MOTOR LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT

Motor learning and development is a study of how motor skills are acquired and refined through practice and feedback. You will understand the individual and environmental factors affecting performance in exercise and sports. You will apply your understanding to refine your movement concepts and motor skills.

Key Understanding

You will understand that:

motor learning and development are influenced by various factors which affect the performance of motor skills.

Knowledge

You will know:

the different classification of skills;
the factors affecting motor learning and development; and
the movement concepts and motor skills.

Essential Questions

How does an individual develop a motor skill in sports?

Skills

You will be able to:

apply game-related concepts in sports; and
analyse and interpret data on tactical performance in sports.

Section 1: CLASSIFICATION OF SKILLS

At the end of this section, you will gain the following:

Knowledge

Know the different classification of skills.

Learning Outcomes

Show an understanding of the skills classification (basic & complex, fine gross, open & closed).

Motor skill refers to activities or tasks that require voluntary head, body, and/or limb movement to achieve a goal. Motor skills are performed in our daily activities (run, walk, etc.), and recreation or sporting activities (throw a softball, dribble a basketball, hit a tennis ball, etc.). In the following section, the focus is on the learning and acquisition of motors skills related to technical skills in sports. All references to skills will henceforth be for technical skills In sports, skill is an action or set of actions, which has a predetermined goal that performers attempt to achieve. Therefore, it can be assessed by how well it is performed relative to that predetermined goal. A skill is learned and improved through practice and experience. A person who is skilled is able to perform an action effortlessly, efficiently and consistently.

The 3 Types of Classification for Skills

In sports, a skill is an action or set of actions which has a predetermined goal that performers attempt to achieve. Therefore, it can be assessed by how well it is performed relative to that predetermined goal. A skill is learned and improved through practice and experience. A person who is skilled is able to perform an action with precision, control and accuracy.

Motor skills refer to activities or tasks that require voluntary head, body, and/or limb movement to achieve a goal. Motor skills are performed in a person’s daily activities (e.g., running, walking), and recreation or sporting activities (e.g., throwing a softball, dribbling a basketball, hitting a tennis ball). In the following section, the focus is on the learning and acquisition of motor skills related to technical skills in sports. All references to skills will henceforth be to technical skills.

Motor skills are classified along three continuums. It is important to understand that in most sports, a skill often occurs along a continuum and may be found on more than one continuum.

To kick things off in this video, we're going to take a look at what motor skills are, and talking about how we classify them! By the end of the video you'll see how it really is quite easy.

Basic/Simple vs Complex Skills

This continuum focuses on the level of difficulty or complexity of the movement.
Basic skills involve simple actions that requires little concentration and minimal information to execute them.
- Examples of basic skills are running, jumping, throwing, catching and striking.
Complex skills involve a combination of different simple actions or movements, and require more attention or information for the execution of the skills
Athlete also use mental skills when they perform. These include skills such as interpretation, making judgements and decision-making
- For example, in cricket a bowler has to judge when and how often to use a reverse swing bowling action as well as be able to execute it.

Fine vs Gross Motor Skills

This continuum focuses on the precision of the movement and the types of muscle groups that it involves.
Gross motor skills involve using large muscle groups to execute them.
- They include many fundamental movement patterns such as walking, running, jumping and throwing. A tackle in rugby is an example of a gross skill.
Fine motor skills involve using small muscle groups, and require more precision and concentration to execute them.
- A snooker shot or the hand movements when throwing a dart are examples of fine skills.

Open vs Closed Skills

This continuum focuses on the extent to which the environment affects the execution of the skill.
Open skills are affected by the environment and are externally paced.
They occur when performers have to make decisions and adapt their skills to a changing or unpredictable environment. The performer is not in control of what will happen next.
- An example would be making a pass in Ultimate Frisbee.
Closed skills are not affected by the environment and are internally paced.
The performer uses exactly the same technique every time and is in control of what happens next.
- An example would be a gymnast performing a floor routine.

Section 2: FACTORS AFFECTING MOTOR LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT

At the end of this section, you will gain the following:

Knowledge

Know the factors affecting motor learning and development.

