Impact of a physical education teacher's disability on elementary pupils' perceptions of effectiveness and learning.

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of a physical education teacher's disability on elementary school pupils' learning and perceptions of the teacher's competence. Participants (N = 113) were randomly assigned to view one of two virtually identical videotaped swimming lessons. In the first lesson, the teacher was able-bodied (ABL) while in the second, she taught from a wheelchair (WCL). Following the viewing of their assigned lesson, pupils completed an examination over lesson content and a perception questionnaire regarding the teacher. Results showed that pupils who viewed the WCL scored significantly higher on the technique portion of the examination than pupils who watched the ABL. There were no significant differences between the perceptions of either group.