The Relationship of School Participation with Motor Proficiency and Executive Function in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Abstract Objective participation in meaningful activities are important aspects of development in children with developmental disorder such as autism spectrum disorder. The purpose of this study was to assess the correlation of school participation with motor proficiency and executive function in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Materials & Methods In this cross-sectional (descriptive-analytic) study, 52 students aged 6 to 12 years old with ASD were selected through the convenience sampling method. The GARS-2 scale was used to confirm ASD diagnosis. Other psychiatric comorbidities such as ADHA were studied by the CSI-4 tool, and students with comorbidities were excluded. Data were collected using SFA, BOTMP-2, and BRIEF questionnaires. It should be noted that in the BRIEF questionnaire, a higher score indicates a more severe disability Results Our findings showed that motor proficiency and its components had a significant direct correlation with school participation in childrenwith ASD (P ≤0.001). On the other hand, school participation was inversely and significantly correlated with the behavioral regulation and metacognition monitoring indices of the executive function dimension (P <0.05). Conclusion Based on the findings of this research, the development of motor proficiency and improvements in the behavioral regulation andmetacognition monitoring of students with ASD will boost their participation in school activities. Motor proficiency was significantly correlated with school participation in children with ASD. More attention should be paid to perceptual motor interventions and cognitive rehabilitation programs (with a focus on monitoring metacognition and shifting behavioral regulation) to increase the participation of children with ASD in school activities

The Association Between Motor Proficiency and Performing Recreational and Leisure Activities in School for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Background and Objectives: Performing recreational and leisure activities are an important part of children’s school function, including children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The purpose of this study was to examine the association between motor proficiency, performing recreational, and leisure activities in school for the children with autism spectrum disorder. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 52 students with autism spectrum disorder aged 7-12 years old were selected by available sampling method and the students with co morbidity were excluded from the study. Data were collected using a school function assessment (SFA) and the Bruininks-Oseretsky test of motor proficiency- Second Edition (BOTMP-2). Results: The results of Pearson correlation coefficient showed that there was a significant positive linear  relationship with moderate strength between performing recreational and leisure activities and components of motor proficiency, including gross motor skills (P = 0.001, r = 0.41), upper limb coordination (P=0.000, r=0.44), and fine motor skills (P = 0.00, r = 0.58). Also, the results of multiple linear regression model indicated that only the fine motor skills as one of the components of motor proficiency had the ability to predict performing recreational and leisure activities(β = 0.5, P = 0.002). Conclusion: The results of this study revealed that there was a relationship between performing recreational, leisure activities, and motor proficiency and the highest correlation was observed with fine motor skills, upper limb coordination, and gross motor skills, respectively. Also, fine motor skills had a moderate predictive ability. Thus, in order to improve student’s function in their school, perceptual motor interventions would be an important part of their treatment program