Practice (learning method): Difference between revisions

Revision as of 00:07, 3 December 2023

Revision as of 00:13, 16 December 2023

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{{Distinguish|Praxis (process)}}

'''Practice''' is the act of rehearsing a behaviourbehavior repeatedly, to help [[Learning|learn]] and eventually master a [[skill]]. The word derives from the [[Greek language|Greek]] "πρακτική" (''praktike''), feminine of "πρακτικός" (''praktikos''), "fit for or concerned with action, practical",<ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3Dpraktiko%2Fs πρακτικός], Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, ''A Greek-English Lexicon'', on Perseus Digital Library</ref> and that from the verb "πράσσω" (''prasso''), "to achieve, bring about, effect, accomplish".<ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0057%3Aentry%3Dpra%2Fssw πράσσω], Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, ''A Greek-English Lexicon'', on Perseus Digital Library</ref>

In [[British English]], ''practice'' is the [[noun]] and ''practise'' is the verb, but in [[American English]] it is now common for ''practice'' to be used both as a noun and a verb (see [[American and British English spelling differences#-ce, -se|American and British English spelling differences]]; this article follows theAmerican British distinctionconventions).

Sessions scheduled for the purpose of rehearsing and performance improvement are called '''practices'''. They are engaged in by sports teams, bands, individuals, etc., as in, "He went to football practice every day after school".

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==Common types==

{{More citations needed section|date=July 2011}}

[[File:Eduardo Martín from Diez Negritos.jpg|thumb|upright|A [[musician]] practisingpracticing his instrument.]]

[[File:ANCOP officers.jpg|thumb|ANCOP officer cadets practisepractice detaining an armed insurgent at the Mazar-e Sharif Regional Training Center on December 12, 2010.]]

Some common ways practice is applied:

*To learn how to play a [[musical instrument]] ([[musical technique]])

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*To master tasks associated with one's occupation (e.g. a cashier using a [[Point of sale system|POS system]])

How well one improves with practice depends on several factors, such as the frequency it is engaged in, and the type of feedback that is available for improvement. If feedback is not appropriate (either from an instructor or from self-reference to an information source), then the practice tends to be ineffective or even detrimental to learning. If a student does not practisepractice often enough, reinforcement fades, and he or she is likely to forget what was learned. Therefore, practice is often scheduled, to ensure enough of it is performed to reach one's training objectives. How much practice is required depends upon the nature of the activity, and upon each individual. Some people improve on a particular activity faster than others. Practice in an instructional setting may be effective if repeated only 1 time (for some simple verbal information) or 3 times (for concepts), or it may be practisedpracticed many times before evaluation (a dance movement).

==Deliberate practice==

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<blockquote>People believe that because expert performance is qualitatively different from a normal performance the expert performer must be endowed with characteristics qualitatively different from those of normal adults. [...] We agree that expert performance is qualitatively different from normal performance and even that expert performers have characteristics and abilities that are qualitatively different from or at least outside the range of those of normal adults. However, we deny that these differences are immutable, that is, due to innate talent. Only a few exceptions, most notably height, are genetically prescribed. Instead, we argue that the differences between expert performers and normal adults reflect a life-long period of deliberate effort to improve performance in a specific ___domain.<ref name=":0">{{cite journal |last1=Ericsson |first1=K. Anders |last2=Krampe |first2=Ralf T. |last3=Tesch-Römer |first3=Clemens |title=The role of deliberate practice in the acquisition of expert performance. |journal=Psychological Review |date=July 1993 |volume=100 |issue=3 |pages=363–406 |doi=10.1037/0033-295X.100.3.363 |citeseerx=10.1.1.169.9712 }}</ref></blockquote>

