KIN 2332 - Motor Learning and Control

Description:

A study of the psychological basis of human performance. Topics include motor skill learning and acquisition, motivation and arousal, modeling, effective behavioral coaching, and social-psychological aspects of sports performance. PSYC 2310 recommended. (3 Semester Credit Hours).

Tuesday & Thursday, 1:00-2:20 pm; CHS 106.

Course Theme:

OPTIMIZING THE LEARNING EXPERIENCE THROUGH THE APPLICATION OF MOTOR LEARNING AND CONTROL CONCEPTS

Instructor:Dr.Harry J. Meeuwsen, Ph.D.Office Hours:T & R: 11:00-12:45pm

Office #501By appointment

College of HealthScienceBuilding,

1101 N. Campbell

747-7239 (W)

. Email is the best way to contact me.

Required Text:

  • Schmidt, R. A. & Wrisberg, C. A. (2004). Motor learning and performance: A problem-based approach. Champaign, Ill, Human Kinetics Publishers.
  • KIN 2332 Motor Learning and Control In-class Assignments Handbook
  • Readings posted on the WebCT course site in PDF format

Course Goals

Foundational Knowledge and Comprehension:

Students will (these items are addressed in each of 5 units):

  1. Show they understand essential concepts in each chapter of the textbook through paraphrasing and creating their own example(s).

Application:

Students will

  1. Be able to apply the most significant principles of motor learning and control to instructional situations and case studies in various individual and team assignmentsrelated to each chapter.

Integration:

Students will:

  1. Be able todifferent principles of motor learning and control to develop optimumlearning experiencesto teach motor skills;
  2. Create instructional road maps and concept maps in which principles of motor learning and control are related to each other and synthesized to produce sets of principles and implications for instruction;

Human Dimension:

Students will:

  1. Have demonstrated how to work effectively in a team;
  2. Show howthey helped the learning and performance of other team members;
  3. Show how they held themselves and their team mates accountablefor their work
  4. Show their willingness to give and receive honest and constructive feedback on regular assessments

Caring:

Students will:

  1. Value the importance of research findings in developing effective teaching practices
  2. Care about maximizing student learning by applying current research findings in their teaching practices
  3. Value the impact of team work on personal learning and performance
  4. Value individual differences in learning styles and the benefits of diversity
  5. Care about lifelong learning implement strategies that help them do so

Learning How to Learn Skills and Competencies:

Students will:

  1. be able to interpret and integrate new research findings with what is already known and translate these into instructional principles
  2. be familiar with several research journals related to motor learning and control
  3. Have practiced application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation using in-class assignments
  4. Have used rubric-based standards to prepare, assess, and evaluate individual and team products
  5. Improve teamwork behavior and social skills necessary to work cooperatively in a team in order to help others learn and perform better
  6. Develop problem-solving strategies using Know-Need-to-Know and concept map strategy
  7. Write substantive metacognitive reflections on their personal learning process

Specific Learning Experiences and Assessments

Learning Experiences

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Assessments of Learning Outcomes

The learning outcomes listed above will be achieved through the following types of assignments:
  • Students will analyze conceptsand examine their relationships to each other to further understanding of appropriate application in instructional practices in a holistic manner.
  • Students will create progressively more comprehensive and integrated instructional road maps that incorporates essential ML&C principles, concepts, and theories
  • Students will incorporate primary source literature in their work to strengthen their arguments and points of view
  • Student will complete Readiness Assessment Tests and End of Unit assignments
  • Students incorporate end of unit reflections in their course portfolio (rubric).
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  • Individual and team Readiness Assessment Tests
  • Peer and instructor assessment of Ticket to Class
  • End of Unit team and individual Assignments
  • Depth of personal reflections (rubric)
  • Individual final exam
  • Effective Teamwork Behavior
  • Online portfolio on MY SPACE for all RUBRIC

Time Management:

Expect to spend three hours on preparation and learning assignments for every credit hour. Therefore expect to spend about 9 hours of out class on assignments for a total of about 12 hours per week to obtain an “A” in this class.

Plagiarism, Scholastic Dishonesty, and Student Discipline:

“Scholastic dishonesty (which includes the attempt of any student to present the work of another as his or her own, or any work which s(he) has not honestly performed, or attempting to pass any examination by improper means) is a serious offense and will subject the student to disciplinary action. The aiding and abetting of a student in any dishonesty is held to be an equally serious offense. All alleged acts of scholastic dishonesty should be reported to the Dean of Students for disposition. It is the Dean of Students’ responsibility to investigate each allegation, dismiss the allegation, or proceed with disciplinary action in a manner which provides the accused student his or her rights of due process.” See Undergraduate Catalog.

