




































                                                               Global Journal of Education and Allied Research| ISSN: 2837-3707   

                                                                                                                Volume. 6, Number11; November-2021  

  https://zapjournals.com/Journals/index.php/gjear  Pg | 12  

  

THE EDUCATIONAL VALUE OF PHYSICAL MOVEMENT FOR 

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES 

 
1Dr. Alessandra Maria Giordano and 2Prof. Lorenzo Giuseppe De Santis 

1Department of Educational Sciences, Psychology and Communication, University of Bari Aldo Moro, 

Bari, Italy 
2Department of Humanistic Studies, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Bari, Italy 

 

 
Keywords:     

Teaching, Pedagogy, 

Inclusion  

  

  

Abstract   

The purpose of this research work is to highlight the contribution that 

motor activity can provide to people with disabilities in the school 

context, which, due to erroneous points of view still present today, 

could negatively influence the development of aspects social, relational 

and educational of the person.  

The paper aims to highlight the educational importance of motor 

activity for people with disabilities in the educational context of the 

school, and to demonstrate that it can and must be understood as an 

opportunity to promote learning and the complete development of the 

person. 

 
  

Introduction  

Motor activity can be defined as the maximum 

expression of the need for movement as a 

primary human need.  

Practicing physical activity means being able to 

improve one's physical abilities, but also and 

above all to enhance one's cognitive and mental 

abilities without neglecting the socio-relational 

component which is among the most important 

for people with disabilities. Even if in Italy it is 

not yet valued as the movement deserves, it has 

an educational value that is now recognized at an 

international level, both when talking about 

people with and without disabilities, and it is for 

this reason that it must take on a primary role 

importance in the school context, as it is able to 

promote learning, the development of higher 

order cognitive skills and finally social skills 

which are those most requested and appreciated 

both in the social and working context.  

1. Disability and movement  

“All human beings are born free and equal in 

dignity and rights”, this is what is enshrined in 

article one of the Universal Declaration on 

Human Rights, and which shows that disabled 

people also have the same fundamental rights as 

other citizens. With the Madrid Declaration of 

2003, equal opportunities between able-bodied 

and disabled people are claimed, affecting 

various aspects: social, work, school and 

professional education, training in new 

technologies, social and health services, sports 

and leisure[1]. For this to happen it is necessary 

that everyone, starting from the individual 

citizen and then reaching the community as a 

whole, takes action to enhance and valorise 

 



                                                               Global Journal of Education and Allied Research| ISSN: 2837-3707   

                                                                                                                Volume. 6, Number11; November-2021  

  https://zapjournals.com/Journals/index.php/gjear  Pg | 13  

  

diversity, just as is established by Article 3 of the 

Italian Constitution: "All citizens have equal 

social dignity and they are equal before the law, 

without distinction of sex, race, language, 

religion, political opinions, personal and social 

conditions." The task of the individual person, up 

to the State, is to be able to eliminate all possible 

obstacles, both from a social and economic point 

of view, which could affect the freedom and 

equality of citizens, thus negatively influencing 

the overall development of the human person 

and consequently the participation of all in the 

political, economic and social organization of the 

country [2].  

Article 1 of the Framework Law number 104/92 

states that:  

 there must be full respect for human 

dignity and the rights of freedom and autonomy 

of the person with a disability and full 

integration/inclusion in the family, school, work 

and society must be promoted;  

 conditions that are considered disabling 

and that can impede the development of the 

human person must be prevented and/or 

removed, compromising the achievement of the 

maximum possible autonomy and the 

participation of the disabled person in the life of 

the community;  

 interventions must be prepared aimed at 

overcoming states of marginalization and social 

exclusion of the disabled person.  

These and many other points have led, 

nowadays, to a vision that gives great importance 

to the quality of life of the person suffering from 

disability; this means having great consideration 

of socio-relational factors, placing them at the 

center of the entire system, which inevitably 

cannot underestimate free time which is an 

important indicator of quality [3]. The feeling of 

well-being is an important indicator of the level 

of quality of life, even more so for people with 

disabilities, as it is precisely by exploiting free 

time (for example practicing any physical 

activity) that it is possible to eliminate the sense 

of impotence in favor of the sense of gratification 
[4]. Being able to make the most of the free time 

factor, for people with disabilities, means being 

able to benefit from everything that is offered by 

the place where you live, fully benefiting from the 

citizen rights that everyone enjoys. Often when 

we talk about activities that can be carried out 

during free time, we think of any form of physical 

activity capable of including all "types" of people, 

from young to old, whether male or female, and 

above all disabled or otherwise.  

