ADAPTED SPORTS AND RECREATION PROFESSIONALS
A variety of fields provide training and expertise in adapted sports, recreation, and leisure. They include adapted physical education teachers, child life specialists, and therapeutic recreation specialists.
Physical and occupational therapists often incorporate sports and recreation into their treatment plans as well. However, their involvement remains primarily within a medical framework, and will not be discussed here.Adapted Physical Education (APE) developed in response to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, which states that children with disabling conditions have the right to free, appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment. Included in the law is “instruction in physical education,” which must be adapted and provided in accordance with the Individualized Education Program (IEP). APE teachers receive training in identification of children with special needs, assessment of needs, curriculum theory
and development, instructional design, and planning, as well as direct teaching (48,49). The APE National Standards (50) were developed to outline and certify minimum competency for the field. The standards have been adopted by only 14 states thus far. APE teachers provide some of the earliest exposure to sports and recreation for children with special needs, and introduce the skills and equipment needed for future participation.
Therapeutic recreation (TR) has its roots in recreation and leisure. It provides recreation services to people with illness or disabling conditions. Stated in the American Therapeutic Recreation Association Code of Ethics, the primary purposes of treatment services are “to improve functioning and independence as well as reduce or eliminate the effects of illness or disability” (51). Clinical interventions used by TR specialists run the gamut, from art, music, dance, and aquatic therapies to animal, poetry, humor, and play therapy.
They may include yoga, tai chi chuan, aerobic activity, and adventure training in their interventions. While some training in pediatrics is standard in a TR training program, those who have minored in child life or who have done internships in pediatric settings are best suited for community program development. TR specialists are often involved in community-based sports for the DA, serving as referral sources, consultants, and support staff.Child life is quite different from TR. Its roots are in child development and in the study of the impact of hospitalization on children. Its focus remains primarily within the medical/hospital model, utilizing health care play and teaching in the management of pain and anxiety and in support. Leisure and recreation activities are some of the tools utilized by child life specialists. Unlike TR specialists, child life workers focus exclusively on the needs and interventions of children and adolescents. There is often overlap in the training programs of child life and TR specialists. The role of the child life specialist does not typically extend to community sports and recreation programs.