An Evaluation of the Outcomes of Children with Multiple Disabilities who Attended Camp Koinonia in 2009

One of the largest populations with whom social workers work are individuals with disabilities. Due to the increase of children with disabilities, it is important to evaluate the programs in which the children participate. Camp Koinonia is a program at the University of Tennessee that works with children with multiple disabilities for one week a year. The purpose of this study was to conduct a program evaluation on Camp Koinonia in 2009 (n = 109). This study assessed age,(continuous variable, n = 109) gender (male, n = 61; female n = 48), category of disability (cognitive, n = 50; physical, n = 59) and type of disability (cerebral palsy, n = 17; down syndrome, n = 21; autism spectrum disorder, n = 18; and mental retardation, n = 22). This study compared the previously mentioned variables to physical, cognitive, and emotional outcomes as measured by an altered version of the Functional Assessment of Characteristics for Therapeutic Recreation, Revised (FACTR-R). The results of reliability analysis found that each subscale of physical (a = .71), cognitive (a = .80), and emotional (a = .83) outcomes of the FACTR-R were reliable. A multiple groups confirmatory factor analysis was conducted on the FACTR-R which found that this measurement tool was a good tool to use. The results of this study found that the children with physical disabilities had statistically significant improvements with their physical outcomes. Specifically, the children with cerebral palsy had statistically significant improvements in physical outcomes. There were also statistically significant improvements in children with autism spectrum disorders and emotional outcomes. A discussion of limitations and recommendations for future research is presented.