Effectiveness of a training program with physical education students and experienced physical education teachers in scoring the Test of Gross Motor Development.

Recently there has been an increase in the need for instruction and assessment of motor skills of students with disabilities for the regular physical education teacher; however, research has indicated that training of physical educators in assessment of motor skills for students with disabilities is often inadequate. Models of teaching preparation such as the infusion approach stress the need to integrate teaching and assessment techniques applicable to students with and without disabilities. In this study, the effectiveness of assessment training on the accuracy of scoring the Test of Gross Motor Development was investigated. Two students (one special education, one nonspecial education) were filmed and evaluated by three experts in the field of adapted physical education. The expert raters' scores were then compared to scores obtained by 26 physical education students and 26 experienced physical education teachers. Results of the study indicate that the instruction received in an assessment course enables undergraduate physical education students to assess accurately the motor skill performance of students with and without disabilities.