MODULE IV

LEARNERS WITH DIFFICULTY

WALKING AND MOVING

Lesson 1 Types, Characteristics, and

Identification of Learners with
Difficulty Walking and Moving

Lesson 2 Principles and Strategies of

Teaching and Designing IEP for
Learners with Difficulty Walking
and Moving

Lesson 3 Trends and Issues in Teaching

Learners with Difficulty Walking
and Moving

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MODULE IV

LEARNERS WITH DIFFICULTY WALKING AND MOVING

 INTRODUCTION

This module discusses the characteristics of learners with difficulty

walking and moving in which appropriate IEP can be developed. Further it
presents trends and issues in teaching this type of learners.

OBJECTIVES

After studying the module, you should be able to:

1. identify learners with difficulty walking and moving,

2. design an individualized education plan (IEP) applying the principles and
strategies responsive to learners with difficulty walking and moving, and
3. analyze trends and issues in teaching learners with difficulty walking and
moving.

 DIRECTIONS/ MODULE ORGANIZER

There are three (3) lessons in the module. Read each lesson carefully
then answer the  learning activities (LA) to find out how much you have
benefited from it. Work on these exercises carefully and submit your output
to your instructor.
In case you encounter difficulty, discuss this with your instructor during
your online meeting. Good luck and have fun learning!

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Lesson 1
TYPES, CHARACTERISTICS, AND
 IDENTIFICATION LEARNERS
DIFFICULTY WALKING AND MOVING
WITH

This lesson describes the various types of conditions which result to

learners having difficulty walking and moving. It focuses on physical
disabilities, neurological disorders, and other health impairments. It covers
how these conditions affect learners, suggested accommodation and
classroom adaptations. Gross motor developmental milestones are also
discussed, which could aid functional screening for these condition. Lastly, a
checklist that can be used by teachers in identifying learners with difficulty
walking and moving is given, and formal ways in which these conditions are
screened and diagnosed are described.

Learners with Difficulty Walking and Moving

These include learners with physical disability, neuromotor

impairments, or other health impairments.
A. Physical disability
 It is a label given to a vast range of difficulties that have to do with
physical functioning.
 It is a continuum wherein one end includes children with minor
motor problems; and at the other end, are children with very little
control over their physical functioning. (Fox, 2003)
 It can be caused by congenital anomaly, diseases and impairments
from accidents
 Examples are clubfoot, impairments due to bone tuberculosis,
amputations, fractures etc.
B. Neuromotor impairments
 It involves the central nervous system, which affects one’s ability
to move, use, feel or control certain body parts (Heward, 2017)
 Examples are cerebral palsy and multiple sclerosis
C. Other health impairments
 These refer to conditions of having limited strength, vitality, or
alertness, which could limit one’s participation in education.
 Examples are asthma, chronic fatigue syndrome, diabetes, chronic
arthritis, etc.)

Causes of Walking and Moving Impairments and Disabilities

1. Neurological disorders such as epilepsy, cerebral palsy, or due to

brain infections, head injury, high fever, poor blood supply in the
brain, shaken baby syndrome etc. Seizures can be triggered by
fatigue, excitement, anger, surprise, hyperventilation, hormonal
changes or exposure to certain patterns of light, sound or touch.

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2. Asthma is a chronic lung disease. Symptoms include wheezing,

coughing and difficulty breathing. It can be triggered by allergens
such as pollen, food, smoke, physical activity or emotional stress.
3. Spinal Cord Problems
a. Spina Bifida refers to congenital malformations of the brain,
spinal cord or vertebrae. The vertebrae do not enclose the
spinal cord leaving a portion of the spinal cord and nerves
controlling muscles and sensation in the lower part of the body
unable to develop normally.

b. Spinal cord injuries include lesions due to penetrating injury,

stretching of the vertebral column, fracture of the vertebrae,
or compression of the spinal cord. These injuries are often
caused by accidents, falls, acts of violence, and sports.
4. Muscular Dystrophy is a group of inherited diseases marked by
progressive atrophy or muscle wasting. The symptoms include
muscle weakness, walking in unusual gait, protruding stomach and
hollow back and having calf muscles that appear unusually large
because of fatty tissues replacing the degenerating muscles.

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5. Other causes such as amputation, arthritis, scoliosis, hernia,

fibromyalgia, and polio myelitis.

Characteristics of Learners with Difficulty Walking and Moving

1. Has unique needs in terms of physical space or has difficulty using
chairs/tables in the classroom
2. Unable to hold a pen or write for extended period
3. Experiences fatigue, limited mobility, and challenges with daily
activities
4. Requires extra time to finish a motor activity
5. Expends much energy to complete daily tasks
6. May have difficulty in speech

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Identifying Learners with Difficulty Walking and Moving

A. Physical Skills Checklist for Teachers

The following is a tool that teachers can use to determine learners’
functional physical skills and understand their physical needs in the
classroom. This can help teachers to identify learners with difficulty
walking and moving as well as let them provide proper intervention to
these learners.

