Review of the scientific literature surrounding several current topics/issues in health, exercise and sport

Readings, instructions, and other important documents will be available through Canvas.

At the conclusion of this course, students are expected to be able to do the following:

Primary Objectives

• Demonstrate the ability to prepare and present professional-level, scholarly, evidence-based presentations and lead a discussion on an approved topic related to exercise assessment, training, programming, and risks and benefits in special populations.

Secondary Objectives (as a presenter and a participant):

• Demonstrate an understanding of the historical framework/background information and prevalence of each condition/special population discussed throughout the semester.
• Describe the physiological, social, emotional, and neurological considerations relevant to exercise and respective to each special population discussed.
• Describe relevant short-term and long-term prognosis, quality of life, and unique health concerns for each special population discussed, including common medications and side effects.
• Describe the potential short and long-term benefits of a properly prescribed exercise program.
• Describe the potential short and long-term risks and consequences of improperly prescribed exercise and exercise in general.
• Create and describe a case study of an individual within your “special population” and demonstrate how you would assess the individual’s current fitness level, health and ability to exercise, and based on those findings provide exercise recommendations that align with their current abilities and goals while considering all special needs.

This will primarily be a project-based class. You will have several assignments that will culminate into two 20-minute online presentations. You will also lead a discussion related to your topic and one of your presentations. You will also view and evaluate your peers’ presentations and participate in the discussions that they lead.

To meet the course learning outcomes students will complete the following assignments/project requirements:

1. Choose a “special population” from a list that I provide (or another "special population” with approval).
2. Find and read (or watch in some instances) scholarly and non-scholarly resources pertaining to your special population and the presentation requirements (see below).

   The scope of each presentation is as follows:

   1. Presentation 1: You will detail information about the special population and their unique medical condition(s) and needs. Specifically: the historical framework/background information and prevalence of the condition/special population; relevant physiological, social, emotional, and neurological aspects of the condition; and the relevant short-term and long-term prognosis, quality of life, and unique health concerns including common medications and side effects.
   2. Presentation 2: In this presentation you will describe the potential short and long-term benefits of a properly prescribed exercise program; the potential short and long-term risks and consequences of improperly prescribed exercise and exercise in general and (drumroll please), create and describe a case study of an individual within your “special population” and demonstrate how you would assess the individual’s current fitness level, health and ability to exercise, and based on those findings provide exercise recommendations that align with their with their current abilities and goals while considering all special medical needs.
3. Complete a keystone synthesis matrix and analysis to summarize all your information and how you will organize your information for your presentations.
4. Using the presentation rubric and objectives, create a detailed outline of each presentation.
5. Scaffold the PowerPoint slides and rehearse each presentation (rough draft” will be recorded and submitted for peer and instructor feedback). Watch your presentation and grade your presentation “rough draft” using the grade rubric. Identify areas for improvement.
6. Watch your assigned “peer presentation” and provide specific, high quality, qualitative and quantitative feedback for improvement using the presentation rubric. Summarize what you learned by watching the assigned peer presentation and how it will help you to improve your presentation.
7. Clean up the presentations, make sure you meet all objectives and requirements outlined in the presentation rubric. Make it shiny and polished. Submit it and revel in your glory.
8. Create thought-provoking discussion questions that, for a peer/viewer to answer in a meaningful manner, require viewing the presentation.
9. Summarize your presentations in the form of an abstract that you post with your discussion questions and presentation videos.
10. Lead your peers in a discussion on your topic using your presentations, your chosen assigned supplementary materials, and your discussion questions. Reply to your peers’ responses and questions in a timely manner with accurate answers and additional resources.
11. Evaluate your peers’ presentations and participate in their presentation discussions.

Additional details for each requirement will be posted on the Canvas website.

Grading Scale

Percentages for grades are as follows.

NOTE: You must earn a C or better to be awarded credit for a graduate-level class.

100-94.0 - A 76.9-73.0 - C

93.9-90.0 - A- 72.9-70.0 - C-

89.9-87.0 - B+ 69.9-67.0 - D+

86.9-83.0 - B 66.9-63.0 - D

82.9-80.0 - B- 62.9-60.0 - D-

79.9-77.0 - C+ 59.9 – 0 - F

Tentative Assignment and Point Breakdown (Approximate – exact point total will depend on number of individuals in the class)

Late Policy: Due to the dynamic nature of this course and our inter-dependence on each other to complete discussions, submit presentations, provide peer evaluations etc.. as a rule, late work will NOT be accepted. If you anticipate a time conflict, contact me as soon as possible (PRIOR to the due date) and I will do my best to accommodate you (with a 10% per day late penalty). If an emergency or similar unforeseen event occurs, please contact me as soon as it’s feasible (e.g., same day or within 24 hours) and we’ll talk about the feasibility of completing course material and assignments you might have missed.

If you are traveling to or participating in a university event, please let me know ahead of time so we can plan appropriately. If you keep the lines of communication open, we’ll be able to better handle any situations that may arise. Thanks for your help with this.

Attendance (N/A) and Participation: This class is semi synchronous with participation required multiple times a week. This class can ONLY work if all of us are involved in discussing and learning the material, and it’s more interesting and meaningful.

KIN 6020

Fall 2025 Special Topics:

Special Populations – Benefits and Risks of Exercise and Exercise Recommendations

3 Credit hours

During the semester you will be required to provide references within your presentation and discussion posts. It is expected that you will use APA guidelines for citation and reference. The following webpage is a great resource for how to cite and reference using APA guidelines:

It is expected that you will edit your assignments, tests, and any communication via email, text, or canvas. Demonstrate pride and professionalism by turning in the quality of work, in which you avoid slang terms (e.g. reps), texting shortcuts (e.g. ‘i’, ‘dont’), and misspelled or misused words (e.g. ‘to’ versus ‘too’, ‘whether’ vs. ‘weather’).

I will post several videos explaining the goals for the week and where you can find assignment-related instructions.