Adapting school physical activity and health surveys for children with disabilities

The physical activity (PA) and health behaviours among pupils in special education classes and schools (SECS) is largely understudied. The purpose of this study is to report the process of converting PA and health surveys that can be comparable to the general population. A series of studies were taken. 1. Usability of the survey in SECS, 2. Pilot study data collection, 3. Further testing with a simple version, 4. National data collection among pupils in SECS. Items from the Washington Group Child Functioning Module (CFM) were continuously developed. Data collected at each stage were used to guide the development of each sequential study. Feasibility of conducting data collection were based on time spent and ease of understanding the survey items. Visual analogue scales and simplified items were added. Almost half of the pupils (n=396/889) completed the simplified version and did so within a class period. Teachers reported positively about the administration of surveys. In national representative surveys, it is important to have clear instructions for administering surveys. Pupils in SECS may need assistance to understand the questions in the surveys and more testing is needed to investigate the effects it has on survey completion.