The establishment in the public schools of educational procedures for children with physical defects

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to propose educational procedures, substantiated by modern educational principles, which can be incorporated into the school program to improve the condition of physically handicapped children. After defining "education" and "correction" (as related to common physical defects of US school children), the author's method included developing a set of 34 criteria, surveying 106 public school systems, and gathering expert opinions about the administration of existing "corrective" physical education programs, to determine the effectiveness of "corrective" physical education programs in correcting handicaps in school children. Major findings include: the school should conduct health examinations of school children before allowing them to participate in physical education; the correction of children's physical defects is the appropriate responsibility of parents and the function of the medical profession, not the schools; and that the professional education of physical education teachers should fit them not to correct physical handicaps, but to recognize and understand handicaps to make sure that children get appropriate medical evaluation, to educate for prevention by applying physiology and kinesiology to formulate appropriate exercises, to test the progress of children, and to include teaching life-long activities in which children with disabilities can participate.