Chapters 11-13 Flashcards
What is performance?
It is defined as observable behaviour (in the case of motor skills, motor behaviour)
What is learning?
It is defined as a change in the capability of an individual to perform a motor skill.
Learning is inferred from a permanent improvement in performance occurring through practice over time.
One of the most important aspects of motor skill performance?
Learning.
In the context of motor skills, learning implies?
That a change in movement has occurred over a certain period of time.
Feedback is essential?
For learning to occur.
T or F: It is not possible to measure (or observe) learning directly.
True.
Learning must be inferred from?
Performance.
When assessing learning, it is important to make every effort to take what into account?
take the effects of other performance variables into account (for e.g., stress levels, emotional state, environmental conditions, etc.).
When individuals learn to perform motor skills, the learning that occurs can be assessed by?
examining several different performance characteristics, each of which will change over time as learning takes place.
There are four key performance characteristics associated with the learning of motor skills. They are?
Improvement
Consistency
Persistence
Adaptability
What is Improvement?
Skill performance improves over time
What is Consistency?
Performance consistency increases (becomes more stable)
What is Persistence?
The improvement (change in behaviour) persists for a long period of time
What is Adaptability?
Skill performance can be adapted to a variety of different performance contexts
What are assessment Methods?
How each of the four performance characteristics are used to assess motor learning.
The assessment methods, as well as the corresponding performance characteristic, are?
Observing Practice Performance
Associative Stage
Autonomous Stage
What is Observing Practice Performance?
Relates to performance improvement
Relates to performance consistency
What are the sub groups of what is Observing Practice Performance?
- Retention Tests (relates to persistence)
2. Transfer Tests (relates to adaptability)
What are performance curves?
indicate (using a graph) how performance (and therefore performance improvement) changes over time.
y = the performance outcome measure (e.g., the score, time, speed, distance, force, accuracy, etc.).
x = the time period.
One of these four curves (each of which represents a general trend) typically occurs when a person learns a skill.
For example, you were to teach a group of kids how to skate over a 6-month period while recording their performance at one-month intervals (let’s say you measured the time it takes to skate a certain number of laps)
What is the Linear performance curve?
Shows that the improvement was linear; i.e., that the rate of improvement in skating was consistent across the entire 6-month period.
Linear curves are rare and usually occur only for very short time periods.
What is the Negatively accelerated curve?
The most common for the learning of motor skills
Demonstrates that the rate of performance improvement is very rapid early on, but decreases as the curve moves to the right (i.e., as more time goes by).
What is the Positively accelerated curve?
Represents the complete opposite relationship to the negatively accelerated curve.
Positively accelerated curves are usually associated with motor skills that are quite difficult to learn.
Ex. learning to play piano.
What is the Ogive (s-shaped) curve?
Is a combination of both the positively accelerated and negatively accelerated curves, and indicates a rapid rate of improvement early on, followed by slower rates towards the end of the performance period.
It should be noted that performance curves typically use?
Performance outcome measures rather than performance production measures (e.g., kinematics, EMG, force, etc.).
What is retention?
The brain’s ability to retain information; in this case, the motor patterns of the skill that are practiced.
If you don’t practice something for a while, you will forget how to do it.
What happens if you take a break in practice?
However, if you experience the same break in practice once you’ve become proficient at the skill, the same phenomenon will not happen; i.e., there will be no difference in your performance before or after the break. (High level of retention)
What is high level of retention?
what you had learned was so ingrained that it persisted throughout the break. -become permanent
Example of retention tests?
An example would be to administer a performance test (usually specific to a particular skill component) and then schedule a break in practice (usually for several weeks). Once practice resumes, the participants repeat the test. If the performance tests are different, then some of what was learned before the break did not persist. If no difference exists, then the motor pattern of the skill component you had been working on persisted, despite the break.
What is the purpose of retention tests?
The purpose of retention tests are to assess and determine those aspects of motor skill performance that persist.
What are retention tests?
A test that determines how much of what has been learned has been retained.
Retention tests require a temporary break in practice.
What are transfer tests?
