University of Zululand
An assessment of the motor ability of learners in the foundation phase of primary school education
Abstract
dc:description.abstractThe development of gross motor skills is a process of maturity in movement proficiency, which is fulfilled by the age of eight years. The purpose of this study was to examine the contributions of age, gender and physical activity on the levels of motor proficiency in learners. The subjects (N=366) aged seven years six months to eight years were assessed using eight subtests including tasks for running, balance, bilateral and upper-limb coordination from the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test Battery. There was a significant difference in the relationship between girls and boys: Girls fared better in balance and bilateral coordination skills while boys performed better in strength and running skills (p<.05). The results also indicated a positive correlation between increasing age and motor ability in most areas, except for balance which was performed better by younger age groups. The influence of the physical education curricula showed better scores for learners who participated in physical activity on a daily basis in comparison to learners who only participated in one lesson per week. Learners living in a rural environment outperformed their counterparts in three areas of motor proficiency. This can possibly be attributed to the leisure activities experienced by low socio-economic school learners during pre-primary years, and may offer evidence to the negative effects of modern society on the movement development of youth. This raises questions regarding the proficiency in motor performance, of the children of KwaZulu/Natai and the influence of our modern society and its advancing change in leisure time activities, as well as the structure of physical education classes at school.
Author and committee
dc:creator, dc:contributor.*- Author dc:creator
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- Portela, Nicola
- Advisors dc:contributor.advisor
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- Longhurst, G.K.
- Bressan, E.S.