Welcome to Hanshaw's Horizon, where we explore learning science, evidence-based tools, and strategies to build better learning environments and help people learn better. Keep in mind that we are diving into just one strategy at a time. In reality, strategies overlap with one another and are best used with other strategies to create a more holistic approach to learning.
Today, we will take a journey into the world of Anders Ericsson's concept of "deliberate practice." In particular, we will see how we can use two of the principles that undergird deliberate practice to help us as instructors, designers, and learners. Let's get into it.
As educators and learners, we might be familiar with the widely cited "10,000-hour rule". However, often what is purported as Ericsson's rule diverges from the essence of his original writings. Could we have been misled regarding this so-called "rule"? Is it, in fact, a bona fide rule? Malcolm Gladwell popularized deliberate practice and the 10,000-hour rule in his book,
"Outliers," where some suggest that he misrepresented deliberate practice and the 10,000-hour rule.
Ericsson has emphasized that achieving mastery through deliberate practice alone is not
guaranteed and depends upon several other factors, including the domain of the skill being
learned, the individual's prior knowledge and talents, and the quality of feedback received
during practice.
Others may also wonder if this is something we can use in education.
Understanding the true essence of Ericsson's theory holds significant implications for us in the field of education and learning. From an educational perspective, accurate interpretation is vital; a misinterpretation could lead learners to expend valuable time and effort without achieving the desired objectives. Similarly, as instructional designers, misconstruing the rule could result in creating education modules that fail to aid in effective learning.
Therefore, it is crucial to explore and understand Ericsson's theory in its authentic form and context for the sake of our learners and the quality of our educational practices.
Take, for example, a student learning to play the violin. According to the 10,000-hour rule, students must spend 10,000 hours in deliberate, focused practice (not just casual playing or rehearsing old pieces) to achieve mastery. Many other factors play a role in whether the violinist will achieve mastery or not.
Finding the Golden Nuggets
We aren't here to debate Ericsson or deliberate practice. We are here to pull out golden nuggets that we can use within the framework of our classrooms. Our classrooms may be online, in-person, asynchronous, or synchronous, and it doesn't matter. We are here to develop and utilize the strategies in a way that benefits any course, regardless of delivery method. We are also here to utilize these strategies in ways that benefit our own learning.
Stress is Required
An intriguing aspect to note is the inherent stress associated with deliberate practice. People involved in deliberate practice showed increased stress levels. This increase in pressure distinguishes deliberate practice sessions from the often enjoyable nature of practice sessions for novices. It's crucial to understand that the rigor and intensity of deliberate practice may present something other than a buoyant learning experience typically associated with the initial stages of learning a new skill.
We can harness concepts from Ericsson's deliberate practice in our classrooms by shaping how we give feedback, coach, help the learner set overall goals, and practice with a specific goal. For this piece, our focus is going to be on what I consider the most powerful nuggets.
Feedback
Goal setting (Overall and focused)
Let's get started.
Feedback
Feedback is critical. How learners get feedback is critical as well. To align with the principles of deliberate practice requires it to be
immediate
specific
constructive (focused on what is correct)
action-oriented.
The term "immediate" is relative and takes on a different meaning within asynchronous courses. For feedback to be constructive, it has to focus on what we want the learner to be able to do. We can mention what the learner did wrong so they can identify it, but the focus has to be on how to do the action correctly. The principles of deliberate practice emphasize the importance of constructive feedback in facilitating learners' growth. According to Hattie and Timperley (2007), effective feedback should address students' learning goals, performance, and strategies to bridge the gap between their current level and the intended objective.
Constructive feedback is pivotal for guiding learners toward their goals. While pointing out the observed errors is essential, the focus should remain on guiding the learners to execute the task correctly. Feedback should not just accentuate the shortcomings but encourage the development of proper techniques and strategies to improve.
To incorporate constructive feedback within the constraints of asynchronous courses, educators can use timely responses and interactive tools to approximate the immediacy of face-to-face classes. For example, frameworks like the e-learning Feedback model (Idrus & Ismail, 2010) emphasize clear outcomes and criteria, learner-centric assessment, and timely feedback within the online setting. Leveraging online platforms can enable instructors to offer personalized, actionable feedback and support learners' steady progress, even in asynchronous environments.
