programs vs systems - how do kids learn best?
Motor learning is a complex process where movement skills are learnt, refined and practiced. There is much debate around how this process occurs, and due to the complexity, we may never know exactly! Or perhaps, like life, there is more than one answer.
A common school of thought is related to Schema Theory by Schmidt (1975) and discusses what is commonly referred to as “Motor Program Theory”, or as I call it, The Filing Cabinet.
Motor Program Theory - The Filing Cabinet
Motor Program Theory refers to the idea that movements are learned through practice of their components, and filled away like a “neural Program” or set of instructions for future use.
Schmidt (1975) discussed the concept of a “Generalised Motor Program”, where the brain uses one “Master Blueprint” for a subset of skills and modifies the instructions for the task at hand. This was seen as a plausible solution for one of the key challenges with Motor Program Theory - too many files!
Motor Program Theory has become pervasive if education and sports contexts, and many of the techniques used in therapy or physical education build up on it’s key principles:
Brain activation precedes movement initiation - or more simply, we have to decide what to do before we can do it!
As tasks become more complex, so does the time it takes to prepare to do them
Movement occurs without feedback from the environment - i.e., there is a central command of instructions in the brain.
More complex movements that are unlearned can be completed relatively quickly through contextualisation of previously learned skills (e.g., throwing a javelin vs throwing a ball).
This framework can be very useful in teaching skills - that’s why we do it! A “top-down” understanding of the nervous system makes a lot of sense.
Provide the key components - e.g., point, step and throw!
Practice them in sequence
Provide feedback - allow students to get intrinsic feedback from their environment (“good jobs” aren’t useful here!)
File away for later, to be accessed for new, more challenging skills, resulting in a refining of knowledge across contexts
This system of understanding and training the brain is useful, but has some significant drawbacks- especially for autistic and neurodivergent brains.
Many autistic young people find it extremely challenging to a) transfer skills across contexts b) learn with low levels of self-practice and high levels of instruction and c) identify and respond to intrinsic feedback.
Another popular theory of motor control is called Dynamic Systems Theory, or as I say, “finding the best way- my own way”.
Dynamic Systems Theory - My Own Way
DST suggests that learning isn’t a “top-down” process from the brain to the body, but involves spontaneous interaction between the person, the task and the environment.
Dynamic Systems Theory (DST) introduces three key factors:
The Individual - personal factors such as strength, height, confidence, motivation etc.
The Task - the goal or purpose of the activity.
The Environment - the conditions in which the task is to be performed.
In DST, learning is acquired through a process called self-organisation, where an individual with appropriate motivation, opportunity for practice and understanding of the task finds the “path of least resistance”, or the way that makes most sense to them. This process is evident everywhere we look - we see people who do things beautifully, powerfully and with excellence (even when they do it “the wrong way”).
In my clinical experience (over 12,000 hours of therapy - yikes) autistic kids thrive under a less rigid learning environment where they can use their unique brains to find the unique ways of moving that make sense to them. I have seen kids who never learnt to ride a bike in 10 years learn in a few weeks, kids who didn’t know how to jump clear a hurdle, and kids make their first basket in a full sized hoop - and none of it was because I explicitly showed them how!
This method of teaching also creates unique opportunities for therapists and educators, and reframes the teaching experience. Instead of wondering - “How am I going to get this kid to attend to these tasks so they remember the instructions?”, you can ask “How can I make practising this task in this environment fun, safe and motivating?”.
Sometimes the wrong way is the right way
When we allow kids who think, feel and experience the world differently the safety and opportunity to learn their way, we create a positive exercise experience - and nothing is more motivating than that!
Professionals - take a moment to reflect. How do most of my therapy sessions or lessons go? What are the frameworks in which I am teaching skills, and are they working?
There is no correct framework - but sometimes trying a different approach can be the key to unlocking skills, interest and motivation you didn’t know was there.
If you would like to work with me, or find out more, please reach out!
Josh
