The Impact of School Closures during COVID-19 Lockdown on Visual–Motor Integration and Block Design Performance: A Comparison of Two Cohorts of Preschool Children
The COVID-19 outbreak has led to the closure of educational institutions, which may prevent children from attaining skills essential for learning, such as visual–motor integration (VMI) and visuospatial constructional ability (often reflected with the Block Design Test, BDT). This study compares VMI...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-05-01
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| Series: | Children |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/10/6/930 |
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| author | Mohd Izzuddin Hairol Mahadir Ahmad Muhammad Aminuddin Muhammad Zihni Nur Fatin Syazana Saidon Naufal Nordin Masne Kadar |
| author_facet | Mohd Izzuddin Hairol Mahadir Ahmad Muhammad Aminuddin Muhammad Zihni Nur Fatin Syazana Saidon Naufal Nordin Masne Kadar |
| author_sort | Mohd Izzuddin Hairol |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The COVID-19 outbreak has led to the closure of educational institutions, which may prevent children from attaining skills essential for learning, such as visual–motor integration (VMI) and visuospatial constructional ability (often reflected with the Block Design Test, BDT). This study compares VMI and BDT performance between a pre-pandemic cohort (children who attended preschool in late 2019) and a post-pandemic cohort (those physically attending preschool for the first time at the end of 2021). Participants were children attending government preschools with similar syllabi catered for low-income families. The pre-pandemic cohort was part of an earlier study (n = 202 for VMI and n = 220 for BDT) before lockdowns commenced in March 2020. The post-pandemic cohort comprised 197 children who completed the Beery-VMI and 93 children who completed the BDT. Compared to the pre-pandemic cohort, the post-pandemic cohort had significantly lower mean Beery-VMI scores (t(397) = 3.054, <i>p</i> = 0.002) and was 3.162-times more likely to have a below average Beery-VMI score (OR = 3.162 (95% CI 1.349, 7.411)). The post-pandemic cohort also had significantly lower BDT scores than the pre-pandemic cohort (t(311) = −5.866, <i>p</i> < 0.001). In conclusion, children with disrupted conventional preschool education due to the COVID-19 lockdowns were more likely to have below-average VMI and lower BDT scores. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:38:17Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d4bf349f61124bb2a1f63cd37c638379 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2227-9067 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T02:38:17Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Children |
| spelling | doaj.art-d4bf349f61124bb2a1f63cd37c6383792023-11-18T09:49:13ZengMDPI AGChildren2227-90672023-05-0110693010.3390/children10060930The Impact of School Closures during COVID-19 Lockdown on Visual–Motor Integration and Block Design Performance: A Comparison of Two Cohorts of Preschool ChildrenMohd Izzuddin Hairol0Mahadir Ahmad1Muhammad Aminuddin Muhammad Zihni2Nur Fatin Syazana Saidon3Naufal Nordin4Masne Kadar5Centre for Community Health Studies (ReaCH), Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, Kuala Lumpur 50300, MalaysiaCentre for Community Health Studies (ReaCH), Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, Kuala Lumpur 50300, MalaysiaOptometry & Vision Science Program, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, Kuala Lumpur 50300, MalaysiaOptometry & Vision Science Program, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, Kuala Lumpur 50300, MalaysiaCentre for Community Health Studies (ReaCH), Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, Kuala Lumpur 50300, MalaysiaCentre for Rehabilitation & Special Needs Studies (iCaRehab), Faculty of Health Sciences, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Jalan Raja Muda Abdul Aziz, Kuala Lumpur 50300, MalaysiaThe COVID-19 outbreak has led to the closure of educational institutions, which may prevent children from attaining skills essential for learning, such as visual–motor integration (VMI) and visuospatial constructional ability (often reflected with the Block Design Test, BDT). This study compares VMI and BDT performance between a pre-pandemic cohort (children who attended preschool in late 2019) and a post-pandemic cohort (those physically attending preschool for the first time at the end of 2021). Participants were children attending government preschools with similar syllabi catered for low-income families. The pre-pandemic cohort was part of an earlier study (n = 202 for VMI and n = 220 for BDT) before lockdowns commenced in March 2020. The post-pandemic cohort comprised 197 children who completed the Beery-VMI and 93 children who completed the BDT. Compared to the pre-pandemic cohort, the post-pandemic cohort had significantly lower mean Beery-VMI scores (t(397) = 3.054, <i>p</i> = 0.002) and was 3.162-times more likely to have a below average Beery-VMI score (OR = 3.162 (95% CI 1.349, 7.411)). The post-pandemic cohort also had significantly lower BDT scores than the pre-pandemic cohort (t(311) = −5.866, <i>p</i> < 0.001). In conclusion, children with disrupted conventional preschool education due to the COVID-19 lockdowns were more likely to have below-average VMI and lower BDT scores.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/10/6/930preschoolCOVID-19 lockdownsvisual–motor integrationBlock Design Test |
| spellingShingle | Mohd Izzuddin Hairol Mahadir Ahmad Muhammad Aminuddin Muhammad Zihni Nur Fatin Syazana Saidon Naufal Nordin Masne Kadar The Impact of School Closures during COVID-19 Lockdown on Visual–Motor Integration and Block Design Performance: A Comparison of Two Cohorts of Preschool Children Children preschool COVID-19 lockdowns visual–motor integration Block Design Test |
| title | The Impact of School Closures during COVID-19 Lockdown on Visual–Motor Integration and Block Design Performance: A Comparison of Two Cohorts of Preschool Children |
| title_full | The Impact of School Closures during COVID-19 Lockdown on Visual–Motor Integration and Block Design Performance: A Comparison of Two Cohorts of Preschool Children |
| title_fullStr | The Impact of School Closures during COVID-19 Lockdown on Visual–Motor Integration and Block Design Performance: A Comparison of Two Cohorts of Preschool Children |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Impact of School Closures during COVID-19 Lockdown on Visual–Motor Integration and Block Design Performance: A Comparison of Two Cohorts of Preschool Children |
| title_short | The Impact of School Closures during COVID-19 Lockdown on Visual–Motor Integration and Block Design Performance: A Comparison of Two Cohorts of Preschool Children |
| title_sort | impact of school closures during covid 19 lockdown on visual motor integration and block design performance a comparison of two cohorts of preschool children |
| topic | preschool COVID-19 lockdowns visual–motor integration Block Design Test |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9067/10/6/930 |
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