Instructor Example (Feedback)
A student submits an essay as an assignment in an online course on Academic English Writing. The instructor provides constructive feedback aligned with deliberate practice as follows:
Always use your students names. This builds inclusion.
Hi, (student's name). Thank you for your hard work on your essay. Here is some feedback to help you improve:
Positive Reinforcement: Your introduction is well-structured, and you provided a clear overview of your essay. Excellent use of citations throughout the text, demonstrating your understanding of acknowledging sources.
Critical Feedback with Clear Goals: In the conclusion, reiterate your main argument and not introduce new ideas. Your goal for the next assignment should be to use the conclusion to reinforce your main points.
Targeted Practice: I noticed some issues with subject-verb agreement. This is a common challenge in English writing. Practice writing sentences following clear subject-verb agreement rules.
Immediate Next Steps: Review our course material on "Refining Conclusions" and "Grammar Guidelines: Subject-Verb Agreement." Please revise your essay with these points in mind, and feel free to reach out for further support.
Supplemental Resources: I also recommend a few exercises on subject-verb agreement from the Writing Resource Hub, which can provide further practice.
Keep up the strong effort, and remember, every piece of writing is a step toward improvement! (This closely aligns with mindset and grit strategies as well. More on this in a coming blog.)
Instructional Designer Example (Feedback)
Instructional designers play a crucial role in integrating effective feedback mechanisms directly into the fabric of an online course. Here's an example of a Mathematics online course:
Automated Quiz Feedback
The designer could set up quizzes regarding specific mathematical concepts. Each missed question triggers a tutorial video or a tip related to that concept.
For instance, if a student struggles with a question on fractions:
The system should automatically provide feedback saying, Great attempt. However, the correct answer is 3/4. Remember the rule for adding fractions with different denominators.
This feedback can be followed by a brief tutorial video or a step-by-step guide illustrating how to add fractions with different denominators. Keep feedback videos short. Think TikTok.
The system can also provide additional practice problems on fractions for further reinforcement in alignment with the principles of deliberate practice.
Peer Review Activities
The instructional designer can also incorporate peer-review activities into the course. Students could be assigned to solve specific problems and then exchange solutions with their peers for review.
For example, in an exercise to solve quadratic equations:
Students can submit their solutions on an interactive forum, review one another's work, and provide feedback.
The designer should provide guidelines for giving constructive feedback, emphasizing clear goals and focused practice. For instance, the guidance could involve suggesting peers focus their feedback on specific steps in the quadratic formula or the accuracy of the final answer.
Reflection Surveys
Another possibility is to embed reflective surveys to give learners opportunities for self-assessment and goal-setting, two important elements of deliberate practice. After each module, a short questionnaire could prompt students to reflect on their performance and assess their understanding.
A reflection survey might include questions like:
What mathematical concept did you find most challenging in this module?
Identify one goal for improving your understanding of this concept.
What resources or practice exercises will you use to achieve this goal?
By blending automated feedback, peer review, and self-reflection into the course design, you can create ample opportunities for students to engage in deliberate practice and continuous improvement.
Learner Example (Feedback)
Where does feedback come from? Feedback comes to us in many different ways. How can we pay attention to the different feedback examples that naturally come our way, and how can we create opportunities to connect with our feedback?
Let's say you are in an online Python programming course. You can give yourself constructive feedback. You have been working on a Python program to remove duplicated items from a list.
Here is a sample of the self-reflection and feedback:
Self-Reflection and Feedback
Review of Completed Work and Results: "I have successfully written a Python program that removes duplicates from a list. The output gives me the correct outcome, so my code is working as expected."
Positive Aspects: "I've leveraged Python's built-in data structure, 'set', which inherently disallows duplicates. This is a clever use of Python's features to achieve the goal."
Areas for Improvement and Specific Goals: "However, the 'set' method doesn't preserve the original order of the list, which could be important in some contexts. I need to revise my code to maintain the original order while eliminating duplicates."
Plan for the Targeted Practice and Implementation: "I will research and study ways to remove duplicates from a list in Python while retaining the order. I know that 'dict' in Python 3.7+ also eliminates duplicates while maintaining order, so my goal for the next session will be to learn and implement this."
This process of self-assessment based on concrete objectives, followed by planning for targeted practice, aligns with the principles of deliberate practice.
How many of these strategies have you used?
