Barn och vuxna blir allt mindre fysiskt aktiva medborgare vilket i sin tur leder till att hälsan påverkas negativt. Genom att utveckla barn och ungas grovmotoriska förmåga ökas deras fysiska aktivitet vilket i sin tur leder till en bättre hälsa. Forskare visar att idrottslärare har en viktig roll då deras didaktiska kunskaper ger ökad chans till motorisk utveckling hos eleverna och att skolan är en optimal plattform för utvecklingen då många elever endast utövar fysiska aktiviteter i just skolan. Genom mina studier i ämnet idrott och hälsa har jag valt att skriva denna litteraturstudien i just ämnet idrott och hälsa. Litteraturstudien är indelad i tre frågeställningar där den första belyser hur grovmotorik påverkar barn och ungas fysiska förmåga/aktivitet, den andra hur grov motorisk träning/förmåga påverkar elevers skolprestationer och den sista hur den fysiska aktivitetens och motoriska förmågan påverkar elevers självbild. Studien är baserad på elva vetenskapliga artiklar som alla undersökt sambandet mellan grov motorisk förmåga och fysisk aktivitet och dess påverkan på elever på olika sätt. Resultaten visar att en förbättrad grov motorisk förmåga ökar mängden fysisk aktivitet hos barn och unga och att en god grovmotorik kan påverkaelevers skolprestationer positivt. Resultaten visar även att elever med god grovmotorik blir mer socialt accepterade av sina klasskamrater vilket ger en bättre självbild. Det främsta resultatet som framkommit av litteraturstudien är att barn och unga som besitter en god motorisk förmåga kommer tenderar att bli mer fysiskt aktiva än ett barn med sämre motorisk förmåga, barnet kommer även ha en större chans att få ett mer fysiskt aktivt liv.

Ce travail avait pour premier objectif d’analyser la réorganisation du mouvement lors de l’apprentissage d’une habileté motrice complexe, la marche athlétique. Le deuxième objectif était de mieux comprendre le rôle des facteurs métaboliques et de la perception de l’effort sur ce processus.Pour cela, les deux premières études se sont intéressées à l’évolution d’un grand nombre de variables cinématiques avec la pratique. Les participants ont reçu au début de chaque séance de pratique trois consignes (i.e., contraintes biomécaniques) concernant la règlementation et la technique de la marche athlétique. Les résultats de l’étude 1 ont mis en évidence une évolution rapide de la coordination et du contrôle (Newell, 1985) qui semble atteindre un plateau à la quatrième séance de pratique sur les sept réalisées. L’étude 2, qui analyse d’une façon plus approfondie ces quatre premières séances, a indiqué un rôle important des contraintes de la tâche sur la réorganisation du mouvement avec la pratique,réfutant l’existence de principes généraux concernant la maîtrise des degrés de liberté (Bernstein,1967). De plus, l’étude 1 a montré une réduction des valeurs métaboliques et de la perception de l’effort périphérique lors de la pratique, qui corrèlent significativement avec la réorganisation globale du mouvement. Les résultats semblent indiquer un rôle important des informations sensorielles périphériques sur l’adoption de patterns de mouvements plus économiques avec la pratique. L’étude 3a montré que suite aux 7 séances d’apprentissage, les participants adoptent spontanément au test de transition un nouveau comportement, la marche athlétique, entre la marche et la course, et ce pour des raisons non-métaboliques. En conclusion, ce travail propose que la réorganisation du mouvement lors de l’apprentissage de la marche athlétique soit orientée par les contraintes de la tâche d’une part et parla perception de l’effort périphérique d’autre part dans un but d’optimisation métabolique. Toutefois,l’optimisation des facteurs métabolique ne semble pas prioritaire lorsque le système locomoteur doit s’adapter rapidement face à un niveau critique de contrainte. / The first aim of the present work was to investigate movement