Skills

• Skill classification is when skills are grouped together based on a set of criteria and that have similar characteristics.

  Skills are classified in an attempt to understand the make up of a skill and to enable coach/performer to know how to best practice a skill more effectively.

  Continua is a scale with 2 ends of extreme characteristics, this makes it easier to see where skills lie.
• Muscular involvement continuum

  • Gross - use large muscle groups and skills aren't precise, e.g shot putt
  • Fine - use small muscle groups and skills are very precise, e.g finger action in pistol shooting
• Continuity continuum

  • Discrete - clear start and end and it is quick, e.g pass in netball
  • Serial - several discrete elements linked and order is key, e.g triple jump
  • Continuous - no obvious start and end and it is 1 complete cycle of movement, e.g cycling
• Environmental continuum

  • Open - how the skill is performed is affected by the environment, movement patterns have to be adapted and involves perception, e.g passing a ball
  • Closed - how the skill is performed isn't affected by the environment, fixed movement patterns and has few decisions, e.g a gymnastics floor routine
• Pacing continuum

  • Externally paced - environment controls initiation of skill and involves reaction, e.g returning a tennis serve
  • Self paced - performer controls initiation of skill and involves proaction, e.g performing a tennis serve
• Organisation continuum

  • Low - easily split into sub routines and practiced in parts, e.g high board dive
  • High - difficult to split into sub routines and learned as a whole, e.g cricket catch
• Difficulty continuum

  • Complex - technically difficult and lots of perception, decision making and information processing is required, e.g hockey pass
  • Simple - technically relatively easy and no to little perception, decision making and information processing, e.g running
• Fixed practice

  Rehearsing the same drill in the same environment without change, used for closed skills and introducing open skills. Skill becomes habitual but can cause boredom and doesn't prepare for game situation.
• Varied practice


  Rehearsing different drills in a changing environment, used for open/externally paced skills and experts. Good for experts, prepares for a variable game, experience a range of situations enabling performer to learn to adapt and prevents boredom. Can confuse beginners, not appropriate for closed skills, basic skills already need to be known and too many stimuli can cause overload.
• Massed practice


  Rehearsing a skill repetitively without rest, used for experts, discrete/simple/safe skills and motivated/fit athletes. Improves fitness and skill becomes habitual but can cause boredom and fatigue.
• Distributed practice


  Rehearsing a skill in short bursts with rest periods, used when rest is needed, for beginners, unfit performers and complex/dangerous/gross skills. Can maintain focus and there is less mental pressure but can lose focus during breaks and experts don't need breaks.
• Whole practice


  Rehearsing a skill in its entirety without breaking it into parts, good for experts, when fluency is important, used for high organisation/simple/safe/discrete skills. Can develop kinaesthetic feel, skills are learnt quicker and fluency is developed. Can be potentially dangerous, hard to isolate problem areas and slow progress could cause demotivation.
• Part practice


  Rehearsing a skill in separate sub routines, good for beginners, used for low organisation/serial/dangerous/complex skills. Can enable focus on specific weaknesses, simplifies skill and provides stages of success. But doesn't develop kinaesthetic feel, learning is slower and doesn't develop fluency.
• Types of part practice


  • Pure parts
  • Whole-part-whole
  • Progressive parts
• Pure parts


  Rehearse subroutines separately and combine them at the end, 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 then 1234.
• Whole-part-whole


  Practiced skill together then in subroutines then altogether again, used for when a performer has already learn a skill, 1234 then 1- 2 - 3 - 4 then 1234.
• Progressive parts


  Rehearse sub routines separately then gradually chain/combine them, usually used for dance/gymnastic routine, 1 - 2 - 12 - 3 - 123 - 4 - 1234
• Skill transfer

  The effect that learning/performing 1 skill has on the learning/performing of another skill
• Bilateral transfer


  Skills are transferred from one side of the body to the other (limb to limb)
• Proactive transfer


  Concerned with timing of the transfer. The learning of an old skill influences the learning of a new skill, can be positive or negative.
• Retroactive transfer

  Concerned with timing of transfer. The learning of a new skill influences the learning of an old skill, can be positive or negative
• Positive transfer


  The learning of one skill helps the learning of another skill, caused when skills have similar movement patterns, tactical elements, information processing
• Promoting positive transfer


