Assessing fundamental motor skills in Belgian children aged 3-8 years highlights differences to US reference sample

Bardid, Farid and Huyben, Floris and Lenoir, Matthieu and Seghers, Jan and De Martelaer, Kristine and Goodway, Jacqueline D and Deconinck, Frederik J A (2016) Assessing fundamental motor skills in Belgian children aged 3-8 years highlights differences to US reference sample. Acta Paediatrica, 105 (6). e281-e290. ISSN 0803-5253

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    Abstract

    AIM: This study aimed to understand the fundamental motor skills (FMS) of Belgian children using the process-oriented Test of Gross Motor Development, Second Edition (TGMD-2) and to investigate the suitability of using the United States (USA) test norms in Belgium. METHODS: FMS were assessed using the TGMD-2. Gender, age and motor performance were examined in 1614 Belgian children aged 3-8 years (52.1% boys) and compared with the US reference sample. RESULTS: More proficient FMS performance was found with increasing age, from 3 to 6 years for locomotor skills and 3 to 7 years for object control skills. Gender differences were observed in object control skills, with boys performing better than girls. In general, Belgian children had lower levels of motor competence than the US reference sample, specifically for object control skills. The score distribution of the Belgian sample was skewed, with 37.4% scoring below average and only 6.9% scoring above average. CONCLUSION: This study supported the usefulness of the TGMD-2 as a process-oriented instrument to measure gross motor development in early childhood in Belgium. However, it also demonstrated that caution is warranted when using the US reference norms.

    ORCID iDs

    Bardid, Farid ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8591-0596, Huyben, Floris, Lenoir, Matthieu, Seghers, Jan, De Martelaer, Kristine, Goodway, Jacqueline D and Deconinck, Frederik J A;
    • Item type:Article
      ID code:58163
      Dates:
      Date
      Event
      30 June 2016
      Published
      22 March 2016
      Published Online
      22 February 2016
      Accepted
      Notes:©2016 Foundation Acta Paediatrica. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
      Keywords:Belgium, early childhood, fundamental motor skills, test of gross motor development, Special aspects of education, Pediatrics, Perinatology, and Child Health
      Subjects:Education > Special aspects of education
      Department:Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (HaSS) > School of Education > Education
      Depositing user: Pure Administrator
      Date deposited:17 Oct 2016 10:06
      Last modified:09 Dec 2021 01:45
      URI:https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/id/eprint/58163
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