Experiences of enjoyment and inclusion among pupils with special needs in physical education – participation opportunities in a Danish school context

Pupil diversity in Danish mainstream schools has increased significantly in the past decade. Consequently, many teachers experience challenges in including all pupils (VIVE, 2022). Physical education (PE) teachers report lacking specialized pedagogical competencies to include children with special needs (SN) in PE activities (Guldager et al., 2023). Pupils with SN report lower well-being and enjoyment at school (Børns Vilkår, 2022). Given the limited knowledge about SN pupils’ experiences in PE, we seek to address the following research questions and aim:
How do pupils with SN experience enjoyment and inclusion in school-based physical education? What challenges their participation in PE, and what are the potential avenues for enhancing their engagement?
Our study highlights selected findings from a survey of pupils with and without SN (n=428) using Pearson’s Chi-Square test (Guldager et al., in press), and individual semi-structured interviews with pupils with SN (n=53) (Bentholm et al., in press). Data were collected in 2023.
Thematic analysis of the interviews was conducted (Braum, Clarke & Weate, 2016), and emergent themes were subsequently explored using Wenger’s theory on social learning (2004).
We found that more than one in five children in mainstream schools have SN. While pupils in general enjoy PE, those with SN enjoy it significantly less. Pupils with SN also report feeling ´less included in PE’ on several parameters compared to their peers without SN.
In the interviews, all pupils with SN report a lack of decision-making opportunities in PE, although those who have experienced it express greater joy and participation. Those who enjoy PE often see it as a space to expend energy. Conversely, those who do not, report participation difficulties due to factors such as class size and the teachers’ inclusion challenges.
These findings underscore how professionals should organize and adapt PE to enhance both enjoyment and inclusion, with pupil agency highlighted as untapped potential for engagement. The study also raises the question of whether the designation of 'special needs' still applies in a Nordic school context, presenting new demands on mainstream education.