The Development Of Motor Creativity In Elementary School Children And Its Retention

Introduction
A follow-up study was contacted in order to find whether motor creativity, which was developed in elementary school
children of the third grade nine years ago with the implementation of a Special Physical Education Program, could be
retained. It was found that the experimental group continues to show statistically significant superiority in motor
creativity.

Methods
The Special Physical Education Program was implemented in elementary school children of the third grade (9 years
old). The evaluation of motor creativity of the pupils was measured with the motor creativity test of Wyrick, (1966) [1].
The original experiment lasted one school year. All information concerning details of the methodology, measurements,
implementations and analysis of the original experiment are included in earlier publications [2]. Nine years later a
follow-up study with measurements was contacted using the same children when they were at their final year in the
Lyceum (18 years old). The data of motor creativity were assessed in three stages: a) The first stage, was conducted
before commencing the experiment Both groups (experimental and control) were asked to perform three different tasks
(the parallel lines test, ball wall test, and hoop test). b) For the second stage, after the completion of the Special Physical
Education Program for the experimental and the control group, the same measures were used (one year after baseline
assessment). c) For the follow-up stage, nine years later, under no other special program for the experimental group, the
same three measures were used in both groups, as well. All the testing process was video taped and analyzed latter in
order to avoid mistakes.

Results
The data were analyzed through simple analysis of variance designs with repeated measures. The between subjects
factor was the two groups (experimental and control) and the repeated measures factor (within subjects) comprised of
the three trials for each task. All the results are presented in graph 1.

Discussion/ Conclusions
The follow-up study with measurements nine years after the accomplishment of the original experiment showed that
motor creativity, when acquired is retained. This is quite an astonishing finding far more important than the original one
because it shows that time spent on motor creativity during young age is not wasted but affects the person for the rest of
his/her life. A suggestion here for curriculum planners could be to allow time for the inclusion of a program developing
motor creativity in the content of the curriculum for Physical Education in the first grades of the primary school.

References:
[1]. Wyrick, W. (1966). Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Univ. of Texas.
[2]. Bournelli, P. (1998). Journal of Biology of Exercise, 3, 68-82. (In Greek

NOTA: O texto com a iconografia está no anexo.

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