Skill Acquisition Design for a Novice Basketball Group
A Year 11 class of 24 students is learning the basketball jump shot. Twelve students have played club basketball for at least three years; twelve have never played. The teacher has four weeks (eight lessons of 50 minutes) and one court with six baskets. The teacher plans to teach the jump shot using whole-part-whole instruction with blocked practice in lesson one, then random practice from lesson two. A department requirement is that every lesson include a game-based activity for at least 15 minutes.
1. Critique the teacher's plan to move to random practice from lesson two.
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Random practice is generally superior for retention and transfer once a skill has been acquired, but it is detrimental during early acquisition when the learner has no stable movement pattern to retrieve. Novices in lesson two have had roughly 50 minutes of exposure, which is insufficient to establish the coordination of the jump shot. For the novice group, blocked practice with feedback should persist longer, with random practice introduced once success rates are stable (for example, 7 of 10 shots from a set distance). For the experienced group, random practice from lesson two is reasonable because they already possess the pattern and benefit from contextual interference. The plan therefore needs differentiation by prior experience, not a single progression for the whole class.
2. Explain how the teacher should structure the 15-minute game requirement so it does not undermine skill learning for novices.
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A full game gives novices few shooting attempts and high pressure, so the game should be modified to maximise relevant repetitions. Small-sided games such as 2v2 or 3v3 on reduced courts, with a rule that a team must attempt a jump shot before scoring counts, increase shot frequency and create game-like decisions. For novices, conditions can be modified further (closer baskets, no defensive contest on the first shot) to keep success rates high. The game is used as a transfer and decision-making tool, not as free play, and the teacher should observe whether the movement pattern deteriorates under game conditions. If it does, the game rule should be simplified.
3. With 24 students and six baskets, recommend an organisational strategy and justify it.
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Divide into six groups of four, one per basket, and rotate on a fixed signal so every student gets a high number of attempts. Within each group, pair one experienced student with one novice where possible so the experienced student can provide simple cue-based feedback, freeing the teacher to circulate and give specific feedback to novices. Groups should be mixed rather than streamed so novices observe a competent model, which supports observational learning. The teacher should position to see all baskets and use a single cue per lesson (for example, 'elbow under the ball') to keep feedback focused. This structure addresses the equipment constraint without reducing time on task.