Laws and Statues 

Physical Education Content and Requirements in IDEA (via Wrightslaw)

34 C.F.R.300.39(b)(2) IDEA defines "physical education" as the development of:

• Physical and motor skills

• Fundamental motor skills and patterns

• Skills in aquatics, dance, and individual and group games and sports (including intramural and lifetime sports)

• Includes special physical education, adapted physical education, movement education, and motor development

20 U.S.C. 1401(29) Special Education. The term 'special education' means specially designed instruction, at no cost to parents, to meet the unique needs of a child with a disability, including -

(A) instruction conducted in the classroom, in the home, in hospitals and institutions, and in other settings; and

(B) instruction in physical education.

34 CFR 300.108 Physical Education. The State must ensure that public agencies in the State comply with the following:

(a) General. Physical education services, specially designed if necessary, must be made available to every child with a disability receiving FAPE, unless the public agency enrolls children without disabilities and does not provide physical education to children without disabilities in the same grades. [See Commentary to IDEA below for more information on this often confused "grade level" misconception.]

(b) Regular physical education. Each child with a disability must be afforded the opportunity to participate in the regular physical education program available to nondisabled children unless -

(1) The child is enrolled full time in a separate facility; or

(2) The child needs specially designed physical education, as prescribed in the child's IEP.

(c) Special physical education. If specially designed physical education is prescribed in a child's IEP, the public agency responsible for the education of that child must provide the services directly or make arrangements for those services to be provided through other public or private programs.

(d) Education in separate facilities. The public agency responsible for the education of a child with a disability who is enrolled in a separate facility must ensure that the child receives appropriate physical education services in compliance with this section.

US Department of Education - Office of Special Education Programs: Policy Letters, Guidance, and Clarification

The following letters from the US Department of Education clarify some common misconceptions about PE services for students with disabilities.

The two letters below cover the age range of required PE services for students with disabilities (3-21 years). The preschool and high school transition ages are often overlooked. These periods are important times for motor development, health-related fitness, sport skills, aquatics, community-based physical activity, and many other content areas common in general and adapted physical education programs.

Applicability of Physical Education for Children (Age 18-21) with Disabilities in Transition Program, OSEP Policy Letter to Luke Kelly, October 23, 2013

Applicability of Physical Education for Preschool Children with Disabilities, OSEP Policy Letter to Garth Tymeson, July 31, 2013

The next letter clarifies that other subjects or services cannot be substituted for or replace required PE.

Denying Mandatory Physical Education Instruction for Children with Disabilities, OSEP Policy Letter to James Irby, February 12, 2010

The following Guidance Document provides information about extracurricular athletics or sports for students with disabilities. Section 300.107 of IDEA includes information on Nonacademic Services, including extracurricular athletics or sports. These services are a required part of special education.

The state must ensure the following: (a) Each public agency must take steps, including the provision of supplementary aids and services determined appropriate and necessary by the child’s IEP Team, to provide nonacademic and extracurricular services and activities in the same manner necessary to afford children with disabilities an equal opportunity for participation in those services and activities, (b) Nonacademic and extracurricular services and activities may include counseling services, athletics, transportation, health services, ...

Schools’ Obligation to Provide Equal Opportunity to Students with Disabilities to Participate in Extracurricular Athletics, OCR Guidance Document, January 25, 2013.