FQ4: How does the acquisition of skill affect performance? Flashcards
What are the stages of skill acquisition?
- Cognitive
- Associative
- Autonomous
Describe the cognitive stage of skill acquisition.
- mental processing of information, thinking and understanding
- fundamental requirement
- conceptualisation
- demonstrations
- errors, awkwardness, disorientation
- high concentration, high rates of error
e.g. tennis - hit the ball and lift your head
Describe the associative stage of skill acquisition.
- emphasis on practice; connecting or linking ideas
- repetition to enhance synchronisation of mind and muscles
- errors smaller and less frequent
- need feedback
- sense of fluency develops
- confidence increases
E.g. tennis forehand - step and leading through while keeping your eyes on the ball and start to swing through = smoothness
Describe the autonomous stage of skill acquisition.
- ability to automatically execute the skill
- properly sequenced
- performed instinctively
- able to attend other cues while giving little thought on how to perform the skill
- practice at simulating competition/strategy rather than skill
E.g. netball game - pass is autonomous, who to pass + type of pass is not
What are the characteristics in a learner?
- Personality
- Heredity
- Confidence
- Prior experience
- Ability
Describe personality as a characteristic of the learner.
- way of behaving (consistency, reliability, level of motivation, ability to express feelings)
- cooperative, willing to listen, determined, enthusiastic, intrinsically motivated, willing to take risks, more receptive to feedback
- positive growth mindset
- productive learning environment
Describe heredity as a characteristic of the learner.
- unchangeable: limits potential
- fast:slow twitch muscle fibres
- somatype (ectomorph = linearity, mesomorph = muscularity, endomorph = roundness)
- gender
- height
- conceptual ability
Describe confidence as a characteristic of the learner.
- firm belief
- critical in improvement of skill acquisition + performance of everyday tasks
- achievement is progressive and gradual, within one’s ability = enhances confidence + nurses self-image whilst building foundation for future skill-building
Describe prior experience as a characteristic of the learner.
- an experience linked to the influence of an already learned task on one to be acquired - has the potential to accelerate the learning process
- Lateral transfer: transfer from one task to another similar task
- Vertical transfer: mastering a lower order task as a prerequisite for something more difficult within the same activity
- positive and negative
E.g. cricket - can positively transfer to baseball
E.g. badminton and tennis - can negatively transfer wrist action
Describe ability as a characteristic of the learner.
- way an individual can learn + process + implement new skills
- sharpness: gathers cues quickly
- perception
- reaction time
- intelligence
What are the different natures of skill? Provide definitions.
OPEN SKILL:
Unpredictable environment that is continually changing
CLOSED SKILL:
Environment that is stable and predictable
GROSS MOTOR SKILL:
Require the use of large muscle groups for execution
FINE MOTOR SKILL: Require the use of only small muscle groups to perform the movement
DISCRETE SKILL:
Skills that have a distinct beginning and end that can be identified
SERIAL SKILL:
Involve a sequence of smaller movement that are assembled together to make a total skill
CONTINUOUS SKILL:
Skills that have no distinct beginning or end
SELF-PACED SKILL:
Movement where the performer determines the timing and speed of execution
EXTERNALLY-PACED SKILL:
Movement where an external force controls the timing
What are the performance elements within the learning environment?
- Decision-making
- Strategic and tactical development
Explain how productive decision making is best achieved.
- Observation
- Questioning
- Whole, part, whole approach
- Creativity
best improved by making decisions in performance-like situations (rules, playing conditions, agreed team strategies, opposition tactics)
What is the tactical skill learning process and strategic development?
- Understanding
- knowledge
- self-confidence
- familiarity with consequences of error - Enhance decision making ability
- relevant cues and variations in game-like situations
- apply tactical options
built on problem solving (error –> learning from it –> developing creative solutions)
strategic development can be enhanced as tactical skills become functional (planning, practice)
What are the practice methods in the learning environment?
- Massed
- Distributed
- Whole
- Part
Explain the difference between massed and distributed practice.
MASSED:
- continuous practice session with rest intervals being shorter than the practice intervals
- works best when highly motivated, fresh, unable to attend a no. of sessions
DISTRIBUTED:
- broken practice sessions with the intervals of rest or alternative activities being longer than the practice intervals
- spreads the periods of intensive work more liberally
- works best when performer lacks interest, difficult task, low motivation, task causes fatigue, excessive work causes discomfort
Explain the difference between whole and part practice.
WHOLE: applied when a skill is practised in its entirety
PART: skill is broken into smaller components - each discrete subskill (subroutine) is practised separately
WHOLE-PART-WHOLE:
1. Total skill is demonstrated and practised
2. Discrete segments are extracted from the total movement and analysed separately
3. Skill is reassembled, practised and again rehearsed
What are the types of feedback?
