Barrow motor ability test

Barrow motor ability test- This test was created by Dr. Harold M. Barrow. It is one of the popular motor ability testing procedures for schoolboys and college male students. Harold M Barrow selected 29 items to build the General Motor Ability Test Battery in 1954, which he did over about 223 college men. These items were chosen to measure eight factors of motor ability identified with the help of expert advice.

What is a barrow fitness test- Borrow general motor fitness test is good to check the general motor ability of an individual, which includes motor components like strength, endurance, agility, flexibility and coordination abilities, etc.

After Barrow applied test, retest, and multiple correlations to 29 test items, he selected 6 test items and created two test batteries, the first containing six test items and the second containing only three items, highly correlated with 29 items as six or three test items also gave the same result. They made the second test battery which had 3 test items so that it would be tested conveniently and could be done on the indoor ground also.

The first battery with six items showed a correlation coefficient of 0.95, while the three-item battery with the 29 item battery showed a correlation coefficient of 0.92.

The names of 6 Items and 3 Items Barrow Motor Efficiency Test is listed below;

BARROW 3 ITEMS BATTERY

STANDING BROAD JUMP [To measure power]
ZIG-ZAG RUN [To measure agility]
MEDICINE BALL PUT [To measure strength]

BARROW 6 ITEMS BATTERY

STANDING BROAD JUMP [To measure power]
ZIG-ZAG RUN [To measure agility]
MEDICINE BALL PUT [To measure strength]
SOFTBALL THROW [To assess coordination]
WALL PASS [To assess eye-hand coordination]
60 YARD DASH [To measure speed]

BARROWS 3 ITEM TEST BATTERY

STANDING BROAD JUMP

Standing broad jumps test measures Explosive strength in the leg while jumping horizontal distance.

EQUIPMENT REQUIRED- Floor, mat, or long jump pit can be used for measuring tape, masking tape, or chalk.

TEST ADMINISTRATION – A group of participants is given a standing wide jump demonstration for the test. The subject is then asked to stand behind the starting line with the feet parallel to each other. He is instructed to jump as far as possible by bending his knees and swinging his arms to take a wide jump in the forward direction. The participant is given three trials.

SCORING – The distance between the starting line and the nearest point of landing provides the test’s scores. The best trails are used as the final score of the test.

ZIGZAG TEST ITEM

This test measures the player’s agility and speed. It has a rectangle of 16 by 10 and cones are placed on every corner and one cone is placed in the center of it.

EQUIPMENT REQUIRED- Floor, cones or obstacles, masking tape or chalk.

TRIAL ADMINISTRATION -The subject is instructed to take the starting start. On signal ready, GO; the subject has to run fast according to his capacity and complete three laps. Subjects are specifically informed not to grasp or touch obstacles while running. If someone fouls, the entire run is repeated.

After the signal is ready to Go; the subject starts the zigzag run, the timer starts the stopwatch. The timer stops the clock as soon as the runner passes the endpoint after the third round.

SCORING- The final score is the time taken over the three rounds of the course. This time is to be assessed with the help of the parameters of the local population. If criteria are not available, a comparative ranking of the person tested may be assigned. According to the norms, the minimum time is 17.5 seconds, if the subject completes this course within this time or in this time, then he gets 100 marks.

MEDICINE BALL PUT

In this test, the weight of the medicine ball is 6 pounds. This test is used to measure the shoulder gridle and arm strength and on the secondary basis – agility, coordination between arm and shoulder gridle, balance, and speed.

EQUIPMENT NEEDED- A medicine ball [6 pounds], marking tape or chalk powder, measuring tape.

TEST ADMINISTRATION– Some instructions are given before starting the test; the medicine ball is not to be thrown but to PUT like the Demonstrator has done. The subject has to put the medicine ball by staying between the two restraining lines. Each subject will get only three trails, fouls counted as trails.

After giving all these instructions, a live demonstration is given to explain the event. The subject is then asked to PUT the medicine ball by taking a position in the throwing area.

SCORING AND EVALUATION– The maximum distance out of three trails of putting the medicine ball is the final score which is evaluated with the help of norms.

BARROWS SIX-ITEM GENERAL MOTOR ABILITY TEST

Since the three-item test is equally valid and the six-item test is not in common use. Therefore, instead of giving individual detailed instructions and test administration procedures, only general information about item names and the scoring system of the six items is relevant here. The following regression equation is developed based on a 6 item test to determine the individual general motor ability test score;

SBJ= standing broad jump
SBT= softball throw
ZZR= Zigzag run
WP= Wall pass
MBP=Medicine ball put
60 yd T= Time taken for the 60-yard dash

Regression equation for general motor ability test

GMAS= 2.2 [SBJ] +1.6[SBT] + 1.6[ZZR] +1.3[WP] +1.2[MBP] +60YRD

SBJ

ZZR

MBP

T-SCORE

UP TO 68

69-72

73-76

29.5 and more

29.4- 28.7

28.6-27.9