Learning Outcomes

Explain the factors affecting variation in skill level.

Motor learning is the study of how motor skills are acquired or enhanced; it looks at the factors and processes that affect the acquisition or enhancement of motor skills. Motor development looks at how human development from infancy to old age affects the acquisition or enhancement of motor skills. The following factors have an impact on an individual’s motor development.

Factors Affecting Motor Development

Motor learning is a relatively permanent change in the ability to acquire motor skills as a result of practice or experience.

Motor development refers to the progressive changes in motor skills that occur over the life span, from infancy to old age, which are not associated with practice or experience.

Motor learning occurs based on three factors: individual, environment and task. If one of these factors change, the overall movement pattern of the action will also change.

Individual

This factor consists of the characteristics of an individual, both physical and mental. The individual factor has two categories:

The structural category is related to the individual’s biological make-up and body structure such as height, weight, hand size, limb length, body composition, strength and speed and flexibility. For example, strength can positively or negatively impact force production tasks (e.g., throwing, kicking, striking).
The functional category refers to the behavioural aspect of an individual, such as motivation, fear, focus and confidence. For example, motivation can influence participation in exercise and sports, or confidence in recognising patterns of play or anticipating by reading the movements of opponents.

Environment:

This factor is outside of the individual’s body itself and consists of two categories:

The physical category includes temperature, natural light, terrain and auditory feedback. For example, a smooth and flat terrain may facilitate a locomotor skill such as running while a sandy or uneven terrain may slow down the running process or make it more difficult to develop the skill.
The social category includes the level of interaction and the type of interaction that is present in the task:
- The level of interaction in an activity can be individual, with a partner, or with a group of individuals. Each of these situations would require a different level of interaction with other people. In some situations, working with a partner or group can facilitate learning, whereas in other situations, working individually may be more appropriate.
- The type of interaction required in an activity may also constrain motor skills. Cooperation, self-competition, and competition are all means of social interaction that may produce different motor skill results. For example, when competition is added to a physical activity, it may improve motor skill performance but can also cause decrements in performance.
- The social category also includes cultural norms (e.g., India produces great spin bowlers) and societal expectations (e.g., the expectation that athletes will be rugby players in New Zealand, football players in England and basketball players in New York).

Task:

This factor is the specific requirements placed on an individual to successfully complete a task. It consists of four categories which are external to the body:

The goal of a task category is the focus of a specific movement which the performer should complete. For example, when distance or accuracy is emphasised when focusing on the skill of throwing as a movement outcome, the throwing pattern in each instance will vary as the performer may use different amounts of force to throw and achieve the goal.
The level of difficulty of a task category will affect how a performer learns a motor skill as an easier task will likely allow the performer to learn faster. For example, shortening the target distance during the practice of a swimming stroke may make it easier for a beginner to achieve success.
The equipment category will affect how a beginner learns as different types of equipment used in a motor skill may result in different performance outcomes. Some considerations are size, weight, and material of the equipment. For example, when learning how to catch, a ball that is easy to grasp with the hands and is of a soft material may best facilitate two-handed catching with the hands for development in this skill, while a ball that is made of a hard material may cause the learner to avoid the ball for fear of getting hit.
The rules of the game category will change the movement pattern of a beginner when the rules are modified, as specific rules may manipulate how the performer achieves the task. For example, putting two goalposts instead of one in a floorball game would allow more shooting opportunities for beginners.

It is important to understand the relationship of the task factor to the individual factor in exercise and sports. For example, ball size itself may not be critical in determining motor performance in the skill of catching but its relationship to the hand size of the performer is important. It may be very difficult for a beginner with small hands to catch a very large ball without cradling the ball to the chest. Another example is when distance is the focus for throwing. Distance in relationship to the height of the performer may be important in determining movement outcomes in overhand throwing.

The interaction between the environmental factor and the individual factor, for example, how the weather conditions will affect the motivation of a beginner to participate in a task designed to learn a skill, may also play a part in motor learning.