reorganization with learning a complex motor skill, racewalking. The second aim was to bring more insight into the role of metabolic factors and perceived exertion. To do so, the first two studies analyzed the evolution of a large number of kinematic variables when participants underwent the practice sessions. At the start of each session, three instructions (i.e., biomechanical constraints) concerning the regulations and technique of racewalking were given. The results of the first study put forward a rapid evolution ofcoordination and control (Newell, 1985) that seem to reach a plateau at the fourth session out of seven in total. The second study, that investigated closely these first four sessions, revealed an important role of task constraints on movement reorganization, refuting the existence of general principles concerning the mastery of degrees of freedom (Bernstein, 1967). Furthermore, the first study showed a reduction in metabolic values and peripheral perceived exertion with practice, which were significantly correlated to the global movement reorganization. Overall, the results seem to raise an important role of peripheral sensory information on the adoption of more economical movement patterns with practice. The third study showed that after the seven learning session, participants spontaneously adopted racewalking as a new pattern in the transition test, between walking and running, for non-metabolic reasons. In conclusion, the present work proposes that the movement reorganization accompanying the learning of racewalking is oriented by task constraints on one sideand peripheral perceived exertion on the other aiming for metabolic optimization. Nevertheless, optimization of metabolic factors doesn’t seem a priority when the motor system should quickly adapt to a critical level of constraints.

Increasingly, virtual reality therapy (VRT) technologies are being used to augment pediatric rehabilitation. The mechanisms underlying success/failure of VRTs are not well understood. This thesis proposed an innovative 3-phase framework for evaluating VRT technologies with respect to neuroplasticity based on results of a scoping review of 21 studies. A case study was undertaken to demonstrate use of the framework to design and evaluate ‘Musical Steps’, a VRT technology aimed at promoting heel contact in toe-walking children. 5 therapists and 4 children were engaged in this study. The system accurately detected 88%(SD=7%) of heel contacts and was rated positively in usability testing (phase 1). Feasibility studies indicated that, while enjoyable, children did not understand the feedback provided and hence, heel contact was not increased (phase 2). These findings will direct future reiterations prior to evaluating clinical impact (phase 3). The proposed framework may enhance design and translation of therapeutically relevant VRTs.

Increasingly, virtual reality therapy (VRT) technologies are being used to augment pediatric rehabilitation. The mechanisms underlying success/failure of VRTs are not well understood. This thesis proposed an innovative 3-phase framework for evaluating VRT technologies with respect to neuroplasticity based on results of a scoping review of 21 studies. A case study was undertaken to demonstrate use of the framework to design and evaluate ‘Musical Steps’, a VRT technology aimed at promoting heel contact in toe-walking children. 5 therapists and 4 children were engaged in this study. The system accurately detected 88%(SD=7%) of heel contacts and was rated positively in usability testing (phase 1). Feasibility studies indicated that, while enjoyable, children did not understand the feedback provided and hence, heel contact was not increased (phase 2). These findings will direct future reiterations prior to evaluating clinical impact (phase 3). The proposed framework may enhance design and translation of therapeutically relevant VRTs.

