Motor learning

• Cognative skill 


  Commonly thought of as mental skill.

  Mostly involves a performers thought process
• Motor skill 


  Relates to physical skill.

  It consists of skills that require the body to move and those that rely on motor control.
• Motor skill can be defined as the learned ability to bring about a predetermined result with maximum efficency and minimum outlay of energy.
• Essential elements of a skill are

  1. Complex sequence of movements
  2. It is learned, requires practice
  3. Goal directed
  4. A performer achieves a pre-determined result consistently
  5. Results in precise and co-ordinated movements that are economic and efficient
• Perceptive sense (characteristics of a skilled movement) 


  The ability to interpret sensory information and rapidly discriminate between relevent and irrelevant cues
• Kinaesthetic sense (characteristics of a skilled movement)


  The ability to feel the body during the performance of the skill
• Anticipation (characteristics of a skilled movement)


  The ability to predict what might happen, and responding accordingly
• Timing (characteristics of a skilled movement)


  The ability to complete a movement in the most efficient way
• Temporal patterning (characteristics of a skilled movement)


  The ability to effectively join movements together into a sequence
• The characteristics of a skilled movement particularly relate to increased speed, accuracy and consistency of the skill
• Closed skill 


  Performer dictates timing

  Environment is predictable

  e.g. tennis serve, dart throw
• Open skill


  Timing dictated externally

  Environment is unstable
• Fine motor skill


  Uses controlled movements of small muscles
• Gross motor skill


  Uses large muscle groups
• Discrete skills


  Identifiable start and finish
• Serial skills 


  A sequence of discrete skills joined together
• Continuous skills 


  No distinct beginning and end points
• Simple skills 


  Low amounts of info processed

  Small amount of movement

  Time available to process info
• Complex skills 


  Large amounts of info processed

  High level of precision

  Small time to process info