Simisola O.

Oludare
PT 503 Analysis of Motor Development
Dr. G.L. Girolami
December 7, 2014
Reflection Paper
Before taking this course, I never thought of how infants develop postural and motor

control. As reflected in my original paper on motor development, I have always thought of motor

development as being genetically determined. And while there is a lot of evidence of the huge

role that genetics and physiology play in the development of a human person, from this class I

have learned that there are other important factors which guide development. From this course, I

have also learned that these additional factors become crucial considerations when assessing the

development of infants with or without physiological disabilities. So rather than assess an

infant’s motor skill based on milestones expected for his/her age and or physiological growth, it

is important to consider the infant’s nutritional needs, regulatory ability, sensation, perception,

motivation and more. By considering these factors, a more complete assessment can be made for

why an infant is not performing as expected and more complete therapies can be created to

decrease any gaps in development.

These additional factors arise from various theories which have tried to explain motor

development from a multifactorial perspective and not a solely physiological perspective. A few

of these theories include sensory integration, perception-action, dynamical systems,

phenomenology, ecological and motor learning. And although each of these theories provide an

interesting perspective for development, from this course I have learned that just as the

additional factors cannot be viewed in isolation, neither can the theories. For example, the

development of reaching and postural control is typically viewed from the perspective of both
perception-action and dynamical systems. However, there are regulatory needs to be met before

an infant can reach and considering the infant as an individual, the infant needs to want to reach

before attempting to reach. These ideas bring the theories of sensory integration and

phenomenology, respectively, into the picture. Also, if an infants are to hone their reaching and

postural control skills, practice and learning are needed. For practice to occur, environmental

affordances are necessary. And for learning to occur, practice, feedback, variability and

motivation are necessary. These ideas bring the ecological theory and the theories of motor

learning into the picture. Together, each of these theories provide a piece which can help solve

the puzzle of human development. However, due to the variation of these pieces for each

individual, development can be best understood as a non-linear process fraught with variability

within and between individuals.

Finally, this course has taught me the value of creating a complete picture when

analyzing motor skills. As I continue my education, I will take these lessons with me and strive

to become better-rounded with respect to being a clinical scientist and educator.