Dysconscious ableism and exclusive potentials in physical education teacher education (PETE) A critical essay about inclusive PETE in USA and Germany

The aim of this essay is to provide a critical analysis of physical education teacher education (PETE) programs in Germany and the United States. Our primary premise is that PETE programs within each of the respective countries are characterized by ableist underpinnings, thus, contributing to the reproduction of ableist practices. We also maintain that these ableist underpinnings in the physical education programs contribute to the negative experiences that students with disabilities express. This lack of critical discourse within university PETE programs hinders prospective physical education teachers from addressing differing abilities and bodies within the landscape. University faculty give little weight to the task of critically questioning their own dependence on binary categorizations along the lines of disabled vs. nondisabled, as well as their own dependence on ableist conditioning. In a constructionist twist, we provide guidance for PETE programs that we envision supports a diversity-sensitive view of disability for prospective educators.