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The purpose of this scoping review was to examine how mixed methods research (MMR) has been applied in adapted physical activity (APA) research about children and adolescents age 5–18 years with a disability. Six electronic databases were searched to retrieve relevant studies published between 2003 and 2020. Sixty-four studies were identified and analyzed. The findings were organized into five categories of interest: publication information, study objectives, mixed methods research design, participants' information, and data integration. Challenges related to the design and publication of MMR in APA were uncovered, and suggestions for improvement are provided. This study adds to the knowledge of MMR design, and it provides an understanding of the underlying processes and methodological strategies that have guided this approach in APA research. This article will encourage APA researchers to engage in MMR while also aligning future studies with contemporary MMR literature and publication standards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Physical education (PE) curricula in many countries explicitly task teachers with the responsibility to support the health of their pupils. However, there are concerns that a prevailing 'healthism' discourse is influencing how PE curricula are enacted. Although we know something about how PE teachers understand and 'teach' health, little is known about the perspectives of student PE teachers. We carried out semi-structured interviews with PE student teachers from Canada and Scotland to explore how they conceptualised health and the body. Furthermore, we investigated how their understandings of health and the body influenced their perceptions of teaching 'health' in their respective PE contexts. Our post-structural analysis demonstrates how the students' Initial Teacher Education (ITE) contexts influenced their perceptions of where the responsibility lies for addressing the health of young people. These different perceptions have enabled and constrained practice in various ways. The Scottish students critically deconstructed dominant healthism and obesity discourses but this process did not result in the articulation of critical practice. The Canadian students were less likely to engage in critical inquiry but evidenced creativity and divergent thinking in relation to how they would integrate health outcomes in their teaching. We conclude by exploring the implications of these findings for ITE programs by advocating an "applied" approach to critical inquiry.

Background: Physical educators suggested that they are not well-informed about behaviors of children with disabilities, especially attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Children with ADHD represent a significant number of students in school systems worldwide who often experience difficulties in performing fundamental movement skills. Reasons for these challenging movement behaviors are not clearly understood. There were no significant effects of stimulant medication on performance of the "Test of Gross Motor Development-2" ("TGMD-2") for 22 children with ADHD. Six boys with ADHD possessed superficial content knowledge about physical activity (PA) participation. Poor movement skills may be related to a mismatch between content knowledge and specific skill performance, which can be problematic at individual skill levels. Purpose: To explore how children with ADHD regulate PA participation by listening to PA stories. Participants and setting: Ten children with ADHD participated in this study. They were identified by qualified child psychiatrists from an ADHD clinic at a major mental health institute in a large urban Canadian city. Research design: A concurrent mixed methods design explored the PA experiences of the children. The qualitative data were given a higher priority. Data collection: The quantitative research component was individualized assessments of fundamental movement skills with the TGMD-2 and "Movement Assessment Battery for Children-2". The qualitative research component included: (1) PA self-reporting where each child recorded daily experiences for a two week period and (2) concurrent scrapbook interviews that enhanced participant recall/reflection to generate rich discussions about individual PA experiences. Data analysis: Quantitative skill assessments provided movement-related descriptions of participants. Individual skill levels were labeled with normative test descriptors linked to each respective assessment instrument. These qualitized descriptors were mixed with interview data only after all movement skill assessments and scrapbook interviews were completed. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and a within group thematic analysis was conducted. Findings: Many of the children demonstrated movement skill problems on both tests but skill performance was worse on the TGMD-2. Three qualitative themes emerged. The participants with ADHD spoke about their PA experiences in many different individual physical activities (play theme) and various settings (context theme). All children expressed personal wishes to be included in PA with other children in the community. A range of perceived self-regulatory behaviors emerged for planning PA (organization theme). The findings suggest some of the children with ADHD chose and organized their own PA while other children performed PA that was immediately in front of them with minimal organization of their PA behaviors. Conclusions: Children with ADHD told PA stories that many children without disabilities would tell. However, many of the children with the disorder described experiences related to exclusion from PA. They also lacked conceptual understanding of the purpose and goals related to general participation in various PA. Physical education teacher interventions, leisure counseling and community-based participatory research projects in PA are among the recommendations discussed for children with ADHD.

Background: Research on coach development and knowledge acquisition has traditionally focused on those working at either university or Olympic levels. Despite the large body of research using these participants, there are relatively few empirical studies on the knowledge development of high school coaches, in particular, physical education teachers/coaches. This is unfortunate since it is equally important to examine aspects of high school coaches' knowledge and how these coaches acquired their knowledge given the impact a high school coach may have on young athletes' development and overall sport experience. Purpose: To investigate sources of knowledge acquisition of Canadian high school team sport coaches. Participants and setting: Six high school team sport coaches from the same school board, residing in a major urban Canadian city, participated in this study. Each participant was teaching full-time physical education and coaching at least two different sports and a minimum of two teams. Coaches represented a variety of team sports. Research design: A qualitative research design using a semi-structured open-ended interview format was employed in the current study. Key questions were based on Cote, Salmela, Trudel, Baria and Russell's Coaching Model from 1995 and related coaching science literature. Data collection: Two physical education consultants and a university physical education pedagogy Professor identified candidates for the current study. Participants were contacted by email or telephone, informed of the nature of the study and asked to participate. Following this, each participant was asked to complete a consent form in accordance with the university ethics policy, as well as a demographic questionnaire. The coaches were interviewed individually for a period of time varying from one to two hours at a mutually convenient location. Data analysis: The main objective of the data analysis was to create a system of emerging categories that adequately described the sources of knowledge acquisition of high school team sport coaches. Three categories emerged with an inductive analysis of the data. Findings: Results revealed that while each coach's journey was unique, their knowledge acquisition was similar in many ways. Initially, their formal education provided them with training in sport sciences and physical education pedagogy, as well as practical coaching experiences. Their knowledge base was further developed once they began working in high school, interacting with more experienced coaches, and acquiring additional information through coaching clinics, books, and the internet. Conclusions: Given that knowledge was acquired from a variety of sources, it can be concluded that high school coaches learn from a combination of formal training, informal learning opportunities, and practical experiences to prepare them to work in their domain. (Contains 1 table.)

