Topic 5 Skill in Sport 5.1 The characteristics and classification of skill 5.2 Information processing 5.3. Principles of skill learning.

Topic 5 Skill in Sport

5.1 The characteristics and classification of skill

5.2 Information processing

5.3. Principles of skill learning

Topic 5.1 The characteristics and classfication of skill

5.1.1 Define the term skill.

Skill is the consistent production of goal-oriented movements, which are learned and specific to the task (McMorris 2004)

A skill is something we learn, while ability is something we are born with.

Topic 5.1 Skill in sport

5.1.2 Describe the different types of skill.

Cognitive – requires thinking (e.g. chess, knowledge of rules, tactics, strategy)

Perceptual – vision, vestibular (helps with balance related to hearing), haptic (touch) and auditory. (e.g. golfer assessing the surface, rock climbing assessing rock positions/angles)

Motor – Emphasis movement and does not require much thinking (weightlifting, sprinting, wrestling)

Perceptual Motor – Interpretation of environmental stimuli and the motor response to the stimuli. Involves thought, interpretation and movement (e.g. adapting to a new surface (grass to turf), defensive vs. offensive moves.

5.1.3 Outline the different approaches to classifying motor skills.

Skill classification - Discrete-serial-continuous

Discrete - clear start and finish; brief and well defined. (e.g. forward roll in gymnastics, golf swing)

Serial – linking together of skills to form a longer, more complex movement. (e.g. flips and somersaults, triple jump, lay-up in basketball)

Continuous – the end of one cycle of movement is the beginning of the next. (e.g. swimming, running and cycling)

5.1.3 Outline the different approaches to classifying motor skills.

Open Skills – affected by environmental conditions; variable and unpredictable; athlete must be able to adapt quickly. (rebounding in basketball).

Closed Skills – more controlled environment; stable and predictable (archery).

Gross motor skills – large muscle groups are involved (walking, running, swimming, cycling).

Fine motor skills – small muscle groups are involved (playing piano).

5.1.3 Outline the different approaches to classifying motor skills.

External-Internal-Paced Skills (Pacing continuum) Externally paced skills – those in which timing and

form are determined by what is happening elsewhere in the environment. (e.g. a sailor adjusts the trim of the sails and the direction to be taken according to the wind. (Davis, et al 2005)

Internal (Self) Paced – the performer has control over the rate at which the action takes place. (e.g. gymnast floor routine, climber)

Interaction Continuum (individual-coactive-interactive) – Skills that relate varyingly depending on context, thus a continuum. Individual skills – in isolation – away from others Coactive – performed with someone else Interactive – other performers are directly involved and

can involve confrontation.

5.1.4 Compare skill profiles for contrasting sports.

Dribbling in soccer to beat an opponent

The Shot-put

A dance motif

In pairs, complete Table 5.1 on page 111

5.1.5 Outline ability

Ability – Traits that we are born with. A general trait or capacity of the individual that is related to

the performance and performance potential of a variety of skills or tasks (IB curriculum guide p.28).

Perceptual and motor attributes, inherited from our parents that enable us to perform skills

Perceptual-motor abilities – abilities that enable an individual to process information about how and when to move.

Motor abilities – abilities relating to the actual movement.

(IB SEHS text p.111)

5.1.6 Distinguish between Fleishman’s physical proficiency abilities (physical factors) and perceptual motor abilities (psychomotor factors).

Perceptual-Motor Abilities

• Control precision (control over fast, accurate movements that use large areas of the body

• Multi-limb coordination• Response orientation (selection of the

appropriate response)• Reaction time• Speed of arm movement• Rate control (coincidence-anticipation• Manual dexterity• Arm-hand steadiness• Wrist-finger speed (coordination of

fast wrist and finger movements)• Aiming• Postural discrimination (coordination

when vision is occluded)• Response integration (integration of

sensory information to produce a movement)

Physical Proficiency Abilities

• Extent (or static) flexibility• Dynamic flexibility• Static strength• Dynamic strength• Explosive strength• Trunk strength• Gross body coordination• Gross body equilibrium• Stamina (cardiovascular fitness)

IB SEHS Table 5.2 p.112

5.1.7 Define the term technique

Technique – A “way of doing”.

In references to sport performance, it is the “way in which that sports skill is performed”.

