Adapted Physical Education Specialists
Educational Instruction and Library
Instruction happens one-on-one or in small groups, using adapted techniques to improve fitness, large-muscle control, movement-and-perception skills, and performance in sports and games. Methods change with age and ability, and students may have intellectual disabilities, autism, traumatic brain injury, orthopedic impairments, or other conditions that affect movement. Assessment of physical progress and help with screening or program placement sit alongside the teaching. Clear behavior standards keep the space safe and orderly. Fits people who like active, hands-on instruction and adjusting movement tasks for different bodies and skill levels.
Typical education: Bachelor’s Degree (4-year)
Annual Median Wage in Field (2025)
$76'580
Median Wage Market Position
$76'580
What you might do
- Teach fitness and motor skills with adapted methods
- Give individual or small-group adapted PE lessons
- Adjust instruction to students' ages and skills
- Assess students' physical progress and movement needs
- Help place students in adapted PE programs
- Set behavior standards for safe PE classes
Skills that matter
- Adapting physical education for impairments
- Listening as students describe physical limits
- Explaining games at each student's level
- Learning new adaptation techniques
- Sensing when a movement is too hard
- Judging placement and physical progress
AI & the future of this role
Adapting movement activities in person for learners with disabilities depends on physical guidance, safety judgment, and trusted rapport that software cannot supply. Lesson ideas may be assisted by tools, but hands-on coaching and individualized motor work are likely to remain central.
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Includes O*NET® 30.3 Database information by USDOL/ETA under CC BY 4.0; modified by LostInCareer. Wage/outlook from BLS. Attribution details