Movement Difficulty and Learning Disabled Children

1987 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 72-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Kerr ◽  
Kathy Hughes
Keyword(s):  
Motor Skills ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Task Difficulty ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Disabled Children ◽  
Successful Performance ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Motor Difficulties ◽  
Information Processing Deficits ◽  
Processing Mechanism

Results of recent research have implicated information processing deficits in explaining the poor academic performance of learning disabled children. However, the motor difficulties of these children have not been extensively studied from a processing framework, yet cognitive skills are inherent to the successful performance of motor skills. Sixteen learning disabled and sixteen control subjects ranging in age from 6 to 8 years were tested on a Fitts’ reciprocal tapping task using 16 different target combinations with the ID ranging from 1.50 to 6.64 bits. Analysis of the slope and intercept coefficients showed a significant difference for intercept but not for slope. These data suggest that the problem may not be a major processing deficit, as the learning disabled children were able to handle the increased task difficulty in the same manner as the controls. Instead the problem may exist at the very early input stage of the processing mechanism: getting the information into the system.

Sex Differences in a Sample of Learning Disabled Children

1981 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 48-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
David B. Ryckman
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Cognitive Style ◽  
Motor Skills ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Abstract Thinking ◽  
Disabled Children ◽  
Field Dependent ◽  
Perceptual Motor Skills

Sex differences between 27 girls and 75 boys were examined on psychological, academic, and cognitive-style measures. All students were enrolled in a program for severely learning disabled children. LD girls were found to be verbally inferior, less capable of abstract thinking, more field dependent, and more impulsive than the boys. No differences were obtained on measures of academics or perceptual-motor skills. Possible socioemotional factors were suggested as an explanation for the above differences.

scholarly journals Playing, then and now – differences in time and elements of play from parents’ perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 99-119
Author(s):  
Ranko Rajović ◽  
Vanja Ković ◽  
Dragana Berić
Keyword(s):  
Motor Skills ◽  
Age Differences ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Physical Inactivity ◽  
General Trend ◽  
Fine Motor ◽  
Time Dimension ◽  
Children's Play ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Children’S Play

The question how the general trend toward physical inactivity and sedentary behavior affects children’s capabilities and cognitive skills is becoming increasingly important. The aim of this study was to compare children’s play time with parents’ play time at their child’s age, as well as the elements of play. A survey was conducted among parents of children aged 6 to 8 years. The results of the survey, which was based on a sample of 37 parents, showed that a child nowadays spends more time playing at home (110 minutes/day on average compared to the 96 minutes/day their parents played as children) and, conversely, with a statistically significant difference, only half the time their parents did playing outside (96 minutes/day on average compared to the 157 minutes/day on average that their parents spent at the same age). We also found a statistically significant difference in screen time in children today (93 minutes/day on average), which is three times as much as it used to be in their parents at that age. Differences were also evident in activities involving elements of rotation, balance, and dynamic accommodation, with most children now spending 0-15 minutes/day compared to parents who used to spend an hour or more on similar activities. For activities based on fine motor skills, half of the children nowadays spend 15-30 minutes/day, whereas half of the parents used to spend an hour or more. The contemporary lifestyle that is highly sedentary can affect many aspects of children’s play. The paper discusses differences of play in the time dimension and possible consequences of such behavior for child development.

Perception and Interpretation of Ambiguous Sentences by Learning Disabled Twelve-Year-Olds

1981 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabeth H. Wiig ◽  
Eleanor M. Semel ◽  
Else Abele
Keyword(s):  
Children And Adolescents ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Diagnostic Group ◽  
Linguistic Competence ◽  
Ambiguous Sentence ◽  
Verbal Intelligence ◽  
Disabled Children ◽  
Verbal Scale ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Syntactic Ambiguities