Section 3: Information Processing Model

At the end of this section, you will be able to do the following:
Describe how an individual processes information in exercise and sports
- Input stage
- Decision-making stage
- Output stage
- Feedback stage
Compare the differences between the performance of a novice and an expert, in relation to the stages of the information processing model

Humans process information to interact with the world. A person must process information when they perform a skill or learn and develop a new skill. The information processing model is one way to consider how this takes place. There are four stages: input, decision-making, output and feedback.

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Information Processing Model

Stage 1: Input (Information Gathering Stage)

Stage 2: Decision-making

Stage 3: Output

Stage 4: Feedback

Input

During this stage, the performer uses their senses to collect information. There are five senses that help in collecting information:

Sight (visual), e.g., seeing the flight of a ball or the positions of teammates in volleyball.

Hearing (auditory), e.g., hearing a referee’s whistle or a teammate’s call in a football match.

Touch (tactile), e.g., feeling the grip on a ball during a catch in netball, or feeling the ball at the fingers when performing a set pass in volleyball.

Kinaesthesia (proprioceptive) refers to the sense of body movement from muscle receptors that provide information on muscle tension and body position, e.g., being aware of the body position and throwing arm motion during a set shot in basketball or a javelin throw in track and field.

Balance (vestibular) refers to the sense of balance, e.g., sensing the balance required to land after a lay-up shot in basketball or to perform a pirouette in dance.

Sight, hearing and touch can be classified as external senses because they gather information from the environment. Kinaesthesia and balance can be classified as internal senses because they gather information from within the body.

Decision-making

During this stage, the performer makes a decision based on the information collected by the senses. They identify and interpret the information (stimuli), and then select the appropriate response. This may include the type and timing of the execution, force and direction of movement.

When this decision process takes place, the performer compares the information in the current situation, held in the short-term memory, with previous experiences, held in the long-term memory, to select and determine the appropriate response.

The challenge at this stage is to arrive at a decision quickly by filtering out the most relevant or important stimuli from the vast amount of information received via the senses.

Output

Output is the movement initiated and performed in response to the stimuli.

During this stage, the performer’s body executes the response (skilled movement) with reference to the movement pattern stored in the long-term memory. Once the action is completed, the situation and results are stored in the long-term memory for future reference.

Feedback

During this stage, the performer receives information about their response, either during the execution of the skill or after it has been completed.

Feedback on performance is an important component of the information processing model for motor learning and performance because it is used to improve subsequent performances.

There are two types of feedback, intrinsic and extrinsic, which will be covered in the next section.

Novice vs Expert Performers

In the input stage, novice performers have a limited ability to interpret information input and translate it into the actions required. Expert performers have superior perceptual and cognitive skills that allow them to spend more time focusing on motor performance. Perceptual skills refer to the process of identifying and interpreting information from the environment. Cognitive skills include remembering, problem-solving, and decision-making.

With these two closely linked sets of skills, expert performers have an advantage over novice performers because they are able to process environmental and cognitive information more quickly and focus on the relevant stimuli during the input stage. This allows them to adapt their execution of the skill to the demands of the situation.

In the decision-making stage, expert performers can select a suitable response quickly and thus have more time to focus on the execution of motor skills. This will result in the expert performer being able to perform the skill with more consistency and accuracy during the output stage.

In the feedback stage, novice performers will require more extrinsic feedback to help them acquire the basic technique while expert performers will have acquired the basic technique and thus require more intrinsic feedback to help them refine and improve their performance.

Novice performers also learn better via feedback based on knowledge of performance, as such feedback provides them with knowledge about the action and not its results

The following highlights the difference between novice and expert performers based on the Information Processing Model.

Section 4: Feedback

At the end of this section, you will be able to do the following:

Explain the types of feedback and their application in motor learning

Intrinsic feedback
Extrinsic feedback
Knowledge of performance
Knowledge of results

Types of Feedback: Intrinsic and Extrinsic

The purpose of feedback is to inform the performer if the response or action was correct and/or successful, so as to improve performance. Having this knowledge enables the performer to produce the successful response (e.g., correct timing and strength of execution) the next time in the same situation. There are two types of feedback: intrinsic and extrinsic.

