Exploring the effect of contact and inclusive sport on Physical Education in the attitudes toward intellectual disability of high school students

Programs to change attitudes towards disability have been used the practice of inclusive sport and contact with people with disabilities. Despite their presence in society, there are hardly any jobs in which contact with people with intellectual disabilities is used as a means to change attitudes toward disability. The aim of this study is to examine the effect of a Physical Education program using inclusive sport and contact with people with intellectual disabilities on the attitudes of secondary school students towards disability. Eighty-three (N = 83) Compulsory Secondary Education students from two centers in Castilla - La Mancha (15.18 +/- 0.89 years) were part of this study. The students' attitudes, before and after the intervention, were captured through the questionnaires "The Attitudes towards Inclusion of Students with Disabilities in Physical Education" (AISDPE) and the "Attitude Scale for Students with Disability in Physical Education" (EAADEF). The results show that the group that carried out an inclusive sport and a visit to the workplaces of people with intellectual disabilities improves the cognitive dimension (Pre-test 2.84 +/- 0.64; Post-test: 2.67 +/- 0.81) in one of the two questionnaires of attitudes toward Physical Education disability used. It seems that an intimate contact, sharing experiences and sports with people with disabilities may improve the attitudes towards the disability of the secondary school students.