The present research assessed and compared the abilities of 27 learning disabled twelve-year-olds, 27 academically achieving age controls, 10 academically achieving seven- to eight-year-olds, and 10 normally developing five- to six-year-olds to perceive and interpret lexical and syntactic ambiguities in sentences. Eight lexically ambiguous, eight syntactically ambiguous, and four unambiguous control sentences were presented for interpretation of their alternatives in meaning. Each experimental sentence was associated with four pictorial choices. Significant differences in the ability to perceive and interpret the alternative meanings of both lexical and syntactical ambiguities were found between the learning disabled and the academically achieving twelve-year-olds. No significant difference existed in the ability of the learning disabled twelve-year-olds and the seven- to eight-year-old controls to perceive and interpret lexical ambiguities; however, they differed significantly in the ability to interpret the syntactic ambiguities. Comparison of the ability of the learning disabled twelve-year-olds and the five- to six-year-old controls to interpret the syntactic ambiguities indicated no significant differences. Among the learning disabled twelve-year-olds, performances on the ambiguous sentence test correlated positively with performances on tests of delayed sentence recall (NSST-Expressive) and of comprehension of sentences with linguistic concepts and relationships (Semel & Wiig, 1980). Performances did not correlate significantly with measures of verbal intelligence (WISC-R Verbal Scale). The present findings support previous observations of linguistic deficits among learning disabled children and adolescents and suggest that significant limitations may exist in the acquisition of linguistic competence by some children in this diagnostic group.

Using verbal mediation strategies and group processes to enhance story writing

1991 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 17-33
Author(s):  
Robyn Gillies
Keyword(s):  
Group Process ◽  
Group Processes ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Expository Writing ◽  
Disabled Children ◽  
Verbal Mediation ◽  
Group Settings ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Story Writing ◽  
Two Measures

This study was conducted to determine whether verbal mediation strategies and group process skills implemented in small cooperative group settings of learning disabled children and low progress children, were effective in improving the children's expository writing performances. Measures of writing behaviour which were monitored included words per story, and two measures of complexity-number of T-units per story and number of words per T-unit. The results indicated that there was a larger increase in the target children's performances over baseline in both the number of words per story and the number of T-units per story. However, there was no significant difference in measures of words per T-unit. The results obtained suggest that the relatively simple procedures which were adopted to facilitate group interaction and commitment to tasks did contribute to the gains made by the children in the cooperative condition.

Learning Disabled Children's Attributions for Success and Failure

1980 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ruth Pearl ◽  
Tanis Bryan ◽  
Mavis Donahue
Keyword(s):  
Locus Of Control ◽  
Internal Control ◽  
Task Difficulty ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Eighth Grade ◽  
Disabled Children ◽  
Social Situations ◽  
Achievement Behavior ◽  
Children's Beliefs ◽  
And Control

These studies examined underachieving and control children's beliefs about the causes of their successes and failures. In Study 1, third- through eighth-grade children were administered a scale measuring locus of control in achievement situations. Results indicated that underachieving children had weaker feelings of internal control over success than the control children. In Study 2, first- through eighth-grade children rated the importance of ability, effort, task difficulty, and luck for success and failure in reading, on puzzles, and in social situations. The children's ratings indicated that underachievers believed lack of effort played less of a role in their failures than did control children. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for the achievement behavior of learning disabled children.

Communication through Physical Activity for Learning Disabled Children

1983 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 155-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joan Hendry ◽  
Robert Kerr
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Motor Skills ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Classroom Teacher ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Treated Group ◽  
Reading Programs ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Integrated Program

To measure the extent to which an integrated program of motor and cognitive tasks might enhance the learning disabled children's motor and basic cognitive skills, a treated group of 8 had three ½-hr. sessions per week for 6 mo. 8 control subjects continued regular physical education and reading programs with their classroom teacher. All subjects were tested before and after 6 mo. Over-all the treated group showed greater improvement on tests of both motor and cognitive skills than the control group. This study suggests a physical activity program can influence basic cognitive skills as well as motor skills.

Educational Kinesiology with Learning Disabled Children: An Efficacy Study

1994 ◽  
Vol 78 (1) ◽  
pp. 105-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryne M. Cammisa
Keyword(s):  
Motor Skills ◽  
Program Analysis ◽  
Learning Disabled ◽  
Disabled Children ◽  
Learning Potential ◽  
Educational Kinesiology ◽  
Perceptual Motor Skills ◽  
School Records ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Specific Learning

Educational Kinesiology is a treatment using specific movements to access different parts of the brain in maximizing learning potential. It has been recommended for use with learning disabled children; however, studies validating its effects are limited. The school records of 25 students each with a diagnosis of specific learning disability were examined for pre- and posttest scores on academic and perceptual motor skill measures following an Educational Kinesiology program. Analysis indicated significant improvement in perceptual motor skills following the Educational Kinesiology program. The change in academic skills was not significant. Educational Kinesiology is recommended as a treatment to improve perceptual motor function of learning disabled children. Other variables affecting this study as well as clinical and research implications are discussed.

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