Intrinsic Feedback

It is information about the movement which the performer senses or physically feels during a skill performance. If an action is performed slowly, intrinsic feedback can be used to better achieve the goal of performance by adjusting the action while it is still in progress. This is especially true for novice performers. On the other hand, an expert performer is often able to gather intrinsic feedback, even during quick executions of a skill, to immediately correct the movement.

Some examples:

A golfer is likely able to use the proprioceptive sense to correct or stop the downward swing of his drive shot while in mid-swing.
A gymnast uses the vestibular sense to maintain balance while walking on a balance beam.

Extrinsic Feedback

It is provided by external sources, either during or after the skill performance. It is used to improve performance and achieve a certain goal. For example, a coach can give a swimmer feedback on the split time for each 50 m lap, or on the technique to achieve better propulsion in the water.

Compared to an expert performer, a novice performer often uses more extrinsic feedback to improve a skill during the development phase. Expert performers would use extrinsic feedback to refine a skill before a competition, though the amount would likely be less than that received by a novice performer

There are two types of extrinsic feedback:

Knowledge of Performance
Knowledge of Results

Knowledge of Performance

This refers to feedback that gives information about the movement characteristics leading to the performance of a skill. The focus is on the process of the performance, such as aspects related to technique, tempo and space. For example, a coach uses a video of a volleyball game to highlight the serving technique of a player.

Knowledge of Results

This refers to feedback that gives information about the outcome of performing a skill. The focus is on the outcome of the performance, such as the success of the outcome, the score or the timing. For example, a coach uses a video of a volleyball game to highlight each player’s successful spikes and blocks.

A novice performer tends to focus more on knowledge of performance to improve the process of skill performance, while an expert performer tends to focus more on knowledge of results to improve the performance outcome.

The following is an example of how a football player attempting a free kick relies on the various types of feedback.

Let's take a look at how the Information Processing Model is applied to a physical activity. In this video, we will study how a soccer penalty kick taker applies this model.

Key Considerations When Facilitating the Learning of New Skills

Here are some things to consider:

Give short, simple and precise instructions to the learner.
Break up the skill into simpler and smaller parts for the learner to learn and perform separately.
Teach the learner the more important aspects of the skill first.
Provide demonstrations to help the learner visualise the skill.
Provide feedback (e.g., verbal feedback and knowledge of performance) to the learner.

Section 5: MOVEMENT CONCEPTS AND GAME-RELATED CONCEPTS IN MOTOR DEVELOPMENT

At the end of this section, you will gain the following:

Knowledge

Know the movement and game-related concepts involved in the selected practical activities.

Learning Outcomes

Demonstrate understanding of movement concepts using the BSER framework through the practical activities.
Apply the activity-specific movement concepts effectively in different practical activities.
Show an understanding of the relevant game-related concepts and apply these concepts in different practical activities.

Developmentally-appropriate learning experiences are critical in the different stages of motor learning and development. Learning basic motor skills and concepts should come before learning specific sports and games that require more specialised and complex movements. This sequential learning of basic to complex skills will increase the chances of successful motor learning and development.

Movement Concepts

Movement concepts are the knowledge and understanding of movements that allow individuals to adapt, modify or enrich their movements to achieve movement goals in specific activities. They help one describe how a movement skill can be performed (e.g., jump high, land softly and kick far).

Understanding movement concepts enables you to adapt and modify your movements so as to apply them to new and appropriate situations. For example, in hockey, the movement concepts modify the skills, such as dribbling a hockey ball in a straight line down the hockey field compared to dribbling a hockey ball in a zig-zag path.

BSER Framework

The Motor Skills and Movement Concepts Framework is also known as the BSER Framework. For movement to take place, we need: something to move (our bodies); a place to move (space); the energy to move (effort); and a reason to move - that is, a connection with other people, things and ideas (relationship).

Therefore, movement concepts are grouped into four main categories:

Body Awareness — what is the body doing?
Space awareness — where are the body and object moving to?
Effort — how is the body moving?
Relationships — with whom or what is the body relating to as it moves?

