A study of teachers' knowledge for inclusive physical education classes at elementary school A case study of interviews based on the replay stimulation method using class videos

• Published in: Taiikugaku kenkyu (Japan Journal of Physical Education, Health and Sport Sciences) Vol. 67; pp. 537 - 556
• Main Authors: HAGIWARA, Taiga, KIHARA, Seiichiro, CHOSOKABE, Hiroshi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Japanese
• Published: Japan Society of Physical Education, Health and Sport Sciences 2022
• Subjects: knowledge base; knowledge of physical education classes; Lee S. Shulman; SCAT
• ISSN: 0484-6710; 1881-7718
• DOI: 10.5432/jjpehss.21112

In inclusive physical education classes, teachers focus on building relationships between children in the regular classroom and children with disabilities. However, the type of knowledge teachers have or apply to their classes has remained unclear. Also, in relation to the process of creating teaching materials, the type of knowledge applied when planning classes, or the degree to which the content or procedures need to be modified or adjusted for each physical activity depending on teachers' aims, has not been adequately investigated. The purpose of this study was to clarify the knowledge of teachers needed for conducting inclusive physical education classes. 　For the interview, teachers conducting inclusive physical education classes were asked to share their thoughts about lesson plans and actual instruction, while watching a video of their own lesson practice. To examine their knowledge, SCAT, a qualitative data analysis method, was applied to the contents of the interviews. Then, the themes and constructs extracted by SCAT were classified into the 7 knowledge domains of Shulman's knowledge base. 　As a result, the following points were clarified: 　(1) In this case study, "pedagogical context knowledge" (PCK), which is knowledge specific to teachers, was applied when the teacher gave guidance for building relationships between children in regular classes and children with disabilities. This knowledge allowed teachers to play a bridging role with the aim of making the 2 parties mutually responsive in order to build consensus. 　(2) When teachers created teaching materials for the inclusive physical education classes, they employed a two-stage reconstruction approach, using different knowledge at each stage. In the first stage, teachers developed materials based on sports and other sources using "knowledge of content" and "knowledge of general teaching methods". In the second stage, the teachers modified the physical education materials to take into account the participation of children with learning disabilities in the inclusive physical education classes using PCK such as changing the equipment to make ball handling easier and changing the rules to facilitate competition. 　These findings indicate that teachers apply their own knowledge of inclusive physical education to actuallessons.