- Internal
- External
- Concurrent
- Delayed
- Knowledge of results
- Knowledge of performance
Explain the relationships between feedback and performance.
- Action is highly unsuccessful → feedback should suggest learner substitute or replace action
- Action is unsuccessful → feedback should suggest learner modify the action
- Action is successful → feedback should suggest learner repeat the action
Explain the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic feedback.
INTRINSIC:
feedback experienced during execution of the skill; received through body’s proprioceptive mechanisms (senses)
- Proprioception → neuromuscular system sending messages to brain about how the movement is being performed
- More motivating than extrinsic/more sustainable in the long-term
EXTRINSIC:
feedback derived from outside sources during performance of a skill; all feedback other than that at which occurs as a normal consequence of performance
- Augmented feedback → supplementary/additional information that is not given immediately while the skill is performed, but is used later to illustrate a point
Explain the difference between concurrent and delayed feedback.
Concurrent feedback → received during the performance of a skill; occurs simultaneously with skill execution
- Relayed throughout the body by the proprioceptive mechanism
delayed/terminal feedback → feedback received at a later stage
Explain the difference between knowledge of results and knowledge of performance.
Knowledge of results → information about the outcome of a movement
- Suggests how successfully skills as performed
- always external
Knowledge of performance → information about the pattern of the movement during execution
- More specific to the way skill is performed
- Gives feedback on the quality of execution of skill
- Generated from internal or external sources
How can skill and performance be assessed?
- Characteristics of skilled performers
- Objective and subjective performance measures
- Validity and reliability of tests
- Personal vs judging criteria
What are the characteristics of skilled performers?
- Kinaesthetic sense
- Anticipation
- Consistency
- Technique
Describe each characteristic of skilled performers. Provide an example of each.
KINAESTHETIC SENSE:
- system of sensitivity that exists in the muscles and their attachments = ‘muscle memory’
- regular practice improves kinaesthesis
- Brain injury can destroy kinaesthetic function → precise movements difficult or impossible
E.g. tennis - return serves where ball speeds regularly reach 200 km/h + → limbs respond reflexively + with control - muscular + neurological system sync to meet the ball in the centre of the strings and adjust to topspin/backspin → what action + force applied = autonomic response (feel, touch sensation conditioned by practice yet has effortless control)
ANTICIPATION:
- Skilled performers able to predict what may happen in specific situations
- added time to respond + more attention
- articularly important in externally paced activities - where fast movement + decision making are necessary
- Needs to be developed regularly
CONSISTENCY:
- Skilled performers more consistent → able to perform desired movement repeatedly
- Sense of trust in one’s emotional control + ability to execute action/plan is necessary (committment)
- Psychological skills (imagery, concentration, confidence, self-talk, arousal control) → underlying factors in gaining greater consistency
- Improved by exposure to pressure situations, knowledge of what to do, trust in self, control of situational anxiety
E.g. tennis - more consistent in rallies, clear the net, keep the ball in court more regularly
TECHNIQUE:
- procedure/practical method applied to a particular task
- advantages: efficient, skillful, aesthetically pleasing, better chance of success, better chance of sustaining under pressure, less change of injury
- Developed through drills + game-related activities
E.g. elite tennis players - serve at high speeds + apply bounce + topspin + rallies for extended periods of time
Explain the difference between objective and subjective performance measures.
Subjective observation → refers to a judgement of performance quality based on feelings, impressions or opinions
Use of instruments makes data more credible by eliminating guesswork → increases degree of objectivity
- less accurate
Objective observation → when judges or testers apply the same criteria to measure a performance and do not need to interpret information
- use of instruments
- lies on continuum
Explain the difference between validity and reliability of tests.
VALIDITY → honesty of a test; degree to which it measures what it is supposed to measure
- Judgements about the test items - known good performers score better than known poor performers
- Using already validated but similar tests as an indicator - relationship between validated and new test is close
- Accuracy in prediction - reliable indicator of future performance
- Ensuring test items contain the component being validated
RELIABILITY → degree of consistency of a test; ability of test and tester to produce the same results on successive occasions
- Similar procedures
- Similar conditions
- Similar equipment
Explain the difference between personal and prescribed judging criteria.
PERSONAL CRITERIA → preconceived ideas or expectations that an individual brings to judge a performance
- disadvantages: more suited to appreciation rather than comparing 2 performances
- preconceived attitudes, expectations, opinions and possible bias may contribute to judgements that others may believe to be incorrect or unjustified
PRESCRIBED CRITERIA → established by sports organisation or body and form the basis of assessment for competitions in that sport or activity
- Seeks to absorb elements of subjectivity into a more objective framework
- Convert appraisal into meaningful measurements
- During competition - judge matches the performance to the criteria to rate standard of performance