You must cite, reference, or quote information obtained from other sources so you give credit where credit is due. In addition, when it is specified that a task needs to be performed individually, soliciting your classmates’ help is considered scholastic dishonesty. When assignmentsand tests must be completed individually, completing them with someone’s assistance is also considered cheating. Do NOT copy any material regardless of where you obtained it into your own work. Do NOT submit work under your name if you did not complete it entirely yourself; you may not submit work you completed for another class.

You will have to complete a short plagiarism module that you will have to pass with an 80 or better. You will not be able to continue in this class without completing the module.

Policy on Tardiness and Missing Class Sessions:

University policy dictates that all students attend all scheduled classes. Absences are not acceptable, however emergencies do occur and you have 2 (two) allowed absences for the entire semester to deal with emergencies. Inform your teammates if an emergency arises. Any absences beyond two (2) will result in 5-point deductions on a 100-point scale from your final course grade for each occurrence. Use your allowed absences wisely, because there will be no negotiation on this point.

Coming to class late is not acceptable either; if you are more than 15 minutes late you will receive an automatic absence whether you remain in class or not. You will not be able to make up any work the class completed during the time you were absent.

If you miss an assignment deadline you will not receive any credit for that assignment. If your assignment was part of a team assignment you will not receive individual or team points.

Deadline Policy on TTC:

You will submit all Tickets To Class online AND bring a hardcopy to class for work on the team assignments. All online assignments have clear deadlines associated with them. No excuses will be accepted for late work. You will have to be vigilant, disciplined, and responsible to meet the deadlines. The TTC is due two hours prior to class time. There are two consequences if the assignment is turned in late, even if it is only by 1 minute:,

  1. Your will not receive credit for that TTC. It has to be submitted online at least 2 hrs prior to class.
  2. Failing to submit the TTC online or bring it to class will result in an absence.

Read all instructions for each assignment carefully, and note the deadlines. It is your individual responsibility to be aware and keep yourself and your team mates informed and focused. There will be no negotiation on these issues.

Group Member Roles:

To prevent confusion about individual responsibilities related to team work, each member will have to adopt clear roles to help the team function optimally. These roles have responsibilities associated with them and team members have to hold each other accountable for fulfilling those responsibilities.

Working Online: Use of WebCT; Study Concentrations; Help Board; TTC

  • The purpose of using WebCT in this course is
  • to help you get used to online coursework and
  • to increase communication and community
  • The site contains Study Concentrations that contain notes on the most important concepts in the textbook to help you focus your study efforts and avoid wasting time studying “fluff.”
  • Tickets to Class (TTC) contain individual assignments to help you prepare for the next in-class assignment. You will be able to only access one Ticket to Class at a time on WebCT. Your individual performance on each TTC will be assessed by your peers and the instructor.
  • The Help Board is a public (whole class) online discussion board to
  • Help you communicate outside of class with your classmates
  • Post a question to the rest of the class
  • Discuss class related issues
  • It’s not designed to be a chat room!
  • The Team Discussion Board is a private discussion board only available to the team members.

Purchasing Inspiration Software

I recommended that you purchase the latest version of Inspiration (7.0 or higher). It is almost a must for creating concept maps quickly and painlessly. It’s about $70 and maybe you can share that burden and the benefits among the team members. You can also sign up online at and download a one-month free trial version of the package. You can also create concept maps using MS-Word drawing features or other software with those capabilities.

Computing the Final Grade

  1. A score will be computed in each major category:
  2. Individual Performance: The final score is the total of the sum of the individual RAPs, the final exam, the instructor-evaluated TTC, the individual portfolio, and the final reflection. Your end-of-unit reflections will be short written entries concerning the subject and material being studied in class.The final reflection will be about the entire semester and provide a synthesis summary statement concerning the changes that occurred (or not) in your learning behaviors and attitudes.
  3. Team Performance: This score is the total of the team RAPs, in-class summative assignments, final poster presentation, and possible bonus points earned.
  4. Teamwork Behavior: Teamwork Behavior will be defined more clearly, but can be understood as
  1. everyone comes prepared to class;
  2. everyone speaks up and shares their ideas;
  3. everyone listen carefully to others for understanding and willingness to accept other points of view;
  4. everyone helps others learn and understand concepts.

