High School Physical Educators’ Beliefs About Teaching Differently Abled Students in an Urban Public School District

The purpose of this study was to examine general physical education (GPE) teachers’ beliefs about teaching differently abled students in inclusive classes.The participants were 5 GPE teachers from a large urban school district. The research method was explanatory multiple-case study situated in planned behavior theory. Data were gathered using a demographic questionnaire, attitude survey, and interviews. Survey data were analyzed with descriptive statistics and revealed that the teachers’ judgments vary on inclusion and their level of acceptance in teaching differently abled students. The teachers agreed that more professional training was a need. Interview data were analyzed with constant comparative method.The emergent themes were: (a) teachers’ pedagogies troubled, (b) dependent self-efficacy, (c) paradoxes, (d) motives, and (e) concerns. Findings thus implied that urban school districts should regularly engage teachers in professional development focused on teaching differently abled students.