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The field of adapted physical activity (APA) and other areas often associated with APA focused on physical activity for people with disabilities, such as adapted physical education (APE) and disability sports (DS), is often marginalized and misunderstood. Little attention has been given to subsets of the general population's familiarity of this field and related areas. The purpose of this study was to examine college students' awareness of APA terminology and related organizations. Undergraduate students from 2 U.S. universities (n = 995) completed a survey on their familiarity of APA terminology (APE, DS, and therapeutic recreation [TR]) and related organizations (Paralympics [PL], and Special Olympics [SO]). Students were most familiar with SO, DS, and PL. Familiarity with these terms and organizations, except for TR, were positively associated with being comfortable with people with disabilities (p < 0.01). Students who reported having a close connection to a person with a disability were significantly more familiar with DS and SO (p = 0.001). Students with personal connections to people with disabilities appeared to be more aware of APA-related professions and associations. As future leaders, college students can influence the direction of future public policies and resources; thus, because these findings suggests that college students lack the basic familiarity with many APA-related areas, this insinuates that these areas may suffer from a lack of support policies and resources needed to flourish. Further research is needed to fully understand the relationships college students have with people with disabilities and how these may have more awareness of APA-related professions and associations.

Improving the development of the social, emotional, and physical domains during early childhood impacts the overall trajectory of a child's well-being. However, researchers often address these independently, leaving a gap for a more integrated approach to promoting development. This study explores the effects of a dual-component intervention on changes in preschool-aged boys' and girls' gross motor and social-emotional skills. Preschoolers (N = 475; girls = 220 and boys = 255) ages 3-6 years completed the 9-month dual-component intervention and were randomized into control (n = 148) or intervention (n = 327) groups by classroom. Significant improvements were observed in social skills, locomotor, and total Test of Gross Motor Development-3. Additionally, boys and girls improved at the same rate in ball skills, locomotor, and total Test of Gross Motor Development-3. These results suggest that the dual-component intervention can improve preschoolers' social skills and motor skills with no differential effects.

Purpose: This study investigated differences in (a) completion of teaching methods courses and (b) participation in professional development opportunities between alternatively and traditionally certified physical educators. Method: The sample included 1,850 physical educators (mean age: 42.7 years, male: 61.7%, female: 38.3%) from the 2017 to 2018 National Teacher and Principal Survey. Prevalence estimates of physical educators who (a) completed undergraduate or graduate teaching methods courses during their education and training and (b) participated in professional development were calculated. Results: The results of binary logistic regressions reveal that alternatively certified physical educators were less likely to complete various teaching methods courses before entering the teaching profession. In addition, there were no differences in participation in professional development except in instructional strategies for students with disabilities. Conclusion: Considering unprepared teachers tend to leave the profession early, alternative certification programs need to provide substantial levels of learning opportunities, including teaching methods courses.

Physical activity participation is widely recognized as a critical component of health and development for children with and without disabilities. Emergent literature reflects a paradigm shift in the conceptualization of childhood physical activity as a multi-dimensional construct, encompassing aspects of physical performance and self-perceived engagement. However, ambiguity remains around how participation as a health construct is integrated into physical activity research. The primary objective of the present mini-review is to critically examine current conceptual and methodological approaches to examining physical activity participation among children with disabilities. We conducted a systematic review of contemporary literature (published between 2000 and 2016). 17 articles met inclusion criteria and their research approach was classified into guiding framework, definition of the key construct, and measurement used. The primary guiding framework was the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health. An explicit definition of physical activity participation was absent from all studies. Eight studies (47%) operationalized physical activity and participation as independent constructs. Measurements included traditional performance-based aspects of physical activity (frequency, duration, intensity), and alternative participation measures (subjective perception of involvement, inclusion or enjoyment). 64% of included articles were published in the past two years (2014-2016) indicating a rising interest in the topic of physical activity participation. Drawing from the broader discussion of participation in the literature we offer a working definition of physical activity participation as it pertains to active, health-associated behaviors. Further description of alternative approaches to framing and measuring physical activity participation are offered to support effective assessment of health status among disabled children.