Acta Univ. Palacki. Olomuc., Gymn. 2007 37(3): 21-26

Attitudes of students in sport education to the sport activity of blind people in Hungary and possible reasons for them

Péter Osváth, Katalin Kälbli, Gábor Ramocsa
Faculty of Physical Education and Sports Sciences, Semmelweis University, Budapest

The very low participation of blind people in sport is fundamentally caused by the inappropriate knowledge of experts on disabled - specific areas of sport. Sport coaches and 582 students learning to be PE teachers were asked about their knowledge and ideas of sport for individuals with disabilities, mainly for blind people. Research has proved that good intentions of PE teachers and coaches taking part in disabled sport are basically not missing, thus the main barrier is the lack of topics regarding sport for handicapped people in the curriculum of their studies. Janečka, Kudláček and Válková (2003) have emphasized the basic need of specially prepared PE teachers, mainly in the elementary schools. Personal experience and direct contact with blind athletes cannot be replaced by audiovisual methods of education. Blind people cannot be trained to be coaches by the nature of their disability, so blind sport must be developed through the active support and cooperation of sighted sport experts. Sport for the disabled has to be taught as a separate subject, or at least as a separate and stressed section of an already existing, regular subject, such as theory of training. Methodically, personal contact with blind people as well as practical sessions in the course of their education is essential and irreplaceable (Asjborn & Tonjum, 1986). Students should not be allowed to graduate without specific knowledge about sport for the handicapped, and about the possible ways for participation in sport for blind athletes. Such a many sided approach of education is the future and the modern way of teaching.

Keywords: Involvement of PE teachers in sport for the blind, coaching training for adapted sport, counter emotion against sport for the blind

Prepublished online: February 1, 2009; Published: June 1, 2007  Show citation

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Osváth, P., Kälbli, K., & Ramocsa, G. (2007). Attitudes of students in sport education to the sport activity of blind people in Hungary and possible reasons for them. Acta Universitatis Palackianae Olomucensis. Gymnica, 37(3), 21-26
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