Vatroslav Horvat

Towards the Construction of Test for Assessing Motor Abilities in Four-aged Pre-school Children

Abstract The objective of this study is to determine the basic metrical properties of the tests for the assessment latent dimensions of motor abilities at four-year children. Sample included 50 children aged 4 years (± 6 months) from three kindergartens in Zagreb, during the first half of 2015. Battery of tests that assess the hypothetical motor abilities (coordination, speed, balance, and strength) was applied. Reliabilities of the tests varied in the range from 0.45 to 0.96 (Cronbach’s alpha). Already satisfactory discriminability is not found only for tests two-leg jumping through hoops and standing on one leg. Homogeneity of the tests varies in range from 0.22 to 0.89 (average inter-item correlation). Analysis of the construct validity revealed two-component structure which has very low reliability of the second component. Results indicate the potential for constructing new instruments for measuring motor abilities in four-aged children, on a larger sample of participants.

Correlations Between Motor Abilities, Morphological Characteristics, and Preparedness for School at Pre-school Boys

Abstract The associations between motor abilities (MA), morphological characteristics (MC), and cognitive preparedness (PP) for school in pre-school aged boys should provide a platform for improved systematic educational work. The main goal of this research is to determine the correlation between children’s MA, MC and PP, using univariate and multivariate statistical methods. Randomized sample of pre-school boys (N=106), aged 6-7, was examined. Eighteen composite motor tests were utilized to measure MA; Test for School Preparedness (TSS) with five sub-tests was used in estimating boys’ PP; additionally, 14 morphological characteristics were measured. Findings revealed that all the canonical correlations were statistically significant: between MA and MC, between MA and PP, as well as between MC and PP. Thus, the correlation is the lowest between MC and PP. MC could be a less important factor for estimating the overall preparedness for school, than boys’ MA at the age of six or seven years.

Standing Long Jump Performance Quality: Age and Gender Differences / Dobne i spolne razlike u kvaliteti usvojenosti skoka u dalj iz mjesta

Abstract The primary aim of this research was to determine age and gender differences in the quality of fundamental motor skill performance - the standing long jump. The research was conducted on the sample of 72 preschool children (31 girls and 41 boys) aged 5 - 7 years, all attending preschool in Cakovec. General characteristics of the standing long jump skill were assessed using Roberton and Halverson method (1984). Data was collected by video recording the standing long jump from a side angle. The level of motor skills was evaluated by three independent judges. Age and gender differences were calculated by the analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results of the analysis showed significant statistical differences in jumping skills between younger (5-6 years) and older (6-7 years) group in all the variables. No considerable differences were found in the quality of the standing long jump performance between boys and girls. Key words: preschool children; Roberton and Halverson method, video recording. --- Sažetak Osnovni je cilj ovog istraživanja utvrditi dobne i spolne razlike u kvaliteti usvojenosti motorickoga znanja - skoka u dalj iz mjesta. Istraživanje je provedeno na 72 djece (31 djevojcici i 41 djecaku) u dobi od 5 do 7 godina polaznicima djecjega vrtica u Cakovcu. Primijenjena je skala (Roberton i Halverson, 1984) za procjenu razvojnih karakteristika skoka u dalj iz mjesta. Podaci su prikupljeni snimanjem videokamerom koja je bila postavljena s bocne strane. Procjenu razine znanja napravila su tri strucnjaka. Razlike između spola i dobi izracunate su univarijatnom analizom varijance (ANOVA). Rezultati su pokazali statisticki znacajnu razliku između mlađe i starije dobne skupine u svim varijablama. Znacajne razlike između djevojcica i djecaka u kvaliteti izvedbe skoka u dalj iz mjesta nisu zapažene. Kljucne rijeci: djeca predskolske dobi; Roberton i Halverson metoda; snimanje videokamerom.