title: Four Weeks of Goal-Directed Learning in Primary Physical Education Classes.
abstract: Relatively little is known about how practice relates to children's improvement in gross motor skill performance. The aim of this study is to determine to what extent 6- and 7-year-old children improve their gross motor skill performance in a four-week period, in which goal-directed learning is stimulated and to determine whether differences between boys and girls occur. Groups of 6 year olds (n = 167) and 7 year olds (n = 140) practiced their gross motor skill for four weeks. Physical education teachers stimulated goal-directed learning by their instruction, skill-specific exercises, and individual practice. The week before and after, gross motor skill performance was assessed, using the Körper Koordinations Test für Kinder, and compared with a control group (n = 131). Both 6 and 7 year olds in the intervention group improved their gross motor skill performance significantly more than the control group. The results show the relevance of goal-directed learning for the improvement of gross motor skill performance.
authors.affiliation: HAN University of Applied Sciences, Nijmegen, The Netherlands Sebastiaan.Platvoet@han.nl.
authors.forename: Sebastiaan W J
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Platvoet
authors.affiliation: HAN University of Applied Sciences, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Center for Human Movement Sciences, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Marije T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Elferink-Gemser
authors.affiliation: HAN University of Applied Sciences, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Rianne
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kannekens
authors.affiliation: HAN University of Applied Sciences, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: de Niet
authors.affiliation: Center for Human Movement Sciences, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Visscher
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006040:Goals; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D009048:Motor Skills / Q000502:physiology*; D010806:Physical Education and Training
keywords: goal-directed; learning; motor development; skill-specific