This document summarizes research on physical literacy and movement competency in children. It discusses how low physical literacy is linked to issues like obesity and inactivity. The research aims to assess movement competency in primary school children using tests of 7 fundamental movements and skills. Initial results show a relationship between better performance on movement tests and meeting daily physical activity guidelines. Girls generally scored higher than boys. The research will next implement an intervention using movement breaks and modified PE lessons to improve competency over the school year while monitoring changes. The goal is to better understand movement competency and how it relates to lifestyle factors and physical literacy.

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Dr Mark McKean PhD CSCS AEP RSCC*E
PHYSICAL LITERACY IN CHILDREN: MOVEMENT
COMPETENCY FAILURE AND IMPLICATIONS
RESEARCH TEAM
 Dr Mark McKean (USC)
 Chris Turner (Peak Performance)
 Claire Tompsett (Honours student)
 Professor Brendan Burkett (USC)
 Kelvin Giles (Adjunct Sports Scientist USC, Movement
Dynamics UK)
PHYSICAL LITERACY
 Defined as having the ability and motivation, confidence
and knowledge to maintain physical activity at an
individually appropriate level within different contexts
throughout life (Whitehead 2007).
IMPORTANCE OF PHYSICAL LITERACY
Low levels of physical literacy linked to
 Obesity (Faigenbaum 2012)
 Inactive adulthood (D’Hont et al. 2013)
 Increased discomfort when exercising (Faigenbaum 2012)
BACKGROUND
 Over the last decade there has been a noticeable
increase in the obesity levels of Australian children
 Many children are showing risk factors associated with
heart disease such as high blood pressure, increased
cholesterol and obesity
 These risk factors were previously only apparent in
middle aged Australians
BACKGROUND
 The reasons behind these are varied. Some of which
include:
 The interest in computer games and TV viewing
 The fact that both parents may be working
 Restricted outdoor activity due to fear of danger on our streets
 The widespread use of the motor car and modern modes of
transport
 The number of recreational choices children has available to them
today which are not based on physical activity
 The high density housing with little or no outdoor play areas

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BACKGROUND
 The Australian Bureau of Statistics reported an estimated
37%, or almost 974,000 Australian children aged 5-14 years
did not take part in an organised sport in 2006 and a further
23% either did no exercise, or participated in very low
amounts (ABS 2012)
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IN YOUNGER
PEOPLE
Mins/dayMOVEMENT DISORDERS
 It has been estimated that 5–10% of the school-aged
population have a development coordination disorder,
defined as displaying unusual difficulties in performing
motor skills despite no identifiable physical or
intellectual disability (Venetansou et al. 2011)
PARENTAL INFLUENCE
 Active mothers are twice as likely to have active children
while active fathers are 3.5 times likely to have active
children
OLYMPIC PROSPECTS
2028 Olympic Games team
 450 athletes (average age 26)
 These athletes currently 11 years of age
 In year ending June 2012 there were 2.8million 5-14 year olds
 63% overweight/obese leaves – 1.08 million potential
prospects
 June 2011 - 9,435 schools meaning we need 1 Olympian from
every 20 schools
RESEARCH GAPS
 Current research focuses on the philosophical aspects of
defining physical literacy and the characteristics that
represent a ‘physically literate’ individual.
 There are no quantifiable methods of assessing
movement competency or ‘physical literacy levels’.
 Validated physical tests for school-aged children focus
on skill competency or fitness levels.

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MULTI-LAYERED PROJECT
Australia
 Assessing movement competency in primary school
aged children
 Comparing movement competency with Skill
competency
 Determining reliability of screening criteria
 Assess movement competency in children using a
range of tests
 7 movements
 Get Active skills
 What is correlation between movement
competency and skill literacy
 Can performance in these movement competency
tests be related to certain lifestyle factors such as
level of physical activity
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
METHODS
 Included
 1200 primary school participants - Qld
 150 primary school participants in NSW
 Collection of anthropometric data including height
and weight to determine BMI.
 Objective measurement of the 7 movement
competencies’ and other tests
 Survey ascertaining lifestyle factors
7 MOVEMENT COMPETENCIES
DERIVED FROM ANALYSING COMMON ACTION IN BOTH
SPORT AND DAILY MOVEMENT
9 FOUNDATION SPORT SKILLS –
GET ACTIVE NSW PROGRAM
static balance,
vertical jump,
side gallop,
kick,
overarm throw,
sprint run,
hop,
skip,
dodge.
TEST: BENT LEG HINGE
Main 5 ScoringPoints. Achieving each point gains 1 point to a maximum of 5
 Sideways view:
 Trunk remains straight throughout with no bending or banana action at the lower
back.
 Head remains in neutral alignment with trunk and spine.
 Knees remain fixed with no excessive flexion/bending
 Front view:
 Weight remains even between both feet with no movement towards one side
 Shoulders remain square and aligned with no rounding or sagging through upper
back

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SPORT
STUDY 1 RESULTS
 Average daily time spent in physical activity was less
than sedentary activities
 No relationship was found between BMI and 7
foundation exercise performance.
 BMI was found to correlate with FSS ability.
 Children who achieved the recommended ≥60 minutes
of physical activity per day performed better in both
assessments.
STUDY 2 RESULTS
RESULTS OF 7 MOVEMENTS
Year
level
Gender Squat Lunge Hinge Push Pull Brace Rotate
2 M 3.0 3.1* 2.0* 2.6 2.0 3.1 2.9
F 3.3 2.2* 2.8* 2.5 2.3 3.0 2.9
3 M 3.1 2.4 1.8* 3.0 2.7 3.6 2.0
F 3.1 2.7 2.4* 2.9 2.5 3.9 2.5
4 M 2.6 1.9 1.7* 2.3 2.2 3.3 2.2*
F 2.6 2.2 2.3* 2.3 2.2 3.3 2.9*
5 M 3.0 1.8* 1.9* 3.1 3.0 4.0 3.1*
F 2.7 2.6* 2.6* 3.1 3.0 4.2 3.6*
6 M 3.3 3.0 2.2* 3.4 3.1 4.0 3.7
F 3.0 3.1 2.7* 3.2 3.0 4.1 3.9
Girls always
better than boys
Highest scoring
perhaps too
easy a test
Girls always
better than boys
except year 2
SO FAR….
 Appears to be link between
 Exercise score and amount of daily activity
 Obvious issues relate to
 Inability to control lumbar flexion-hip flexion
 Control of posture of the trunk
 Balance on single leg
 Sedentary behaviour greater than active behaviour

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STUDY 3 - INTERVENTION
 4 school terms - 6/10 PE lessons per term
 Modified PE lessons to include 7 Moves Training
 Each school day
 2-3 movement breaks of 5 min
 Movement puzzles
 Monitoring
 3 re-assessments over course of the year (Feb, July, Nov)
 Survey of students attitude and academic behaviour
DR MARK MCKEAN
 Research Fellow – USC
 Tel: +61 7 54565528
 Email: mmckean@usc.edu.au
Questions