A test involving a novel situation in which a motor skill must be adapted to a new context.
What is the ability to adjust motor skill performance to varying conditions?
The ability to adjust motor skill performance to varying conditions is called adaptability (which is the fourth performance characteristic used to assess learning) Ex. NFL kicker has to adapt to different distances of kicking.
The greater your proficiency…
The better you’ll be able to adapt your skill performance to different conditions.
Transfer is an important aspect of motor learning that is generally more applicable to what kind of skill?
open skills than to closed skills.
What is transfer?
This capacity to adapt skill performance to different conditions (The more skilled you are, the easier it will be for you to make the necessary adjustments in your skill performance.)
Varying the context characteristics include?
Change the availability of feedback; e.g., perform a synchronized swimming or gymnastics routine without auditory feedback.
Change the physical environment; e.g., shooting free throws in a game situation in a gym vs. practicing on an outdoor court.
Change the physical characteristics of the performer; e.g., perform the skill with different levels of arousal level, fatigue, etc.
Varying the skill characteristics include?
Change the level of skill difficulty; e.g., increase the tempo of the skill, add or subtract different skill components (e.g., perform a double back tuck vs. a single).
Change the timing of the skill; e.g., different practice drills or types of training are usually used to accomplish this.
What is the dynamical systems approach?
views learning as a process in which the performance of a motor skill is characterized by a progression from one stable coordination pattern (or state) to another.
In the transition phase in which the performance is?
highly erratic (unstable) and inconsistent, not the outcome.
In order to learn how to perform a new coordination pattern, the learner must?
Experience and transition through a period of instability in which the performance of the skill will be poor (i.e., erratic and unpredictable).
T or F: instability and poor performance is not a sign that learning is taking place.
False, it is.
Learning cannot be measured directly; it can only be?
inferred from performance.
Consequently, this can be a problem if performance suffers while learning is actually taking place.
T or F: performance is not necessarily indicative of learning?
True.
In sport, poor performance can be? Which can cause?
In sport, poor performance can be frustrating for parents, athletes and coaches, and can be the source of many different problems.
What is the irony of learning?
The irony is that learning may actually be occurring, with the improvement to follow later (e.g., once the instability associated with learning has passed).
What is a Performance plateau?
a period of time in which the learner experiences no improvement (which is usually preceded by a period of steady improvement). Typically, the learner will experience improvement eventually after continued practice.
When you work hard with no return on your investment (i.e, the time and effort you invest is rewarded with zero improvement), it can be very difficult to stay motivated and want to continue to practice.
When these performance “slumps” occur, it is important to have an instructor who understands the learning process and who can tell you that what is happening is “normal”.
if one looks carefully at the performance progressions of elite performers, one will see that this is what typically occurs; i.e., multiple performance plateaus (sometimes for extended periods of time) which are then followed by periods of rapid “catch-up” improvement (almost as if the performance has to catch up to where it would have been had the performance plateau not occurred).
Reasons why performance plateaus occur?
1) They appear to be an inherent part of the learning process. For example, performance plateaus may represent a phase transition (a period of instability) between stable coordination patterns (states). If so, it is conceivable that in some circumstances (paradoxically), performance plateaus may actually be a sign that learning is occurring.
2) Performance plateaus may be associated with physiological factors such as fatigue, due to prolonged intense training with insufficient recovery (i.e., overtraining).
3) Performance plateaus may occur as a result of difficulty acquiring certain skill components.
4) Performance plateaus may occur because of the law of diminishing returns (a.k.a. the power law of practice), which means that as you get more and more skilled, your potential for improvement becomes less and less.
Stages of Learning in this case?
In this case, time refers to any point in the learning process, whether it’s learning a fundamental movement pattern as a beginner or a subtle variation in technique as an advanced performer.
Learning is envisioned as?
a continuous process (a continuum from beginner to expert) that occurs over a substantial period of time (usually 10 years or more), and one of the key concepts of this chapter is that despite individual differences, motor skill learning progresses in similar stages for all learners.
Consequently, all of us will have to progress through the same stages of learning if want to become an expert.
