Participation of students with visual impairments in physical education activities in Wenchi Methodist Senior High School, Ghana

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to find out the extent to which students with visual impairments participate in physical education activities in Wenchi Methodist Senior High School in the Brong Ahafo region of Ghana. Data were gathered from 60 students with visual impairments and 2 physical education tutors. One-on-one interview and a closeended questionnaire were used for the data collection. Data from the questionnaire were presented on Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 21.0 (IBM SPSS 21.0), and descriptive statistical method was used to calculate the frequency and percentages for each item-by-item analysis. The hypotheses were analyzed using the independent samples t-test. The study revealed that, students with visual impairments participated in physical education activities such as, gymnastics, ball games, athletics and physical fitness activities. Again, instruction, instructional materials and rules were adapted to suit students during physical education activities. The study further revealed that, students faced some challenges, including poor motor skills, lack of confidence, adapted materials and adapted physical environment. Again, teachers used strategies such as verbal description of words, demonstrations and peer tutoring to include students in physical education activities. Finally, human and material resources were available for students’ participation. The researcher recommends that students with visual impairments should be encouraged participate in intensive physical education activities, with adaptations made to the environment, and more opportunities provided to reduce challenges among students, where one-on-one teaching and group teaching are used as a strategies to include students and more resources provided for including students in physical education activities in the school.