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The dynamics of mastering the degrees of freedom in motor learning are still far from being understood. The present work explored coordination dynamics in a redundant task, relating it to performance and adaptation in a serial stimulus tracking task. One hundred and sixty-three children (10-14 years of age) continuously responded to sequential stimuli (containing five stimuli) by pressing the respective sensors before the next stimulus presentation. Participants performed120 trials with a fixed sequence (4-2-5-3-1) and a fixed interstimuli interval (800 ms) to learn the first pattern (practice phase). Then, a changed sequence (4-2-5-1-3) with a shorter interval (700 ms) was presented for 40 trials (adaptation phase). To measure coordination and its change, we calculated the correlation matrix of the stimulus-touch interval between the five sensors in blocks of 20 trials of the practice phase and classified individuals in terms of clusters. We found associations between coordination dynamics, performance curves, and adaptation in both coordination and performance. Furthermore, using network analyses, we found a tendency for all groups to increase the clustering coefficient. We discuss the possibility of this result representing a process of progressive segregation.

In any field of knowledge, professional learning can be seen as a complex system: it involves the interaction of several components and these components change over time. Social needs, labor market, body of knowledge, faculty members, body of students and course curricula have been pointed out as some of these components that, when interacting, give the system a highly dynamic character. Moreover, considering the hierarchical characteristic of complex systems, it is necessary to take into account that professional learning develops itself in a context called university -- that is immersed in an enormous identity crisis due to three major revolutions: knowledge, communication and digital. Other constraints that condition the functioning of professional learning come from the educational system. In Brazil, these constraints are complicated, varied and unstable, which results in the constant need to change their intrinsic dynamics. Furthermore, when one looks at a specific component of professional learning -- body of knowledge -- it becomes clear that it belongs to a field of knowledge whose historical trajectory of development also needs to be taken into account. Physical Education is still an incipient field of knowledge that faces serious ambiguities concerning its epistemological basis, which produces uncertainties regarding their academic and professional identities. Of course, without clarity of identity, a professional learning system is inevitably compromised. From a complex systems view, it is proposed that initial professional learning courses in Brazilian Physical Education should train professionals to act as hierarchical complex systems capable of remaining far-from-equilibrium and adapt themselves to the increasing demands of their professional settings.

The purpose of the present study was to examine whether the learning benefits of self-controlled knowledge of results (KR) would generalize to children. Specifically, the authors chose 10-year-old children representative of late childhood. The authors used a task that required the children to toss beanbags at a target. One group received KR regarding throw accuracy at their request, while another (yoked) group received KR after the same trials as their counterparts but had no control over the KR schedule. Learning was assessed in a retention test without KR one day after the practice phase. An additional purpose of the present study was to determine when self-control participants would ask for KR. The results of the present study indicated that learning in 10-year-olds was not hampered by the additional information-processing activities (i.e., decision making) necessary under self-generalizes to older children. These learning benefits seem to be attributable to motivational factors. These findings may have important implications for practical settings in which control conditions. In fact, although the effect size was small (i.e., 0.2; Cohen, 1969), learning was significantly enhanced. Overall, the results of the present study demonstrate that the advantage of giving learners the opportunity to decide when to receive KR instructors typically give feedback when they assume the child needs it most (i.e., mainly after unsuccessful trials) to avoid errors and guide the child to the correct movement pattern. (Contains 2 figures.)

The article presents a study which examines the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors (CRF) and physical activity (PA) in children and adolescents in Mazambinho, Brazil. The study used 205 subjects wherein their body weight, height, glycemia, cholesterolemia, blood pressure (BP) and PA were assessed. It concludes that there is a high prevalence of CRF among the respondents regardless of gender and increased with age.