Precision teaching and fluency: the effects of charting and goal-setting on skaters’ performance

Abstract

This research involved three successive studies where precision teaching methods were used to increase roller skaters performance rates of basic skating skills. The first study compared precision teaching methods both with and without the use of charting in a group design, and compared both within-subject and betweensubject differences for 12 skaters. Results showed that charting did not increase performance rates over that seen when charting was not used. The second study was a group design which compared two different types of goals, or performance aims, on skaters‟ performance. No difference was found between the two groups of 5 skaters when one group used a fixed, difficult goal and a second used a flexible, easier goal. In the final study, a single-subject design was used and 8 skaters completed a control condition where no goals were set before a goal was introduced for 4 skaters. It was found that an immediate increase in performance rates occurred following the introduction of the goal. Overall these three studies showed that skaters improved their performance rates over sessions, even in the absence of charting and/or goals, demonstrating that precision teaching can be applied to the sport of roller skating.