Sporting activity can be defined as the set of all 

those activities, mental and physical, aimed at 

improving and maintaining the psychophysical 

system of the person, and entertaining those who 

practice it. Games, physical activity and 

recreational activities, even if their potential has 

not yet been exploited to the full, offer the 

possibility of starting to practice sports, also 

understood as a phase of affirmation of personal 

autonomy and the gratification that inevitably 

generates positive effects on self-esteem [5].  

Promoting motor activity for people with 

disabilities means recognizing the social, 

educational and training value inherent in it, 

since in addition to promoting cognitive 

development, the motor experience becomes a 

reason for emancipation and growth enhanced 

by constructive comparison with others, the 

perception of their own efficiency [6].  

The practice of physical activity must be 

understood as a means with an educational aim 

whose effectiveness is directly proportional to 

the playful aspect. Doing physical activity means 

not only trying to improve the physical 

component, but certainly increasing the 

cognitive aspect necessary for the motor learning 

phase, the axis of socialization that is linked to 



                                                               Global Journal of Education and Allied Research| ISSN: 2837-3707   

                                                                                                                Volume. 6, Number11; November-2021  

  https://zapjournals.com/Journals/index.php/gjear  Pg | 14  

  

the sporting world, and finally the improvement 

of self-esteem [7]; therefore, from a disability 

perspective, the essential role of physical activity 

is evident as, thanks to it, it is possible to enhance 

the disabled person.  

Motor practice stimulates and enhances the 

abilities of the person suffering from disability, 

encouraging social interaction, in order to create 

links with the outside world in order to allow the 

construction and enrichment of one's personality 

[8]. Furthermore, we must not forget the 

importance of discussion and the emotions that 

derive from it, which allow and encourage the 

growth not only of the disabled person but of the 

entire group.  

It is thanks to sports practice that the disabled 

person receives benefits from a physical point of 

view in order to avoid the appearance of 

pathologies such as obesity, while from a 

psychological point of view, the social aspect 

must not be neglected as it is possible to avoid a 

possible social isolation[9].  What has been said is 

made feasible by the fact that sporting activity 

"forces" the disabled person to interact with the 

external environment, avoiding the onset of 

negative aspects such as motor regression or 

even attenuated or dulled curiosity. The practice 

of any form of motor activity improves the ability 

to process information, improves society's 

attitudes towards the person suffering from 

disability and vice versa [10].  Therefore, it can be 

defined as a moment of learning and personal 

knowledge due to the multiple external stimuli 

that favor knowledge and learning.  

2. Pedagogy, disability and school  

Disability should not be considered a permanent 

factor as it depends on the external environment, 

so it would be possible to make it disappear 

completely or almost. To establish how much a 

person affected by a disability is influenced by it, 

indicators have been established (the same ones 

used for able-bodied people) capable of 

evaluating the quality of life[11]. To evaluate the 

well-being of a person's life it is important to 

analyze aspects such as health, self-efficacy, 

sense of trust, belonging and degree of self-

esteem. When it comes to well-being, the 

fundamental dimensions to analyze are 

adaptation and social support, furthermore it is 

possible to subject variables such as the level of 

affection (both positive and negative) and the 

overall judgment on the quality of life to an 

accurate evaluation. Social relationships have a 

great influence on subjective well-being. 

Belonging to a group, and in an even broader 

vision, to a community, turns out to be 

fundamental for the well-being of a disabled 

person, so also the quality of social relationships, 

which can be defined as the interaction between 

the subject and the context, are of fundamental 

importance for it to be fully included in any 

context.  

“Man is a social animal”, this is what was stated 

by Aristotle, and it means that any person needs 

to relate to all the actors in the surrounding 

world. This means stating that everyone needs to 

feel loved, cared for and have any need satisfied, 

be it physical or emotional. The above establishes 

that social and subjective well-being must be 

enhanced to encourage young people to adopt 

correct and healthy lifestyles in order to promote 

the ability to deal with the possible onset of 

problematic situations[12]. Furthermore, 

increasing social well-being allows us to promote 

attitudes of social interaction and social 

acceptance. It is important to promote social 

well-being immediately, from an early age, and 

from this perspective the school has this 

responsibility, as the primary objectives are the 

education and inclusion of all[13]. Furthermore, 

in an extracurricular context, social well-being is 

able to improve the quality of life of people with 



                                                               Global Journal of Education and Allied Research| ISSN: 2837-3707   

                                                                                                                Volume. 6, Number11; November-2021  

  https://zapjournals.com/Journals/index.php/gjear  Pg | 15  

  