The three learning stages models are?
- The Fitts and Posner Three-Stage Model
- Gentile’s Two-Stage Model
- The Coordination and Control Stages Model
Fitts and Posner Three-Stage Model stages are?
- Cognitive Stage
- Associative Stage
- Autonomous Stage
What is the stages within the cognitive stage?
- The beginner focuses on cognitively oriented problems (thinking, making decisions, listening to instructions, etc.)
- Beginners are very busy attending to and processing information.
- The focus at this stage in terms of motor skill instruction should be on learning the basic movement patterns of the skill.
- The greatest number of errors will occur during this stage, and the errors will typically be significant ones (e.g., the basics of the skill are not likely to be performed correctly)
What is the Associative Stage?
Learners begin to associate sensory feedback and environmental cues with skill movement.
What is the stages within the Associative Stage?
- A substantial decrease in the number of errors.
- Refining of the skill’s basic fundamental coordination pattern (i.e., refinement of the motor program and motor pathways). Consequently, this stage can be thought of as the refining stage.
- Performance consistency increases substantially.
- Overall skill performance increases.
- Learners develop the ability to detect and correct errors on their own. (critical for the learner to be able to advance to the next (and final) stage of learning.) -Will know what it “feels” like to perform skill correctly (“inner sense”).
- Inner sense- will tell you whether you are doing things right or not, and functions as a built in “error detection” mechanism, which helps you improve and stay on top of your game.
- The “knowledge” obtained through instruction about how to perform different movement components is needed so the learner will “know” what to do to correct these errors.
What is the stages within the Autonomous Stage?
- The final stage of learning in which the learner attains a significant degree of independence.
- This stage is associated with the highest level of proficiency, and it is here that many different aspects of the skill become habitual and automatic as the result of extensive practice and experience.
- It is not necessarily the case that all learners will reach this stage.
- This will depend on a large number of factors including the quality of coaching/instruction, the number of practices attended, the level of motivation to participate, the competitive environment and the number of opportunities to compete, among others.
What is Gentile’s Two-Stage Model?
The basic idea of this model is that beginners are preoccupied with learning the basic movement pattern of the skill, whereas more experienced performers are focused on refining and adapting the basic movement pattern(s) which were learned in the first stage.
Two stages of Gentile’s Two-Stage Model?
1) Basic Movement Pattern Stage
2) Fixation/Diversification Stage
What is Basic Movement Pattern Stage?
In this first stage, there are two key objectives that the learner/performer needs to accomplish
Basic Movement Pattern Stage: Objective #1?
The performer needs to learn the skill’s basic movement components to be successful at achieving the skill’s objective.
The learner needs to acquire the basic coordination pattern of the skill.
For example, in hockey you need to obtain the basic coordination patterns for skating, stick-handling and shooting so you can successfully play the game.
Basic Movement Pattern Stage: Objective #2?
The performer learns to discriminate between the regulatory and non-regulatory conditions of the skill.
For example, when picking up a cup, the position of the cup, its shape and its weight are regulatory conditions because they directly influence (i.e., dictate) how you must move to accomplish the objective. Other conditions, such as the colour of the cup and the liquid that’s in it are non-regulatory; i.e., they don’t have any particular impact on the movements needed to successfully perform the skill.
What is the Fixation/Diversification Stage?
In this stage, the learner is concerned with refining (i.e., fixating) the basic movement pattern learned in the first stage, or adapting the pattern to suit a variety of different conditions that might be encountered (i.e., diversifying the skill).
Fixation/Diversification Stage: • If you are learning a closed skill?
If you are learning a closed skill (such as swimming, cycling or rowing), then as you progress in your learning (according to this model), you will work on refining the skill at this stage (i.e., fine-tuning the technical details of the skill so that your movements become as precise and efficient as possible).
Fixation/Diversification Stage: If you are learning an open skill?
If you’re engaged with learning an open skill (such as tennis or throwing a football), you’ll be preoccupied with diversifying the skill (i.e., finding ways to be successful in all kinds of different performance situations).
