Skill Retentiontion: A Motor Memory Process

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Skill retention is a motor memory process that is achieved through a number of practice sessions. The process is dependent on a number of variables that happen throughout the acquisition of the skill. In early stages of life, a child will be presented with the challenge of completing several motor tasks vital to daily life. For example, acquiring the motor skill to write ones name is an intricate task. The child must first acquire the necessary skill to perform this task effectively (sounds like filler)This is achieved through a set of practice sessions. The child will produce the desired outcome after efficient practice has taken place. To know if the child has retained, or learned this motor skill, we stop asking the child to perform the task. After a set time, called the retention interval, the child is asked to write their name. If the child is successful the skill has been learn Once learned, it becomes permanent and stored in the bank of experiences that each child possesses. This skill is said to have been integrated into this bank of memory and able to be accessed whenever the child chooses to. The child has now acquired a skill and retained it through a number of training methods and practice sessions.
Learning how to produce an effective motor skill takes time and practice. You must also analyze each individual moving part of the body during the action. An example of learning a motor skill could be seen by analyzing a baseball swing. It can be broken down into four small parts. The first movement we analyze would be the initial step toward the pitcher. Next, a rotation of the hips should be observed. The arms should be observed extending out toward the ball after the hip rotation. Finally, the follow through must culmi...

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...y it is important that one skill is practiced at a time.
The process of retaining (learning) a skill happens through an intricate process. This process has a main objective and that is to show a relatively permanent change as a result of set practice sessions and past experience. Once the skill is adequately practiced based on some set of criterion, the subject will be asked to take a break from the performance of the skill for a time period called the retention interval. The subject is tested on what he/she has retained after this time period. If a motor memory is created and developed during the acquisition of the skill, then the skill will be able to be accessed and retrieved from the bank of motor memory. Given that the skill is performed at the same level of efficiency as it was at the end of training, the skill is said to have been retained.
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