Andrew M. Colombo-Dougovito

University of North Texas | UNT · Department of Kinesiology, Health Promotion, and Recreation

Background Although a growing body of literature has explored the physical activity experiences from the perspective of children on the autism spectrum, the perspective of autistic adults remains largely unheard. Due to this absence of perspective, there exists limited knowledge of the appropriateness and generalizability of current models and theo...

Purpose: Educational research often provides insight into the potential best practices to use within the classroom setting. Yet, limited information is available on teachers’ perspectives toward research in the field of adapted physical education (APE). The current study examined adapted physical educators’ perceptions toward research. Method: Sixt...

The purpose of this study is to understand the common accommodations used during standardized motor assessment of children on the autism spectrum. This study was completed in three parts: (1) a narrative review of the literature; (2) an open-ended survey sent to the first authors of the identified articles; and (3) a descriptive analysis of respons...

A growing body of research has shown children on the autism spectrum are behind their peers developmentally in regard to their gross motor skill development. Given the increased risk for obesity and other health related co-occurring conditions associated with autism spectrum disorder, building foundational gross motor skills is vitally important so...

Over the past decade, there has been an increased prevalence of individuals diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and consequently an increase in studies about its symptoms and characteristics (Myers et al., 2018). Despite the increase in individuals with this diagnosis and the number of studies that we can find in the literature, often, wh...

As most physical education teacher education programs provide little preparatory coursework on disabilities, it is unsurprising preservice physical educators often struggle to effectively include students with disabilities. Given upwards of 95% of students with disabilities are taught in integrated physical education classes, it is imperative teach...

Background: Autistic adults engage in lower levels of physical activity (PA) than their nonautistic peers, and over 60% do not meet national guidelines for PA. In addition, autistic adults face myriad barriers to PA participation that can make accessing activities challenging. To support the inclusion of autistic adults in PA, this study sought to...

Researchers posit that physical activity (PA) settings may provide an increased opportunity for social interaction. However, little consensus exists regarding the construct of social skills. Moreover, little is known about what type or amount of PA is necessary for individuals on the autism spectrum to benefit from this increased interaction. Thus,...

Find out how different physical activities to help your autistic child improve motor skills, calm anxiety, and sharpen focus.

Diversity in human attributes provides for richness in how we engage and flourish as people and communities. This fact may not be apparent or as well appreciated for people with neurodiverse conditions such as those with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, and dyslexia. In this chapter, we define and characterize neurodiversity...

Interviews are a commonly utilized research method within most qualitative inquiries. This method can provide a great amount of insight into the thoughts, feelings, and opinions of an individual surrounding her or his experiences. Often parents are used as proxies to their children in cases where the child has a disability and is unable to effectiv...

In addition to the core characteristics of ASD, recent research has demonstrated that children on the autism spectrum develop motor skills differently, often delayed, compared with peers. Motor skill interventions can help improve motor skills, which in turn can increase the likelihood of participating in physical activity (PA) and potential to bui...

Objectives Families with a child on the autism spectrum face challenges to participating in physical activity in the community. Yet, little research has examined these families’ experiences and perspectives on such participation. Methods This phenomenological study used semistructured interviews to collect data from 13 families with a child on the...

Preservice physical education students typically receive one course devoted to adapted physical education (Piletic & Davis, 2010). Research has demonstrated this to be insufficient preparation for the successful inclusion of students with disabilities in physical education. Conversely, increasing preservice training in adapted physical education ha...

Preservice physical education students typically receive one course devoted to adapted physical education (Piletic & Davis, 2010). Research has demonstrated this to be insufficient preparation for the successful inclusion of students with disabilities in physical education. Conversely, increasing preservice training in adapted physical education ha...

Pre-service physical education students typically receive one course devoted to adapted physical education (Piletic & Davis, 2010). Research has demonstrated this to be insufficient preparation for the successful inclusion of students with disabilities in physical education. Conversely, increasing pre-service training in adapted physical education...

Research in physical education needs to become more multidisciplinary, better integrated with collaborative research in special education, and conducted on large scale. This chapter reviews the research related to motor development and physical fitness in relation to children and youth with intellectual disability, learning disability (LD), emotion...

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by deficits in social communication and pervasive repetitive behaviors (American Psychiatric Association [APA], 2013). Further, ASD is one of the fastest rising childhood developmental disorders, affecting 1 in 68 children (Christensen et al., 2016). In addition t...

Social communicative deficits and stereotyped or repetitive interests or behaviors are the defining features of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). A growing body of research suggests that gross motor deficits are also present in most children with ASD. This study sought to understand how pediatric ASD severity is related to motor skills and social ski...

Background: Gross motor movement is a vital part of the growing process and ultimately plays a role in a person’s ability to lead a physically active life. Researchers have analyzed the different ways in which individuals develop skills. At the heart of that discussion has been gender. Most recently, researchers have focused on the differences amon...

Dynamic systems theory (DST) outlines three constraints (i.e. individual, task, and environment) that influence the emergence of behavior. These constraints interact with one another to self-organize and create a spontaneous behavior. For many researchers studying motor development, this spontaneous behavior refers to the production of motor moveme...

Teaching object-control skills to students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can be difficult due to the unique challenges posed by the individual; however, it is necessary for the students' future success and ability to perform physical activities. Utilizing concepts from dynamic systems theory and Newell's constraint approach, object-control ta...

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) present an exceptional need for varied instruction within the physical education environment. Adapted physical educators need to be prepared to make a significant amount of choices in regards to adaptations and modifications given the situations they may encounter with their students. However, many pre-...

This article explores one approach to meeting the unique needs of students with disabilities using a systematic approach to decision-making called the achievement-based curriculum.

Purpose: This study aimed to examine the extent to which the quality physical education teaching (QPET) practices contributed to improving 4th- and 5th-grade students' manipulative skill competency. Methods: Participants were 9 elementary physical education (PE) teachers and their 4th- and 5th-grade students (n = 2709–3420). The students' skill com...

Numerous evidence-based practices have been implemented for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD); howev- er, many have demonstrated a weakness of empirically sup- ported studies. Additionally these strategies are limited to behavioral, communicative, and play skill intervention; little has been done in terms of developing motor skills. In t...

The purpose of this investigation was to analyze the possible differences of the physical fitness performance of elementary-aged students with and without attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Little research has been produced in the area of youth with ADHD and motor development; this research paper further investigates the effects of AD...