The Long-Term Effect of a Paralympic Sports Class on Korean High School Students' Attitudes towards Peers with Disabilities and Perceptions of Their Human Rights

Purpose: Negative attitudes towards peers with disabilities can lead to undesirable behaviour and reduced social participation of students with disabilities. The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of a Paralympic sports class on the attitudes towards peers with disabilities and perceptions of human rights of Korean high school students without disabilities. Method: Participants were 168 freshmen high school students without disabilities. Participants were randomly divided into two groups. The intervention group participated in a Paralympic sports class and the control group in a general physical education class. The Attitude towards Peer with Disabilities Scale (APDS) and Human Rights Sensitivity Scale (HRSS) were measured three times -- pre-intervention, post-intervention, and after a 9-month follow-up period. Results: APDS and HRSS scores significantly increased following intervention and maintained after 12 months. No changes were observed in the control group. Conclusions: The attitudes of high school students towards peers with disabilities and their human rights sensitivity improved and this improvement was maintained for 9 month s after completing a Paralympic sports class. Such classes could provide benefits for the psychosocial development of high school students without disabilities.