disabilities thanks to the use of various activities, 

including physical activity, during free time. This 

demonstrates the link between physical 

education in school and physical or sporting 

practice outside of school. At school age, pupils 

with disabilities may have problems from the 

point of view of adapting to the demands of the 

school, to which is added difficulty in obtaining 

good levels of social acceptance, in particular, in 

particular, they may rarely experience 

relationship difficulties with the teacher or, more 

frequently, with the peer group. Furthermore, it 

has been seen that, especially in adolescence, 

disabled students demonstrate greater 

difficulties in creating and managing to maintain 

interactions with their classmates in a stable and 

lasting way over time [14]. All this could have a 

negative impact on the processes of adaptation to 

adult life. The school's task is to train "the adult 

of the future", for which fundamental aspects 

such as a better quality of life must be 

considered, and for this to happen, it is 

important to be able to obtain recognition of 

fundamental rights, in order to protect and 

ensure the maximum possible autonomy for all 

people who need it[15].  When we talk about 

autonomy we refer to multiple points of view: 

personal, work, social and family, all essential to 

make a person with a disability feel an integral 

part of society. This term does not simply refer to 

the care of the person's life in the sense of 

removing the causes of marginalization, but to 

offer the possibility, thanks to tools, 

methodologies, techniques and targeted paths, to 

be an active and proactive part of the choices that 

are made. made and which directly affect the life 

of the disabled person. It is from this perspective 

that the school, through training programs, 

should encourage the development of all the 

skills that will lead to the achievement of 

personal autonomy [16]. The term educate means 

to define the ability to be able to bring it out, in 

order to obtain the truth from the person and not 

introduce it. Therefore, there is a need to exploit 

motor activity as a fundamental element both 

from an educational and a socio-relational point 

of view. The school's task is to be able to create 

the foundations so that life skills (Life Skills), 

understood as the set of personal and relational 

skills, are well structured in the disabled person, 

so as to be able to create correctly and profitable 

bond between himself and the surrounding 

environment. It must therefore be an advocate of 

lifelong learning, capable of providing all the 

effective strategies to be used to resolve any 

problems that may arise in daily life. The school 

context must be the ideal place to design and 

plan the interventions to be implemented to 

create the adult of tomorrow, and in this sense it 

is important that we focus on the development of 

transversal skills in order to favor the structuring 

of the self, of identity of the disabled person[17].   

3. The importance of inclusive teaching in 

schools  

Educating through movement from the early 

years of life is of fundamental importance as it 

allows and promotes knowledge of one's body 

and helps to improve the quality of life[18].  Motor 

activity and movement in general must be 

understood as an educational possibility with an 

indispensable educational value for the 

development of identity and social interactions 

with the surrounding environment and with 

one's classmates[19]. When we talk about team 

motor practice we must think of all the multiple 

situations that favor the stimulation of individual 

initiative. Physical activity for people with 

disabilities can represent a moment of social 

emancipation and individual growth, as 

discussion and collaboration with others can and 

must be understood as the structuring of an 

environment full of significant stimuli.  



                                                               Global Journal of Education and Allied Research| ISSN: 2837-3707   

                                                                                                                Volume. 6, Number11; November-2021  

  https://zapjournals.com/Journals/index.php/gjear  Pg | 16  

  

The practice of physical activity has fundamental 

values for the development of the person:  

- Helps to express one's creativity;  

- It is an instrument of moral and physical 

elevation; - It's a cultural value.  