IB SEHS Curriculum guide p. 28

5.1.8 State the relationship between ability, skill, and technique.

Skill = ability + selection of appropriate technique.

Discuss this relationship according to the Fosbury Flop vs. the Western Roll for the high jump.

In pairs, identify and discuss two other sporting examples. Explain to the class.

Topic 5.1 The characteristics and classification of skill

5.1.9 Discuss the differences between a skilled and a novice performer.

Consistency – the player can repeat the task successfully time after time/achieve their goals with maximum certainty.

Accuracy - skilled players selectively attend to, recognize, analyze and interpret visual information more accurately and in turn make the correct decision.

Control - ability to vary precisely the parameters of the motor production, such as force, speed and duration, to suit specific performance constraints.

Learned - in order to produce a skilled performance, the player must practice so that the underlying abilities are enhanced / it requires practice and results from experience.

Efficiency - a beginner may use a lot of energy and still be unsuccessful but an experienced performer is able to fit the energy required to the demands of the task / movement appears fluent, controlled and aesthetically pleasing / well coordinated and precise / aesthetic (and smooth) – look good and are pleasing to watch (e.g. a high-level gymnastics routine).

Goal-directed – goal-oriented movements; aims towards the goal (a pass to a player).

Fluency (Coordination) – Movements are linked with no noticeable breaks.

Topic 5.2 Information processing

5.2.1 Describe a simple model of information processing.

Information processing – the system by which we take information from our surrounding environment, use it to make a decision and then produce a response: input-decision-making-output.

All the approaches are only models.

Input and output are assessable/observable, but the decision-making process can only be speculation.

IB SEHS Course Guide p. 29

5.2.2 Describe Welford’s model of information processing.

Sense organs – Input The senses, which are the most important in the perception of

information present in the environment, are visual and auditory receptors

Perception - Short-term memory Perception is the process by which the brain interprets and makes

sense of the information it is receiving from the sensory organs Perception consists of detection, comparison and recognition (DCR)

Decision making - Long-term memory

Effector control - Output

Feedback – encompasses all – look on p.115 in SEHS text

5.2.3 Outline the components associated with sensory input.

Exteroceptors – external stimuli, uses the senses (hearing and vision); Sensory nerve end receptors / sense organ that respond(s) to external light / sound / odor / tactile stimuli; Located in the skin / oral cavity / eyes / ears / nose; Knowledge of Results (KR)

Interoceptors - Sensory nerve end receptors; Located in the lining of the mucous membrane of the respiratory and digestive tracts / internal visceral organs / vascular system / blood vessels (blood pH) / chemoreceptors / nociceptors (free nerve endings in most body tissues that respond to potentially damaging stimuli / pain)

Proprioceptors – Sensory receptor/organs, neural – aids in movement and limb position (in muscles, tendons, joints, and inner ear (for balance); Neuromuscular receptors that register stimuli such as stretch / tension / movement / sensory nerve receptors / awareness of body position in space; Knowledge of Performance (KP)

5.2.4 Explain the signal-detection process.

Also known as the detection-comparison-recognition process (DCR).

Background noise (the crowd during a game or match)

Intensity of the stimulus (loudness of the crowd when shooting a free throw in basketball)

Efficiency of the sense organs – how well/fast one is able to respond

Early signal detection and improving signal detection (e.g. gun start in track)

5.2.4 Explain the signal-detection process.

Dependent on the interaction between two variables - the intensity of the signal vs. the intensity of the background noise.

d-prime (d’) – the individual’s sensitivity to that particular signal. Sense organs (eyes, vestibular apparatus) Experience – familiar signals are thought to more readily detected

than unfamiliar stimuli.

Criterion (C) – the effect of a person’s bias on detection. Affected by arousal level When arousal is low, the signal is missed (error of omission). When arousal is high and detection is considered to be a high

priority, a signal may be perceived when one does not exist (error of commission)

5.2.5 Distinguish between the characteristics of short-term sensory store, short-term memory and long-term memory.

Short-term sensory

Short-term memory

Long-term memory

Capacity Limited Limited No limitations

Duration .5 seconds 10 seconds

Retrieval Unlikely Selective Easy

5.2.6 Discuss the relationship between selective attention and memory.

Selective attention (SA) – focusing on relevant information while ignoring irrelevant information (IB SEHS).

