Adapted Physical Activity (APA) Network

Adapted Physical Activity (APA) earns its legal right, as being an important part of the pedagogical approach in the school subject of PE (Physical Education). APA is a practical approach – the key to getting all people with a functional disability to participate in sport or movement together with other people. This approach utilizes methods which make sport accommodating and accessible to everybody and focuses on possibilities rather than limitations. The methods are directed towards the interests and competences of the individual and are based on the individuals who are present at a given time. The activities are adapted by changing and adjusting the rules, environment, equipment and teaching style to give the individual the best possible conditions for participating. Joy and desire to participate is the driving force in all of the activities but APA can also be used as a means to achieving other benefits such as health and action competence without the joy and desire to participate being lost.

In 2011-2013, we, the Danish APA team, hosted a European COMMENIUS project with participation from similar schools as CDH from Holland and Sweden. Through this project, we found the need for a further cooperation between countries in the field of deafblindness and APA.

Since 2008 we, the Danish APA team, joined EUCAPA (European conference of APA) and personally built a worldwide network of practitioners, professors and other professionals working in the field of APA.  Since 2010 we have, in our oral, poster and video presentations put forward the importance of social interaction. At the conference in 2016 we were very pleased to see, that one of the focus point within the field of APA the next couple of years will be social interaction. Several professors were interested in our work and wanted to learn more about APA for deafblind. Unfortunately, there is a lack of participants of deafblind schools at these conferences. We have some contacts already in our network, but by being a formal international network within Deafblind International we hope to spread the good words, get collaboration between practitioners and universities, get new ideas, exchange knowledge and maybe even do study trips to meet fellow professionals in the field of APA and deafblindness . This is why we see the need for the APA network within DbI.

For 7 years we have been teaching in a APA class, at CDH, and experienced some great results, not only physiologically but also within communication and social interaction between students. Our APA class have students who are deafblind, CHARGE and students with hearing loss and further disabilities. In APA we are playing “Ballon badminton”, “Twin stick”, “Tandem cycling”, “Motorskillcourse”, “Dance” and “Airtrack” etc. The focus is that students are doing all activities together as a pair or a group and not just 1 student and 1 professional.  As a result, we have observed that not only in the APA class but also in school and their leisure time, the level of students interest.

CO-CHAIRS

Mr. Mads Kopperholdt

CENTER FOR DØVBLINDHED OG HØRETAB

T: +45 30271181 
Email: mads.kopperholdt@rn.dk

 

Mr. Anders M. Rundh

CENTER FOR DØVBLINDHED OG HØRETAB

T:  + 45 31160616 
Email: anmaru@rn.dk

 

VICE CHAIR

Miguel Martin Olio

Sailing Sense

T: +55(11) 99393 8585 
Email: miguelmartinolio@gmail.com

 

Others involved:

Mrs. Marijke Bolwerk, Kentalis, NL.,

Mr. Simon Allison, Sense, UK.,

Mrs. Lauren Lieberman, CAMPABILITIES, U.S.A.