Motor Development & Skill Acquisition

Catalog description

This course is intended to focus on the behavioral, biomechanical, and neural bases of development, acquisition, and performance of functional movement skills. Acquisition of skill is examined over the lifespan in typically developing and impaired individuals. Movement analysis is used to elucidate the neuromotor control processes underlying skilled performance in everyday functional behaviors, sport, and dance. Students who plan to go into professions in which research related to human motor skill is required, or who majoring in professions in which assisting people to learn (or relearn) motor skills is an important part of the job, such as teaching, coaching, physical therapy, occupational therapy, industrial training, athletic training, and various medical/rehabilitation related careers, etc. Throughout the course, various topics related to the cognitive and motor processes influencing the learning of motor skills will be discussed. Specifically, topics to be covered will include the assessment of learning, changes during learning, attention, augmented feedback, transfer of learning.