Background: In order to design appropriate environments for performance and learning of movement skills, physical educators need a sound theoretical model of the learner and of processes of learning. In physical education, this type of modelling informs the organisation of learning environments and effective and efficient use of practice time. An…

The position statement of the Council for Learning Disabilities' Board of Trustees opposes the measurement and training of perceptual and perceptual-motor functions as a part of learning disability services and recommends instead that assessment and remediation focus on the primary disorders of listening, speaking, reading, writing, reasoning, and…

This study examined consequences of the comorbidity of developmental coordination disorder (DCD) and learning disability (LD) for the severity and pattern of perceptual-motor dysfunction. Compared to children with only DCD, those with DCD and LD had poorer perceptual-motor ability, with particular difficulty performing manual dexterity and balance…

The study reports the findings of a meta-analysis, the application of statistical methods of data synthesis from individual studies, reviewing 180 studies assessing the efficacy of perceptual motor training. Perceptual motor training was not found to be an effective intervention technique for improving academic, cognitive, or perceptual motor…

Position statements of the Council for Learning Disabilities oppose the following: (1) use of discrepancy formulas in the identification of learning disabled individuals; (2) inclusion of nonhandicapped low achievers and underachievers in learning disability programs; and (3) measurement and training of perceptual and perceptual-motor functions.…

The sensory-motor bases of motor rehabilitation and current instructional theory about how handicapped children learn motor skills are explained. Strategies for organizing learning sessions, techniques of skill instruction, and the use of reinforcing feedback to maximize educational opportunities for handicapped children are discussed. (PP)

The Basic Stuff project is an effort to include more general concepts such as the effects of exercise, the learning of a new skill, and psychological factors influencing performance. The Basic Stuff Series attempts to summarize for teachers appropriate concepts and teaching methods. (JN)

Improvisation and imagery should be used to strengthen the thin bond between creativity and motor development in children. The approach to dance as an improvisational tool should be made more concrete when working with special populations such as mentally handicapped students. (JN)

Movement programs have the potential to make a significant contribution to the goals of aesthetic education. Movement professionals must be prepared to articulate and to demonstrate physical education's contributions towards the realization of these goals. (CJ)

Movement is motivated, encouraged, and governed by psycho-social development, motor development, and humanistic principles as well as by exercise physiology and kinesiology. The Basic Stuff series identifies the body of knowledge which underlies purposeful movement and can be integrated into concept or fundamental skill curricula. (JN)

The authors present a definition of art games and a rationale for their use, particulary with special students. They also describe three specific games: The People Game, Go Look, and Texo, and explain how each might aid in remediating learning problems. (SJL)

Assessment of 60 children (ages 9-15) with learning disabilities resulted in a group with relatively intact visual planning and mental flexibility skills and a group clearly dysfunctional in these areas. Comparison of the two subtypes on measures of academic skills, visual memory, visual-motor integration, and motor speed indicated significant…

Demographic data, IQ, achievement, perceptual-motor, behavior ratings, and diagnostic classification (learning, mental, emotional disability or no handicap) were analyzed for all children (N=2002) referred for complete psychological evaluation during one school year in Iowa. Learning disabled children showed a distinct pattern different from…

A sequential-developmental approach to the assessment of individuals from the earliest sensorimotor period through the level of abstract reasoning is discussed. The assessment is hierarchically sequenced and is concerned with how and why individuals process information. The assessment procedures provide practical data on levels of development. (JN)

Research about the retention and transfer of motor skills is reviewed and applied to physical education and sport settings. More research that is theoretically and empirically based and from which practitioners can draw their technology is needed. (Authors/CJ)