Toward an Understanding of Developmental Coordination Disorder

2002 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheila E. Henderson ◽  
Leslie Henderson
Keyword(s):  
Motor Skills ◽  
Developmental Coordination Disorder ◽  
Medical Model ◽  
Childhood Disorders ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Intelligence Studies ◽  
Specific Disorders ◽  
High Degree ◽  
Coordination Disorder ◽  
Unexpected Difficulty

We consider three issues concerning unexpected difficulty in the acquisition of motor skills: terminology, diagnosis, and intervention. Our preference for the label Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) receives justification. Problems in diagnosis are discussed, especially in relation to the aetiology-dominated medical model. The high degree of overlap between DCD and other childhood disorders appears to militate against its acceptance as a distinct syndrome. In this context, we emphasize the need to determine whether incoordination takes different forms when it occurs alone is combined with general developmental delay or with other specific disorders in children of normal intelligence. Studies of intervention have mostly shown positive effects but do not, as yet, allow adjudication between different sorts of content. We suggest that the study of DCD and its remediation would benefit greatly from the employment of the simple but rich paradigms developed for the experimental analysis of fully formed adult movement skills.

Motor Skill Acquisition in Children with Developmental Coordination Disorder

1994 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 214-235 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheryl Missiuna
Keyword(s):  
Motor Skills ◽  
Skill Acquisition ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Developmental Coordination Disorder ◽  
Matched Control ◽  
Motor Skill Acquisition ◽  
Rate Of Learning ◽  
Stages Of Learning ◽  
Coordination Disorder ◽  
Effect Of Age

Children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) demonstrate coordination difficulties during the learning of novel motor skills; no previous studies, however, have investigated their ability to learn and then generalize a new movement. This study compared 24 young children with DCD with 24 age-matched control children (AMC) during the early stages of learning a simple aiming task. Children with DCD were found to perform more poorly than their peers on measures of acquired motor skill, and to react and move more slowly at every level of task performance. The effect of age and its relationship to practice of the task was also different within each group. The groups did not differ, however, in their rate of learning, or in the extent to which they were able to generalize the learned movement. Children with DCD sacrificed more speed than the AMC group when aiming at a small target, but the effects of amplitude and directional changes were quite similar for each group. The implications of these findings are discussed.

The ability of teachers to identify Grade 1 learners in low socio-economic environments with possible developmental coordination disorder

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alretha Du Plessis ◽  
Monique De Milander ◽  
Frederik F. Coetzee ◽  
Mariette Nel
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Motor Skills ◽  
Early Identification ◽  
Convergent Validity ◽  
Performance Test ◽  
Developmental Coordination Disorder ◽  
Screening Tools ◽  
Economic Environment ◽  
Movement Assessment ◽  
Coordination Disorder

Background: Early identification of learners in low socio-economic environments with possible developmental coordination disorder (DCD) is important. Although various screening tools are available, it is unclear whether teachers can use the movement assessment battery for children - second edition checklist (MABC-2 checklist) to identify learners with possible DCD.Aim: To establish teachers’ ability to identify Grade 1 learners in low socio-economic environments with possible DCD.Setting: The study was conducted in the Mangaung Metro, Motheo District of the Free State Province, South Africa. Grade 1 learners aged 6–8 years (n = 200) from a low socio-economic environment attending quintile one to three schools were randomly selected for assessment. Twenty-nine teachers participated in the study.Methods: Kinderkineticists identified learners with possible DCD (displaying motor skills far below the child’s age) by means of the MABC-2 performance test. The teachers used the MABC-2 checklist to identify possible DCD. The convergent validity of the MABC-2 performance test and checklist was compared.Results: The convergent validity between the MABC-2 performance test and the MABC-2 checklist indicated a kappa (k) coefficient of 0.17, indicating a slight agreement between the performance test and the checklist. Overall, the specificity was 58% (105/180), and the sensitivity was 85% (17/20).Conclusion: Teachers could effectively identify learners with possible DCD. However, they demonstrated a low ability to identify learners without possible DCD when using the MABC-2 checklist. It is therefore recommended that the performance test should be used in conjunction with the checklist to obtain the most reliable results.

Music, body movement, and dance intervention program for children with developmental coordination disorder

2020 ◽  
pp. 030573562093635
Author(s):  
Ariadna Díaz-Pérez ◽  
Gregorio Vicente-Nicolás ◽  
Ana Vanesa Valero-García
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Motor Skills ◽  
Intervention Program ◽  
Developmental Coordination Disorder ◽  
Body Movement ◽  
Cognitive Stimulation ◽  
Primary School Children ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Movement Assessment ◽  
Coordination Disorder

The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of an intervention program, based on music, movement, and dance, aimed at improving motor skills in children at risk of developmental coordination disorder (DCD). Participants comprised 70 primary school children (47 boys/23 girls) aged between 6 and 8 years. Participants were given the Spanish adaptation of the Movement Assessment Battery for Children–Second Edition (MABC-2) to identify difficulties and initially classify into three groups: a group of 17 at risk of DCD who participated in the intervention program (Experimental Group), a group of 18 at risk of DCD who did not participate (Control Group with Risk) and a group of 35 children, with scores higher than the cutoff point (Control Group without Risk). The results show a significant improvement in the motor skills of children who participated in the intervention program, while those in the Control Group showed no significant changes in the second evaluation compared with the first. Likewise, it could be affirmed that this intervention based on group activities involving music, movement, and dance is a very successful blend for motor improvement in children with coordination problems, due to the combination of cognitive stimulation areas and techniques.

scholarly journals Prevalence of possible developmental coordination disorder among Grade 1 learners in low socio-economic environments in Mangaung, South Africa

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alretha Margaretha Du Plessis ◽  
Monique De Milander ◽  
Frederick Francois Coetzee ◽  
Mariette Nel
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Motor Skills ◽  
Daily Living ◽  
Developmental Coordination Disorder ◽  
Economic Environment ◽  
Free State Province ◽  
Full Extent ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Movement Assessment ◽  
Coordination Disorder

Background: Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) affects motor skills and consequently has an impact on the performance in daily living activities of learners with this impairment.Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of possible DCD in Grade 1 (Gr. 1) learners in a low socio-economic environment in Mangaung, South Africa.Setting: The study was conducted in the Mangaung Metro, Motheo District, Free State Province. Gr. 1 learners, 6–8 years old (n = 242), from a low socio-economic environment attending Quintile 1–3 schools were randomly selected for assessment.Methods: The Movement Assessment Battery for Children-2nd edition (MABC-2) was used to identify learners with possible DCD. Furthermore, results were compared with regard to gender.Results: Of the 242 learners, 9.9% were identified with possible DCD. With regard to gender, 10.5% of boys and 9.3% of girls showed signs of possible DCD. No significant difference (p = 0.9439) has been found between boys and girls.Conclusion: The prevalence of possible DCD among Gr. 1 learners in this setting was higher than that in previously reported studies in other low and high socio-economic environments of South Africa. Further research is required to establish the full extent of possible DCD within learners living in low socio-economic environments.

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