Development of a Table Tennis Learning Model for Children With Intellectual Disabilities

Abstract

This study was conducted based on the condition of table tennis learning at SLB Bhakti Putra Palu, which showed that students with intellectual disabilities (tunagrahita) still experience various difficulties in participating in table tennis lessons. These difficulties are caused by limitations in intellectual capacity, motor coordination, concentration, and the ability to understand instructions given by the teacher. These conditions result in students lacking selfconfidence, being less active, and showing little interest in table tennis learning. This study employed the Research and Development (R&D) method referring to the Borg and Gall development model, which includes the stages of identifying potentials and problems, information gathering, product design, expert validation, product revision, smallgroup trials, product revision, largegroup trials, final revision, and final product. Research data were obtained through observation, questionnaires, documentation, and expert validation, then analyzed using descriptive percentage analysis. The results showed that the developed learning model obtained a validation score of 75% from learning experts and 83.33% from table tennis experts, both falling into the "Feasible to Use" category. In the smallgroup trial, a percentage of 89.28% was obtained, while in the largegroup trial, it increased to 94.40%, indicating that the learning model is highly feasible for use in table tennis learning for children with intellectual disabilities. Based on these research results, it can be concluded that the table tennis learning model utilizing equipment modifications such as lighter paddles, lighter balls, adjusted table sizes, and progressive exercises like shadow strokes—is effective in helping students with intellectual disabilities learn basic table tennis techniques, improving motor coordination, selfconfidence, and participation in the learning process. Thus, the resulting product is expected to serve as a reference for physical education teachers in developing table tennis learning that is more effective, adaptive, and tailored to the needs of students with special needs, particularly those with intellectual disabilities