1 - 2
3 - 4
Most of them
Goal Setting
Goal setting is a key component of deliberate practice. Goals keep us on track as we enhance skill acquisition and mastery. Goals serve as defined targets that guide focused practice and set the direction for learning. While striving to achieve these goals, learners engage in repetitive, targeted tasks and actively seek feedback to refine their strategies and improve performance. Learners can accurately assess their progress, maintain motivation, and facilitate effective learning strategies by having clear, challenging goals.
Professor (Goal Setting)
To maximize the effectiveness of deliberate practice, professors should:
Establish clear goals for the class. This can come in the form of course learning objectives (CLOs). The key is to clearly articulate how the assignments, content, and interactive material connect to the goals.
Explain why the goals are important from the perspective that students care about. For example, a CLO in a graphic design course may be to explain the principles of typography. Once the goal is clear, it is essential to articulate why it is a goal.
Have goals for different content modules or activities that align with the larger goal (CLO). Ensure to articulate why the focused goals are important and how they align with the larger goals.
Monitor progress and provide goal-oriented feedback: Provide assessments that track goal completion, allowing students to reflect on their progress as well as their strengths and weaknesses. In the graphic design course, the professor might assess students' progress using a typography-related quiz or by evaluating their text-based design assignments.
Instructional Designer (Goal Setting)
Course designers can integrate goal setting in many different ways. Here are some examples.
Incorporate a clear learning path: Structure the course to create a natural progression toward the desired outcomes. For example, the designer could organize the content in a programming course to move from basic to advanced topics sequentially. Think of this like a video game. In a game, you know where you have to end up and what skills you need to get there.
Design interactive and adaptive activities: Develop engaging activities that challenge students to apply their skills in different contexts. In a programming course, designers could create interactive coding exercises, mini-projects, or coding quizzes that adapt to the learner's progression. The critical element is to articulate the focused goal with the exercise and align it to the larger CLO.
Embed self-assessment tools: Include opportunities for students to assess their progress using self-assessment tools. For instance, in the programming course, designers could offer reflection prompts and self-assessment checklists for learners to gauge their understanding.
Learner (Goal Setting)
Learners can utilize goal setting in deliberate practice by:
Define specific and measurable personal goals. Make sure they are something that you care about. For example, in a Python coding class, you may have a personal goal to complete a small coding exercise with no syntax errors. While engaging in the exercise, you focus more on the syntax of the code. Setting these personal goals helps you connect with the learning and make it stick. More on how this works in a later blog.
Align your personal goals to the larger CLOs. This will help you focus on where you need to excel in the course.
Allocate dedicated time for practice sessions, concentrating on tasks that help achieve their desired goals. In the Python course example, you may commit to writing 50 lines of code with no syntax error. It is okay to have other types of errors during this period. You can focus on reducing other errors later.
Deliberate practice offers us many opportunities in higher education and learning in general. I would love to hear how you use these principles and others from deliberate practice in how you teach, design, or learn. Leave a comment and subscribe if you want more of this content.
Helpful Resources and References
Byrne, Z. (2015). An overview and critique of the '10,000 hours rule' and 'Theory of Deliberate Practice': School of Education at the University of Glasgow. ResearchGate. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/273443928_An_overview_and_critique_of_the_'10000_hours_rule'_and_'Theory_of_Deliberate_Practice'
Fields, J. (Host). (2016, June 15). Anders Ericsson: Dismantling the 10,000 Hour Rule [Audio podcast episode]. In Good Life Project. https://www.goodlifeproject.com/podcast/anders-ericsson/
Hattie, J., & Timperley, H. (2007). The Power of Feedback. Review of Educational Research, 77(1), 81–112. https://doi.org/10.3102/003465430298487
Idrus, R.M., & Ismail, I. (2010). E-Learning Adoption: The Role of Relative Advantages, Trialability, and Academic Specialisation. Campus-Wide Information Systems, 27(1), 18-28. https://doi.org/10.1108/10650741011017884
Kaufman, S. (2020, June 24). Reflection on Anders Ericsson's 10,000-hour study and obituary. Macmillan Learning Blog. https://community.macmillanlearning.com/t5/psychology-blog/reflection-on-anders-ericsson-s-10-000-hour-study-and-obituary/ba-p/11148
Mruk, J. (2009). The 10 000-hour rule and residency training. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 180(10), 1078-1078. https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.090566
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