Short-term motor learning of dynamic balance control in children with probable Developmental Coordination Disorder.
Kids with DCD need more practice and direct coaching to slow down when learning tricky balance tasks.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team tested the kids with probable DCD and 24 typical kids on a Wii Fit balance game.
Each child stood on the board and tried to keep a virtual ball in a target zone while the board tilted.
They gave everyone 90 practice trials and checked again six weeks later to see who kept the skill.
What they found
Kids with DCD needed more tries to get good and never learned to slow down for better accuracy.
Typical kids quickly found a speed-accuracy sweet spot.
Both groups kept their gains after six weeks, but the DCD group stayed slower and less steady.
How this fits with other research
Gilchrist et al. (2018) shows we can track motor quirks with cheap wrist sensors.
Dorothee’s Wii Fit data lines up—both papers push for tech that gives clear numbers instead of guesswork.
Efstratopoulou et al. (2012) found PE teachers can spot motor red flags in class.
Dorothee’s lab task backs that up: the same motor delays show up under tight control, proving the teachers’ ratings are solid.
Why it matters
When you teach balance skills, give kids with DCD extra trials and tell them out loud to slow down early.
The six-week hold tells you one solid block of practice can last—so front-load sessions before breaks.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
PURPOSE: To explore the differences in learning a dynamic balance task between children with and without probable Developmental Coordination Disorder (p-DCD) from different cultural backgrounds. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-eight Dutch children with DCD (p-DCD-NL), a similar group of 17 South African children (p-DCD-SA) and 21 Dutch typically developing children (TD-NL) participated in the study. METHODS: All children performed the Wii Fit protocol. The slope of the learning curve was used to estimate motor learning for each group. The protocol was repeated after six weeks. Level of motor skill was assessed with the Movement ABC-2. RESULTS: No significant difference in motor learning rate was found between p-DCD-NL and p-DCD-SA, but the learning rate of children with p-DCD was slower than the learning rate of TD children. Speed-accuracy trade off, as a way to improve performance by slowing down in the beginning was only seen in the TD children, indicating that TD children and p-DCD children used different strategies. Retention of the level of learned control of the game after six weeks was found in all three groups after six weeks. The learning slope was associated with the level of balance skill for all children. This study provides evidence that children with p-DCD have limitations in motor learning on a complex balance task. In addition, the data do not support the contention that learning in DCD differs depending on cultural background.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2015 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2014.12.027