One of Ericsson's core findings was that how expert one becomes at a skill has more to do with how one practisespractices than with merely performing a skill a large number of times. An expert breaks down the skills that are required to be expert and focuses on improving those skill chunks during practice or day-to-day activities, often paired with immediate coaching feedback. Another important feature of deliberate practice lies in continually practisingpracticing a skill at more challenging levels with the intention of mastering it.<ref name="Mayer, R. E. 2008">Mayer, R. E. (2008). ''Learning and Instruction.'' Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc.{{pn|date=January 2023}}</ref> Deliberate practice is also discussed in the books ''Talent is Overrated'' by [[Geoff Colvin]]<ref>Geoff Colvin, ''Talent is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else''</ref> and ''The Talent Code'' by Daniel Coyle,<ref>Daniel Coyle, ''The Talent Code: Greatness Isn't Born. It's Grown. Here's How''</ref> among others. This includes, ''Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance,'' by [[Angela Duckworth]]<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|title=Grit : the power of passion and perseverance|last=Angela|first=Duckworth|date=3 May 2016|publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1501111105|oclc=953827740}}</ref> and ''[[Outliers: The Story of Success]],'' by [[Malcolm Gladwell]].<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/outliersstoryofs00glad|title=Featured book review : Outliers.|author1=Gladwell, Malcolm|last2=Summaries.|first2=Soundview Executive Book|date=2009-01-01|publisher=[Soundview Executive Book Summaries]|isbn=978-0316017923|oclc=605428328|url-access=registration}}</ref>

Ericsson also believes that some anatomical characteristics were believed to be fixed traits in the past. Genes rarely dictate what traits will be. However, his study has proven that the characteristics have the ability to change and adapt in response to intense practice over multiple years. Ericsson's statements on practice also support the 10 year rule. Ericsson believes that elite performance is the product of maximal effort over at least a decade. The maximal effort is described as using deliberate practice in order to improve performance.<ref name=":0" />

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Duckworth describes how deliberate practice affects education, motivation, and learning outcomes.<ref name=":1" /> In a presentation she gave at the American Educational Research Conference in 2014,<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|url=http://www.aera.net/Events-Meetings/Annual-Meeting/Previous-Annual-Meetings/2014-Annual-Meeting/2014-Annual-Meeting-Webcasts/-Noncognitive-Factors-Affecting-Student-Success|title=Noncognitive Factors Affecting Student Success|website=www.aera.net|language=en-US|access-date=2017-04-25}}</ref> she spoke about the importance of grit – of students' focusing on material with which they struggle. In her view, grit allows a student to persevere and succeed in the face of adversity. Duckworth says that if a student can apply grit in their academic work, their effort will increase. Duckworth says that effort is equally important as talent in achieving academic goals. In a study she conducted at the National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C, she found that the students who used the grit tactic tended to advance to the finals.<ref name=":2" />

Two recent articles in ''[[Current Directions in Psychological Science]]'' criticisecriticize deliberate practice and argue that, while it is necessary for reaching high levels of performance, it is not sufficient, with other factors such as talent being important as well.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Campitelli |first1=Guillermo |last2=Gobet |first2=Fernand |title=Deliberate Practice: Necessary But Not Sufficient |journal=Current Directions in Psychological Science |date=October 2011 |volume=20 |issue=5 |pages=280–285 |doi=10.1177/0963721411421922 |s2cid=145572294 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hambrick |first1=David Z. |last2=Meinz |first2=Elizabeth J. |title=Limits on the Predictive Power of Domain-Specific Experience and Knowledge in Skilled Performance |journal=Current Directions in Psychological Science |date=October 2011 |volume=20 |issue=5 |pages=275–279 |doi=10.1177/0963721411422061 |s2cid=16690524 }}</ref> More recently, a meta-analysis found the correlation coefficient between deliberate practice and performance was 0.40, the size of which is large compared to other predictor variables (e.g. obesity, excessive drinking, smoking, intelligence, adherence to effective medication).<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Miller |first1=Scott D. |last2=Chow |first2=Daryl |last3=Wampold |first3=Bruce E. |last4=Hubble |first4=Mark A. |last5=Del Re |first5=A. C. |last6=Maeschalck |first6=Cynthia |last7=Bargmann |first7=Susanne |title=To be or not to be (an expert)? Revisiting the role of deliberate practice in improving performance |journal=High Ability Studies |date=2 January 2020 |volume=31 |issue=1 |pages=5–15 |doi=10.1080/13598139.2018.1519410 |s2cid=149904631 }}</ref> In addition, Malcolm Gladwell's point-of-view about deliberate practice is different from Ericsson's view. Gladwell, staff writer at ''The New Yorker'' magazine and author of five books on The New York Times Best Seller list including ''Outliers: The Story of Success'' said in a May 2016 Freakonomics podcast interview that, "He's [Ericsson] a hard practice guy, and I'm a soft practice guy." Gladwell claims that talent is important with an intentional dedication to practice and having a support system is vital to produce superior outcomes. It is not all about methodical effort as Ericsson claims. In Malcolm Gladwell's book, one chapter is called "The Matthew Effect." This effect describes how different biases can affect an individual's performance. When someone is practicing a skill, especially with deliberate practice, coaches play an important role in how their practices go. If a coach sets high expectations and encourages their learners, the individual is more likely to take more from practice and perform better. The role of coaches is important during deliberate practice. Coaches can strengthen desired behaviors through encouragement, positive reinforcement, and technical instruction. Fostering a positive learning environment through deliberate practice is key for all individuals involved. It is also important for coaches to lay out their practices with specific skill training, variable practice, and training open and closed skills. These factors lead to an intentional deliberate practice which ultimately leads to better learning and performance.

