Catherine M. Capio

Fundamental movement skills and physical activity among children with and without cerebral palsy.

Fundamental movement skills (FMS) proficiency is believed to influence childrens physical activity (PA), with those more proficient tending to be more active. Children with cerebral palsy (CP), who represent the largest diagnostic group treated in pediatric rehabilitation, have been found to be less active than typically developing children. This study examined the association of FMS proficiency with PA in a group of children with CP, and compared the data with a group of typically developing children. Five FMS (run, jump, kick, throw, catch) were tested using process- and product-oriented measures, and accelerometers were used to monitor PA over a 7-day period. The results showed that children with CP spent less time in moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA), but more time in sedentary behavior than typically developing children. FMS proficiency was negatively associated with sedentary time and positively associated with time spent in MVPA in both groups of children. Process-oriented FMS measures (movement patterns) were found to have a stronger influence on PA in children with CP than in typically developing children. The findings provide evidence that FMS proficiency facilitates activity accrual among children with CP, suggesting that rehabilitation and physical education programs that support FMS development may contribute to PA-related health benefits.

Reduction of errors during practice facilitates fundamental movement skill learning in children with intellectual disabilities

BACKGROUND Children with intellectual disabilities (ID) have been found to have inferior motor proficiencies in fundamental movement skills (FMS). This study examined the effects of training the FMS of overhand throwing by manipulating the amount of practice errors. METHODS Participants included 39 children with ID aged 4-11 years who were allocated into either an error-reduced (ER) training programme or a more typical programme in which errors were frequent (error-strewn, ES). Throwing movement form, throwing accuracy, and throwing frequency during free play were evaluated. RESULTS The ER programme improved movement form, and increased throwing activity during free play to a greater extent than the ES programme. Furthermore, ER learners were found to be capable of engaging in a secondary cognitive task while manifesting robust throwing accuracy performance. CONCLUSIONS The findings support the use of movement skills training programmes that constrain practice errors in children with ID, suggesting that such approach results in improved performance and heightened movement engagement in free play.

Reducing errors benefits the field-based learning of a fundamental movement skill in children.

Proficient fundamental movement skills (FMS) are believed to form the basis of more complex movement patterns in sports. This study examined the development of the FMS of overhand throwing in children through either an error‐reduced (ER) or error‐strewn (ES) training program. Students (n = 216), aged 8–12 years (M = 9.16, SD = 0.96), practiced overhand throwing in either a program that reduced errors during practice (ER) or one that was ES. ER program reduced errors by incrementally raising the task difficulty, while the ES program had an incremental lowering of task difficulty. Process‐oriented assessment of throwing movement form (Test of Gross Motor Development‐2) and product‐oriented assessment of throwing accuracy (absolute error) were performed. Changes in performance were examined among children in the upper and lower quartiles of the pretest throwing accuracy scores. ER training participants showed greater gains in movement form and accuracy, and performed throwing more effectively with a concurrent secondary cognitive task. Movement form improved among girls, while throwing accuracy improved among children with low ability. Reduced performance errors in FMS training resulted in greater learning than a program that did not restrict errors. Reduced cognitive processing costs (effective dual‐task performance) associated with such approach suggest its potential benefits for children with developmental conditions.

Physical Activity Measurement Instruments for Children with Cerebral Palsy: A Systematic Review.

Aim  This paper is a systematic review of physical activity measurement instruments for field‐based studies involving children with cerebral palsy (CP).

The possible benefits of reduced errors in the motor skills acquisition of children

An implicit approach to motor learning suggests that relatively complex movement skills may be better acquired in environments that constrain errors during the initial stages of practice. This current concept paper proposes that reducing the number of errors committed during motor learning leads to stable performance when attention demands are increased by concurrent cognitive tasks. While it appears that this approach to practice may be beneficial for motor learning, further studies are needed to both confirm this advantage and better understand the underlying mechanisms. An approach involving error minimization during early learning may have important applications in paediatric rehabilitation.

Users’ experiences and perceptions on using two wiki platforms for collaborative learning and knowledge management

– This study aims to examine users’ experiences and perceptions associated with the use of two wiki variants in the context of collaborative learning and knowledge management in higher education., – Participants included two groups of postgraduate students from a university in Hong Kong who used MediaWiki (n=21) and TWiki (n=16) in completing course requirements. Using a multiple case study approach and a mixed methods research design, data logs on the wiki platforms were downloaded and the contents were analysed. Students’ perceptions were examined through a survey., – The findings indicate that both wikis were regarded as suitable tools for group projects, and that they improved group collaboration and work quality. Both wikis were also viewed as enabling tools for knowledge construction and sharing., – This study provides insights that may inform the decisions of educators who are considering the use of wikis in their courses as a platform to enhance collaborative learning and knowledge management., – Previous research has shown that wikis can be effectively used in education. However there are a number of wiki variants and it may be difficult to identify which variant would be the best choice. There is a dearth of research comparing the effectiveness of different types of wikis. This study compares two wiki variants on a number of outcomes which may provide some insights to teachers who are in the process of selecting an appropriate wiki for teaching and learning.

