INSTRUCTION TIMES DELIBERATE PRACTICE EQUALS Skill Acquisition

1. INSTRUCTION TIMES DELIBERATE PRACTICE EQUALSSkill Acquisition Stevie chepko, VP for Program Review CAEP (stevie.chepko@caepnet.org) Karen Roof, India Hook Elementary School (kroof@rhmail.org) Robert Doan, University of southern Mississippi (Robert.doan@USm.edu)

2. I (instruction) X DP (deliberate practice) = SA (skill acquisition) I X DP = SA Research supports that one of the key predictors of life time physical activity is perceived competency Keys to perceived competency are quality instruction X deliberate practice Deliberate practice multiplies the impact of quality instruction Deliberate practice increases the amount of PA during class time

3. Instruction, Skill Acquisition, & PA • Quality Instruction • Limited instruction to 2 to 3 critical elements or knowledge • Allow students time to explore the movement/skill • Avoid using the silo approach to instruction by providing context • Cognitively engage students by providing challenging deliberate practice tasks • Skill Acquisition • Occurs with instruction is combined with deliberate practice • 75% of time in physical education should be deliberate practice time • Plan for deliberate practice and the PA goal of 50% will be exceeded • Skill acquisition will accelerate when combined with deliberate practice and specific, corrective feedback

4. Deliberate Practice - Defined • Deliberate efforts to change specific aspects of performance (Ericsson, 2006) • It takes as few as 50 hours of practice to have individuals obtain an “acceptable” level of performance. • For performance to improve students must be cognitively engaged • No drill and kill • Improvement does not occur as a result of “experience” • No student will improve without deliberate practice • Observation or watching has little impact on skill acquisition • Research across disciplines supports that practice must be deliberate for performance to improve

5. Components of Deliberate Practice • Present practice tasks that are outside realm of reliable performance • Challenging • Short duration • Extending or refining as you go • Differentiate task based on performance levels by • Changing equipment • Ability group students • Change size of space or distances • Number of students involved and/or number of decisions required • Students must concentrate (engage) on critical aspects by gradually refining performance through repetitions after feedback • Requires teacher to design practice tasks that challenge students, allow enough repetitions for skill acquisition to occur, provide feedback (whole group or individual), and constantly provide extensions or refinements of practice tasks

6. Research Support for Deliberate Practice • Differences between elite soccer players and less-skilled players (Ward et al., 2004) • Less skilled players spend the majority of their time in “play” • Elite players spend majority of their time in deliberate practice • Research on chess players, musicians, and athletes all support the following conclusions: • Very small benefit from the number of games played (Charness, Krample, & May, 1996; Charness, Tuffiash, Krampe, Reingold, & Vasyukova, 2005; Duffy, Baluch, & Ericsson, 2004) • Very big benefit from the amount of deliberate practice • Think Chesley Sullenberger with the Miracle on the Hudson

7. Challenging Practice Tasks • Students must be cognitively engaged in the task • Must involve problem solving • Must be beyond their current level of performance • Performers gradually refine performance with feedback • Must have opportunities for repetitions of deliberate practice tasks • Think of the overload principle as related to improved aerobic performance • Combine deliberate practice tasks with tactics and strategies in the context of the game

8. Time Spent in Deliberate Practice Tasks • Since deliberate practice requires intense concentration, it can only be maintained for limited periods • Limit the length of the practice tasks to 45 to 60 seconds • Never longer than 2 minutes • Initially allow students to explore the performance tasks • After the first 1 to 2 minute practice task - stop and provide “whole group” feedback by identifying the one critical component they needed to correct • Can either have students practice with the same tasks (refinement), but concentrating on the identified critical cue or - • Extend the task by adding an additional level of complexity

9. Practice Variability vs. Massed Practice Varied Practice Massed Practice Practicing the same task for an extended period of time Produce a practice effect (students get better in the short term), but reduces retention of the skill Skill is practiced in an isolated environment which does not allow for the learning of the context of the skill Students often disengage (do not concentrate) during the practice task • Practicing tasks throughout the period, but not in succession • Produces more flexibility or adaptability of movement • Promotes concentration and attentional focus on practice tasks • More likely to provide the appropriate context for the movement • Aids in retention of the skill

10. Concepts of Deliberate Practice • Simplified but realistic environment • Practice tasks includes the context in which the skill will be used • Avoid teaching skills in isolation (Silo effect) • Progressive increases in the complexity of movement tasks relative to speed, direction, distance, number of people, length of movement sequence, and number of decisions required • Sufficient number of attempts for skill acquisition to occur • Specific corrective feedback on both the technique of the movement and the results of the movement

11. Deliberate Practice & Student Engagement Student Engagement Deliberate Practice Short practice periods of focused and active practice Challenging tasks that require cognitive engagement All students are equally involved in the practice tasks Students are participating with students of similar ability levels 70% of class time is spend on practice tasks • Students are actively involved in their learning • Students persist in active and effortful attempts to master knowledge and skills • All students are equally engaged in the task with opportunities for differentiated practice tasks • Research has found that in PE less than 7% of class time is spent in practice

12. Environments that Foster Student Engagement • In mastery climates students define success as • Gaining achievement through hard work • Feeling of satisfaction and competency when developing a new skill • View mistakes as part of the learning process • Frequent opportunities to be actively involved in skill development through deliberate practice • Opportunities to participate without evaluative judgments • Opportunities to work with students of similar skill levels • Higher skilled students learn nothing from lower skilled students • Lower skilled students learn nothing from higher skilled students

13. Environments that Do Not Foster Student Engagement • Competitive environments • May decrease motivation among students – specifically students with lower perceived competence • Winning and losing had a negative impact on student engagement regardless of students’ perceived competence • Overreliance on game play can have a negative effect on student engagement and skill acquisition • Focus is on “winning” and not skill acquisition • Lower performing students are pressured not to mess up and skilled players dominate the game • Skill acquisition is directly linked to deliberate practice – does not occur during game play

14. Deliberate Practice = Student Engagement Results of Increased Student Engagement • Engagement in PE through deliberate practice enhances the frequency and intensity of student physical activity in and out of class • Engagement in PE through deliberate practice positively predicts physical activity levels in and out of class • Engagement in PE through deliberate practice positively enhances body images • Engagement in PE through deliberate practice increases skill competency for all students • Engagement in PE through deliberate practice increases enjoyment of physical education for all students

15. I (Instruction) X DP (Deliberate Practice) =SA (Skill Acquisition) Which leads to Life Time Physical Activity • Recommendations/Findings • Teachers need to adopt a mastery-oriented environment where success is defined in terms of effort and personal gain rather than winning or losing • Proportion of class time devoted to skill practice was positively related to student engagement • Students gain competency through engagement in mastery tasks • Increased amount of time spent in deliberate practice leads to increases in performance, student engagement, and perceived competency