Overview

The major goals of chapter 1 are to define the field of motor development (including basic terms)‚ to demystify the study of motor development, and to introduce the developmental perspective. Most importantly, we orient students to the approach we take consistently throughout the text: Newell’s model of constraints. Because we use this model in every chapter, it is important that students firmly grasp the notions of individual, environmental, and task constraints; students must also know how interactions between these constraints result in specific movements. Fortunately, Newell’s model is relatively easy to understand if several concrete examples are provided. We find that discussing specific joint systems such as the humerus, radius, and ulna (at the elbow joint) allows students to visualize how these bones act as individual structural constraints—for example, permitting flexion and extension but preventing abduction and adduction; in other words, they constrain movement to flexion-extension.

We recommend taking a fun approach to chapter 1. For example, students might consider topics discussed in the popular media, determine whether these topics are developmental in nature, and if so, apply the model of constraints. You can engage students’ personal interest by relating motor development to their lives or the lives of their children‚ siblings‚ or other relatives (such as aging parents or grandparents). Students might identify, or find media stories about, particular constraints that are changing for themselves or someone around them.

You also might send students to observe an environment in which the constraints on movement are easy to identify. One example would be young children exploring playground equipment; in fact, we have included video footage of children playing in lab activity 18.1 (Assessing a Play Space). You might ask your students to observe the interaction between the size of individual children and an apparatus, to discern whether the texture of the apparatus or the hardness of the surface below influences movement, and to note whether children adapt their movements to use the equipment in ways the designers did not intend.

Major Concepts

Major concepts presented in chapter 1 include the following:

• The study of developmental issues can be distinguished from the study of behavior that is not developmental.
• Development can be delimited to more specific fields of study, including motor development.
• A developmental perspective involves looking at qualitative change in motor performance over time as a developmental continuum, without judging any performance as correct or incorrect.
• Research and research studies can be demystified by learning the terminology and understanding a little about how research is planned and conducted.
• Graphs are not mysterious; rather, they are useful tools that can convey much information‚ especially when one is observing a behavior over time.
• Researchers interested in development commonly use certain research designs (e.g., longitudinal‚ cross-sectional‚ and mixed-longitudinal); each approach has advantages and disadvantages.
• Newell’s model of constraints can guide our study of each topic within motor development. It helps us determine what is developmentally appropriate.
• There are several types of constraints; movement arises from their interaction, and it changes as the constraints (and therefore their interaction) change.
• Universality of development in members of a species is juxtaposed with the broad range of individual differences appearing among members of a species.

Supplemental Class Activities

The topics covered in chapter 1 can be explored through activities such as the following:

1. In place of, or along with, a lecture on the topics of chapter 1‚ you might try one or both of the class discussions.
1. The first discussion gives students the opportunity to apply the criteria for development to situations in movement science. The second activity provides an opportunity for students to question or follow up on the analyses as the group collectively thinks through the criteria.
   
   Discuss the following situations and determine whether or not they hinge on developmental issues:
• A 15-year-old soccer player practices penalty kicks every day for 3 weeks‚ then scores a penalty kick in a game.
• A 9-month-old girl pulls to stand on the couch; within a month‚ she walks.
• An older man no longer walks to the store; he reports that he no longer feels “up to it.”
• A 7-year-old girl throws a ball 20 yards; 9 months later‚ she throws a ball 30 yards.
  
  Though the age of the player in the first situation might fool some students, this is not a developmental issue. For a 15-year-old‚ 3 weeks is a short time, and growth and maturation would not change the individual’s constraints during this period. The player is simply using practice to become more proficient at performing a certain skill. In the other three situations‚ developmental time is more significant in the change of behavior.
2. This discussion is intended to personalize the notion of constraints. Ask your class to discuss the most significant individual constraints that affect their everyday movement behaviors. Then ask how those individual constraints interact with other constraints to influence their choices of movements and physical activities. You can follow up by asking each student to share the story of a close family member or friend whose individual constraints have been changing in a way that affects everyday movement behaviors.
2. Bring a handful of research studies to class‚ divide your students into small groups‚ and ask each group to decide whether or not a particular research study is developmental. If they decide that the research is developmental‚ they should then determine whether the research design is longitudinal‚ cross-sectional‚ or sequential. You can also bring in sample graphs from various research studies and ask the class whether or not each graph presents developmental data.
3. A good activity for the first or second day of the course is to bring in a variety of newspapers and magazines and ask students to find developmental stories.
4. Lab activity 1.1 (Observation as a Tool of Inquiry) makes an excellent in-class assignment because for most students, it will provide their first experience in carefully observing motor skills and looking for developmental differences. Show the video clips to your students and have them individually evaluate the developmental levels of the subjects. Then divide the class into small groups in which students discuss the reasons for their decisions.
5. Activities that you may either adapt for use in the classroom or laboratory or assign as homework can be found in the online student resource at www.HumanKinetics.com/LifeSpanMotorDevelopment. Items include learning exercise 1.1 (Searching the Internet for Information on Motor Development), lab activity 1.1 (Observation as a Tool of Inquiry), and lab activity 1.2 (Graphing Developmental Data).

Background Readings

If you would like to do some background reading for chapter 1 or provide advanced students with some challenging reading‚ we suggest the following materials.

Gagen, L., & Getchell, N. (2004). Combining theory and practice in the gymnasium: “Constraints” within an ecological perspective. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 75, 25–30.

This article puts the theoretical concept of constraints into a real-world physical education setting. It is written so that physical educators, who may not be familiar with constraints, can use the concept in their classes.

Newell, K.M. (1986). Constraints on the development of coordination. In M.G. Wade & H.T.A. Whiting (Eds.), Motor development in children: Aspects of coordination and control (pp. 341–361). Amsterdam: Nijhoff.

This is one of the original articles written by Karl Newell on the model of constraints‚ which we adopted for this text. It discusses how the model emerged and how it was originally proposed by Newell.

Roberton, M.A. (1988). The weaver’s loom: A developmental metaphor. In J.E. Clark & J.H. Humphrey (Eds.), Advances in motor development research (Vol. 2, pp. 129–141). New York: AMS Press.

In this article‚ Mary Ann Roberton explores the subtleties of development and how various threads are woven together in the developmental process to form individuals. Roberton’s way of addressing this complex process is innovative and enjoyable.

Clark, J.E. (2007). On the problem of motor skill development (2007 Alliance Scholar Lecture). Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 78, 39–44.

Clark, J.E. (2005). From the beginning: A developmental perspective on movement and mobility. Quest 57, 37–45.

Jane Clark has written extensively on research in motor development and translated that research into applications for physical educators. These articles provide excellent overviews of the field of motor development and are written in a style that can be appreciated by a wide audience.