A window of opportunity? Motor skills and perceptions of competence of children in Kindergarten

Abstract

BackgroundOur aim was to examine the relationship between motor skill proficiency and perceptions of competence of children in their first year of school. We also explored gender-based differences.FindingsParticipants were 260 kindergarten children (mean age = 5y 9 m; boys = 52%) from eight schools; representing 78% of eligible children in those schools. Motor skills were measured using the Test of Gross Motor Development-2 and perceptions of physical competence were assessed using the Pictorial Scale of Perceived Competence and Social Acceptance for Young Children. Motor skill scores were generally low (percentile ranks ranged from 16 - 24) but perceptions of physical competence were positive (boys = 18.1/24.0, girls = 19.5/24.0). A MANOVA showed a significant overall effect for gender (Wilk's lambda = .84 with F (3, 254) = 15.84, p < 0.001) and univariate F tests were significant for all outcome variables. The relationship between object control skills and perceptions of physical competence among girls was not significant; however all other correlations were modest but significant.ConclusionsAlthough motor skill levels were quite low, the children generally held positive perceptions of their physical competence. These positive perceptions provide a window of opportunity for fostering skillfulness. The modest relationships between perceptions of competence and motor skill proficiency suggest that the children are beginning to make self-judgments at a young age. Accordingly, opportunities for children to become and feel physically competent need to occur early in their school or preschool life.

Fundamental motor skills of Czech children at the end of the preschool period

“…In terms of gender differentiation, 81.6% of girls scored at or below the 50 th percentile, in comparison to 64% of boys. Generally, these results reflect recent findings about the low level of FMS proficiency in preschool children (Foulkes et al, 2015;Hardy et al, 2009;LeGear et al, 2012). The poor level of FMS proficiency found in our study becomes more important because some studies have found that higher FMS proficiency in childhood results in a higher level of physical activity during adolescence (Barnett et al, 2009;Barnett, van Beurden, Morgan, Brooks, & Beard, 2010).…”

“…Based on these results, the authors suggest that developmentally appropriate interventions should be implemented in preschool settings to promote FMS, with targeted activities for boys and girls. A low level of FMS (16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24) th percentile range) was also found in a study by LeGear et al (2012), which primarily explored the relationship between the level of motor skills proficiency and the self-perception of competence in 260 Canadian preschoolers. Though the motor skills level was quite low, the children held generally positive perceptions of their physical competence, which provided a window of opportunity for fostering skillfulness (LeGear et al, 2012).…”

“…Several studies focusing on assessment of FMS have pointed out poor or insufficient levels of FMS in relation to the healthy development of preschool children (Hardy et al, 2009;LeGear et al, 2012;Vandaele et al, 2011). A generally low level of FMS was found by Hardy et al (2009), in Australia, in 330 preschool children aged four years.…”

The Development of Fundamental Movement Skills by Children Aged Six to Nine

“…Some [6,7] have found no difference between the locomotor skills of boys and girls, while others [8,9,10] have found girls to be superior. For example, Yang et al [10] found girls to perform better than boys in such skills as galloping, hopping, horizontal jumping, and sliding.…”

Programa de Iniciação Esportiva Influencia a Competência Percebida de Crianças?

“…A forma como se percebe produz impactos sobre sua autoconfiança e disposição para novos desafios e aprendizagem. Pessoas que se percebem competentes em suas habilidades tendem a persistir por mais tempo na execução de tarefas e a assumir responsabilidades sobre suas atitudes e conquistas (Valentini, 2002b;LeGear et al, 2012;Nobre, Bandeira, Ramalho, Nobre, & Valentini, 2015). Indivíduos com baixos níveis de competência percebida tendem a evitar tarefas que representem novos desafios, demonstrando falta de interesse na aprendizagem de novas habilidades (Almeida, Valentini, & Berleze, 2009;Valentini, 2002b).…”