La pratique physique a longtemps été perçue comme le déterminant premier de l’apprentissage du mouvement. Souvent exprimée par l’expression « Vingt fois sur le métier remettez votre ouvrage», cette idée se base sur l’observation qu’une grande quantité de pratique est nécessaire pour maîtriser un geste technique complexe. Bien que l’importance de la pratique physique pour l’apprentissage du mouvement demeure indéniable, il a récemment été démontré que les changements neurobiologiques qui constituent les bases de la mémoire prennent place après la pratique. Ces changements, regroupés sous le terme « consolidation », sont essentiels à la mise en mémoire des habiletés motrices. L’objectif de cette thèse est de définir les processus de consolidation en identifiant certains facteurs qui influencent la consolidation d’une habileté motrice. À l’aide d’une tâche d’adaptation visuomotrice comportant deux niveaux de difficulté, nous avons démontré qu’une bonne performance doit être atteinte au cours de la séance de pratique pour enclencher certains processus de consolidation. De plus, nos résultats indiquent que l’évaluation subjective que l’apprenant fait de sa propre performance peut moduler la consolidation. Finalement, nous avons démontré que l’apprentissage par observation peut enclencher certains processus de consolidation, indiquant que la consolidation n’est pas exclusive à la pratique physique. Dans l’ensemble, les résultats des études expérimentales présentées dans cette thèse montrent que la consolidation regroupe plusieurs processus distincts jouant chacun un rôle important pour l’apprentissage du mouvement. Les éducateurs physiques, les entraineurs sportifs et les spécialistes de la réadaptation physique devraient donc planifier des entrainements favorisant non seulement l’acquisition de gestes moteurs mais également leur consolidation. / Physical practice has long been regarded as the single most determinant factor of motor skill acquisition. Often expressed by the old adage “practice makes perfect,” this idea easily relates to the common observation that extensive practice is necessary to master complex motor skills. Although the importance of physical practice for motor skill learning is undeniable, recent evidence demonstrates that the neurobiological changes that constitute the foundation of memory occur after physical practice. Regrouped under the term “consolidation”, these changes are essential for the memory storage of motor skills. The objective of this thesis was to identify factors that influence motor skill consolidation. Using a visuomotor adaptation task with two levels of difficulty, we showed that a good performance must be attained during practice to trigger certain consolidation processes. In addition, our results indicate that the learner’s subjective evaluation of his/her own performance can also modulate consolidation. Finally, we showed that observation triggers consolidation processes, indicating that consolidation is not exclusive to physical practice. Together, the results presented in this thesis demonstrate that consolidation regroups several distinct processes that each plays an important role for motor skill learning. Physical education teachers, athletic coaches and rehabilitation specialists should therefore plan training schedules favoring not only motor skill acquisition but also motor skill consolidation.

Le feedback auditif se définit comme un signal auditif qui contient de l'information sur un mouvement. Il a été montré que le feedback auditif peut guider le mouvement en temps réel, mais son influence sur l'apprentissage moteur est moins clair. Cette thèse a pour but d'examiner l'influence du feedback auditif sur l'apprentissage moteur, en se focalisant sur le contrôle temporel des mouvements. Premièrement, nous étudions l'apprentissage moteur chez les non-musiciens sains et montrons qu'ils bénéficient de l'information temporelle contenue dans le feedback auditif et qu'ils sont sensibles aux distortions de cette information temporelle. Deuxièmement, nous appliquons ces connaissances à la rehabilitation de patients cérébro-lésés. Nous trouvons que ces patients améliorent leurs capacités de mouvement mais ne dépendent pas de la correspondance temporelle entre le mouvement et le son. Paradoxalement, ces patients ont même benéficié des distortions temporelles dans le feedback. Troisièmement, nous étudions les experts musicaux, car ils ont établi des liens particulièrement forts entre leur mouvement et le son. Nous développons de nouveaux outils d'analyse qui nous permettent de séparer les déviations temporelles en variation systématique et non-systématique. Le résultat principal est que ces experts sont devenu largement indépendents du feedback auditif. La proposition centrale de cette thèse est que le feedback auditif joue un rôle dans l'apprentissage moteur de la regularité, mais la façon dont le cerveau l'utilise dépend de la population étudiée. Ces résultats donnent une nouvelle perspective sur l'intégration audio-motrice et contribuent au développement de nouvelles approches pour l'apprentissage de la musique et la réhabilitation.

