Abstract:

Traditional assessment models and pedagogies in physical education have often been focused on movement models based on skill and sport-based competencies. By definition, these forms of assessment are based on exclusionary principles that do not allow for individuals of various abilities to have opportunities for success in physical education. This research focuses on the journey of pre-service teachers (PSTs) in two Canadian university faculties of education, as they deconstruct traditional notions of what inclusive physical literacy can mean for adapted populations, and documents their processes to create, adapt and model new and innovative methods for inclusive and alternative assessment. This paper uses Marchione’s (2022) model of assessment and evaluation in Ontario Canada schools, which compares current government mandated models of assessment and evaluation, deconstructs them and redesigns them to suggest a more inclusive model based on empathy, critical consciousness, metacognition and educational pedagogy designed for student success. It focuses not on norm-referenced assessments, but focuses on criterion-based assessments that can be adapted to allow for multiple models of physical literacy (PL) and disabilities. Further to this, the role of students’ dialogue, ownership and participation in the design of assessment tools and learning outcomes is discussed. These potential components of Marchione’s (2022) model have not specifically been used for physical education, and this work aims to suggest that the place of educational pedagogies, empathy, critical consciousness and metacognition are critical for inclusive and alternative assessments in PE. Each of these terms is defined within a digital learning context, and the authors suggest that reasonable and effective feed forward assessment must make place for physical learners of all ages, body types and abilities. In a post-pandemic world, where screen time for young people is at an all-time high, this paper looks at the critical positionality of physical education as part of the UNESCO (2015) framework on health and wellbeing as a fundamental human right. In sum, the authors posit that more inclusive assessment models can increase the engagement and success of learners in PE across a broad spectrum of abilities and disabilities.

Keywords:

Physical Education, Disability, Assessment.