Body Awareness

This concept focuses on parts of the body, where the parts of the body are located, how they feel and what they can do. Being aware of what your body can do allows you to be versatile and execute the movements necessary to meet the goal of an activity.

Body Parts

parts are involved in the technique of a skill

Body Shapes

shapes that the body is capable of assuming

Action of Whole Body

refers to the movement or activities performed by the entire body

Action of Body Parts

refers to the function of a body segment in a movement

Locomotor: Movements that move the body from one place to another by changing the base of support, e.g., an athlete doing a long jump.

Non-locomotor: Movements within one space that does not travel to another space nor alters the base of support, e.g., an ice skater executing a spin.

Manipulative: Movements that involve controlling an object or a piece of equipment, e.g., throwing a frisbee.

Space Awareness

This concept focuses on the space in which movement occurs. It helps you to be aware of the space you can use in an activity.

Location

This refers to where a movement occurs.

Personal space is the area immediately around the mover, defined by how far his/her body can be extended in all directions. Imagine a bubble that surrounds and moves with the mover during an activity.
General space is all of the area available for movement, such as that within the boundaries of a court or field.

Level

This refers to where a movement is located in relation to the ground.

Low movement occurs near the floor or below the knees.
Medium movement occurs between low and high level or at the height of the trunk.
High movement occurs off the floor or above the shoulders.

Direction

o This refers to the line along which a person moves. It is in relation to where the front of the body faces as the body is moving.

Plane

This refers to an imaginary flat surface running through the body, like a rectangular sheet of glass separating it into two parts.

Movements are often described in terms of the plane in which they pass through.
There are three planes of movement:
- The sagittal plane
- The frontal plane
- The traverse plane

Pathway

This refers to the route or way taken during a movement. It may be the path taken by the body, its parts or objects such as balls or racquets. It can occur in the air, in water or on the ground.
A pathway can be straight, curved or zigzagged.

Effort

This concept focuses on how a movement is performed and its quality. Effort is concerned with the active exertion of the body and how it releases energy. How the body varies the effort used in a movement thus defines the efficiency and effectiveness of the movement.

For example, the effort needed to pass a ball to a teammate can vary, depending on the distance between the players.

Time

This refers to how fast or slow a movement is.

Flow

This refers to how continuous or fluid a movement is.

Force

This refers to the strength or tension with which a movement is performed.

Relationships

This concept focuses on the connections that cause movement to occur.

People

Movement can occur in relation to the people you are organised to interact with in the same activity. Depending on the people in your environment, you need to make the necessary adaptation and modification to your movement
In artistic gymnastics, for example, you perform a routine on your own (solo).
In basketball, you work in a team to compete with people from another team (group to group).

Positioning

Movement can occur in relation to how you position yourself or an object.
The following is a variety of positional relationships which are often in opposite pairs:
In basketball, for example, you can make a pass over a defender shorter than you or between the legs of a defender taller than you.

Timing

Movement can occur in relation with how to start and stop movements with others.
Simultaneous actions are done at the same time (e.g., synchronised swimmers performing a routine).
Alternate actions are done one after another (e.g., table tennis doubles).

Goal

Movement can occur in relation to how people connect with one another based on the goal of an activity.
In a cooperative situation, for example, you work with your teammate.
In a competitive situation, you compete with others.

Environment

Movement can occur in relation to the environment, which can be either static or dynamic.
In a static environment, the object, implement or apparatus is fixed or stationary (e.g., throwing darts at a dartboard).
In a dynamic environment, both the player and the object can be moving (e.g., in a basketball game).

Summary

Applying the Framework

The movement concepts of body awareness, space awareness, effort and relationships can be seen in all movements and at all times. Using the BSER framework, you can better describe and analyse movement to improve your performance.

Here are some guiding questions to help you.

Body

In the execution of a skill, what are the key body parts involved and what functions do they have?
Does the skill involve locomotor, non-locomotor or manipulative movements?

Space

What is the space in which you can move to execute a skill?
Do you move in a straight, curved or zigzagged pathway?
What is the level of movement in different situations?

Effort

How much force is needed to execute a skill?
How fast or slow should you move in different situations?
How much energy is needed to enhance the effectiveness of your movement?