Each student will rate the helpfulness of all other team members on all course work using the Teamwork Behavior Rating Scale. This evaluation will be performed in a formative fashion twice during the semester and for a grade during the final exam. Each individual will receive feedback following each assessment and suggestions on how to improve her/his teamwork behavior from the teammates. Only the score on the last evaluation will count towards the course grade. How the final teamwork behavior score is computed will be explained in due time, but team members can receive bonus points to boost their grade if they have been great team members. On the other hand, in the past some students have received scores that dropped their final course grade by one letter grade.

The grade for the course will be based on the individual student’s standing in the overall distribution of scores as shown below.

Course Grade

A = 900-970

B = 820-899

C = 710-819

D = 610-709

F < 610

Grading Procedures

Scores in three areas will determine a student’s grade: Individual Performance, Team Performance, and Teamwork Behavior.

Grade / Within-Area Points / Part of Total
Individual Performance (60%)
Individual RAP (6)
Individual Final Exam
Tickets To Class (18) submitted online, hardcopy for class; credit/none
Individual portfolio:assign manual, study concentrations, TTC, etc, organized with tabs and table of contents (poor=40; mediocre=70; good=100)
Total Individual Performance Score / 20 each
100
10
100 / 120
100
180
100
500
Team Performance (30%)
Team RAP(6)
Summative unit assignments (5)
Team final project presentation and paper
Total Team Performance Score / 20 each
20 each
80 / 120
100
80
300
Individual Teamwork Behavior (evaluated by your team mates; 10%) / 100 / 100
Overall Total / 900
Team bonus points / various

Getting an “A” in this class

Your final grade depends for about 70% on your individual actions in this class. The other 30% depends on your performance as a team. In order to get an “A” you will need to make a commitment as an individual and as a team at the start of the semester and take the appropriate actions to reach your goals. Good cooperation and teamwork will benefit your individual and team scores.

DISABILITIES: UTEP seeks to provide reasonable accommodations for all qualified individuals with disabilities. This university will adhere to all applicable federal, state, and local laws, regulations and guidelines with respect to providing reasonable accommodations as required affording equal educational opportunity. It is the student's responsibility to register with Disabled Student Services (747-5148) and to contact the faculty member in a timely manner to arrange for appropriate accommodations.

The “Rest of the Syllabus”

Course Rational:

As a professional; whether you are a teacher, coach, therapist, fitness instructor, or personal trainer; you will be involved in teaching other persons motor skills of some sort. This course is designed to help you understand how research findings about motor learning and control help us design more effective learning experiences for the people we teach. Findings from research help you understand what the most effective and efficient teaching practices are, how instructors can enhance learning a motor skill, and how we can explain changes in performance and control of motor skills as our students learn them. The course aims to help you become a more effective movement educator regardless of the profession you’re in, through a better understanding of research-based recommendations and the application of theories and concepts.

The Bigger Picture:

This is one of the core courses in the Kinesiology curriculum and as such provides you with information and experiences that will apply to many of the other KIN classes. For example, many of the skill analysis classes will incorporate the concepts you learn in this class and demand practical applications of these principles. In addition, you will learn how to work effectively in teams and how to use problem-solving strategies to solve challenges and complete assignments. Upper division Kinesiology courses will assume that you have been exposed to these teaching and learning strategies. Team-based Learning is used as a teaching strategy in this class because we tend to learn better when we can engage in substantive give-and-take discussions with other people. Learning within a social circle through solving challenging assignments and substantive discussions has been shown to be much more effective than listening to lectures.

Teaching and Learning Philosophy:

Why do I make you do the things I make you do (based on Fink, 2003)?

Foundational knowledge:

You will learn a lot of new information, terminology, and concepts that you will need to integrate into your practice as a movement educator whether you are a therapist, coach, or teacher. Information you will learn in this course will help you improve your effectiveness as a practitioner.

Application:

The Readiness Assessment Procedures (RAPs), in-class team assignments, and final exam will require you to analyze, synthesize, evaluate, and solve applied problems using the theoretical principles and concepts explained in the text.

Integration:

The end-of-unit assignments require that you identify relationships between concepts and examine how that information informs effective teaching of motor skills. In addition, you will be required to study primary sources (published research articles, not text books) to add to the information in the textbook and strengthen your arguments.

Human Dimensions:

Research evidence (Michaelsen et al., 2004) clearly indicates that social interaction and working together on learning challenges leads to better learning and performance than working alone. Becoming a high performing team and a community of practitioners takes time and effort. Nonetheless, the benefits of working in a high-performing team are substantial. The potential development of such teams and a learning community is the reason why you will work in permanent learning teams during the entire semester. Working and learning in a team will help you better understand how to effectively interact and work with others, understand and experience the dynamic changes of roles and positions within the team, and the effects of individual contributions and accountability on the performance of the team as a unit.