According to the American Psychological Association, the purpose of deliberate practice is to achieve high levels of expert performance.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Brabeck |first1=Mary |last2=Jeffrey |first2=Jill |last3=Fry |first3=Sara |title=Practice for Knowledge Acquisition (Not Drill and Kill): (501912017-001) |doi=10.1037/e501912017-001 }}</ref> Studies also show that due to deliberate practice, an individual will experience high achievement. This is due to memory, cognition, practice, persistence, and muscle response that all improves through deliberate practice.

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==Behavioral versus cognitive theories of deliberate practice==

Behavioral theory would argue that deliberate practice is facilitated by feedback from an expert that allows for successful approximation of the target performance. Feedback from an expert allows the learner to minimiseminimize errors and frustration that results from trial-and-error attempts. Behavioral theory does not require delivery of rewards for accurate performance; the expert feedback in combination with the accurate performance serve as the consequences that establish and maintain the new performance.

In cognitive theory, excellent performance results from practisingpracticing complex tasks that produce errors. Such errors provide the learner with rich feedback that results in scaffolding for future performance. Cognitive theory explains how a learner can become an expert (or someone who has mastered a ___domain).<ref name="Mayer, R. E. 2008"/>

==Motivation==

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They further described the personal skills learners need to exhibit at various stages of skill development in order to be successful in developing their clinical skills. This includes:

#planning (organiseorganize work in a structured way).

#concentration/dedication (higher attention span)

#repetition/revision (strong tendency to practisepractice)

#study style/self reflection (tendency to self-regulate learning)''<ref name="Duvivier_2011"/>

While the study only included medical students, the authors found that repetitious practice may only help the novice learner (year 1) because as expertise is developed, the learner must focus and plan their learning around specific deficiencies. Curriculum must be designed to develop students' ability to plan their learning as they progress in their careers.

Finally, the findings in the study also have implications for developing self-regulated behavioursbehaviors in students. Initially, a medical student may need focused feedback from instructors; however, as they progress, they must develop the ability to self-assess.

In an article by Susan Howick, the idea of using mixed method practice in the medical field could be proven to be beneficial for practitioners and researchers.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Howick |first1=Susan |last2=Ackermann |first2=Fran |last3=Walls |first3=Lesley |last4=Quigley |first4=John |last5=Houghton |first5=Tom |title=Learning from mixed OR method practice: The NINES case study |journal=Omega |date=June 2017 |volume=69 |pages=70–81 |doi=10.1016/j.omega.2016.08.003 |url=https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/57316/1/Howick_etal_Omega2016_Learning_from_mixed_OR_method_practice.pdf }}</ref>