Coordination and Control Stages Model stages? (2)
Coordination stage
Control stage
What is the coordination stage?
The learner is focused on learning the basic coordination pattern of the skill.
For example, in learning how to pitch, the learner has to master the basic coordination pattern of throwing in terms of both speed and accuracy, which is not easy to do and may take considerable time.
What is the control stage?
The performer learns how to parameterize the movement pattern; i.e., how to add (and/or modify) different situation and/or skill specific characteristics.
One of the key performance features that occurs during this stage is an increase in efficiency; e.g., a pitcher will be able to throw faster, more accurate and consistent pitches with less physical and mental effort.
Popular in the dynamical systems theory.
Performer/Performance Changes Across the Stages of Learning is?
The different performance parameters that change as learners progress along the motor skill learning continuum. (Negatively accelerated).
The 9 Performer/Performance Changes Across the Stages of Learning are?
1) Changes in rate of improvement
2) Changes in limb segment coordination
3) Changes in preferred (established) coordination
4) Changes in muscle activation patterns
5) Changes in movement efficiency
6) Changes in kinematic emphasis
7) Changes in visual attention
8) Changes in conscious attention
9) Changes in error detection and correction capability
What is the changes in rate of improvement
the rate of improvement will change as the learner progresses along the motor skill learning continuum and increases the proficiency of their performance.
Power law of practice – this phenomenon (which is represented by the negatively accelerated curve) translates into rapid early improvement, followed by smaller rates of improvement as the learner becomes more accomplished and proficient at performing the skill.
Early on there are large errors and easy to correct, later on there are small errors and hard to correct.
What is the changes in limb segment coordination?
In many individuals (particularly young children), an initial control strategy is to simplify the skill.
This is accomplished by either holding some of the joints rigid or by minimizing the range of motion (ROM) at the different joints, thereby limiting the degrees of freedom (i.e, the number of variables that have to be controlled).
Such a strategy is called freezing the degrees of freedom, and is an effective way to perform the skill in a simplified manner (i.e., with a very simple coordination pattern that involves a minimum number of joints).
The classic example of freezing the degrees of freedom is to watch young children learn how to throw.
What is the changes in preferred (established) coordination patterns?
In many cases, coordination patterns already exist for established skills. These patterns are frequently incorporated into the initial strategy that is used to perform the skill in the early stages of learning. It is not uncommon for established coordination patterns to interfere with and hinder the learning of new skills.
Observable patterns of stability-instability-stability typically characterize the transition from an initial movement pattern to a more optimal and efficient movement pattern (as described by the dynamical systems theory).
With practice (i.e., over time), the initial coordination pattern and strategy for throwing a baseball or football will be refined and give way to a more effective and efficient coordination pattern.
What is the changes in muscle activation patterns?
In almost all motor skills, muscles are used inappropriately (i.e., inefficiently) in the early stages of learning.
Typically, muscles are over-recruited (i.e, there is more muscle activation than is necessary). Much of this “extra” muscle activity is unwanted antagonist activity.
For example, if you watch an unskilled person try to sprint the length of a pool or sprint one lap around the track, you are not likely to see a smooth, efficient coordination pattern. What you are likely to see are inefficient movements that are characterized by lots of unnecessary muscle activation.
In the early stages of learning, the timing of muscle activation patterns is also incorrect and inefficient. As a result, movements typically appear awkward and difficult.
As learning progresses, the motor control system undergoes considerable reorganization.
Consequently, a new motor program and/or coordination pattern is established.
What is the changes in movement efficiency?
As learners progress, the energy cost of performing a skill decreases over time (i.e., with practice). One of the reasons is because of an improvement in the efficiency of muscle activation (as stated in #4).
As biomechanical efficiency increases, the overall physiological cost of muscle activation also decreases (i.e., the activity is typically less anaerobic).
What is the changes in kinematic emphasis?
When individuals learn motor skills, the kinematic emphasis of the skill will change.
The spatial characteristics of the skill will be acquired and emphasized first. For example, this involves knowing how to properly position your limbs to perform the skill effectively (for example, a floor routine in gymnastics).
