Development and Motor Learning

Code:

TD22

Acronym:

TD22

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	Sports Sciences

Instance: 2024/2025 - 2S

Active?	Yes
Course/CS Responsible:	2nd Cycle in Sport Training - High Performance Training e Youth Training

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
2CTD	28	Official Plan (2018 - )	1	-	4	27	108

Teaching language

Suitable for English-speaking students

Objectives

The Motor Development and Learning curricular unit is essentially designed to be food for thought in terms of the vast understanding of matters associated with physical growth, biological maturation, motor performance, learning and motor control of children and young people in sports. In this sense, the vision to be presented to students will be essentially integrated, so it is expected that they have an updated basic knowledge of the Motor Development and Motor Learning curricular units taught in the initial training years (currently called a degree). The subjects covered will cover fundamental issues of Motor Performance analyzed in the contexts and constraints of Growth, Learning and Motor Control, of the Children and Youth Athlete, and of the great interpretative currents of the enormous variability found in the available information.

Objectives:

1. Present important aspects of Auxology, Biological Maturation and Motor Performance from transversal and longitudinal designs. This view is centered on the vast scientific production of larger figures of which we highlight James Tanner, Robert Malina and Gaston Beunen.
2. Understand, better, the picture of strong interactivity of the different subjects under study, based on examples of research carried out in the Cineanthropometry and Motor Learning Laboratories of the Faculty of Sport of the University of Porto.
3. Understand Motor Learning as a complex process of acquisition of motor and sports-motor skills based on the interaction between the subject, the task and the context.
4. Analyze, in the light of the theory of Dynamic Systems and Information Theory, and considering individual differences, some factors of Learning and Motor Control that are decisive for the performance of the Children and Youth Athlete, namely instruction and demonstration, the type of practice , contextual interference, interlateral transfer of learning, laterality and feedback.
5. Develop reading, interpretation and presentation skills of fundamental literature documents written in English, i.e., empirical articles, systematic review and meta-analysis, in each of the major fields of study.
6. Develop skills in the critical organization of available information, mainly in English, in a domain associated with the interests of each student, to which is added the writing of a very brief literature synthesis document.

Learning outcomes and competences

The syllabus contents are coherent with curricular unit aims, as they enable students to understand and evaluate motor development and motor learning parameters and consider them as complementary domains of human motor behavior. From a theoretical basis the issues of growth, maturation, development, learning and motor control, targeted especially the young athlete, where there is a concern to develop students´ critical spirit and a reflective view of the learned material. Another objective is to equip students with skills and instrumentl knowledge to evaluate, in field, growth, maturation, development and motor fitness. The contents also involve the presentation of some statistical techniques in order to allow students to analyse their results and to perform a critical analysis in comparison with the acquired knowledge.

Working method

Presencial

Program

1.      Physical growth


2.      Biological Maturation
   


3.      Motor performance
   


4.      Stability of physical growth and motor performance


5.      The young athlete


6.      Readiness and trainability - auxological  considerations


7.      Theoretical principles of Motor Learning and Motor Control


8.      Motor Behavior, Motor Control and Motor Learning in young athletes
   


9.     Transfer  of learning in motor skills


10.      Motor coordination and developmental coordination disorders


11.      Laterality and functional asymmetries in motor behavior

Mandatory literature

Bouchard C, Malina R, Pérusse L ; Genetics of fitness and physical activity, Human Kinetics, 1997
Clark J, Oliveira M; Motor behavior as a scientific field: A view from the start of the 21st century, Brazilian Journal of Motor Behavior, 2006 (1(1) 1-19)
Haywood K; Lifelong motor development, Human Kinetics, 2006 (2nd edition)
Magill Richard A.; Motor learning and control. ISBN: 978-0-07-110697-9
Malina Robert M.; Growth, maturation, and physical activity. ISBN: 0-88011-882-2
Schmidt Richard; Motor learning and performance. ISBN: 0-88011-500-9
Utley Andrea; Motor control, learning and development. ISBN: 978-0-415-39139-9
Vasconcelos Olga 070; Laterality, developmental coordination disorders and posture
Rodrigues Luís Paulo 340; Estudos em desenvolvimento motor da criança II. ISBN: 978-989-95980-3-4

Teaching methods and learning activities

Classes will have a triple format. In the first place, there will be a presentation by each of the teachers of a varied set of themes. This part of the class aims to review the essence of each theme, its fundamental methodologies, the main lines of results and main conclusions. Secondly, it is expected of the Master's students, the presentation of doubts, clarification and debate about a set of documents associated with each of the major themes of the classes. This part of the class, of great importance, requires that students have read the material seriously, especially the scientific articles referenced in the program of this course. They are also expected to publicly present (in groups of 2 to 3) one of the themes suggested by the teachers. Thirdly, there will be a space for presenting ongoing research projects.

 Evaluation
The final evaluation is based on two types of tasks, each scored on a scale from zero to twenty values. The first corresponds to a final written exam of all the summarized material, on a date to be presented to the students. The second corresponds to the presentation, in groups, of themes mentioned by the teachers and expressed in this program.
The three tasks are scored on a scale of zero to twenty values. The final grade is distributed as follows: written exam (70%) + presentation of the topic (20%) + participation in classes (10%). However, in none of the tasks the grade must be less than ten points. If this happens, the student must provide new evidence in the task (s) in question.

keywords

Social sciences

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation with final exam

Assessment Components

designation	Weight (%)
Exame	70,00
Participação presencial	10,00
Apresentação/discussão de um trabalho científico	20,00
Total:	100,00

Amount of time allocated to each course unit

designation	Time (hours)
Apresentação/discussão de um trabalho científico	15,00
Estudo autónomo	78,00
Frequência das aulas	15,00
Total:	108,00

Eligibility for exams

Presence of at least 75% of the classes taugh.t

Calculation formula of final grade

The final grade shall be the weighted average of the scores of each evaluation component.

Special assessment (TE, DA, ...)

Students who foresee not ensuring the presence of at least 75% of the classes taught (students with special statutes, eg, worker-students, athletes of high competition) should contact the head of the course within a maximum of two weeks after the teaching the first theoretical class, so that it is possible to define an alternative training and assessment plan for the course.
If after two weeks contact does not occur, the student will be considered a regular student.

Classification improvement

Only in the final exam.