Assessing Early Motor Development



Assessing Early Motor Development

“The study of changes in motor behavior over the lifespan, the processes that underlie these changes, and the factors that affect them.” (p. 3)

Assessment is a process that involves measurement (collection of data) and evaluation (interpretation of the data)

Why Do Assessments? (p. 367)

Screening

Program Content

Student Progress

Program Evaluation

Classification

Screening

“a process whereby people are assessed to determine if they should be referred for further testing or whether they need a special program of instruction”

Program Content

“by assessing students’ incoming ability, you will be able to write program objectives that challenge students”

Student Progress

“assessment can also be used to determine how well students are proceeding toward course objectives”

Program Evaluation

“assess your students’ performance to determine whether a specific program of instruction is fostering their skill development”

Classification

“through assessment, it is possible to place students in homogeneous or heterogeneous groups”

Assessment

Assessment is a process that involves measurement (collection of data) and evaluation (interpretation of the data)

Types of Measurement

Product-Oriented

“the end result, the outcome, of the movement is the focus” (p. 20)

quantitative/objective

Process-Oriented

“emphasizes the movement itself, with little attention to the movement outcome” (p. 20)

qualitative/subjective

Two Approaches to

Process-Oriented Measurements

Component Approach

“describes changes that are expected to occur within each body segment” (p. 260)

Total Body Approach

“the total body configuration during performance is described” (p. 260)

Evaluation

Norm-Referenced Evaluations

“compare a person’s skills and abilities with those of others from similar age, gender, and socioeconomic categories” (p. 371)

Criterion-Reference Evaluations

“evaluate the ‘quality’ of a person’s performance” by comparing “people to themselves over time” (p. 371)

Types of Skill/Movements

Fine Motor

movements that are “primarily governed by the small muscles of muscle groups” (p. 19)

Gross Motor Skill

movements that are “primarily controlled by the large muscles or muscle groups” (p. 19)

Attainment Norms

Specific time the various grasping skills emerge

extremely variable

emerge earlier today due to enhanced standards of living, improved nutrition, and early motor experiences

There is a proximodistal pattern of development

“from those points close to the body’s center to those points close to the periphery, or farthest from the body’s center.” (p. 17)

If subject not in age range, development may be abnormal and additional testing or treatment should be considered

Task Constraints on Prehension

Effect of Size & Shape

size & shape alter the # of fingers or hands used to grasp an object

Halvorson’s 10 stages of grasping were based on one object size and shape

when different sizes of objects are used, children and adults use similar grasping patterns for similarly sized objects relative to their hand size

object shape will also alter grasping patterns

grasping development may be more “flexible” than the stages presented by Halvorson

Control of Multiple Objects

Birth to 5 months

unable to control multiple objects

6 - 8 months

transfer 1st object to other hand for storage while grasping for 2nd object; unable to deal with 3 objects

9 - 11 months

able to receive 3 objects; place earlier objects in lap or nearby in order to receive the 3rd object

12+ months

hands earlier objects to someone else for safekeeping; able to cross body midline when handed an object

Bimanual Coordination

Controlled use of the two hands to produce a skill movement

Two types

Symmetrical

the limbs perform identical and simultaneous movements

example: clapping

Asymmetrical/Complementary

the limbs perform different movements

one hand is the primary manipulator, while the other hand functions in a complementary manner to position and/or stablize the object

example: using scissors

Walking Development

Component Approach

a larger step # implies an increasing level of developmental competency

when a child demonstrates different step #s from trial to trial, the child is “in transition” to a qualitatively different level of developmental competency

different step #s for different components demonstrates that all body parts do not develop at the same rate

Methods of Observation

Photo/Video Assessment

more time to evaluate the subject

easier to focus on individual body components

easier for teachers/coaches with little knowledge of the critical features that characterize a given developmental step

In Person Assessment

need to watch several trials in order to get an average assessment of a body component

teacher/coach is able to move to different vantage points in order to assess the developmental step

Limitations of Observation Assessments

You can only record information that you can see

cannot assess changes in internal (muscular) forces

cannot obtain quantitative data

joint angles, step length, velocity

Subject provided information may be inaccurate

examples: what the subject was thinking, how motivated were they, what prior experiences they may have had

Assessment scales need to be validated

different measurement instruments have been used

many discrepancies for times of skill attainment

Factors that Affect Performance

Time of day/Level of alertness

Clothing

Presence of caretaker

Comfortableness with strangers

Familiarity with surroundings

Task constraints

example: influence of gravity on infant stepping Past experiences with similar tasks

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