Physical activity experiences of 12 age-matched boys with and without attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were explored by converging information from Test of Gross Motor Development-2 assessments and semistructured interviews. The knowledge-based approach and the inhibitory model of executive functions, a combined theoretical lens, enabled the description of similarities and differences in experiences that emerged during interviews. Skill assessments indicated boys with ADHD were not as proficient movers as their peers without ADHD. Thematic analysis revealed that boys with ADHD reported playing with friends, paid little attention to detail, possessed superficial knowledge about movement skills, and expressed many negative feelings about physical activity. Task-specific interventions and a wider range of mixed methods research are recommended for future research studies in ADHD. (Contains 2 tables.)

The purpose of this study was to compare the fundamental movement skills of 22 children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), from 6 to 12 years of age, to gender- and age-matched peers without ADHD and assess the effects of stimulant medication on the movement skill performance of the children with ADHD. Repeated measures analyses revealed significant skill differences between children with and without ADHD (p less than or equal to 0.001). Results from the stimulant medication trials indicated no significant effect of medication on the movement skill patterns of children with ADHD. It is concluded that children with ADHD may be at risk for developmental delays in movement skill performance. Potential factors underlying the movement skill difficulties are discussed, with suggestions for future research.

The article describes an early intervention approach to aquatics for preschool children with autism. The Aquatic Nursery program successfully taught both the children and their parents to become involved in swimming. Specific programming details are provided in relation to people with autism, and particular attention is paid to aquatic skill development, parental teaching, and choice of leisure opportunities. The article concludes that aquatics is an excellent form of physical activity that people with autism and their families can enjoy for a lifetime.

Critical pedagogy owes much of its emergence, development, and ongoing relevance to the work of Paulo Freire whose legacy remains relevant for a next generation of scholars who seek to explore issues of inclusion, oppression, social justice, and authentic expression. An interdisciplinary dialogue between critical pedagogy and adapted physical activity is timely, appropriate, and should focus on complex profiles of neurodiversity, mental illness, and mental health, with emphasis on pedagogic practices of practitioners in service delivery and teacher educators who prepare them for professional practice. A case-based scenario approach is used to present practitioner and teacher educator practices. Concrete examples are provided for analyzing and understanding deeper issues and challenges related to neurodiversity in a variety of embodied dimensions in educational and activity contexts. We work with Szostak's approach to interdisciplinary research and model an analysis strategy that integrates and applies the methodological features of interdisciplinarity, adapted physical activity, and critical pedagogy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A significant number of people are affected by mental illness. be it through diagnosis of family, friend, or colleague (Health Canada, 2002). For instance, a report on mental illness in [...]

Professional educators are significantly challenged by the behaviors of children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) (DuPaul & Stoner, 1994). While behavior management is one of the largest problems facing physical [...]

Physical activity experiences of 12 age-matched boys with and without attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were explored by converging information from Test of Gross Motor Development-2 assessments and semistructured interviews. The knowledge-based approach and the inhibitory model of executive functions, a combined theoretical lens, enabled the description of similarities and differences in experiences that emerged during interviews. Skill assessments indicated boys with ADHD were not as proficient movers as their peers without ADHD. Thematic analysis revealed that boys with ADHD reported playing with friends, paid little attention to detail, possessed superficial knowledge about movement skills, and expressed many negative feelings about physical activity. Task-specific interventions and a wider range of mixed methods research are recommended for future research studies in ADHD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to present a critical analysis of the research methods in adapted physical activity studies about children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The strengths and weaknesses of various research methods are discussed by (a) three main types of research questions, (b) identification and description of research participants, (c) reliability and validity of assessment instruments, (d) data collection procedures, and (e) quantitative and qualitative methods of data analysis. Strategies to improve research are embedded in each of the five main categories. It is concluded that substantial methodological inconsistencies exist in the current ADHD physical activity literature base. Future research would be strengthened by incorporating recommended suggestions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to present a comprehensive review of research on the movement performance and physical fitness of children with attentiondeficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and offer research recommendations. Movement behaviors of children with ADHD were described on the basis of 49 empirical studies published between 1949 and 2002. Major results indicated that (a) children with ADHD are at risk for movement skill difficulties, (b) children with ADHD are at risk for poor levels of physical fitness, (c) comorbidity may exist between ADHD and developmental coordination disorder (DCD), and (d) few interventions have focused on movement performance and physical fitness of children with ADHD. Numerous reference citations for seminal review articles on ADHD are provided so that potential researchers or program planners might enter the vast ADHD literature with some ease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to describe the fundamental gross motor skills and fitness conditions of children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Nineteen children, ages 7 to 12, participated. Gross motor performance was measured by the Test of Gross Motor Development (Ulrich, 1985). Fitness variables were measured by selected items from the Canada Fitness Survey (Fitness Canada, 1985), the CAHPER Fitness-Performance II Test (CAHPER, 1980), and the 20 m Shuttle Run Test (Leger, Lambert, Goulet, Rowan, & Dinelle, 1984). Percentile scores provided individual and group profiles of performance. It was concluded that fundamental gross motor performance and physical fitness of children with ADHD are substantially below average. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]