I have created new resource pages for people interested in learning more about and applying the CLA and Differential Learning. I will continue to add to it and am happy to take suggestions for any additions. CLA Resource Page Differential Learning Resource Page
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It is clear that one way in which we can help facilitate the process of skill acquisition in sports is by not “throwing the learner in the deep end” right away. That is, not including all the complexities, variability and task demands they will face in competition right at the early stages of learning. This…
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Some degree of variability in practice conditions is good! I don’t think that’s too controversial of an opinion. Although we may quibble over things like how applicable studies comparing blocked vs random practice are to real sports skills, I think almost all researchers and coaches would agree with my first statement. Here, I want to…
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After my recent podcast episode contrasting Prescriptive Instruction vs Self-Organization approaches to skill acquisition I have received a lot of great questions and comments regarding how specific training activities fit with the different approaches. So, to further explore the relationship between them I am going to try and do a few blog posts where I…
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A few people have asked me whether I have any thoughts about how knowing what pitch is coming (e., in the Astros cheating scandal) changes batting. Not only do I have thoughts – I have data! For those not in the know, the Houston Astros were recently severely punished after they were caught stealing signs….
Read More[shadowbox] Why is it difficult to catch a poorly thrown or kicked football? A perceptual perspective With the NFL preseason underway I thought I would turn my eye to the gridiron. For a football quarterback or punter it is advantageous to throw (or kick) the ball so that it travels in a perfect spiral for…
Read More[shadowbox] Eye & Head Movements in Batting: Challenging the “Truths” Having considered what a batter should do with their eyes before the ball is released in my previous post, I now want to move on to look how a batter tracks the ball from the pitcher’s hand to the plate. In reviewing what we understand…
Read More[shadowbox] “Soft Focus” or Visual Pivot Point: Which Should Baseball Batters Use? The Challenge: In order to hit a baseball you obviously need to be able to “see it” first. Evidence has shown that good hitters can follow the ball’s flight via eye and head movements and can pick up subtle information from the ball’s…
Read More[shadowbox] Visual Information about Horizontal Pitch Movement: Sensitivity, Release Points & Eye Separation Following up on my post on pitch tunneling which examined pitch movement in the vertical plane, I want to now consider visual information available to a batter about the trajectory of pitch in the horizontal plane (e.g., whether it will cross on…
Read More[shadowbox] The Psychology of Quick Pitching & Altering Deliveries In recent years some prominent MLB pitchers have begun altering the timing of their delivery in an attempt to mess with batters (although it is not a new practice). A few examples of how Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Marcus Stroman does this can be seen in…
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