Next, the focus will change to the speed of the movement (for example, swinging a golf club or baseball bat).
Eventually, the kinematic emphasis will change to acceleration. Acceleration is directly related to force, so to apply the maximum amount of force when shooting a hockey puck (for example), it is important that the stick is accelerated at just the right time.
What is the changes in visual attention?
in the early stages of learning beginners look at too many things at once. For example, it is not uncommon for new drivers to feel completely overwhelmed when driving in a big city for the first time.
As learning progresses, experienced performers become more selective at what they look at and what they attend to.
With practice, attention will be directed to the most important visual cues.
What is the changes in conscious attention?
In the early stages of learning, beginners will consciously attend to almost every aspect of performance. In a sense they have to, because they are still figuring out the basics of what it is they have to do to be successful at performing the skill.
With practice, the degree of conscious attention to many performance variables will diminish and a considerable number of movement components will become automatic.
What is the changes in error detection and correction capability?
As learners get better, the ability to detect and correct errors increases with practice (improves as learning progresses).
The improvement in error detection/correction capacity is an important part of the associative stage of the Fitts and Posner Model.
Studies show that to become an expert in a particular skill, learners must engage in intense practice for a period of at least?
a period of at least 10 years!
The research shows that to develop expertise in a particular skill requires approximately how many hours of practice?
approximately 10,000 hours of practice.
An average of 3.5 hours per day (if you practice 6 days a week) PRACTICE!
In addition to at least 10,000 hours, you’ll need to receive quality instruction on a regular basis and to focus most of your time and energy (at some point) on one particular skill (e.g., you will need to quit playing other sports).
T or F: Expertise is domain specific? Why?
True.
(i.e., experts are only good at one thing). You may be an outstanding marathon runner, a great linebacker or a phenomenal gymnast, but you won’t be able to beat Michael Phelps in the pool if your life depended on it. Similarly, Michael Phelps wouldn’t do very well at marathons, gymnastics or tackling.
Research shows that experts possess a more ______ than non-experts?
“sophisticated (organized) knowledge structure”
They know just about everything there is to know about their skill.
Research shows that experts use _____ much better than non-experts
vision
Experts literally “see” (and are aware of) more in a much shorter period of time than non-experts. No single athlete may have ever demonstrated this better than Wayne Gretzky.
What is transfer of learning?
It concerns the effect that learning one thing has on another.
Recognizing this is important, because it means that when you learn something, some of what you learn will transfer to other things.
Transfers of learning can be ____ or _____?
Can be a small or large transfer depending on situation. (or non-existent)
the transfer may be beneficial (i.e., learning one thing will assist in learning something else) or detrimental (the transfer will interfere with learning something else).
What are learning progressions?
Educators use this. If learning one thing can help with learning something else, then the instructional sequence for teaching different learning components is important.
For example, when teaching children to learn how to write, it is standard practice to learn the alphabet first.
In the context of motor skills, transfer of learning involves?
the effect of previous experience on new skill performance.
What is positive transfer?
Refers to the beneficial effect of previous experience on the learning or performance of a new skill, or on the performance of an existing skill in a new context.
Ex. transfer of skating skill to skiing.
What is negative transfer?
Refers to the negative effect of previous experience on the performance of a skill, so that the performance will be inferior compared to what it would have been had the previous experience not occurred.
For example, if you perform two similar skills on the same day, you may in some cases find that the motor patterns associated with the performance of the first skill will interfere with the motor patterns needed for the second skill.
What is zero transfer?
Refers to the fact that previous experience has no effect or influence on the performance of a skill.
Importance of Transfer from a research perspective?
From a research perspective, one of the reasons is to try to understand the underlying processes that affect the learning and control of motor skills.
Importance of Transfer from a practical perspective?
From a practical perspective, it is important to understand transfer so that properly sequenced learning progressions can be designed for teaching.
How should learning progressions be structured?
Learning progressions should be structured so that basic (foundational) movement components are taught (and learned) first, before teaching more advanced components.
breaking skills down into parts, and teaching each part in a specific sequence.
