Child’s Right to Physical Health and Fitness is Ensured by International Conventions: Fundamental Movement skills and performance of 10-11 Years’ Non-obese School Boys in South Syria: Urban-Rural Descriptive-Comparative Study

Abstract

Of the most significant UN conventions  is the convention of child’s rights, where paragraph clearly states that every child has the right to be physically healthy. The aim of this study was to investigate the Fundamental Movement Skills (FMS) proficiency of 10-11 years' non-obese school-boys. It Also aimed to compare the interrelated motor performance of the participated boys. The ample consisted of a total of 634 school-boys aged 10-11 years. 308 live in Daraa city and 326 live in rural communities in Daraa governorate. Skill proficiency was estimated according to validated check-list tables and the motor performance tests were measured taking into consideration the athletic rules. There was an alarming low proficiency of FMS's components. The proficiency percentage in some components was below 10%, while in component four of the overhand throwing skill was 6.731%. On the other hand, the whole skill mastery percentages were less than 50% (18.892%-49.812%). The exception was the overhand throwing skill where the mastery percentage was close to 50% (49.812% for 11 years old boys). Regarding motor tests, no significant differences were detected in motor performances. Nevertheless, in fistball throwing, the differences between age groups of the same sample were significant at 5% level of random error. The alarming low mastery of FMS and the weak results of related motor tests can be attributed to the absence of the meaningful FMS teaching and practice. The most appropriate places for meaningful teaching are schools and physical education lessons and after school physical activities and sport games.