Perceptual-Motor Functioning and School Achievement in Lower-Class Black Children

• Published in: Perceptual and motor skills Vol. 38; no. 1; pp. 60 - 62
• Main Authors: Greenberg, Judith W., Alshan, Leonard M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01-02-1974; Perceptual and Motor Skills, etc
• Subjects: Achievement; African Americans; Age Factors; Bender-Gestalt Test; Brain Damage, Chronic - diagnosis; Child; Educational Status; Female; Humans; Male; Motor Skills; Sex Factors; Social Class; Underachievement; Visual Perception
• ISSN: 0031-5125; 1558-688X
• DOI: 10.2466/pms.1974.38.1.60

Perceptual-motor functioning was studied in 160 lower-class, black, fifth-grade children, 80 achieving at or above grade level, and 80 achieving at least 2 yr. below grade level. On the Bender motor-Gestalt test, the low achievers made significantly more errors than the high achievers, including both rotation and non-rotation errors. Sex differences were minimal and, where observed, stemmed from a particularly high frequency of non-rotation errors among the low-achieving girls. Performance of the high achievers was close to published norms for the Bender but low achievers fell substantially below the norms.