Relationships

Do you work or compete with others?
How do you work with others to base on the goal of an activity?
How do the rules, equipment and opponents affect how you execute a skill?

Section 5: Game-Related Concepts

Game-related activities challenge you to think about game-related concepts — the correct skills to use in different situations, and the strategies and tactics you must use to win the game. A fundamental understanding of movement concepts and basic skills will help you adapt these skills and apply them effectively in the activity.

Understanding game-related concepts for the different categories of games will also help you recognise skills and tactics that could be similar across games. This increases the chances for successful learning and developing the specific motor skills of a new game that is related to a game you are already familiar with.

Games are classified into the following categories:

Net-barrier
Striking-fielding
Territorial-invasion

Within each category, there are game-related concepts that are transferable from game to game. For example, a basketball player is able to transfer his knowledge of dribbling and getting around opposition players to other territorial-invasion games such as football.

Net Barrier

Striking Fielding

Territorial Invasion

Net Barrier Games

are activities in which players send an object towards a court or target area that an opponent is defending
the aim is to cause the object to land in the target area while making it difficult for the opponent to return the object

Striking Fielding Games

are activities in which players score points by striking an object and running to designated playing areas
or prevent opponents from scoring by retrieving the object and returning it to stop the play

Territorial Invasion Games

are activities that involve controlling an object, keeping it away from opponents and moving it into position to score
both offensive and defensive players share the same playing area as they work to prevent the other team from scoring

Retrieved from https://www.playsport.net/

Learning Outcome Videos

Game Concepts & Learning Outcome Videos

KEY CONSIDERATIONS IN THE DESIGN OF PRACTICE WHEN ACQUIRING NEW SKILLS

At the end of this section, you will gain the following:

Knowledge

Know the different classifications of skills.

Learning Outcomes

Explain key considerations in the design of practice when acquiring a new skill.

Knowing how information processes take place during learning and how they use different types of feedback makes motor learning more effective. The following are the characteristics of novice learners:

Have a limited ability to interpret information input and translate it into the actions required (e.g., instructions given to them or the environment around them).
May not be able to execute skills smoothly, as they require concentration to execute skills and are thus less efficient in their execution.
Learn better via extrinsic feedback, such as verbal cues from the coach, to improve the execution of their skills.
Learn better via feedback based on knowledge of performance, as such feedback provides them with knowledge about the action and not its results.

Methods of Practice

When acquiring a new skill, the method of practice is selected after considering the complexity of the skill, the interdependence of the parts within the skill, and the level of competence of the learner.

Whole Practice:

In whole practice, the skill is performed and rehearsed in its entirety without breaking it down into its parts. This method promotes understanding, sets the connections between its parts, and creates fluency. For example, whole practice is used to learn and develop the chest pass in basketball or batting in softball.

This method is best used when:

the skill is low in complexity (e.g., a basic skill), as it has a few parts and thus a lower demand for attention;
the skill has a higher coordination (interdependence) of parts, as it has a high level of organisation and its parts are interdependent and cannot be separated
the learner has a high level of competence, as he/she is advanced in skill development (i.e. a fast learner or an advanced beginner) and is able to cope with the demands of performing the whole skill

Whole practice allows a performer to focus on the whole skill and the fluency of the performance. However, a novice performer may find the learning and development of the skill too challenging when his/her competence cannot cope with the demands or complexity of the skill.

Part Practice:

In part practice, the skill is broken down into its parts, to be performed and rehearsed independently. This method allows a learner to make sense of a skill to attain initial success with basic movements before progressing to the more complex movements. For example, part practice is used to develop the lay-up shot in basketball or the spike in volleyball.

This method is best used when:

the skill is high in complexity (e.g., a complex skill), as it has many parts and thus a higher demand for attention;
the skill has a lower coordination (interdependence) of parts, as it has a low level of organisation and its parts are independent of each other and can be separated; and
the learner has a low level of competence, as he/she is a complete beginner and cannot cope with the demands of performing the whole skill.

