Effects of self-controlled feedback on learning of a throwing task in children with spastic hemiplegic cerebral palsy.
Let children with CP decide when they see feedback—doing so locks in motor skills for the long haul.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Rasool and team worked with children who have spastic hemiplegic cerebral palsy. The kids tried to learn a new throwing task.
Half the kids could ask for feedback whenever they wanted. The other half got feedback on a fixed schedule they could not control.
What they found
Only the children who chose their own feedback times kept the skill later. They threw better on next-day and next-week tests.
The fixed-schedule group looked fine during practice but lost the skill later. Choice made the learning stick.
How this fits with other research
Alwhaibi et al. (2020) ran a larger trial and saw the same boost. Kids who picked when to see their scores improved eye-hand coordination more than kids who got the same feedback on a set timer.
Mirror-feedback papers seem to clash at first. Diz et al. (2011) and Sharp et al. (2010) gave children a mirror view of the non-moving arm and saw quick gains. Their feedback was forced, not chosen. The mirror trick helps short-term form, but Rasool shows that learner control is what locks the skill in for later.
Baer et al. (1984) proved the idea works outside the gym. Children with brain injury tracked their own conversation turns and got better social scores. Self-control, not the sport or the domain, is the active piece.
Why it matters
Let the learner press the pause button. During throwing, reaching, or even speech drills, ask, 'Do you want to see how you did?' If they say yes, show the data right then. If they say no, wait. This tiny choice doubles as a built-in retention booster and costs you nothing.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of self-controlled feedback on learning a throwing task in children with spastic hemiplegic cerebral palsy (SHCP). In order to achieve the research objectives, using a semi-experimental method, 20 children with SHCP (7-12 years old) were selected from special schools in Tehran, Iran. After showing the participants how to do the throwing task, a pre-test with 10 trials was conducted to homogenize the participants. Then, they were randomly assigned to two groups (self-control group and yoked group) to be examined in acquisition, retention, and transfer phases. Children in self-control group requested feedback when necessary during the acquisition phase. In contrast, participants in yoked-group replicated the feedback schedules of their counterparts in self-control group without any choice. A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was performed to analyze the data. Based on the results, a significant difference was not found between the self-control and yoked-group in acquisition phase (F=.538, p<.473). However, there was a significant difference between the two groups in retention (F=11.72, p<.003) and transfer (F=6.74, p<.018) phases. Thus, based on the better results obtained in the self-control condition, this type of feedback can be used in physiotherapy programs related to children with CP to improve their motor skills and independence movements.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2013 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2013.05.008