Humans perform complex sensorimotor tasks, such as walking on uneven terrain, in a seemingly effortless manner. However, even simple voluntary tasks, like lifting the arm to shake hands, require intricate adjustments to maintain balance. With experience, humans learn to produce the appropriate patterns of muscle activity necessary to maintain balance during everyday activities, as well as highly specialized motor tasks. Here, I investigated the neural feedback mechanisms controlling the formation of the muscle activity used during balance tasks. I hypothesized that humans use feedback from on-going balance perturbations to establish their muscular responses. Specifically, I investigated center-of-mass (CoM) kinematics as a control signal for the formation of these muscle activation patterns. Using an inverted pendulum model under delayed feedback control, I both reconstructed the temporal EMG patterns measured during experimental perturbations and predicted the optimal EMG patterns for responding to the same perturbations. By modulating four feedback parameters, this feedback law accounted for 91% of the variability in all experimentally-recorded EMG patterns - regardless of the mechanical action of the muscle or the response strategy chosen by the subject. To investigate the changes in postural control during motor learning, I used this feedback model to characterize responses while naïve subjects adapted to repetitive unidirectional and reversing perturbations. By adjusting feedback gains related to CoM velocity and displacement, subjects adapted their muscle activity to improve control over the CoM for both perturbation types. Though subjects were unable to use anticipatory strategies to reduce muscle onset latency or to mute inappropriate responses to reversing perturbations, more subtle feedforward adjustments to feedback-mediated postural responses were evident. With experience, subjects adapted their postural responses toward the optimal solution. The results of this work, when combined with on-going studies of muscle synergies, will provide a powerful tool for investigating the consequences that result from the changes in spatiotemporal muscle activity associated with aging, neurological dysfunction, musculoskeletal injury, and specialized training programs. This quantitative knowledge is critical to the development of diagnostic tools for balance and movement disorders, as well as for the design of effective interventional therapies, bipedal robots, and neural prostheses.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-12-12T17:32:59Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 resumo ANAMARIA.pdf: 111799 bytes, checksum: 1fd65c3285e10d1c7098ccfa70716c7e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-07-20 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Background. Training aimed at restoring and / or improving motor impairments after a spinal cord injury have shown importance in the neurofunctional rehabilitation process, as well as the relationship with biochemical markers involved in neuroplasticity. Objective. verify the effects of two training protocols in sensorimotor recovery and neural plasticity in an experimental model of incomplete LME Methods: 32 adult Wistar rats divided into four groups: Sham, NT, BCT and GT, subject to weekly reviews of locomotor and sensory-motor recovery of the hind limbs. Brain structures and lumbar spinal cord were dissected and processed for biochemical analysis quantification of the expression of BDNF, MAP-2 and Synaptophysin. Results: In the motor cortex, for synaptophysin the NT showed lower rates compared to the sham group. The BCT showed higher rates compared to the GT and NT group. For MAP-2 NT showed lower rates compared to the sham group and BCT showed higher rates compared to the NT group. For BDNF, BCT and GT groups showed higher rates compared to the NT and SHAM group. In the cerebellum for synaptophysin GT group showed higher rates compared to the NT and SHAM group, BCT showed higher rates compared to the NT. For MAP-2 the BCT group showed higher rates compared to the NT. In the SC, for synaptophysin the NT, BCT and GT showed lower rates compared to the sham group.Conclusions. Gait training played key role in sensory-motor recovery of the hind limbs. And both training modulate synaptic and structural proteins, playing an important role in exercise dependent plasticity after experimental spinal cord injury. / O treinamento motor tem sido utilizado para restabelecer e/ou melhorar deficiências após uma lesão medular e têm mostrado importância no processo de reabilitação neurofuncional, bem como a sua relação com os marcadores bioquímicos envolvidos na neuroplasticidade. Objetivo: verificar os efeitos de dois protocolos de treinamento na recuperação funcional e plasticidade neural em um modelo lesão medular incompleta. Métodos: 32 ratas Wistar adultos divididos em quatro grupos: Controle da lesão (Sham), Não-treinado (NT), Balance and coordenation trainning (BCT) e o grupo gait trainning (GT), sujeitos a avaliações semanais de recuperação locomotora e coordenação sensório-motora dos membros posteriores. O córtex motor, cerebelo e medula espinal lombar foram dissecados e processados para análise da quantificação bioquímica da expressão do BDNF, MAP-2 e sinaptofisina. Resultados: No córtex motor, para sinaptofisina o NT mostrou valores menores em comparação com o grupo Sham. O BCT mostraram níveis mais elevadas em comparação com o grupo GT e NT. Para MAP-2, NT mostrou menores níveis em comparação com o grupo Sham e BCT mostraram níveis mais elevados em comparação com o grupo NT. Para BDNF, grupos BCT e GT mostraram maiores níveis em comparação ao grupo SHAM e NT. No cerebelo para sinaptofisina, o grupo GT mostrou maiores níveis em comparação com o grupo NT e SHAM, BCT mostrou taxas mais elevadas em comparação com o NT. Para MAP-2 do grupo BCT mostraram taxas mais elevadas em comparação com o NT. Na medula, para sinaptofisina o NT, BCT e GT mostraram menores em comparação com os grupo Sham. Conclusão: Treino de marcha exerceu papel fundamental na recuperação sensório-motora dos membros posteriores. E ambos os treinamentos modularam a expressão de proteínas sinápticas e estruturais, desempenhando um importante papel na plasticidade exercício-dependente após lesão medular experimental.

