Abstract
The inter-rater and intra-rater reliability of the Actual Aquatic Skills Test (AAST) for assessing young children’s motor competence in the water
Mertens Lisa1, De Martelaer Kristine1, Sääkslahti Arja2, D’Hondt Eva1
(1) Research Unit on Movement and Nutrition for Health and Performance, Department of Movement and Sport Sciences,
Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium; (2) Faculty of Sport and
Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland.
Introduction: As children’s actual aquatic skills are important for the prevention of drowning as well
as their engagement in lifelong aquatic physical activity, researchers and practitioners should be able
to assess this vital concept accurately and reliably. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the interrater
and intra-rater reliability of the Actual Aquatic Skills Test (AAST), consisting of 17 different test
items for the assessment of young children’s motor competence in the water.
Methods: Six raters received a training and evaluation session on scoring the AAST, after which five of
them assessed four test videos (of various children performing the AAST test items) twice, with one to
two weeks in between (i.e., test and re-test). Inter-rater and intra-rater reliability were determined
per test video and for the different test items across videos using Gwet’s Agreement Coefficient 2
(Gwet’s AC2).
Results: The Gwet’s AC2 for inter-rater reliability at the test varied from 0.414 to 1.000, indicating a
moderate to perfect agreement between raters. For intra-rater reliability, it ranged from 0.628 to
1.000, demonstrating a good to perfect agreement between test and re-test scoring.
Conclusion: In conclusion, the AAST is a promising tool to reliably assess young children’s actual aquatic
skills in an indoor swimming pool.
Correspondence e-mail: [email protected]
Mertens Lisa1, De Martelaer Kristine1, Sääkslahti Arja2, D’Hondt Eva1
(1) Research Unit on Movement and Nutrition for Health and Performance, Department of Movement and Sport Sciences,
Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium; (2) Faculty of Sport and
Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland.
Introduction: As children’s actual aquatic skills are important for the prevention of drowning as well
as their engagement in lifelong aquatic physical activity, researchers and practitioners should be able
to assess this vital concept accurately and reliably. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the interrater
and intra-rater reliability of the Actual Aquatic Skills Test (AAST), consisting of 17 different test
items for the assessment of young children’s motor competence in the water.
Methods: Six raters received a training and evaluation session on scoring the AAST, after which five of
them assessed four test videos (of various children performing the AAST test items) twice, with one to
two weeks in between (i.e., test and re-test). Inter-rater and intra-rater reliability were determined
per test video and for the different test items across videos using Gwet’s Agreement Coefficient 2
(Gwet’s AC2).
Results: The Gwet’s AC2 for inter-rater reliability at the test varied from 0.414 to 1.000, indicating a
moderate to perfect agreement between raters. For intra-rater reliability, it ranged from 0.628 to
1.000, demonstrating a good to perfect agreement between test and re-test scoring.
Conclusion: In conclusion, the AAST is a promising tool to reliably assess young children’s actual aquatic
skills in an indoor swimming pool.
Correspondence e-mail: [email protected]
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Conference proceedings - 26e Symposium Vereniging voor Bewegings- en Sportwetenschappen |
| Publisher | VBSW |
| Pages | 39-40 |
| Number of pages | 2 |
| Publication status | Published - 2021 |
| Event | 26ste Symposium van de Vereniging voor Bewegings- en Sportwetenschappen - Vritual/Online, Brussel, Belgium Duration: 10 Dec 2021 → 10 Dec 2021 |
Conference
| Conference | 26ste Symposium van de Vereniging voor Bewegings- en Sportwetenschappen |
|---|---|
| Abbreviated title | VBSW |
| Country/Territory | Belgium |
| City | Brussel |
| Period | 10/12/21 → 10/12/21 |