Determinants of participation in sports among students with hearing impairement in secondary schools for the deaf of Kenya
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Date
2016-11
Authors
Moseti, Moraa Zipporah
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Kenyatta University
Abstract
Effective engagement of sports among students with hearing impairment has
physiological, psychological, intellectual and societal benefits (Riungu, 2002; Smith,
2004). Although there has been great emphasis on sports and health related activities
among students, there is a general concern that students with disabilities do not
frequently participate in such activities. This study proceeded from the assumption that
students with hearing impairment have no visible disability and therefore should
participate in sports like their hearing counterparts. The study, therefore, sought to
evaluate determinants of participation in sports among students with hearing impairment
in Kenyan secondary schools for the deaf. The specific objectives of this study were to:
establish the effect of gender on sport participation among students with hearing
impairment; identify the type of sports in which most of the students with hearing
impairment participate; establish the most commonly available sports facilities in
secondary schools for the deaf, and establish the extent of participation in sports among
students with hearing impairment in term one and two. Anchored on a descriptive
research design, the study targeted 574 students with hearing impairment and 88
teachers in 7 public secondary schools for the deaf. Purposive sampling was used to
select all Form 2 and 3 students as well as 3 teachers from the 7 schools translating to a
total of 21 teachers and 327 student respondents. Two questionnaires; one for students
and another for teachers were used in data collection. Data collected from the field was
processed and analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version
20. Qualitative data generated from open-ended questions using grouped into themes
and analyzed according to the research objectives. Frequency tables and bar graphs were
used in data presentation. Cross-tabulations and Chi-square (χ 2 ) tests were used to test
the association, if any, of variables such as gender, sports preference and sports
participation. The study established that gender was a significant variable to sports
preference and participation among students with hearing impairment. The findings
revealed that more male students participate in sports than female students. Majority of
these students were motivated to participate in sports for fun. Football was the most
preferred sport type by male students while female respondents had a strong preference
to volleyball and netball. Most commonly available sports facilities were football and
volleyball pitches. Majority of the students with hearing impairment actively engaged
in sports in term one compared to term two due to the scheduling of national
competitions for SNE in term one. The study concludes that gender, sports preference,
availability of sports facilities, competitions and, internal and external drives were
significant determinants in sports participation among students with hearing impairment.
The study recommends that simple and easy-to-use sports facilities should be provided
as an enabler for more students with hearing impairment to participate in sports, and a
safe and supportive environment be established to facilitate active sports engagement
among female students. Special schools should provide adequate facilities for a variety
of sports in line with different kinds of sports. Insights from these findings will be
helpful to stakeholders in making informed decisions, and in availing sports facilities for
students with hearing impairment not only in secondary schools but also in other
institutions of learning such as primary schools and tertiary institutions.
Description
A Thesis submitted to the school of applied human sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the a ward of the Degree of Master of Science (physical and health education) of Kenyatta University. GV 709.3 .M6