Sport, Coaching and Intellectual Disability

281 Pages·2014·2.122 MB·English

by  David Hassan, Sandra Dowling, Roy McConkey

Sport, Coaching and
Intellectual Disability
There are more opportunities than ever before for young people with disabilities to
participate in sport and adapted physical education. For example, there are more
than 3.7 million athletes worldwide aligned to the Special Olympics organisation,
with national associations active in more than 200 countries worldwide. Despite
this rapid growth, all too often coaches and teachers lack adequate knowledge of
the particular challenges faced by people with intellectual disabilities. The prin-
cipal aim of this book is to improve the understanding and professional skills of
coaches, teachers, practitioners and researchers, to promote awareness of success-
ful programmes addressing the needs of such young people, and to challenge the
prevailing myths and stereotypes surrounding their abilities.
With contributions from leading researchers and practitioners around the world,
this book is the first to explore in depth the topic of sport and intellectual disability
from a coaching perspective. Including both theoretical discussion and empirical
case studies, the book covers a full range of contemporary issues and themes, includ-
ing training and coaching, family support, perceptions of disability, athlete
motivation, positive sport experiences, motor development programmes, and social
and cultural aspects of disability. Sport and Intellectual Disability is important reading
for any student, researcher, coach, teacher, manager or policy maker with an interest
in disability sport, physical education, coaching or mainstream disability studies.
David Hassan is Chair of Sport Policy and Management at the University of Ulster
and Co-Director of the Regional Research Collaborating Centre for Special
Olympics Europe Eurasia. He has published 11 books and over 70 peer-reviewed
journal articles and book chapters.
Sandra Dowling is a Social Anthropologist who has been working in research in
the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities for the past 15 years. She
currently holds the post of Research Fellow at Queen’s University Belfast and an
Honorary Fellowship at the University of Ulster, Northern Ireland.
Roy McConkey is Emeritus Professor of Developmental Disabilities at the University
of Ulster, Northern Ireland and visiting Professor at the University of Cape Town,
University of Sydney and Trinity College, Dublin. A psychologist by training, he has
previously held posts in England, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland.
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Sport, Coaching and
Intellectual Disability
Edited by David Hassan,
Sandra Dowling and
Roy McConkey
First published in 2014
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2014 selection and editorial material, David Hassan, Sandra Dowling and
Roy McConkey, individual chapters, the contributors.
The right of David Hassan, Sandra Dowling and Roy McConkey to be
identified as authors of the editorial material, and of the individual authors
as authors of their contributions, has been asserted by them in accordance
with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in
any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing
from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or
registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation
without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Sport, coaching, and intellectual disability / edited by David Hassan,
Sandra Dowling, and Roy McConkey.
pages cm
1. Sports for people with mental disabilities--Coaching. 2. Sports for
children with mental disabilities--Coaching. I. Hassan, David, editor of
compilation. II. Dowling, Sandra, editor of compilation. III. McConkey,
Roy, editor of compilation.
GV709.4.S76 2014
796.087--dc23
2013050053
ISBN: 978-0-415-73577-3 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-81872-6 (ebk)
Typeset in Baskerville
by GreenGate Publishing Services, Tonbridge, Kent
Contents
List of illustrations vii
Contributors x
1 Understanding sport and intellectual disability:
an introduction 1
DAVID HASSAN, ROY MCCONKEY AND SANDRA DOWLING
SECTION 1
Foundations 11
2 Changing perspectives on intellectual disability
through sport 13
ROY MCCONKEY
3 Sport and intellectual disability: benefits, barriers
and bridges 34
SANDRA DOWLING
4 Creating a positive experience for athletes with
intellectual disabilities 52
DANY J. MACDONALD AND KATIE BECK
5 Reflections on coaching athletes with disabilities 69
DAVID HASSAN AND RAY LYNCH
SECTION 2
Developments 85
6 Teaching and coaching young people with intellectual
disabilities: a challenge for mainstream specialists 89
AURA BOTA AND SILVIA TEODORESCU
vi Contents
7 Special Olympics athletes’ perspectives on their motivation
to participate in sports 106
YESHAYAHU HUTZLER AND MALI OZ
8 Athletes with intellectual disabilities, physical disabilities
and associated problems: health promotion and
enhancement strategies 121
H. SERAP INAL, FERYAL SUBASI AND ELA TARAKCI
9 The role of family support in enhancing sport
activities for children with intellectual disabilities 138
MACIEJ WILSKI AND ANNA NADOLSKA
SECTION 3
Examples 159
10 Motor activity training for young people with
severe intellectual disabilities 163
