Appraisal of Motor Skills in a Sample of Students within the Moldavian Area

The selection of children for training in a certain sports branch should be based on the assessment of their physical development and their motor skills. The aim of the study: the evaluation of the students’ motor skills in relation to Body Mass Index (BMI) in order to orient them towards certain sports branches. Methods: The research study was conducted on a sample of 220 fifth grade students within the Moldavian Area. We have calculated the BMI and we have assessed the motor skills according to the national standards established for each school grade. Results: The BMI values are mainly normal (75.45%), yet there are significant differences in development between students in the three counties under analysis, with the most significant values recorded in the county of Suceava (18.48 ± 0.45 for boys and 18.06 ± 0.48 for girls). As far as the push-ups test grading is concerned, 8.63% of the students achieved below 5; there are also significant differences from one region to another (the highest values were recorded in Iasi 11.05 ± 1.00 for boys, 9.93 ± 0.97 for girls, in Suceava 7.98 ± 0.89 for boys and 4.18 ± 0.46 for girls and in Vrancea 9.97 ± 0.48 for boys and 7.70 ± 0.33 for girls). Softball throw was perfectly executed and graded with 10 by 59.09% of the students. Standing long jump was graded with 10 for only 30.45% of the students. The differences obtained according to p-value indicated considerable differences for all motor skills tests and for all study groups. Conclusions: there are substantial differences in children’s physical development and motor skills from one county to another and this aspect is essential in the selection of young people who will practice high performance sports.