Why is it important to permit simulation of different skills?
This is very important for certain skills in which there is a substantial risk associated with performing the skill.
For example, flight simulators have been used to train pilots for many years. This is a “safe” way to learn how to fly. The idea here is to make the simulation (i.e., performing the skill in an artificial environment) as much like the real thing as possible, so that there is almost 100% positive transfer between the simulation and the performance of the skill in the real world.
Two factors of positive transfer?
1) Similarity between skill components (or performance situations)
2) Similarity of processing requirements.
Positive Transfer: Similarity between skill components (or performance situations)?
Identical Elements Theory – this theory suggests that positive transfer will occur when the general skill components or performance characteristics of two different skills are similar. For example, skiing and skating involve many of the same movement components (i.e., balance, shifting weight from one leg to the other, sliding forward on one leg while pushing backwards with the other, etc.).
Other examples of skills with similar components would be hockey and golf, tennis and racquetball, etc.
Positive Transfer: Similarity of processing requirements?
In some cases, while the movement components of certain skills might be different, transfer can occur if both skills are similar in terms of their requirements for processing and/or attending to information.
For example, NASCAR drivers and hockey goalies both require fast reaction times and an ability to maintain a broad external attentional focus. Consequently, it is conceivable that proficiency in one of these skills might transfer positively to the performance of the other.
Research shows that negative transfer often occurs in what situations?
in familiar situations (stimuli) that require new or different responses. (For example, playing tennis after playing badminton).
Research also shows that negative transfer can occur in situations that require what?
in situations that require responding to the same stimulus, but with a different spatial arrangement of components.
Driving a right-hand drive vehicle is a good example of this, particularly if the car has a standard transmission. Spatially, you’re sitting on the opposite side of the vehicle, you’ll need to shift with your left hand instead of your right, and many of the controls will be on your left side rather than on your right.
Factors that contribute to the phenomenon of negative transfer?
Performing a skill you already know how to do, but with different timing characteristics. For example, different technical drills in all sports (in swimming, doing breaststroke pull with flutter kick), performing the same dance routine to different music, etc.
Stimulus-response compatibility issues; for example, if red meant “go” and green meant “stop” on traffic lights.
Difficulty adapting existing motor programs for different skill variations; for example, using different equipment (competing on a different bike, or playing with a different set of golf clubs, etc.).
What is bilateral transfer?
The ability to “transfer” the basic characteristics of a motor skill and perform it with the opposite limb.
the transfer of information occurs not between skills, but between limbs.
T or F: Research clearly shows that learning a motor skill with one limb is much harder when you have already learned it with the opposite limb.
False. It is easier.
For example, when you write, it may seem harder to write with your left hand, but you can write much better than if you didn’t know how to write at all.
One of the ways in which bilateral transfer is typically assessed is?
assessed is to practice a skill with one limb, and then test it on the other.
What is Symmetric transfer?
this refers to bilateral transfer in which the amount of transfer is similar from one limb to another, regardless of which limb learns the skill first.
What is asymmetric transfer?
refers to bilateral transfer in which there is a greater amount of transfer from one limb to the other than the other way around (e.g., more transfer from the right arm to the left, than from the left to the right).
What does research show about bilateral transfer in terms of what limb goes first?
Research evidence shows that it matters which limb learns the skill first. Consequently, bilateral transfer is usually asymmetric.
Research also shows that bilateral transfer is greatest when the skill is learned with the preferred (dominant) limb first.
Explanation of Transfer of cognitive information in terms of bilateral transfer?
In this case, bilateral transfer occurs because the cognitive (i.e., what to do) elements of a skill will not need to be relearned with the opposite limb.
For example, throwing, writing or brushing your teeth with your non-dominant hand.
Explanation of Transfer of general motor program (GMP) in terms of bilateral transfer?
In this case, the basic movement components of the GMP (which controls a class of actions of invariant skill characteristics - see Ch. 5) are transferred to the opposite limb.
Subsequently, movement specific parameters must be developed/organized (added to the GMP) for the new limb.
