This chapter has detailed the social interactions which took place during PE lessons in this special school for a group of pupils with the label BESD. The provision of the label BESD indicates that the pupils’ behaviour was different to that observed in ‘normal’ pupils and in need of fixing (Rouse and Sharby, 2011). This need, within the medical model of disability, becomes the defining characteristic of the pupil with disabilities, and shapes the beliefs that individuals who are typically functioning have toward them (Fitzgerald, 2006). Friends and
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peers played an important role, but the PE teacher was central to social interactions within the PE lessons. Research has extensively explored the attitudes of PE teachers towards teaching pupils with disabilities (Combs, Elliott and Whipple, 2010; Qi and Ha, 2012), with teachers demonstrating both positive and negative attitudes towards teaching such children within their PE lessons.
A further aspect of the medical model is that of labelling, where diagnostic terminology is used to label individual pupils with disabilities, as in the label BESD. This label then becomes the ‘language of choice’ (Grenier, 2007) for the understanding of behavioural difference and often leads to teachers building performance expectations based on this label.
In the research school the attitude of the PE teacher towards the group of pupils labelled BESD was one of control, perhaps reflecting that the pupils had the label BESD and, according to the medical model of disability, were therefore in need of fixing (Bingham, Clarke, Michielsens and Van De Meer, 2013). In this case the ‘fixing’ technique was to keep a tight disciplinary control of the group and to provide limited opportunities for the pupils to demonstrate the teacher- anticipated poor behaviour. Grenier (2007) wrote that, within the special education system, it had been appropriate to ‘authorise the management and control of those who in one way or another, trouble the social order’ (p. 301). Grenier further stated that some would argue that the purpose of special education was the management and control of difference as a
mechanism for fixing the pupil (Grenier, 2007, p.301). This fixing is thought by some to be the best path towards independence and those that do not want to be fixed are ‘considered non- compliant or unmotivated‘ (Rouse and Sharby, 2011). Palmer and Harley (2012) noted that fixing is more likely to occur within special education classrooms.
A failure of the PE teacher’s teaching method of keeping tight control was that the needs of the individual pupils were subservient to the need to keep control. In this situation individual pupil needs not being met often produced feelings within some pupils that PE was not for them; they became bored, disillusioned and often exhibited poor behaviour. It was not only within PE lessons that pupils perceived there to be strong discipline since they reported that
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they felt the ethos within the school was one of control. As previously noted the PE teacher was also responsible for whole-school discipline hence providing a similar attitude towards the control and fixing of these pupils labelled BESD. This indicated that in relation to pupils with the label BESD the school subscribed to the medical model of disability.
Summary
This chapter has examined the findings from the research relating to the pupils and their experiences and perceptions of their social interactions with their PE teacher, their school and their peers. It forms part of one of the research sub-questions: ‘How do peer relationships and pupil-staff relationships affect PE lessons?’
The chapter began by exploring pupils’ experiences of their PE teacher and took account of the possible influence that the PE teacher having the dual role being their PE teacher and also being in charge of overseeing discipline throughout the school might have on the pupils’ perceptions of PE. The pupils largely found the teacher to be aggressive and
disciplinarian; this had the effect that one at least of the pupils thought that all PE teachers were this way. Pupils reported that they found the teaching style to be authoritarian and unhelpful.
Pupils reported social interactions with their PE teacher as mostly negative with few positive relationships being noted of the kind which have been reported in other research findings. The teacher’s perceived authoritarian teaching style coupled with his
responsibility for school discipline led to reports by the pupils of the fear of possible reprisals if he were to find out what they had discussed as part of the research process. Only Pupil A described having friendly relationships with the PE teacher.
The pervading authoritarian discipline ethos within the school was reflected in PE lessons, with all pupils initially being very careful about what they said about their teachers
especially their PE teacher for fear of reprisal. The feeling that adults within the school were in charge with little opportunity given for the pupils to express themselves was
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evident from the pupils’ views. Pupils broadly said that the teachers told them what to do and the pupils did it, often with some feelings of negativity as evidenced in the pupils’ reports of their PE lessons.
The pupils generally had good relationships with their peers. They had mostly all been together in the same small class for the whole of their secondary education. There were examples of the pupils gaining enjoyment from working in groups or teams with their friends. There were also reported examples of pupils not wanting to work or be in the same group as pupils who they felt were not their friends or pupils who did not share the same levels of physical skill. There were fears from pupils with weaker physical skills that they would be negatively targeted by their more skilled peers, thus damaging their already-fragile confidence levels. Whilst working with like-minded friends/peers was acceptable in small groups, the introduction of competition and the process of selection of teams changed this dynamic which was a cause for concern for some pupils. The selection of teams to play games was synonymous in the eyes of the pupils with having to select or be selected in a team that would be successful and win. For some of the
research participants, this often led to a situation in which they found it difficult not to be in the winning team. The importance of the perceptions of their peers was evident with the least able pupils or those who were felt by their peers as not usually making a positive contribution to lessons feeling left out and rejected.
In some of the reported lesson activities social interaction took on a different role in that it became a method to maintain a social position through acting in a manner which brought peer approval.
The overall feeling was that for most of the research participants PE was not an enjoyable, meaningful experience and, for these pupils, it was just another subject in a school curriculum in which they were able to make little, if any, contribution.
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