Fundamental movement skills testing in children with cerebral palsy

Purpose. To examine the inter-rater reliability and comparative validity of product-oriented and process-oriented measures of fundamental movement skills among children with cerebral palsy (CP). Method. In total, 30 children with CP aged 6 to 14 years (Mean  ==  9.83, SD  ==  2.5) and classified in Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) levels I–III performed tasks of catching, throwing, kicking, horizontal jumping and running. Process-oriented assessment was undertaken using a number of components of the Test of Gross Motor Development (TGMD-2), while product-oriented assessment included measures of time taken, distance covered and number of successful task completions. Cohens kappa, Spearmans rank correlation coefficient and tests to compare correlated correlation coefficients were performed. Results. Very good inter-rater reliability was found. Process-oriented measures for running and jumping had significant associations with GMFCS, as did seven product-oriented measures for catching, throwing, kicking, running and jumping. Product-oriented measures of catching, kicking and running had stronger associations with GMFCS than the corresponding process-oriented measures. Conclusion. Findings support the validity of process-oriented measures for running and jumping and of product-oriented measures of catching, throwing, kicking, running and jumping. However, product-oriented measures for catching, kicking and running appear to have stronger associations with functional abilities of children with CP, and are thus recommended for use in rehabilitation processes.

Acquiring visual information for locomotion by older adults: a systematic review

Developments in technology have facilitated quantitative examination of gaze behavior in relation to locomotion. The objective of this systematic review is to provide a critical evaluation of available evidence and to explore the role of gaze behavior among older adults during different forms of locomotion. Database searches were conducted to identify research papers that met the inclusion criteria of (1) study variables that included direct measurement of gaze and at least one form of locomotion, (2) participants who were older adults aged 60 years and above, and (3) reporting original research. Twenty-five papers related to walking on a straight path and turning (n=4), stair navigation (n=3), target negotiation and obstacle circumvention (n=13) and perturbation-evoked sudden loss of balance (n=5) were identified for the final quality assessment. The reviewed articles were found to have acceptable quality, with scores ranging from 47.06% to 94.12%. Overall, the current literature suggests that differences in gaze behavior during locomotion appear to change in late adulthood, especially with respect to transfer of gaze to and from a target, saccade-step latency, fixation durations on targets and viewing patterns. These changes appear to be particularly pronounced for older adults with high risk of falling and impaired executive functioning.

Assessment of Measures of Physical Activity of Children with Cerebral Palsy at Home and School: A Pilot Study

Home and school are important settings where children can accrue health promoting physical activity (PA). Little is known about the PA levels and associated environmental characteristics at home and school in children with cerebral palsy (CP). An observational tool - Behaviors of Eating and Activity for Children’s Health Evaluation System (BEACHES) - offers potential for providing information. Objective: To validate BEACHES against Actigraph accelerometer and to document PA of children with CP at a special residential school facility for children with physical disabilities. Methods: Five children with CP (2 girls, 3 boys; aged 9.82 ± 2.39 years) in Level I of the Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) participated. PA monitoring was conducted once a week during four consecutive weeks at morning recess at school and during after school hours at the children’s residence. Estimates of time spent being sedentary and being active were derived from the Actigraph and compared to estimates obtained with BEACHES. Results: Children’s PA observed using BEACHES was comparable to the Actigraph estimations. In general, children were more active at recess than after school and the physical locations assessed by BEACHES were associated with objectively measured PA time. Conclusion: This pilot study indicates that BEACHES appears to be a suitable measure of PA for children with CP in both home and school settings. Additional study with a larger and more diverse sample is recommended to verify the results.

Self-Concept and Physical Self-Concept in Psychiatric Children and Adolescents.

Self-concept is a widely examined construct in the area of psychiatric disorders. This study compared the Physical Self-Description Questionnaire (PSDQ) scores of adolescents with psychiatric disorders (N=103) with the results of a matched group of non-clinical adolescents (N=103). Self-concept and Physical self-concept were lower in the clinical than in the non-clinical group. Girls (N=59) scored lower than boys (N=44) in both groups. In the different diagnostic groups specific domains were affected in line with symptomatology, which has implications for therapy.