.