Part practice is useful for learning a demanding or complex skill part by part. However, as the learner may not practise the different parts of the skill in sequence, putting the part practices together into a seamless whole may take some time and additional practice. Part practice alone also may not effectively develop the performer’s understanding of how the parts should be performed together and the fluency involved in performing the skill.

Whole-part-whole Practice:

In whole-part-whole practice, the learner first attempts to perform and rehearse the whole skill, then practises one part of the skill independently, and finally integrates it back into the whole skill for practice again. This method is used when a learner is developing a complex skill and may need to focus on performing one part of the skill correctly before making progress.

Since the skill is not entirely broken up, the links between the parts are maintained.

This method is often used to:

recognise the learner’s strengths and weaknesses while performing a skill; and
create separate practices that correct the errors in certain movements.

For the lay-up shot in basketball, for example, the learner first tries to perform a complete lay-up shot. After observing the learner a few times, the coach isolates the two-step take-off as a separate part of the whole skill for the learner to practise independently. Finally, the learner combines the two-step take-off together with the other parts to perform and rehearse the complete lay-up shot.

Progressive Part Practice:

In progressive part practice, the skill is practised in parts before linking them together. The whole skill is progressively developed by subsequently adding on each independent part one at a time. In this way, each independent part progressively joins a larger part. As practice continues, the learner eventually practises the entire skill as a whole.

This method takes advantage of the benefits of the part and whole methods of practice.

The part method has the advantage of lowering the demand for attention when performing the whole skill, so that the learner can focus on specific aspects of one part of the skill.
The whole method has the advantage of practising the parts with higher interdependence (e.g., coordination of space and tempo) together.

In this method, the first part of a skill is practised independently until it is learned well; the second part of the skill is practised independently and then linked to the first part. This sequence of practice continues until all parts of the skill have been integrated, as shown in the following examples.

For the lay-up shot in basketball:

The learner first practises dribbling the ball.
Next, he/she practises the two-step take-off independently.
When he/she is comfortable with both parts of the skill, they are combined together and practised in sequence.
Finally, the release shot of the ball is practised and added to the first two parts so that the learner performs the skill as a whole.

For the spike in volleyball:

The learner first practises the spiking action of the arm with the ball.
Next, he/she practises spiking the ball over the net.
Then, he/she practises jumping and combines this with the spiking arm action.
Finally, the learner practises the footwork approach to the jump, and then combines it with the jump and the spiking arm action on the ball.

Let's review the different type of practices.

When do we use this type of practice?
What are the advantages and limitations of the practices?

Constant and Variable Practice

Constant Practice:

Occurs when a skill or part of the skill is learnt and rehearsed repeatedly without varying the skill itself or the performance context.
A closed skill is commonly developed using constant practice as it is not affected by environmental factors that are outside the control of the performer.
For example, constant practice can be used to develop the service in badminton.
A novice performer often adopts constant practice first when learning and developing a new skill.

Variable Practice:

Occurs when variations of a same skill are learnt and rehearsed repeatedly, or the same skill is learnt and rehearsed repeatedly with variations of the environmental context in which it is performed.
An open skill is usually developed using variable practice as it is affected by environmental factors that are outside the control of the performer.
For example, variable practice can be used to develop the drop-shot in badminton.
An expert performer often adopts variable practice when developing and refining a new skill.

Key Considerations for Designing Practice to Acquire New Skills

Here are some things to consider when facilitating the learning of new skills:

Avoid information overload
- Instructions should be short and precise.
- Learners should be taught the most important aspect of the skill first.
- Complex skills should be broken into smaller parts.
- Demonstrations would also help learners visualise the skill, though they should be kept simple.

Provide provide feedback on performance
- Learners picking up a new skill tend to be inconsistent and make mistakes in the execution, as they usually focus on the outcome of the performance.
- However, they should focus on knowledge of performance rather than knowledge of results.
- Verbal feedback on the performance from the teacher/coach would be useful for helping these learners improve.

Provide sufficient practice time
- Learners should be given enough time to practise the skill being learnt until they become comfortable with it.
- The type of practice selected for learners would depend on the nature of the skill and their level of competence.