  1. Ensure previous skills are well learnt

  2. Point out similar elements of the skills

  3. Teach similar skills close together

  4. Use positive reinforcement when positive transfer occurs
• Negative transfer is when the learning of one skill hinders the learning of another skill, caused when skills appear similar but are different. Can minimise negative transfer by ensuring the first skill is well learnt, avoid teaching conflicting skills close together and ensure the performer is aware of the differences between the skills.
• Operant conditioning learning theory


  Learning by connection/association between a stimulus and a response, stimulus response bonds are formed and strengthened and response is triggered automatically. Made up of punishment, positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, trial and error and manipulation of environment.
• Punishment


  1. Coach presents an annoyer/remove a satisfier when the wrong response occurs.

  2. This breaks S-R bonds and prevent the incorrect response reoccurring.
• Positive reinforcement


  1. Coach gives a satisfier/pleasant stimulus after a correct response occurs

  2. This strengthens S-R bonds, increases the probability of desired response and rewards are motivating/effective but can take away the enjoyment and lead to expectation
• Negative reinforcement


  1. Coach removes an unpleasant stimulus when desired response occurs

  2. This strengthens S-R bonds and increases the probability of desired response reoccurring
• Trial and error

  1. Experimenting with actions

  2. Successful outcomes are repeated and unsuccessful outcomes are changed
• Manipulation of environment


  1. Using a piece of equipment as a target to make the skill easier to perform

  2. Target is made smaller when performer improves and eventually target is removed
• Operant conditioning learning theory evaluation:

  Positive reinforcement is effective and builds confidence/motivation and developing S-R bonds cause quicker reactions, praise/rewards/punishment are most effective for young performers.
• Thorndike’s law’s: (part of operant conditioning)

  Law of exercise - S-R bonds are strengthened by practice and tiredness/lack of practice will weaken S-R bonds.

  Law of effect - if response is followed by a satisfier the S-R bond is strengthened and if response is followed by an annoyed the S-R bond is weakened.

  Law of readiness - learner must be physically and mentally able to complete the task.
• Cognitive learning theory


  • Intervening variables operate information drawn together and make sense of it
  • Thinking and understanding is used
  • Perception - interpret/use knowledge when solving problems is important
  • Insight - solve problems using an understanding from past experiences
  • Gestalt - problems are faced as a whole
• Cognitive learning theory


  • Learning using understanding can be highly effective
  • Performer might be able to apply a tactic more easily if they get it
  • Performer might learn quicker if they learn as a whole and this helps performers adapt to new situations
• Cognitive learning theory


  • Some people (beginners) struggle to learn some things by understanding
  • Learning some skills as a whole is too complex/dangerous
  • Performer might give up if they don't understand
  • Learning might be more effective if they watch and copy role models.
• Bandura's model of observational learning:

  Modelling is more likely if -

  • The person is significant
  • Can influence us
  • Similar to us (age/gender/sport)
  • Consistent
  • The action is followed by positive reinforcement
  • Not followed by punishment
  • Socially acceptable
  • Praised by a role model
• Bandura's model of observational learning


  1. Attention - focus on important cues, more likely if model if attractive/high status

  2. Retention - remember/create a mental picture of the demonstration

  3. Motor reproduction - must be physically capable and have the mental understanding to reproduce it

  4. Motivation - need to have a desire and drive to perform, incentive and watching role models aids motivation
• Cognitive stage of learning:

  A beginner, conscious thought is needed, need to create a clear mental picture, errors are made, trial and error is used, performer relies on external feedback from a coach, skills are inconsistent/jerky/poor timed/uncoordinated and motor programme starts to form. Appropriate feedback is knowledge of results, extrinsic, positive and terminal (after performance). Appropriate guidance is visual, verbal, manual and mechanical.
• Associate stage of learning:

  An intermediate, practice is important, improvements occur, movements are less jerky and more fluent, begin to detect own errors, reactions become quicker, motor programmes are formed, performers start to develop their own intrinsic feedback and some performers stay in this phrase forever for certain skills.
• Autonomous stage of learning

  • Expert
  • Motor programmes are fully formed
  • Movement is subconsciously performed/habitual/automatic/grooved/fully fluent/efficient
  • Performers have spare attentional capacity to focus on tactics/strategy
  • Few errors are made
  • Reactions are fast
  • Performance is aesthetically pleasing and not jerky
  • Performer no longer learns and intrinsic feedback is used from kinaesthetic feel to correct errors