Table 1. Physical Skills Checklist for Teachers (Fox, 2003)

A. Mobility Tick one
Walks fluently
Can walk but not fluent
Difficulties with walking with reduced mobility
No independent walking
Uses wheelchair to help with mobility
B. Head Control
Normal head control
Difficulties – but can hold head up for extended periods of time
Difficulties – can hold head up for very short periods of time
No obvious head control
Uses adapted seating to help with head control
C. Sitting
No apparent problem with sitting on regular chair
Can sit unsupported but not secure or stable
Cannot be left sitting unless supported
Difficult to place or maintain in a sitting position even with
support
Uses adapted seating to help with positioning
D. Using hands
No apparent problems with using both hands together
Some difficulties using both hands together but can dress self
(age-appropriate)
Can pick up and hold pencil
Unable to reach and grasp
Uses hand switching
E. Speech
No problem with articulation
Some difficulties with understanding speech
Unable to understand speech
Uses adapted or argumentative equipment to aid communication
F. Observed undesirable At rest With a goal-directed
movements activity
None
Short and jerky
Slow and writhing
Tremor
Muscle spasms
G. Distribution of physical difficulties Yes No Uncertain
Are there noticeable differences between the
two sides of the body?

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(If yes, which side is more functional)

Are the arms more affected than the legs?
Summary: The learner has physical difficulties in the following areas
Sub-area Yes No Don’t know Equipment required Comments
Mobility
Head control
Sitting
Using Hands
Speech

B. Formal Screening and Diagnosis

This is done by a medical expert. While it is not the teacher who does the
diagnosis, it is important for them to be familiar with these tests and
results as they could be working with a multidisciplinary team in designing
the IEP and in helping the learner.

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Lesson 2

PRINCIPLES AND STRATEGIES OF

 TEACHING AND DESIGNING IEP FOR
LEARNERS WITH DIFFICULTY WALKING
AND MOVING
Learners with difficulty walking and moving have varied educational
needs and most of these needs relate to physical access to or lack of
technological aids, manipulation of equipment, classroom and school program
participation, limited work stations, proper seating accommodations and not
meeting class schedules due to time-consuming travel. These learners may
get affected through: a) course requirements not suitable to their abilities,
b) limited time to move between venues, c) tiredness from transporting to
places, d) inaccessible facilities in comfort rooms, d) limited pathway
space, e) inaccessible ramps or lack of suitable desks for writing, f)
frequent absences due to hospitalization, and g) fewer opportunities to
interact with classmates.
There is a range of inclusive teaching strategies that are useful in
teaching learners with difficulty walking and moving, but it is also important
to consider that these learners have varied needs and difficulties, since not
all have the same condition. It is therefore suggested that teachers perform
a confidential discussion with the learners and their parents to completely
cover their educational needs.

Services, Modifications, and Educational Approaches for

Learners with Difficulty Walking and Moving

A. Health Professional Services

1. Physical Therapists. These are licensed professionals that use
treatment techniques to help promote mobility, reduce pain,
restore function and prevent further disabilities of learners with
difficulty walking and moving. PTs motivate learners to be
independent as possible and suggest sitting positions and classroom
activities, exercises or programs that both learners with and
without disability can do.

2. Occupational Therapists. These professionals determine the

learners’ goals in life ad help them perform daily activities such as
self-help, employment, recreation, communication, and aspects of
daily living (e.g. taking a bath, hygiene and eating) to reach their
goals. They guide learners develop their motor skills through
activities (e.g. baking, typing on computer keyboards).

3. Others specialists, such as speech-language pathologists, adapted

physical educators recreation therapists, school nurses, prosthetics
designers, and guidance counselors.

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B. Environmental Modifications
1. Have classrooms located in more accessible building levels.
2. Relocate activities to more spacious areas.
3. In grouping activities, let the abled learners move to the location
of the learner with physical disability and make sure there is enough
space to collaborate.
4. Adjust desks, chairs and tables appropriate to the height of learners
that use wheel chairs. Desks should be available for left-handed
learners, with or without disability.
5. Provide adequate floor space for learners that use wheelchairs in
the front, on the side, or in the rear of the room so they can park
without blocking the flow of traffic.
6. Modify response requirements by allowing spoken instead of written
ones, or vice-versa
7. Provide a resource room where learners with physical disabilities
can go when needed during the school day to work with their school
requirements or with the members of their IEP.

C. Assistive Technology
 This includes both assistive devices and services that are used
to develop, increase and maintain mobility and daily
performance of learners with physical disabilities as exemplified
in the following.

