Extension Activities of GAPEY

1. Seminars and Orientation Programs

The Faculty of General Adapted Physical Education & Yoga (GAPEY) conducts independent workshops and also some in collaboration with Faculty of Disability Management and Special Education (FDMSE). The participants include Physical Educators, Special Educators and Physio-therapists. We also organize several workshops every year for bringing awareness in public regarding sports. A portion of them is dedicated for Adapted games. Our Physical teacher trainees organize Sports meet as a part of their academic curriculum. In all these sports meets, Special Children of FDMSE therapy units take part. This encourages and promotes the concept of Inclusive Physical Education.

2. Unified Play festival

As its name indicates Unified Play Day (UPD), is an annual play festival with equal participation of Children with Disabilities and Normal children, innovated by the Faculty. This event was started by the Faculty in the year 2008. Every year Physical Education Trainees of GAPEY go forth to various inclusive/special/normal schools in and around Coimbatore city to train the children to participate in UPD events. In 2013-14 a total of 48 schools were covered benefiting 300 students. The Trainees (about 100) are also trained simultaneously at our Faculty in the matters of “Inclusive and Adapted Physical Education”. The events of UPD includes adapted play items, various therapy stalls like, Music therapy, Physio-therapy, Kolam therapy (Art used as a means of therapy) etc., and awareness exhibitions regarding Disability issues. There is a total participation of 1000 people in 2013-14. 600 parents and special teachers, 300 children and 100 trainees participated in the event.

UPD serves three purposes:

  1. It brings awareness in Public, Parents, and Children with disabilities and special Educators about Inclusive and Adapted Physical Education.
  2. It helps the children develop a sportive and healthy attitude towards disability.
  3. It trains the Trainees in the field of Inclusive Physical Education.

3. Guru-puja Exhibition

The public celebration of the birthday of Bhagavan Sri Ramakrishna, popularly known as Guru Puja, is the most important annual cultural activity of the Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya. The day-long celebration, observed on the first Sunday of every year, includes bhajans, talks by eminent personalities, drama, educational exhibition, music and cultural programmes. The highlight of the function is the Virat Puja, i.e. feeding of about 50,000 people at noon.

During this occasion an Exhibition is put up by GAPEY every year on a particular theme related Adapted Physical Education to bring awareness among the common people about it. In 2014 we have put up an exhibition on Adapted Yogasanas. Last year it was on Adapted Games in which visitors can participate and appreciate the adaptations proposed. The staff and students of GAPEY provide regular training to the children with disabilities at FDMSE in sports and Yogasanas.

4. Academic Activities

Since 2012 GAPEY is running a bi-annual journal “The Journal of Adapted Physical Education and Yoga”. Peer reviewed articles on Physical Education, Adapted Physical Education and Yoga are published in this journal. Research scholars, staff-members and students working in the area contribute to this journal.

The following projects are in pipe line
A book on Adapted Physical Education is about to be released.
Exhibition material to bring awareness regarding Adapted Physical Education and Yoga
Exhibition material on Kalari-Payattu, a traditional martial art of Kerala.

5. Leadership Training Camp

Leadership camp is organized at Vellingiri Andavar Temple, Poondi, a beautiful foot-hill station 30 Km away from Coimbatore. It’s an annual activity for the Physical Education Teacher Trainees of GAPEY. All the students and staff retire to a silent forest area and there trainees are trained in different activities for about a week. It is a life time experience with our students. Our alumni fondly reminisce the days they spent in Leadership Training Camp. The activities inside the Camp are as follows.

  1. The trainees are trained in setting up a temporary accommodation in forest area. They set up with their own hands an area for accommodation, kitchen, dining hall and temporary toilets.
  2. To familiarize the students with the culture of the people (tribes) living in forests and hilly areas they are divided into several houses each house bearing the name of a particular tribe and the corresponding yelling.
  3. To develop leadership qualities and organizing abilities in life, every day starts with flag-hoisting and house-wise assembly.
  4. For the knowledge of the surroundings and entertainment they are taken for cross-country walks to different places every day.
  5. A day long trekking is organized on one of the days to familiarize the students with the mountain area and its surroundings.
  6. For the entertainment and training of students, folk songs are sung in the afternoons and cultural programs & camp fire are organized in the night. various miscellaneous sports items like, Stunts and games, Art & Craft, Treasure hunt, Mock sports, Progressive party games etc., are also interspersed in the routine and performance of each house is evaluated.
  7. There are events which bring out innate creativity in them like kit arrangements in the rooms etc. Each house is asked to arrange a theme (for example, a play ground, a sports shop, a temple etc.,) in their living room with the existing things at hand and with the materials collected from forest. The themes are evaluated by the staff-members considering their various aspects.
  8. Students are taught specific skills required in forest and mountain areas like Map reading and Knots & Lashes.
  9. Lectures are organized by forest-personnel regarding the forest ecology and nature of wild life.
  10. To familiarize the trainees with nature and forest environment, students are asked to explore many sorts of medicinal herbs, fruits and like available in forests.
  11. Cultural programs in which students have to participate in the nights are almost without preparation. It which helps them in developing their presence of mind.

 

6. Rural Coaching Programs

Our Postgraduate students go to the interior villages once every year and train the under privileged children in games and sports. Matriculation and Government schools in the interior villages are benefited by the program.