VIDBE-Q 2026 Volume 71 Issue 3
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) of
2004, Public Law 108-466, mandates physical education as a required service
for children and youth between the ages of 3-21 who qualify for special
education services due to specific disabilities or developmental delays. Under
IDEA, 20 U.S.C. 1401(29), special education is defined as "specially designed
instruction, at no cost to parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a
disability," explicitly including instruction in physical education. For students
with deafblindness, this mandate represents a critical opportunity to address
the unique motor, social, and developmental challenges they face while
promoting lifelong physical activity, health and wellness. Quality education
should remove barriers and provide supports that are needed for students with
deafblindness to remain safe and experience success in all settings, including
physical education.
The Importance of Physical Activity for Students with Deafblindness
Students with blindness, visual impairments, or deafblindness frequently
experience significant challenges and barriers that impact their physical
development and participation in movement activities. Research has
documented that these students often display delays in developmental
milestones, delayed motor skills, lower levels of fitness, balance and stability
problems, reduced stamina and endurance, and fewer opportunities to
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