Learners will be introduced the operating definition of Adapted/Adaptive Physical Education (AdpPE in short) and the difference between the two terms ‘adapted’ and ‘adaptive’. This program will take learners on a journey through history relevant to the development of AdpPE and how it has evolved through time. In addition, learners will be introduced to the guiding principles and practice of AdpPE.

Learners are introduced to the four different classification systems of students with disabilities (also known as exceptional children). The first classification system was introduced by Dunn (1963) and it covers 12 types: educable mentally retarded, trainable mentally retarded, gifted mentally retarded, emotionally disturbed, socially maladjusted, speech impaired, hard-of-hearing, deaf, partially seeing, blind, crippled, and chronically ill. 

The second classification system introduced by Cruickshank (1971) covers the following: physically disabled, speech defect, impaired vision, orthopedic impairments, auditory impairments, mental retardation, and emotionally disturbed. The third classification system introduced by Kirk (1972) covers communication disorders, mental deviations, sensory handicaps, neurologic & orthopedic impairments, and behavior disorders. The fourth classification system is based on the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 1997 (IDEA 1997) and Individual with Disabilities Education Improvement Act 2004 (IDEIA 2004). With a better understanding of the different disabilities or impairments, participants are introduced to the  International  Classification  of  Functioning,  Disability  and  Health  (ICF),  which is a  classification  of  the  health  components  of  functioning  and  disability,  approved  by all 191 World Health Organization  (WHO)  member  states  on  May  22,  2001,  during  the 54th World Health Assembly. The WHO’s initial classification for the effects of diseases, the International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities, and Handicaps (ICIDH), was created in 1980.