Abstract
Physical literacy addresses the ability, confidence and desire needed to optimize physical activity participation. Ability to perform, or competency in, fundamental movement skills, has not been recently evaluated among children in the United States, which is essential for identifying needs for intervention. PURPOSE: To compare physical literacy competency between sexes and age groups in children. METHODS: 288 children (134 males, 153 females; age 9±2 years; height 132±36 cm; mass 41±14 kg) from 6 schools volunteered to participate. Participants completed tasks in a randomized order to assess five domains of physical literacy competency: locomotor, running, balance, upper extremity (UE) and lower extremity (LE) object control. Trained raters evaluated competency using a standardized, valid and reliable assessment (PLAYfun; Canadian Sport for Life). Participants were divided into age groups (Elementary: grades K-4; Middle: grades 5-8). Competency on all tasks was measured using a 0-100 continuous scale. Total average score and domain average scores were compared between sexes and age groups using a multivariate analysis of variance (α<.05). RESULTS: There were no significant interactions between sexes and age groups (p>.05). Regardless of age, males demonstrated greater competency than females for overall score (mean±SE points: males=71.5±1.0, females=63.7±1.0; p<.001), running (males=75.4±1.8, females=63.72±1.80; p<.001), UE object control (males=73.32±1.71, females=56.4±1.7; p<.001), and LE object control (males=66.9±2.0, females=52.3±2.0; p<.001). Regardless of sex, Middle had greater competency than Elementary for overall score (Middle=62.2±1.0, Elementary=73.0±0.9; p<.001), locomotor (Middle=75.3±1.17, Elementary=65.0±1.3; p<.001), balance (Middle=77.4±1.3, Elementary=62.1±1.3; p<.001), UE object control (Middle=70.0±1.6, Elementary=59.8±1.8; p<.001), and LE object control (Middle=67.9±1.9, Elementary=51.2±1.8; p<.001). CONCLUSIONS: Sex differences in physical literacy are present among children in the United States, especially in tasks involving object control. Similarly, over 20% of children in middle school lack competency in object control tasks. These areas need to be addressed in order to optimize long-term physical activity.
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