Motor activity and motor sciences in the school 

context must be understood as an opportunity 

for everyone, without any distinction, to be able 

to offer their contribution in the process of 

building the identity of disabled and non-

disabled students. In the school context, motor 

practice must not be understood at competitive 

levels, on the contrary it must favor the 

possibility of being able to measure oneself with 

others, but above all with oneself, in order to 

know one's own resources and abilities in order 

to deal with the peer group. The role of motor 

sciences towards the disabled student from a 

scholastic perspective should be to be able to 

enhance individual abilities, increase others to 

the point of fortifying the interested person to 

encourage encounters with the surrounding 

environment and with the peer group , managing 

to deal with objectives with an increasing degree 

of difficulty[20].  Therefore the purpose of 

physical practice in the school context is to offer 

new possible paths to knowledge and inclusion 

paths, starting right from school, from the first 

levels of education, in order to encourage its 

permanence throughout the entire life cycle. of 

life, so that it can be seen not only from a 

competitive point of view but also and above all 

from the point of view of fun, training, play, 

recreation and therefore as a moment and 

opportunity for growth. Sports practice must be 

understood as an educational strategy to 

overcome the possible onset of social isolation of 

the person suffering from disability [21]. It must 

be understood as a way of being able to see 

oneself in a positive sense, capable of improving 

one's self-image; furthermore, we must not 

forget that learning occurs through experience, 

and it is thanks to it that it is possible to have a 

greater emotional boost capable of helping to 

overcome the onset of any moments of 

discouragement and fragility due to difficulties 

and isolation that could occur outside of 

"protected" environments such as the family[22].  

Finally, we must not forget that when we talk 

about physical activity at school we promote 

positive interdependence, self-confidence and 

self-sufficiency. When the student leaves the 

familiar environment, he does so to enter a new 

group, going against others and experimenting 

with different roles (adversary, companion, ally) 

in order to achieve a common goal. Furthermore, 

sensations, both positive and negative, such as 

the fear of not making it or the fatigue of 

exercising, respect for the rules, commitment to 

school and physical activity, make him feel part 

of the whole environment, making him 

motivated, autonomous and determined in 

dealing with any difficulties that may arise.  

Physical activity in school must be seen as a 

strategic tool of education, which manages to 

pursue the ultimate goal, that is, the socio-

educational well-being of all, in which there are 

equal opportunities, opportunities and 

possibilities of choice. The school connected to 

physical activity allows us to experiment with 

new forms of inclusion, capable of addressing 

everyone and, at the same time, being able to find 

the "suitable paths" for everyone[23]. Finally, we 

must not forget to practice physical activity in the 

school context, it means doing it together, able-

bodied students and those with disabilities, in 

order to enhance the potential, through the 

precise play roles, necessary for the success of the 

activity. All exercises are carried out in the same 

spaces, all together and at the same time, this 

ensures that there are beneficial effects both 

from a psycho-physical and socio-relational 



                                                               Global Journal of Education and Allied Research| ISSN: 2837-3707   

                                                                                                                Volume. 6, Number11; November-2021  

  https://zapjournals.com/Journals/index.php/gjear  Pg | 17  

  

point of view. As far as the psycho-physical 

aspect is concerned, suffice it to say that motor 

practice at school helps disabled students to have 

greater static and dynamic balance, which is 

necessary in walking, without forgetting that it is 

possible to strengthen the muscular system, 

resistance, strength, favoring a reduction in 

heart rate. The above guarantees the ability to 

orient and move correctly in space, managing to 

improve one's spatio-temporal organizational 

capabilities. All this allows the disabled student 

to acquire greater confidence in everything he 

does but above all towards himself, thus 

increasing his sense of self-confidence. 

Furthermore, from a psychological point of view, 

we must consider that disabled people have 

always encountered difficulties throughout their 

lives, and physical practice combined with the 

school context represents one of the first 

moments of satisfaction due to achieving the goal 

without the help of parents, as motor practice 

stimulates intellect and creativity while keeping 

memory and concentration trained. From a 

socio-relational point of view, school as well as 

physical practice promotes inclusion in the social 

context, as in order to achieve the objective it is 

necessary to collaborate with the other members 

of the team group, managing to encourage the 

construction of identity personal of the disabled 

person [24].    

4. Conclusions  

The school context must be seen as the universe 

in which young people shape their personality on 

a daily basis [25], so it contains the set of all the 

values that build a single system in which the rich 

world certainly falls of disability to which the 

world of sports practice must be associated, 

which now includes an ever-increasing number 

of children, pupils and adults suffering from 

disabilities.  

The ability to learn through movement is 

something innate that everyone has since birth, 

allowing them to interact with the surrounding 

world and explore it in an active and 

participatory way, promoting the growth of 

knowledge of the surrounding environment[26].    

The body must be understood as the means by 

which we can receive all the most sincere 

information about ourselves, capable, therefore, 

of making us perceive who we are, what we live 

and what we feel. Here movement takes on a 

fundamental role from the point of view of 

learning, understood as the only channel capable 

of positively influencing not only the motor 

sphere, but also the relational, cognitive and 

emotional ones.  