MICHAIL NIKOPOULOS AND EMMANOUIL SKORDILIS
11 Special Olympics Unified Sports® Football:
empowering girls and women on and off the pitch 180
SABINE MENKE AND MARTHA JO BRAYCICH
12 Motor learning and exercise adaptations for athletes
with intellectual disabilities 195
FADILJ EMINOVIC
13 Issues, effects and curriculum design in dance pedagogy
with and for young people with intellectual disabilities 210
DANIELLE R. TAYLOR
14 A detailed consideration of the effectiveness of the
“Maximum Effort Rule” in the Special Olympics 235
HANA VÁLKOVÁ
SECTION 4
Conclusion 249
15 Sport as a vehicle for change in the lives
of people with intellectual disabilities 251
SANDRA DOWLING, ROY MCCONKEY AND DAVID HASSAN
Index 259
Illustrations
Figures
1.1 Examples of developmental disabilities 5
2.1 The percentage of respondents who agreed that people
with intellectual disability could play on teams 20
2.2 The percentage of pupils who had contact with a peer
who had an intellectual disability 21
2.3 The factors in sport that transform attitudes 27
6.1 Teaching and coaching as a system 92
6.2 Effort intensity dynamics in aerobic gym lesson 97
9.1 Relationship between the level of acceptance,
requirements and child’s development opportunities 144
9.2 Stages of establishing a partnership with parents 150
10.1 Levels of assistance 171
Tables
6.1 General instructional model in gymnastics 93
6.2 Working-out means: functional strain correlation 98
7.1 Attributes and counts of meaning units in participants
with and without intellectual disability 111
10.1 Sport events for lower ability athletes and the
corresponding MATP sport skills (taken from
Special Olympics MATP official coaching guide) 173
11.1 Participation numbers 2010 project ‘Special Olympics
Unified Football: empowering girls and women on and
off the pitch’ 191
13.1 Lesson outlines 217
13.2 Progression of proposed music scheme 219
13.3 Student composition dance phrases 219
13.4 Johnny Cash – assessments 219
13.5 Michael Jackson dance framework 220
13.6 Assessment questions for teachers and peers 222
viii Illustrations
13.7 P rogression of proposed music scheme for Michael Jackson
“Beat It” 222
14.1 Survey of the most frequent A and B levels of athletics events 238
14.2 Survey of participants’ characteristics 239
14.3 Survey of accepted and non-conformed 15 percent
differences in “SO – Honest Effort Rule” 240
14.4 Survey of participants’ characteristics 242
14.5 Survey of MER acceptance related to age categories 243
14.6 Survey of MER acceptance related to type of event and
A – B event level 244
Photos
1.1 Medallists at the World Summer Special Olympic Games
in Athens in 2011 3
S1.1 Working closely with athletes of all abilities is central
to the practice of coaches engaged with young people who
have an intellectual disability 11
S1.2 Engagement in sport results in physical as well as personal gains 12
2.1 Challenging negative stereotypes 24
3.1 Sport keeps people healthy 36
3.2 Adapting bocce for athletes with physical disabilities 45
4.1 Coaches play a central role in all sports 59
4.2 Young athletes with volunteers in Active Start Program 61
5.1 The success of Special Olympics is built on their
volunteer coaches 70
5.2 A football coach keeping a close eye on his team’s progress 75
S2.1 A young basketball team developing their skills through
listening closely to the instructions of their coach 85
S2.2 Gymnastics provides a diversity of experiences 86
8.1 Play and recreational activity among children with ID 124
S3.1 Putting training into practice, these footballers
demonstrate their clever footwork 159
S3.2 The opportunity to engage in Unified Sports has proven
hugely beneficial for some young athletes with an
intellectual disability 162
10.1 The MATP, promoted by Special Olympics, allows young
people with profound intellectual or developmental difficulties
to partake in organized sport in an enjoyable and fulfilling way 165
10.2 The MATP initiative places particular demands upon coaches,
who display a range of attributes beyond their sporting
knowledge, to ensure the athlete’s experience is an
enjoyable one 167
Illustrations ix
11.1 Special Olympics Hungary female players display the
project banner at a professional match in Budapest
that was televised 188
11.2 Special Olympics Serbia female players display the
project banner during a kick-off event in Belgrade 189
12.1 Young Special Olympic athletes in Serbia engaged in a
relay exercise designed to develop speed, agility,
and motor control 204
12.2 The development of complex motor skills, such as those
associated with basketball, can require additional coaching
input for children with intellectual disabilities 207
13.1 The instructor gives the students initial instruction on
the dance program 215
13.2 Developing group identity through working together is
an important consequence of the dance curriculum 225
13.3 Developing confidence and fitness is a key aspect of
promoting dance 230
14.1 A competitor preparing to take part in the standing
long jump event for women at the Czech Republic
Special Olympics national tournament in 2009 239
14.2 Action from the 200m final for men at the
Czech Republic Special Olympics national tournament
in 2009 245
S15.1 The coach is central to athlete development 249
15.1 Medal winners at the 2009 Special Olympics GB
Summer Games with their coaches 258