Overview
This lecture covers motivational strategies, types of instruction, and practice schedules in motor skill teaching, emphasizing patient-centered care and effective learning retention.
Motivation & Patient-Centered Care
- Motivation can be intrinsic (internal) or extrinsic (external) and varies by patient.
- Understanding patient goals, barriers, and fears is key for effective instruction.
- Use constructive, warranted praise that matches performance to build trust and motivation.
- Set goals collaboratively, aligning them with what the patient values (e.g., walking vs. wheelchair use).
- Maintain enthusiasm without being condescending or treating adults like children.
- Capture attention, keep directions simple (KISS principle), and always gain consent before proceeding.
Types of Instruction
- Guided Learning: Instructor demonstrates and cues through words, visuals, or touch; effective for quick learning but lower retention.
- Observational Learning: Patient observes another person performing the task and receives related feedback; best when the model is similar to the observer.
- Discovery Learning: Patient is given the goal and solves the task independently; leads to better retention but takes longer to learn, and is not suitable when safety is a concern.
Instructional Cues
- Visual cues: Demonstrating actions directly.
- Tactile cues: Physical touch to prompt movement.
- Verbal cues: Short, simple instructions, can be external (referencing objects or space outside the body).
Practice Schedules
- Blocked Practice: Repeated practice of one skill before moving to another; easy to organize but poorer retention.
- Variable Practice: Practicing the same skill under varied conditions; improves retention and prepares for real-world variation.
- Random Practice: Mixing different tasks in one session and returning to earlier tasks; best for retention due to contextual interference (the need to recall after breaks).
Key Terms & Definitions
- Intrinsic Motivation — Internal drive or desire to learn.
- Extrinsic Motivation — Motivation from external sources or rewards.
- Guided Learning — Teaching method using demonstration and guidance by the instructor.
- Observational Learning — Learning by watching another perform a task and seeing feedback.
- Discovery Learning — Learning by independent problem-solving.
- Blocked Practice — Practicing one task repetitively before moving to another.
- Variable Practice — Practicing variations of the same task.
- Random Practice — Intermixing different tasks in unpredictable order.
- Contextual Interference — Memory challenge created by switching between tasks, enhancing retention.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Review the three types of instruction and practice schedules.
- Reflect on ways to assess patient motivation and align goals in practice.
- Prepare for the next segment by considering how to apply these strategies in clinical scenarios.