The Italian school boasts a long tradition from 

the point of view of the integration of pupils 

suffering from disabilities, and its role is to 

promote and encourage meetings between 

people "bearers" of different abilities, culture, 

age and social class, it must be able to, also taking 

advantage of what is offered by physical and 

sporting practice, create a single training action 

which has the task of enhancing, enhancing and 

strengthening all skills, thus managing to include 

all students in this process without excluding 

anyone.  

References  

Barnes, C. (2008). Capire il "modello sociale 

della disabilità". Intersticios. Revista 

Sociológica de Pensamiento Crítico, 2(1). 

Bassi, M., & Delle Fave, A. (2007). L’esperienza 

della disabilità: selezione psicologica e 

promozione del benessere. Psicologia 

della Salute. 

Benetton, M. (2015). Allenamento per la vita. 

L’educazione sportivo-motoria for life. 



                                                               Global Journal of Education and Allied Research| ISSN: 2837-3707   

                                                                                                                Volume. 6, Number11; November-2021  

  https://zapjournals.com/Journals/index.php/gjear  Pg | 18  

  

Cairo, M. T. (2010). Qualità della vita, persona e 

disabilità. 

Carraro, A., & Marino, M. (2016). Lo sport che 

educa: tra miti e realtà. Formazione & 

Insegnamento. Rivista Internazionale di 

Scienze dell’Educazione e della 

Formazione, 14(3), 11–24. 

Ceciliani, A. (2018). Didattica integrata quali-

quantitativa, in educazione motoria-

sportiva, e benessere in età evolutiva. 

Formazione & Insegnamento. Rivista 

Internazionale di Scienze dell’Educazione 

e della Formazione, 16(1), 183–194. 

Coco, D. (2014). Lo straordinario valore 

educativo dello sport. Formazione & 

Insegnamento. Rivista Internazionale di 

Scienze dell’Educazione e della 

Formazione, 12(3), 119–132. 

Cottini, L., Zorzi, S., & Fedeli, D. (2016). Qualità 

di vita nella disabilità adulta: Percorsi, 

servizi e strumenti psicoeducativi. 

Edizioni Centro Studi Erickson. 

D'Alonzo, L. (2002). Disabilità e potenziale 

educativo (pp. 5–208). La Scuola. 

Farinella, A., Mosso, C. O., & Leonardi, D. 

(2016). Attività motoria e sportiva come 

strategia per promuovere l’inclusione: 

una prospettiva dell’attività fisica 

adattata. Formazione & Insegnamento. 

Rivista Internazionale di Scienze 

dell’Educazione e della Formazione, 

14(3), 85–92. 

Farinelli, G. (2005). Pedagogia dello sport ed 

educazione della persona (Vol. 3). 

Morlacchi Editore. 

Fiorucci, A. (2014). Gli atteggiamenti degli 

insegnanti verso l’inclusione e la 

disabilità: uno sguardo internazionale. 

Italian Journal of Special Education for 

Inclusion, 2(1), 53–66. 

Gelati, M., & Genovesi, G. (2005). Scienza 

dell’educazione, scuola e disabilità. 

FrancoAngeli. 

Griffo, G. (2012). Persone con disabilità e diritti 

umani. In T. Casadei (Ed.), Diritti umani 

e soggetti vulnerabili. Violazioni, 

trasformazioni, aporie (pp. XX–XX). 

Giappichelli Editore. 

Isidori, E., & Fraile, A. (2008). Educazione, sport 

e valori. Un approccio critico-riflessivo. 

Aracne. 

Medeghini, R., D'Alessio, S., Marra, A., Vadalà, 

G., & Valtellina, E. (2013). Disability 

studies. Emancipazione, inclusione 

scolastica e sociale, cittadinanza. Edizioni 

Erickson. 

Molteni, P. (2006). Qualità della vita e tempo 

libero nel bambino con disabilità: 

L’esperienza di uno spazio-gioco. 

Naccari, A. G. A. (2003). Pedagogia della 

corporeità. Educazione, attività motoria e 

sport nel tempo. Morlacchi Editore. 

Palumbo, C., Ambretti, A., & Scarpa, S. (2019). 

Esperienze motorie, sportive e disabilità. 

Italian Journal of Special Education for 

Inclusion, 7(1), 217–232. 

Pavone, M. (2009). Famiglia e progetto di vita: 

Crescere un figlio disabile dalla nascita 

alla vita adulta. Edizioni Erickson. 


