Experiences in Physical Education for Children at Risk for Developmental Coordination Disorder

Understanding factors that influence physical activity behavior in people with developmental coordination disorder (DCD): a mixed-methods convergent integrated systematic review

This systematic review synthesizes the literature on physical activity amongst people with DCD using the COM-B framework. The review questions were: (1) what is the Capability (C), Opportunity (O) and Motivation (M) for physical activity and (2) what does physical activity behavior (B) look like? A mixed-methods systematic review was conducted by searching eight databases (PubMed, APA PsycINFO, EMBASE, Scopus, Child Development and Adolescent Studies, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, CINAHL) up to July 2023. Data were extracted, thematically analyzed, and mapped to the COM-B model. The quality of studies was assessed with the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) critical appraisal tool. The protocol was registered with PROSPERO (CRD42022319127). Forty-three papers, 42 of which related to children, were included. Fifteen aligned with physical activity behavior, nine with physical capability, thirteen with psychological capability, one with social opportunity, one with physical opportunity, one with reflective motivation and three with automatic motivation. Pre-school-aged children with DCD engage in comparable levels of physical activity behavior, but differences emerge from 6 years of age. Characteristics of DCD result in reduced physical capability and less varied participation in physical activity. This impacts psychological capability, whereby lower self-perceptions result in a negative feedback loop and reduce the motivation to participate. Barriers relating to social opportunities may result in poor reflective and automatic motivation, although there is evidence that interventions can enhance enjoyment in the short term.

Developmental coordination disorder: What can we learn from RI mice using motor learning tasks and QTL analysis

Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder of unknown etiology that affects one in 20 children. There is an indication that DCD has an underlying genetic component due to its high heritability. Therefore, we explored the use of a recombinant inbred family of mice known as the BXD panel to understand the genetic basis of complex traits (i.e., motor learning) through identification of quantitative trait loci (QTLs). The overall aim of this study was to utilize the QTL approach to evaluate the genome-to-phenome correlation in BXD strains of mice in order to better understand the human presentation of DCD. Results of this current study confirm differences in motor learning in selected BXD strains and strains with altered cerebellar volume. Five strains - BXD15, BXD27, BXD28, BXD75, and BXD86 - exhibited the most DCD-like phenotype when compared with other BXD strains of interest. Results indicate that BXD15 and BXD75 struggled primarily with gross motor skills, BXD28 primarily had difficulties with fine motor skills, and BXD27 and BXD86 strains struggled with both fine and gross motor skills. The functional roles of genes within significant QTLs were assessed in relation to DCD-like behavior. Only Rab3a (Ras-related protein Rab-3A) emerged as a high likelihood candidate gene for the horizontal ladder rung task. This gene is associated with brain and skeletal muscle development, but lacked nonsynonymous polymorphisms. This study along with Gill et al. (same issue) is the first studies to specifically examine the genetic linkage of DCD using BXD strains of mice.

Investigating the mediating role of internalizing and externalizing problems on physical fitness in children at risk for Developmental Coordination Disorder

Children with Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) have poorer fitness and greater internalizing/externalizing problems compared with typically developing (TD) children. The purpose of this study was to examine the potential mediating role of internalizing/externalizing problems on the relationship between children at risk for DCD (DCDr) and physical fitness. Participants (N = 589) included 288 children with DCDr (M_age = 4.9, 67% male) and 301 TD children (M_age = 5.0, 48% male). Motor skills were assessed using the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-2^nd edition (DCDr: at or below the 16th percentile, TD: >16th percentile). Parent-reported internalizing/externalizing problems were measured using the Child Behaviour Checklist. Physical fitness was measured using the Bruce protocol maximal treadmill test and a 30-second Wingate test. Tests for indirect (mediation) effects were assessed using the PROCESS v3.5 software macro. Children with DCDr had higher internalizing and externalizing problems (p < 0.001, d = 0.35-0.46) and poorer fitness levels (p < 0.001, ηp² = 0.05-0.09). Internalizing problems mediated fitness performance on both the treadmill and Wingate test; however, externalizing problems showed no mediating effects. Thus, interventions targeting internalizing problems may contribute to improving performance on fitness-based tasks among children with DCDr. Novelty: Children at risk for DCD have poorer fitness when compared with TD children. Children at risk for DCD experience greater internalizing/externalizing problems. Internalizing problems were found to mediate the DCD-physical fitness relationship.

An Exploratory Study of Teachers' Experiences in Physical Education With Children Thought to Have Developmental Coordination Disorder

Teachers can create supportive conditions in physical education to mitigate experiences of stress for children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD); however, most are unfamiliar with DCD and lack adequate training to instruct children with impairments. The purpose of this study was to explore teachers' perceptions of and interactions in physical education with children thought to demonstrate functional difficulties associated with DCD. A semistructured interview was conducted with 12 teachers across all elementary years with diverse backgrounds and thematically analyzed. Four themes were produced. Teachers (a) had differing views on the etiology of children's movement difficulties, though (b) all recognized a range of difficulties children demonstrated. They (c) believed it was their role to facilitate positive experiences for these children in physical education but (d) experienced challenges in doing so. Training that increases teachers' knowledge of and abilities to address the needs of children thought to have DCD is warranted.