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JOURNAL
OF
SPORTS SCIENCE &
MEDICINE
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Review article
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MOVEMENT SKILL ASSESSMENT OF TYPICALLY DEVELOPING PRESCHOOL CHILDREN: A REVIEW OF SEVEN MOVEMENT SKILL ASSESSMENT TOOLS |
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Wouter Cools1 ,
Kristine De Martelaer1, Christiane Samaey1 and Caroline
Andries2 |
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1Department of Movement Education and Sport Training, Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy, 2Department of Developmental and Lifespan Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Education, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussel, Belgium |
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© Journal of Sports Science and Medicine (2009) 8, 154 - 168 Search Google Scholar for Citing Articles |
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| ABSTRACT | |||
| The importance of movement is often overlooked because it is such
a natural part of human life. It is, however, crucial for a child's physical,
cognitive and social development. In addition, experiences support learning
and development of fundamental movement skills. The foundations of those
skills are laid in early childhood and essential to encourage a physically
active lifestyle. Fundamental movement skill performance can be examined
with several assessment tools. The choice of a test will depend on the context
in which the assessment is planned. This article compares seven assessment
tools which are often referred to in European or international context.
It discusses the tools' usefulness for the assessment of movement skill
development in general population samples. After a brief description of
each assessment tool the article focuses on contents, reliability, validity
and normative data. A conclusion outline of strengths and weaknesses of
all reviewed assessment tools focusing on their use in educational research
settings is provided and stresses the importance of regular data collection
of fundamental movement skill development among preschool children.
Key words: Early childhood, psychomotor performance, motor development, validity, reliability. |
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