Discuss the differences between skill, ability and technique and explain how you would structure practices to enhance these components of fitness.

AS and A Level Physical Education (Sport & Coaching)

The word skill can be interpreted in a variety of different ways.

The word could mean an element of a game or sport e.g. passing, volleying or somersaulting.

The word can be used in reference to a quality a sports person possesses.

There are three different types of skill the first type is cognitive skill, this is the ability to solve problems by thinking e.g. when you do arithmetic in your head you are employing cognitive skill adapted from Davis B. et al (2000) Physical Education and the Study of Sport. 4th edition. Mosby

The second type of skill is called perceptual skill. Perception is sensing what is going on around you without looking, for example being able to pass to a team mate in football without looking up shows good perception as you can anticipate where he is just from his calls.

The third type of skill is called motor skill; motor skill is a skill in which the majority of muscle movement is voluntary. An example of a motor skill is running, when you run you consciously move your legs and arms, very few perceptual skills are used when sprinting, therefore making it a motor skill.

Most skills we use in PE and sport usually use elements of all three types of skill, they are usually referred to as perceptual-motor or psychomotor skills adapted from Davis B. et al (2000) Physical Education and the Study of Sport. 4th edition. Mosby

There are a few key facts to know about skill and these are as follows:

A skill must be learned, and is usually a result of regular practice, the more you practice the more experienced you become at performing a skill.
Skill has an end result. Its is important that the learner knows the end result of a skill before he attempts it because knowing this will allow him to know what he/she is trying to achieve and they will be able to judge how well they have performed the skill in comparison to how it should be done.
Consistency is a key part of skill, as skill performers will be able to achieve their goal time and time again.
Skill results in a smooth efficient movement, a skilled performer will make a move look effortless, and example of this is with footballer David Beckham, he has the skill of being able to hit a 60 yard pass and he does it accurately and makes it look effortless.

Skill classification:

Classification is when you group similar skills together and give them a generic label adapted from Davis B. et al (2000) Physical Education and the Study of Sport. 4th edition. Mosby

Most skill classification systems are based on the view that motor skills are affected by three factors:

how precise a movement is
whether the movement has a definite beginning and end
whether the environment affects the performance of the skill

Two examples of classified skills are:

‘The Gross and Fine Continuum

This continuum is concerned with the precision of ...

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Skill classification:

Classification is when you group similar skills together and give them a generic label adapted from Davis B. et al (2000) Physical Education and the Study of Sport. 4th edition. Mosby

Most skill classification systems are based on the view that motor skills are affected by three factors:

how precise a movement is
whether the movement has a definite beginning and end
whether the environment affects the performance of the skill

Two examples of classified skills are:

‘The Gross and Fine Continuum

This continuum is concerned with the precision of movement - gross and fine skills

Gross skills: involve large muscle movements, where the major muscle groups are involved. The movements are not very precise, and include many fundamental movement patterns such as walking, running and jumping. The shot putt is an example of a primarily gross skill.

Fine skills: involve intricate movements using small muscle groups, tend to be precise and generally involve high levels of hand-eye coordination. A snooker shot or playing the piano are examples fine skills.

The Open and Closed Continuum

This continuum is concerned with the effects of the environment on skills - Barbara Knapp's open and closed skills

Open skills: sports such as Netball, Football, and Hockey usually involve open skills. This is because the environment is constantly changing and so movements have to be continually adapted. Therefore, skills are predominantly perceptual. The skill is mostly externally paced, for example a pass in football.

Closed Skills

These skills take place in a stable, predictable environment and the performer knows exactly what to do and when. Therefore, skills are not affected by the environment and tend to be habitual. Movements follow set patterns and have a clear beginning and end. The skills tend to be self-paced, for example a free throw in Basketball, and serving in Squash or Tennis.

Barbara Knapp suggests that skills can fit on a continuum between open and closed.’ ()

Ability

Ability is a stable, enduring, mainly genetically determined characteristic (or trait) that underlies skilled performances and can be used in a variety of skills. adapted from Davis B. et al (2000) Physical Education and the Study of Sport. 4th edition. Mosby

Ability improves with age and is modifies by experience but they are considered to be something that cannot be learned, it is passed on genetically.

Most abilities are perceptual, more or a combination of the two, also like skills, since most abilities are due to a combination they are known as psychomotor abilities adapted from Davis B. et al (2000) Physical Education and the Study of Sport. 4th edition. Mosby

There isn’t a definitive list of psychomotor abilities at present. Abilities are closely linked with skills and they contribute to each other, e.g. someone who naturally has a lot of fast twitch muscles in their legs, balance and good reaction times have a lot of features needed in order to become a sprinter, however the person will have to practice and learn correct running techniques in order to become a good sprinter.

Technique:

‘Techniques are the basic movements of any sport or event e.g. at the block start in a 100m race is a technique’ () Techniques are combined in order to create a pattern of movement, a good example of this is in the triple jump, this has 3 stages, the hop then step, then jump.

‘Relationship between Skill, Ability and Technique

SKILL = ABILITY + TECHNIQUE’ ()

Improving Skill

A structured practice aimed at improving skill in a team sport is crossing a football.

You would begin by crossing a stationary ball into different areas of the box.
You would make it a more open practice by then making the player run with the ball before attempting to cross the ball into different areas of this box.
This could be improved even more by adding a target player being marked by a defender and another defender to mark the crosser, this makes the practice more like a game situation as the player would have to beat the defender then attempt to deliver a cross that the defender can’t get to but his target man can.
You would then end the training session with a normal 11 vs. 11 game situation.

A structured practice session that could improve a player’s skill in an individual sport is:

In swimming, the person could begin practicing backstroke by placing a float on his chest and do a couple of lengths just using his legs. This makes it a pretty much closed practice, as there is nothing going on around him and he only has to focus on his body position and leg action.
You would then remove the float and get the person to now use their arms as well as their legs. This will help improve the whole stroke in general and will aid the person’s technique.
The practice could be furthered even more by giving the participant a time limit in order to swim a specific amount of lengths.
You could then work on the swimmer’s cardio vascular system by asking them to swim about 10 lengths of the pool, this will also help to build stamina which will help in a competitive situation as they will be able to swim for longer before they start to tire (if the opponent isn’t as physically fit).
The final step of the training will be to participate in a race against other swimmers.

You could also use a structured practice in order to improve skill in a racket sport.

You would begin by asking the participant to practice a closed skill like serving, at first you would ask them to simply get the ball over the net.
The next step would be to attempt to aim for different parts of the box.
This practice could be improved even more by then asking him to practise a smash, this could be done by throwing the ball high into the air so that the player has to position himself correctly and return it efficiently.
Once this has been done then you could ask him to play against another player, making the practice more open as they will now have to think about the best place to place the ball as well as attempting to anticipate where the opponent is about to play the ball.

Abilities cannot be learned so therefore you cannot practice improving ability. They develop as you get older and more mature and are modified by experience (adapted from Physical Education and the Study of Sport, Bob Davis et al).

Technique can be improved with regular full game practice. As technique will improve with experience because the player will be able to judge for himself whether or not he has performed an action correctly and will work on trying to improve it the next time, therefore improving their technique.

Bibliography

Physical Education and the Study of Sports (Fourth Edition), Bob Davis, Ros Bull, Jan Roscoe, Dennis Roscoe