Japanese physical education teachers’ beliefs about teaching students with disabilities

The purpose of this study was to describe Japanese physical education (PE) teachers’ beliefs about teaching students with disabilities in integrated classes. Participants were five Japanese PE teachers (one women and four men). The research was descriptive and qualitative, using an interviewing method. Data were gathered in interviews, analysed and presented as descriptive narratives and themes. Themes that emerged from the data were: satisfactions, ambivalences and concerns; professional preparation inadequacies; and communication, collaboration and support. PE teacher education faculty must provide apposite training for teachers to more competently teach students with disabilities and better ensure that they have satisfying experiences doing so. The study brings to the literature information on Japanese PE teachers’ beliefs about integration and teaching students with disabilities. This is particularly important as teachers in Japan grapple with the current historic, societal and educational transition from segregated to integrated schools.