Memory – the process of storing information and motor programs within the nervous system. (Davis, et al., 2005)

5.2.7 Compare different methods of memory improvement.

Rehearsal – going over the skill (mentally, physically, verbally) over and over again

Mental rehearsal - the imagery of a model performance prior to / interspersed with physical practice;

Coding - characteristics of the incoming stimuli are compared with those of similar stimuli which have previously been learned and stored in the long-term memory

Brevity – keeping cues short as short-term memory is limited; when first learning or seeing something we can only process a little at a time, e.g. not too many coaching points at any one time; Three coaching points are recommended.

Clarity – Concise, clear and simple information; avoid trying to learn or coach two similar but distinct items in the same section / quality of the demonstration / model performance/ communication

Chunking – items of information are grouped together in order to memorize more information

Organization – easier to learn when structured in a manner that is meaningful.

Association – learning happens when a stimulus and response are connected in the mind of the performer; linking new learning to what players / performers already know

Practice - rehearsing the skill; shuttles the image of the skills backwards and forwards between short and long-term memory to establish a memory trace / selection of appropriate practice type depending on skill / learner / situation

5.2.8 Define the term response time.

Response time = reaction time + movement time

In pairs, go to http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/sleep/sheep/reaction_version5.swf and measure your response time. Each partner will have 5 trials, alternating between each one. Record your data (average seconds and rating). Gather data from two other pairs, then compute the mean and SD for all data gathered. Provide anecdotal/qualitative information.

5.2.9 Outline factors that determine response time

Response time is an ability, having individual and group variance (e.g. gender and age).

Reaction time includes stimulus transmission, detection recognition, decision to respond, nerve transmission time and initiation of action.

Hick’s Law – The time it takes for a person to make a decision depending on the choices available. As you double the number of stimulus-response couplings, reaction time increases.

5.2.10 Evaluate the concept of the psychological refractory period (PRP).

When two stimuli are presented close together, the reaction time to the second stimulus is slower than normal reaction time.

Processing of S1 has to be completed prior the processing of S2. (IB SEHS text, p.119)

Sporting examples – Rugby, basketball, soccer (dummy, feint, dodge)

Single-channel theory – only being able to focus on one thing/stimuli at a time.

5.2.11 Describe a motor program. A set of muscle commands that allow movements to be

preformed w/o peripheral feedback. (e.g. hitting a tennis ball, catching a basketball), or a theoretical set of ‘instructions’ stored in the memory, which coordinates the muscles to produce the required action.

Whole Plan – movement as a whole Coordination of subroutines – breaking down in chunks Relegating executive programs to subroutines

Executive program – the overall motor program which governs the performance of a skill and which integrates the component of subroutines

Davis, et al. 2005

5.2.12 Compare motor programs from both open and closed loop perspectives.

Open loop – movement without recourse to feedback (movements that occur so quickly, there is no time for feedback).

Closed loop – Movement slow enough to alter in the process.

5.2.13 Outline the role of feedback in information processing models.

Intrinsic feedback – self regulated – outside help is not needed

Extrinsic feedback – provided by others (e.g. coach, teacher, teammates), or devices (e.g. stopwatches, HR monitor)

Two major forms of feedback:1. Knowledge of results (KR) – post-response info based on the

outcome of the action. (e.g. long jumper’s length, runner’s time)

2. Knowledge of performance (KP) post-response info based on the nature of the movement.

5.2.13 Outline the role of feedback in information processing models.

Positive – informing the player/student what they’ve done well

Negative – informing the player/student what they’ve done wrong (de-motivating; damaging, especially to beginners)

Prescriptive – explaining/demonstrating what should be done or how to do the skill

Concurrent – feedback received during the skill/tasks/game (coaches yelling during play )

Terminal – feedback received at the completion of skill/tasks/game (post-game critique)

5.2.14 Outline the role of feedback with the learning process.

Reinforcement of Learning – the giving of a reward such that the rewarded behavior will be repeated;(e.g. praise for a well-timed pass in hockey)

Motivation – the internal state of a performer which drives them to behave or perform in a particular way.

Adaptation of Performance – intrinsic feedback (e.g. a javelin thrower might know that the throw ‘felt good’, but waits in anticipation of the javelin to land to see if the throw is as long as he feels it is. (Knowledge of Performance/Knowledge of Results)

Punishment – an unpleasant response designed to prevent the occurrence of unwanted behavior.

