You Can Ride Too! An Exploration of the Guided Discovery of Two-wheeled Cycling Skills by Youth with Intellectual Disabilities

• Author / Creator

  Halayko, Janine

• Learning to ride a bike is an important milestone in the life of a child, yet many children with disabilities never have the opportunity to experience this success. Few studies have examined how to teach this skill to individuals with intellectual disabilities, with techniques that do not use specialized bicycles. The main purpose of this thesis was to explore the applicability of Cognitive Orientation to daily Occupational Performance (CO-OP) for teaching cycling to individuals with intellectual disabilities. Two studies were completed: a single case multiple baseline design across seven participants (ages 10-19), and an in-depth analysis of one of the cases. In the first study the seven youth—six with a diagnosis of Down syndrome, one with Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome—were videotaped over the course of the baseline, intervention and follow-up phases. Cycling skills and the maximum distance and time ridden were assessed and analyzed using the non-overlap of all pairs (NAP) method. Completion of the CO-OP intervention coincided with significant improvements in all measures for six of the seven participants. At follow-up, cycling distances for these 6 youth ranged from 31-1756m, time cycled extended from 11 seconds to over 9 minutes, and an average of over 10 of 20 independent cycling skills were gained. One participant did not learn how to ride and one did not participate in two-wheeled cycling after follow-up. In the second study involving the oldest participant with Down syndrome, the youth’s trajectory of learning and cycling skill acquisition was described along with the key features of CO-OP used to facilitate his learning. The results of these studies provide proof of principle that CO-OP may be an effective way to teach cycling to individuals with intellectual disabilities. Further evaluation is warranted to determine its potential use with others with intellectual disabilities or when teaching other skills.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • CO-OP
  • Intellectual Disability
  • Cycling

• Graduation date

  Fall 2014

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Master of Science

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/R3SJ19Z1N

• License

  This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Libraries with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.