Thesis (DEd (Education))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. / This study investigates the impact of a Gross Motor Development (GMD) programme on the lives of learners in marginalized multi-grade environments in rural areas of the Western Cape. Numerous studies globally suggest that gross motor development programmes bring stability, positive motivational changes and structure in learners’ lives constrained by challenging socio-economic environments (Portela, 2007, & Lopes et al., 2013). A transformative research paradigm was employed in order to address the research questions posed by this study. A purposive sampling technique was used to collect data from three schools, one in each of three Western Cape rural educational districts that border the Cape Metro; West Coast/Hopefield, Cape Winelands/Wellington and Overberg/Grabouw. In all three schools the Centre for Multi-grade Education had an academic research/training and support partnership. Within a trans-current mixed method design, qualitative data are used to substantiate and augment phenomena exposed by the quantitative data. The data in the qualitative phase of this study are collected using observations, reflective journals and journal notes. The research investigated the influence of an 18-month gross motor development programme on learners’ lives in three multi-grade schools in the Western Cape of South Africa. A sample of 50 (N=30 males and N=20 females), grade 4-6 multi-grade learners participated in the study. The gross motor skills were assessed using Project 4 – IMAD+ Test Battery, previously developed by the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Centre for Multi-grade Education. The test battery consisted of a series of physical exercises designed to assess gross motor proficiency. The scholastic achievement of learners was understood from the Annual National Assessment scores (ANA) of 2013.The data revealed that a total gross motor ability percentage score change occurred in the sample 50 (N=30 males and N=20 females) from 32.12 % to 56.82 %, indicating a significant overall gross motor improvement of 24.7 % in an 18 month period. Improved self-esteem, positive attitudinal and motivational changes and increases in class attendance occurred among the learners. This improvement aligns itself with research that indicates that the development and improvement of motor skills through physical activity are related to positive development of self-esteem among learners (Corbin, 2002:128-145). This study contributes to the growing body of knowledge on education at rural, marginalized schools, and suggests that providing learners with the opportunity to participate in a structured programme is likely to improve motivation which will contribute toward positive scholastic achievement. It is recommended that policymakers should encourage and implement structured gross motor skills development programmes at school. Further research on the influence of GMD provincially and nationally should be encouraged.

My diploma work is aimed at verifying the methodology for assessing basic motor skills (running, long jump, overarm throwing and catching) at elementary schools according to Ms K. M. Haywood. It is a set of laboratory activities which help us assess a pupil's level of his or her motor skills. My task was either to confirm or to contradict the before mentioned methodology leading towards the level evaluation. My research took place in the third, fourth, and fifth class forms at the 3rd Elementary School in Jindřichův Hradec. The total number of participating pupils was 60. the result of my laboratory activities can serve some teachers (with regard to their personal knowledge) as a guideline for planning a sort of meaningful and appropriate teaching lessons aimed at improving pupils' skills.\\