Pedagogical Knowledge of Physical Education Pre-Service Teachers for Teaching Inclusive Classroom Setting

Despite the growing recognition of inclusive education, empirical studies on the pedagogical competencies of pre-service teachers in Digos City's Physical Education (PE) programs are limited. Using a quantitative, descriptive research design, the study assessed the pedagogical knowledge of pre-service PE teachers in inclusive classroom settings and explored variations based on age and gender. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics to examine demographic profiles, measures of central tendency (mean) and dispersion (standard deviation) to assess pedagogical knowledge, the Mann-Whitney U test to evaluate age group differences in instructional, adaptation, and overall skills, and the Chi-Square test to investigate gender-based differences in these skills. The results indicated that younger pre-service teachers demonstrated superior instructional skills to their older counterparts, though there were no significant differences in adaptation skills between age groups. Additionally, gender did not affect the level of preparedness for inclusive practices, suggesting uniform readiness across diverse gender identities. To enhance the preparedness of pre-service PE teachers for inclusive classroom settings, it is recommended that professional development programs focus on targeted training to improve instructional skills, particularly for older pre-service teachers, while also providing continuous, tailored support to ensure all teachers can effectively meet the diverse needs of students.