Special Education Administrators’ Knowledge of Adapted Physical Education: A Pilot Study

Abstract

ABSTRACT Special education administrators have an influence over adapted physical education (APE) services, however little research to date has assessed special education administrators’ knowledge of APE services. Thus, the purpose of this study was to determine special education administrators’ knowledge of APE services. Fifty-one special education administrators completed a 21-question content knowledge test about key areas within the field of APE. A series of exploratory t-tests were used to determine whether their overall test scores differed significantly by a variety of demographic variables (e.g., gender, prior APE training). In addition, a repeated measures ANOVA was used to determine whether there were any significant differences between the three subsections of the test. Participants’ overall test scores were approximately 40% (M = 8.41, SD = 2.28), which was similar to all three sub-sections within the test (‘federal laws and APE’ = 43%, M = 3.04, SD = 1.34; ‘best teaching practices in APE’ = 38%, M = 2.76, SD = 1.29; ‘inclusion and least restrictive environment and APE’ = 39%, M = 2.63, SD = 1.06). Test scores did not significantly differ by any of the demographic variables, p >.05. Recommendations for future research and professional development are discussed.