15.6 Assessing and Instructing Students with Disabilities

Differentiated Instruction & Accommodations

Inclusivity is a fundamental legal, ethical, and pedagogical principle of modern physical education. Students in K-12 classrooms possess diverse physical capabilities, cognitive processing speeds, sensory profiles, and social-emotional needs. Physical educators are legally obligated and professionally responsible for differentiating instruction so that every student—regardless of ability—can safely participate and succeed. The Praxis Health and Physical Education (5857) exam tests federal legislation governing special education, Individualized Education Programs (IEPs), Section 504 plans, Adapted Physical Education (APE) standards, the TREE modification model, and the continuum of Least Restrictive Environment (LRE).

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1. Federal Legislation Governing Inclusion in Physical Education

Three key federal statutes protect the rights of individuals with disabilities in educational settings:

Key Federal Statutes

1. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): Federal special education law ensuring Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) to eligible children with disabilities. IDEA specifically identifies Physical Education as a mandatory direct service, not an elective or secondary accommodation. PE must be made available to every child with a disability receiving FAPE unless the child has no non-disabled peers in their educational setting.
2. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973: A civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in programs receiving federal financial assistance. It protects students who have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities (e.g., asthma, Type 1 diabetes, severe allergies, ADHD, temporary mobility injuries) but who do not qualify for special education under IDEA.
3. Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): Broad civil rights legislation mandating accessibility in public accommodations, including school gymnasium facilities, playgrounds, swimming pools, and athletic fields.

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2. IEPs vs. Section 504 Plans in Physical Education

Understanding the distinction between an IEP and a 504 plan is critical for legal compliance and exam success.

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3. Adapted Physical Education (APE) & APENS Standards

Adapted Physical Education (APE) is physical education which has been adapted or modified for students with developmental or physical disabilities. It is not a separate discipline, but rather General Physical Education (GPE) individualized to meet unique motor needs.

APENS and Assessment Tools

• APENS (Adapted Physical Education National Standards): Defines 15 national standards establishing the professional competencies required of a Certified Adapted Physical Educator (CAPE).
• TGMD-3 (Test of Gross Motor Development - 3rd Edition): A standardized, norm-referenced assessment tool used to evaluate gross motor skill development in children aged 3 to 10 years across two subtests: Locomotor (run, gallop, hop, leap, horizontal jump, slide) and Ball Skills (striking, stationary dribble, catch, kick, overhand throw, underhand roll).
• Brockport Physical Fitness Test (BPFT): A criterion-referenced health-related fitness assessment battery specifically customized for youth with disabilities (e.g., visual impairments, spinal cord injuries, cerebral palsy, intellectual disabilities). Modifies standard FitnessGram protocols (e.g., using a 15-meter PACER, wheelchair ramp tests, or target muscle flexibility tests).

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4. The TREE Modification Model for Differentiated Instruction

When modifying physical education activities, teachers should use the systematic TREE framework to adapt tasks dynamically without eliminating the core movement challenge.

T ──► Teaching Style & Communication  (Visual schedules, concise cues, peer modeling)
R ──► Rules & Scoring                 (Allow extra bounces, modify boundary sizes, team scoring)
E ──► Equipment Modifications        (Larger/lighter balls, audible bells, lowered baskets)
E ──► Environment & Space Adaptations (Reduced noise, tactile lines, textured boundaries)

Applying TREE Components

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5. Continuum of Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)

IDEA requires that students with disabilities be educated with non-disabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate. The placement decision follows a continuum of LRE environments, defaulting to the least restrictive option:

1. Full Inclusion in General PE (GPE): Student participates in standard PE with no specialized support.
2. GPE with Accommodations/Modifications: Student participates in GPE using TREE adaptations, modified equipment, or differentiated tasks.
3. GPE with Direct APE Support or Paraeducator: Student remains in GPE accompanied by an APE specialist or one-on-one instructional aide.
4. Reverse Inclusion / Peer-Tutor PE: Non-disabled peers join a specialized physical education setting to partner with students with disabilities.
5. Separate / Self-Contained APE Class: Small-group, specialized physical education instruction dedicated exclusively to students with severe motor or sensory needs.
6. Special Facility / Residential Setting: Physical education provided in a non-traditional special education hospital or residential facility.

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6. Referral Procedures Under IDEA and Section 504

The ETS blueprint names referral procedures explicitly, and a physical educator is frequently the person who initiates one, because motor delays and participation difficulties surface in this class before they surface elsewhere.

The IDEA referral and evaluation sequence

1. Child Find. Districts have an affirmative obligation under IDEA to identify, locate, and evaluate all children with disabilities in their jurisdiction, including those who have not been referred.
2. Pre-referral intervention. Most districts first implement documented general-education interventions through the Multi-Tiered System of Supports and record the student's response. A physical educator's contribution here is documented motor performance data and the modifications already tried.
3. Referral. A parent, teacher, or other school professional submits a written referral. A physical educator may initiate a referral, and should include specific, dated observations of motor performance rather than conclusions.
4. Parental consent for evaluation. The district must provide prior written notice and obtain informed written parental consent before conducting an initial evaluation.
5. Comprehensive evaluation. A multidisciplinary team evaluates the student in all areas of suspected disability. When motor performance is a suspected area, the evaluation must include a motor assessment, typically conducted by an adapted physical education specialist using instruments such as the TGMD-3 or the Brockport Physical Fitness Test.
6. Eligibility determination. The team decides whether the student has a qualifying disability that adversely affects educational performance and requires specially designed instruction.
7. IEP development. If eligible, the team writes the IEP. Because IDEA names physical education as a direct service, the IEP must address physical education, and the physical educator or adapted physical education specialist should participate in writing that portion.
8. Placement in the least restrictive environment, with supplementary aids and services considered before a more separate setting.
9. Annual review of the IEP and reevaluation at least every three years unless the parent and district agree it is unnecessary.

The Section 504 sequence

Section 504 uses a parallel but lighter process: referral, notice to parents, evaluation drawing on existing information from multiple sources, a determination by a knowledgeable team of whether a physical or mental impairment substantially limits a major life activity, and a written plan of accommodations. It does not require specially designed instruction, and its procedural protections are less prescriptive than IDEA's -- but the resulting plan is equally binding on the teacher.

What the physical educator does and does not do

A physical educator who says nothing because they are unsure whether a difficulty rises to the level of a disability has made a decision the evaluation team is qualified to make and they are not.

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Common Praxis Exam Traps & Real-World Scenarios

• Trap 1: Assuming APE is a 'Related Service.' Under IDEA, physical education is defined as a direct, mandatory academic service, unlike physical therapy (PT) or occupational therapy (OT), which are defined as related services designed to support the child's access to education.
• Trap 2: Pulling Students from PE for Remediation. It is a legal violation of IDEA to pull a student out of mandatory physical education to receive speech therapy, math tutoring, or physical therapy.
• Trap 3: Misinterpreting 504 vs. IEP. If an exam scenario describes a student with severe exercise-induced asthma who requires access to an inhaler and frequent rest breaks, a Section 504 plan is appropriate. If the student has motor delays requiring modified instructional goals and specialized motor instruction, an IEP with APE is required.
• Trap: Waiting to refer. Document observations and initiate the referral; the evaluation team determines eligibility, not the teacher.
• Trap: Assuming an IEP need not address physical education. IDEA names physical education as a direct service, so the IEP must address it.