Determination Of The Effect Of The 8-Week Training Program On Children Skill Development Applied To Children With Atypical Autism

This study aims to reveal the effect of the 8-week exercise program applied to 8-10 years old children with a diagnosis of atypical autism on motor skill development. 15 male individuals who were diagnosed with atypical autism at the age of 8-10 in a special autism center participated in the study and are not interested in any sports branch, their average age is 9.06 +/- 0.70 (year), bodyweight averages are 30.73 +/- 2.52 (kg), the average height is 129.13 +/- 3.81 (cm) Before the study, the age, height and body weights of the subjects were determined, and then, between 8 and 10 hours of personal supervision training was carried out on Tuesday-Thursday and Saturday, depending on the training program for 8 weeks. The study was limited to Hexagon Test (Quickness Test), Back Neck Flexibility Test and 30m Speed Test. Measurements were taken 3 times in total on Wednesday, in the beginning, at week 4, and week 8. SPSS 22.0 data analysis program was used to evaluate the data of the research. Data are given as mean and standard deviation. In determining the differences between repeated measurements, repeated measures were determined by the single-factor variance analysis. Bonferroni test, one of the post hoc tests, was carried out to detect differences in temporal measurements. The statistical significance level was accepted as 0.05. In the findings of the research, a significant difference was found between the average values of baseline, week 4th and week 8th in the quickness test (F [2.28] = 121.92; p = 0.00). There was a difference between the averages in the Back-Neck Flexibility test (F [2.28] = 112.82; p = 0.00). In 30m speed averages, similar to both measurements, a significant difference was found between the averages (F [2.28] = 133.85; p = 0.00). As a result, it can be said that the exercise program has a positive effect on the development of gross and fine motor skills according to the limiting measurement parameters. It shows that this development is both mental and physical in children with autism spectrum disorder between the ages of 10 and 10, and it has been determined by comparing with the literature that the physical development levels of children diagnosed with autism are lower than those of the same age group. This study reveals the necessity of supporting the physical development of children with autism spectrum disorders with exercise programs.