Motor Learning Chapter 17 Quiz

Questions and Answers

Define Overlearning.

Continuation of a practice beyond the amount needed to achieve a certain performance criterion.

Define Procedural Skills.

Skills that include a combination of cognitive processes and the performance of a series of relatively simple movements.

What does the research show about 'Dynamic balance skills' as an overlearning strategy in motor skills?

All groups who engaged in more practice had improvements, but too much overlearning does not improve results.

What does the 'physical education class setting' say about overlearning in motor skills?

Extra time learning a skill for 25 minutes was deemed more efficient than the 5 minutes given by the teacher. Signup and view all the answers

Can overlearning lead to poor learning?

True Signup and view all the answers

Describe the experiment done by Travlos (1999).

Learners estimated how long a 10-inch line would take to start and end, with fewer errors in the transfer test after 77 attempts versus 127 to 152 attempts. Signup and view all the answers

Why would overlearning lead to poor learning?

Too much practice may cause learners to stop putting in effort or result in decreased memory of the movement. Signup and view all the answers

What are the two types of practice distribution schedules?

Massed Practice and Distributed Practice. Signup and view all the answers

Define Massed Practice.

Longer and fewer practice sessions with little to no rest between trials. Signup and view all the answers

Define Distributed Practice.

Shorter and greater number of practice sessions with longer rest intervals between trials. Signup and view all the answers

Describe the Shea et al (2000) experiment.

One group practiced dynamic balancing twice in one day while the other group practiced twice across two days; the latter had fewer errors. Signup and view all the answers

What does research show about the distribution of practice?

Better learning results from more frequent and shorter practice sessions. Signup and view all the answers

Describe the Baddeley & Longman (1978) experiment.

The goal was to determine how much practice leads to achieving over 80 keystrokes per minute; results showed distributed practice was more effective. Signup and view all the answers

Describe the Dail & Christina (2004) experiment.

One group performed all 240 trials in one day, while another group performed 60 trials over four days; the distributed group had better scores. Signup and view all the answers

Why is the 'fatigue hypothesis' a reason for better learning in distributed practice sessions?

Learners are fatigued in massed practice schedules. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Overlearning

Overlearning refers to the continuation of practice beyond the amount required to meet a performance standard, enhancing retention of motor skills.

Procedural Skills

Procedural skills involve a combination of cognitive processes and simple movements, such as typing.

Dynamic Balance Skills and Overlearning

Research indicates that engaging in increased practice (50%, 100%, or 200% more) improves performance, but returns diminish after a certain point.
Participants who practiced more did not show significant differences in results among the different increase percentages, proving that some overlearning is beneficial but excessive practice yields similar outcomes.

Physical Education Class Setting

In PE classes, longer practice times (25 minutes) for a single skill proved more effective than shorter, divided sessions (5 minutes), highlighting efficiency in skill acquisition.

Overlearning and Learning Deficits

Excessive practice can lead to learning deficits, as too much practice on simple skills may cause learners to invest less effort or experience memory decay.

Factors Leading to Poor Learning from Overlearning

Too much focus on simple skills can diminish the perceived challenge, leading to reduced cognitive effort.
Repetition may result in decreased retention due to a false sense of security over simplicity, creating a lack of necessary variability in practice.

Practice Distribution Schedules

Two main types of practice distribution:
- Massed Practice: Fewer, longer sessions with minimal rest.
- Distributed Practice: More frequent, shorter sessions with longer rest periods.

Shea et al. (2000) Experiment

Participants practicing dynamic balancing twice in one day (massed practice) made more errors than those practicing over two days (distributed practice), suggesting better retention with distributed methods.

Research on Distribution of Practice

Findings show that frequent, shorter practice sessions enhance learning effectiveness, while extremely long practices may impede retention.

Baddeley & Longman (1978) Experiment

A study on typing speed demonstrated that participants with more frequent and distributed practice sessions achieved better performance (80+ keystrokes/min) than those in massed sessions.

Dail & Christina (2004) Experiment

In golf putting, participants completing all trials in one day (massed) scored worse than those practicing over multiple days (distributed), confirming the advantage of distributed practice for retention.

Fatigue Hypothesis

Greater fatigue from massed practice reduces overall learning effectiveness, suggesting distributed practice enhances learning by allowing recovery between sessions.

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Description

Test your understanding of key concepts in Motor Learning from Chapter 17. This quiz covers overlearning and procedural skills, helping reinforce your knowledge of practice amounts and distributions in skill acquisition.