1. For Mobility
a. Mouth stick. This is a device manipulated with mouth that
allows users to control point.

b. Head wand. This is a device similar to mouth stick, except that

the head manipulates it.

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c. Other devices include scooters, walkers, canes, crutches and

orthotic devices.

2. For Communication
a. Speech recognition software. This software creates text and
navigates online by voice commands, usually used by learners
with limited mobility.

b. Speech generating software. This is a stand-alone device or

software that is installed in tablets or phones, where users who
are not able to speak on their own can communicate to others.

D. Inclusive Classroom Approaches

1. Observe learners with physical disabilities in the classroom and ask
if any assistance is needed. Offer help if needed. But do not assume
that they always prefer to have others support.
2. Use accurate, appropriate and sensitive terminologies in the
classroom.
3. Raise awareness on helping eliminate barriers faced by learners
with physical disability.
4. When conversing, make eye contact and not focused looking at the
persons’ impairment.

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5. Make reasonable in-between breaks to these learners for travel

time consideration purposes.
6. Allow learners who have difficulties writing to record class lectures
or to have a note taker.
7. Involve learners with arm and dexterity problems in laboratory
classes by having them paired with abled learners who can carry
out procedures.

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Lesson 3

TRENDS AND ISSUES IN TEACHING

 LEARNERS WITH DIFFICULTY WALKING
AND MOVING

This lesson discusses the current trends and issues in teaching learners
with difficulty walking and moving. Among the topics presented include how
teacher’s beliefs toward inclusion of learners with physical disability are
important in the successful implementation of the inclusive education
program. It includes studies on teachers’ and parents’ beliefs, attitudes, and
values toward inclusion.

Teachers’ Beliefs, Attitudes and Values toward Inclusion of

Learners with Physical Disability

There are many factors that could shape teachers’ beliefs and
attitudes. These include their personal experiences, as well as the larger
environment of the school, community, and culture. The needs of children
with physical disabilities should be seen as a continuum, depending on their
needs. Those with less severed difficulties could be partially integrated and
included in mainstream schools.
The attitudes and beliefs of teachers play a very important role on
whether inclusion would be implemented successfully. In a study conducted
by Jerlinder, Danemark, and Gill (2010) on the insights of physical education
teacher’s general attitudes towards inclusion and inclusive practices in the
general school curriculum. Results revealed that in general, P.E. teachers are
very positive towards inclusion of persons with disability in their P.E. classes.
However, P.E. teachers who have actually taught learners with physical
disabilities were slightly more positive in their views. Among the identified
predictors of positive attitude towards inclusion are: 1) having adequate
training; 2) having general school support from the school management and
staff; and 3) demands on resources.

Parents’ Experience of Enabling Participation of their Children

with Physical Disability

A study by Piskur et. al., 2016 on the role of parents in terms of their
participation in various context, revealed that most of the time, parents are
disappointed with being misunderstood, dealing with complexity of the
system, hindrance of participation of their children by the physical and social
environment and with the lack of leisure activities of their children. These
results imply that inclusive education goes beyond school. Parents must be
encouraged to increase their involvement when it comes to inclusive
education of their children with disabilities.

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Promoting Positive Social Interactions between Children with or

without Physical Disabilities in School

Although inclusive education intends to integrate and promote social

interactions between children with and without disabilities, children with
disabilities may still feel socially isolated. In order to address that, Tavares
(2011) designed a program called “Kids are Kids” (KAK) intended to develop
positive impact on attitudes of children towards learners with physical
disability, thus promote social interaction. It is developed for Grades 1 to 8.
In the “Kids are Kids” program:

1. Target learner with physical disability is chosen via the input from the
parent/guardian, learners, and teacher.

2. The presentation starts with sharing of the classmates about what they
know about the learner with disability (e.g. what the learner is good
at). The presenters (e.g. education consultant) seek to discover
commonalities between the students and peer with disability.

3. Students are shown slides with statements such as “Children are similar
in some ways.” “All children want to have friends.” “Children with
disabilities can do all sorts of things.” The slides are discussed in class
while the classmates are encouraged to share their thoughts about
these statements. The goal is to make the class realize that they are
more similar with, than different from their classmates.

4. A video is shown highlighting children with disabilities interacting with

other children and engaging in different social and recreational
activities.

5. After watching the video, specific information about the child’s

disability is provided and classmates are encouraged to ask questions.
Other activities such as problem-solving and role playing on how they
might approach their classmate with disability are done.

Results suggest that the KAK program had a positive impact on the
attitudes of children toward their peers with disabilities, immediately
following the program. Where social skill building was provided to one target
child, attitude scores for that class remained elevated one month after the
program. Two of the 3 target children reported increased social inclusion one
month after the program.

Foundations of Special and Inclusive Education Module IV