IB Sports, exercise and health science C.2 Motor Learning Key Definitions

Adaptation refers to the continual adjustment and reorganization of an athlete’s physical components such as muscles and limbs, to effectively respond to changing constraints during sports competition.

Affordances are action opportunities provided by the sporting environment, representing interactions between athletes and their surroundings. Athletes recognize affordances by understanding how they can respond effectively to specific performance conditions. These opportunities invite athletes to act based on their past experiences, learned skills, and individual motivations.

Arousal is the state of being physiologically alert, awake, and attentive

Arousal refers to the level of physiological and psychological activation an athlete experiences. It ranges from low (relaxed) to high (intense excitement or stress).

Attention is the behavior a person uses to focus the senses, from sight to hearing and even smell

Attention is essential for successful skilled performance in sport and exercise, involving the concentration of mental activity on relevant tasks.

Attentional narrowing is a psychological state where a person focuses on a small set of information, ignoring other stimuli. It can occur during stressful situations, and can lead to accidents.

Fatigue is the inability to maintain the required or expected power output during physical activity, resulting in a decline in performance.

The main or central point of something, especially of attention or interest

The stored form of glucose found in the liver and muscles, which can be broken down into glucose for ATP production during exercise.

A lasting improvement in performance through consistent practice.

A learning curve refers to a graphical representation illustrating how a person's skill or performance improves over time through practice or experience.

It shows the rate and pattern of progress as someone learns a new skill, highlighting periods of rapid improvement, slower progression, or plateaus.

Linear pedagogy is a structured and step-by-step approach to skill learning. It follows a fixed progression where athletes develop skills through repetition and controlled practice.

Linear pedagogy is a structured, step-by-step teaching approach that follows a sequential progression in skill development. It is based on information processing theory, where learners move through distinct stages of learning (cognitive, associative, and autonomous) in a predictable and systematic order.

Motor programmes are sets of muscle commands allowing movements to be executed automatically, without relying on feedback.

Non-linear pedagogy is a dynamic and adaptable approach to skill learning that allows for self-organization and exploration. Instead of following a strict progression, athletes develop skills through game-like, variable practice conditions.

Non-linear pedagogy is a modern approach to teaching motor skills, grounded in the principles of ecological dynamics.

The method and practice of teaching, especially as an academic subject or theoretical concept.

Perception-action coupling describes the direct link between sensory information and movement execution. Instead of separate perception and action phases, both occur simultaneously.

An action that occurs at a particular time but does not necessarily indicate skill mastery.

Time from stimulus introduction to action completion. Components of Response Time include Reaction Time: Time from stimulus onset to the beginning of movement and Movement Time: Time taken to complete the motor action.

Athletes' ability to quickly understand and interpret their environment during performance, enabling effective decision-making under pressure (e.g., making correct decisions in the final moments of a match).

A skill refers to a specific action or the level of performance of an action that has been acquired through practice and is directed toward achieving a specific goal.

Transfer of learning refers to how skills or knowledge from one context influence performance in another.