Sports & Exercise Research Volume 25 Number 3
Author：Yueh-Ling Hsieh; Yi-Min Jan; Bi-Ao Du; Tzu-Yu Weng; Wei-Min Huang; Chih-Yuan Kuo; Hsiu-Chen Lin
Period/Date/Page：Vol. 25 No. 3 (2023 / 09 / 30) ， P333 - 346
DOI：10.5297/ser.202309_25(3).0006
Improving Health-Related Physical Fitness in College Students With Disabilities Through Integrating Physical Therapy Techniques Into Adapted Physical Education
Abstract：Adapted physical education (APE) courses are offered by physical education teachers (supplemented by various support systems and relevant professionals) in response to the special needs of students with physical or mental disabilities. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of integrating physical therapy (PT) techniques into an APE course on health-related physical fitness for special-needs college students. The research design was a single-group reversal design (ABA experimental design) carried out for three consecutive semesters. The first semester was the baseline phase, subjects only participated in the general APE course. The second semester was the intervention phase, PT techniques were applied and integrated into the APE course. The third semester was the follow-up phase, PT techniques intervention was discontinued, and instruction consisted of only the APE course. A total of 16 students with disabilities were initially recruited; 13 of these participated for three consecutive semesters. The health-related components of physical fitness were performed and assessed at the beginning and end of each semester, including body composition, muscular fitness/muscular endurance, flexibility of upper and lower limbs and trunk, cardiorespiratory endurance, agility, and balance. The results of this study showed that there were significant improvements found in most components of physical fitness after integrating PT techniques into APE courses for one semester, but no significant improvement was found in the values for chair sit and reach test assessing lower limb flexibility. These findings indicate that integrating PT techniques into an APE course has short-term beneficial effects on the physical fitness for college students with disabilities. The course design in this study can be used as a reference for the implementation model of APE courses in college. (Full text)
