A Comparison of the Motor Music Skills of Nonhandicapped and Learning Disabled Children

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to compare the motor music skill development of children who are learning disabled with that of their nonhandicapped peers. The research sample included 103 children ages 5 through 9 attending Colorado public schools. Data were collected via individual administration of the Motoric Music Skills Test (MMST). Resulting descriptive data indicated that improved skills were related to age, and that normal subjects attained a better average performance on every subtest except compound factors. Multivariate analysis of variance confirmed the significance of differences related to age and handicap; this analysis revealed an interaction between age and handicap, as defined primarily by performance on the criterion variable eye-hand. Results are discussed in terms of the performance problems of learning disabled subjects on eye-hand coordination tasks, and the implication from MMST performance that the manner in which educational materials are arranged and presented can overcome these difficulties.

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