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The Science of Volleyball Practice Development and Drill Design

iUniverse, Inc.

Contents

Preface: A Word from the Author................................................viiPart 1: Practice Design And Development........................................1How Players Learn and Acquire Motor Skills.....................................2MOTOR LEARNING AND PERFORMANCE.................................................2FACTORS THAT AFFECT LEARNING PERFORMANCE.......................................4INFORMATION PROCESSING IN MOTOR LEARNING AND PERFORMANCE.......................8The Stages in Motor Development................................................15THE INTRODUCTORY/VERBAL-COGNITIVE STAGE OF SKILL LEARNING......................15THE PERFECTION STAGE MOTOR.....................................................19THE AUTONOMOUS STAGE (WITHOUT CONSCIOUS THOUGHT)...............................21SUMMARY........................................................................24Evaluation/Error Correction and Motor Learning.................................26INTRODUCTION...................................................................26FEEDBACK.......................................................................26REINFORCEMENT..................................................................29SUMMARY........................................................................30Practice Theory and Organization...............................................31INTRODUCTION...................................................................31PRACTICE DESIGN: THE INGREDIENTS FOR AN EFFECTIVE PRACTICE.....................32INSTRUCTIONAL MANAGEMENT FOR VOLLEYBALL TRAINING...............................34TASK CLASSIFICATION............................................................35INSTRUCTIONAL METHODS FOR IMPROVING MOTOR PERFORMANCE..........................37SUMMARY........................................................................45Designing a Practice Session...................................................47INTRODUCTION...................................................................47PLANNING AND ORGANIZATION FOR INSTRUCTION......................................48ESTABLISHING A PRACTICE ATMOSPHERE.............................................50ESTABLISHING A POSITIVE TRAINING ENVIRONMENT...................................55Daily Practice Design and Organization.........................................58INTRODUCTION...................................................................58PLANNING AN EFFECTIVE DAILY PRACTICE SESSION...................................59SUMMARY........................................................................60ROUTINES: THE KEY TO MAXIMIZING PERFORMANCE....................................61Appendix.......................................................................70SAMPLE OF DAILY PRACTICE SCHEDULE..............................................70Glossary.......................................................................77PART 2: Theories and Principles Of Drill Design................................79Theories/Principles of Drill Design............................................80INTRODUCTION...................................................................80FACTORS THAT AFFECT DRILL DESIGN...............................................80SUMMARY........................................................................90Drill Development and Drills...................................................93INTRODUCTION...................................................................93DRILL CLASSIFICATIONS..........................................................96INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN...........................................................98DRILL STRUCTURE................................................................100SUMMARY........................................................................102DRILLS.........................................................................103Introductory/Cognative Drills..................................................104Perfection/Advanced/Combined Drills............................................139Automonous/Automatic/Competitive...............................................169About the Author...............................................................201References.....................................................................203

Chapter One

"The average player moves until the breath in him is gone But the champion has a will of iron that makes him carry on."

MOTOR LEARNING AND PERFORMANCE

Volleyball like tennis and a few other sports is a non-contact sport. Although size and strength are important, physical skill, fitness, mental strength, execution and training plays a big role in performance success. Unlike some sports, each volleyball player must be efficient in executing all the required skills of the game if team success is to occur. Being a game of many complexities both individually and as a team, volleyball is a difficult game to master. Although success is measured in wins and losses, success in volleyball should also include the ability to progress in the execution of the many diverse skills, phases and mental requirements of the game. Performance improvement and perfection is achieved by preparing each player for any situation that can occur during competition. This is best achieved through efficient practice organization, controlled drill procedures and routines that structure on the-court player movements while duplicating expected game behavior. Practice is a block of time scheduled to include a series of drills organized in a logical progression and based on predetermined performance goals formulated to achieve the chosen objectives. In turn, drills are an organized scheme designed to change player behavior patterns through a planned program (practice) that results in the desired mental and motor behavior. The main purpose of a drill or a series of drills is to assist the athlete in developing optimal physical, mental, technical and tactical efficiency that leads to habits of precision in skill execution. Effective practice and drill design enhances learning of new skills and tactics while reinforcing previously learned skills by providing continual review and consistent repetitions.

Performance in athletics is influenced by the level of basic motor abilities present in the individual. An individual's ultimate level of skill acquisition and ability to perform is largely dependent on personal talent (inherent physical ability) and the circumstances (activity choices) which one chooses to participate. Coordination (natural ability) is present in all humans, and the extent to which physical skills can be developed is contingent on the genetic endowment of an individual's skeletal structure, muscular composition, nervous system and the ability to control behavior. Thus, the highest level of skill performance that can be achieved physically is determined by: (1) how the nervous system senses and correlates sensory information; (2) how the skeletal structure is formed, (3) how the muscle fibers are developed and interact, and (4) how behavioral situations in the environment are perceived and reacted upon.

The science of motor learning (Schmidt) has been defined as the scientific investigation of performance associated with motor acts and the acquisition of motor skills, i.e., the study of finding the best ways for people...