Davis, et al. 2005

Topic 5.3 Principles of skill learning

5.3.1 Distinguish between learning and performance.

Learning – A relatively permanent change in performance resulting from practice or past experience. It is a life-long process.

Performance – demonstration of the solving of a problem or task at a given moment in time. A temporary occurrence, fluctuating over time. Used to infer learning.

5.3.2 Describe the phases (stages) of learning.

Cognitive/verbal - Early phase The learner is figuring out what to do.

Associate/motor -Intermediate phase The learner now understands the aim of the

activity. Movement patterns are more fluent and integrated.

Autonomous - Final phase –Movement patterns are well integrated and automatic.

5.3.3 Outline the different types of learning curves.

Positive acceleration – a learning curve which shows little increase in the quality of performance to start with and then there are rapid gains in learning towards the end of the period.

Negative acceleration – a learning curve which shows that in a series of performances, learning was effective early in the series but then the rate of learning slowed down.

Linear – easy to learn, which is rare.

Plateau – a period in learning when no appreciable gains in

learning are taking place.

5.3.4 Discuss factors that contribute to the different rates of learning.

Physical maturation

Physical fitness

Individual differences of coaches

Age

Difficulty of task

Teaching environment and motivation

5.3.5 Define the concept of transfer.

Transfer – the process by which learning in one situation aids or hinders learning in another, often similar, situation.

Positive transfer – is when the practice of one task has a facilitating effect on the learning.

Negative transfer – learning occurring in one situation which has a damaging effect on learning in another.

Zero transfer – represents no effect

In bold are IB Assessment pieces.

5.3.6 Outline the types of transfer. Skill to skill – Throwing a ball to throwing a javelin

Practice to performance – Batting in baseball against a pitching machine

Abilities to skills – Improving dynamic strength in order to start races better

Bilateral – A soccer player learning to kick with his or her weaker foot

Stage to stage – From 3-on-3 basketball to the full game

Principles to skills – From learning that long levers aid in throwing a javelin

5.3.7 Outline the different types of practice. Distributed (Spaced) – a practice schedule or program in

which practice sessions are interspersed with rest periods, which are longer than the practice sessions. (Intervals)

Massed – a schedule or program of practice interspersed with rest periods where the practice sessions are longer than the rest periods.

Fixed (drill) – training a skill in isolation. Practiced repeatedly. Good for closed skills.

Variable – training which allows an open skill to be practiced in a variety of situations to allow a strong schema to be established. Davis, Roscoe, et al (2005)

5.3.7 Outline the different types of practice.

Mental Practice/Rehearsal – the performer, without moving, runs through the performance in his/her mind. Can watch a demonstration or film Can read or listen to instructions By mental imagery, if the skill is established Can be used between breaks during distributed

practice.

Davis, Roscoe, et al (2005)

5.3.7 Outline the different types of practice.

Distributed should be used for the activities in which:

The skill to be learned is new and/or complex

There is danger of injury if fatigue sets in

Attention spans are short (e.g. young learners)

Motivation is low

Learners are not fit enough

Weather conditions are adverse.

Davis, Roscoe, et al (2005)

5.3.7 Outline the different types of practice.

Massed practice is most suitable for activities in which:

The skill is simple

Motivation for learning is high

The purpose of the practice is to stimulate fatiguing conditions that might be experienced in competition or performance

Available practice time is very short

The learners are experienced, able and fit.Davis, Roscoe, et al (2005)

5.3.8 Explain the different types of presentation.

Whole – the whole task/skills is presented

Whole-part-whole – the learner is introduced to the whole skill initially, or a modified version: the skill is then broken down into parts and practiced separately: they are integrated into the whole skill at the end.

Progressive part – the learner is presented with the parts in small steps building up to the whole.

Part – the learner is presented with the parts

IB SEHS TextDavis, et al., 2005

Topic 5.3 Principles of skill learning

5.3.9 Outline the spectrum of teaching styles.

Command – Teacher/coach driven

Reciprocal – Peer teaching/coaching; also teacher/coach driven (peer assessments in PE class)

Problem solving (divergent style) – The coach/teacher presents the problem/task, and lets the learner work out a solution.

Limit to these IB SEHS text