Feature Story

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Learning movement by observation

By Jack Blatherwick

Let’s Play Hockey Columnist

There’s nothing new in the knowledge that children learn much of their movement, behavior and language by copying older children and adults. What has been added recently is a greater understanding of what takes place in the brain to make this possible when the adult is not making any attempt to teach, and the child is not making a conscious effort to learn.

Neuroscientists have known for several decades that when a person skates — or throws a ball or moves fingers, eyes, tongue, etc. — that neurons in a certain well-identified area of the brain (in the motor cortex) are active. The cortex of the brain (uppermost conscious region) initiates most movement, but most of the control takes place in lower areas of the brain and spinal cord.

However, because the cortex monitors the progress, cortical neurons are active throughout all movement. Very specific regions are associated with each different movement, so it is easy to “map” which areas are associated with the fingers, or legs, eyes, tongue, etc.

The important new knowledge for coaches — discovered by computerized imaging of brain activity — is that regions of the cortex which are active when an athlete skates, for example, are also active if the athlete sits quietly and watches someone else skate! Amazing.

Certain neurons have been found — “mirror neurons” — that apparently activate this system of brain mimicking, and scientists believe this is an important part of the process by which children learn movement without consciously analyzing it. This is more appropriately called learning by feel rather than thought.

Watching someone else skate is a very important supplement to skating practice — much more significant than if someone were to tell the learner the gory details of skating mechanics. The movement patterns are actually felt when the learner watches, making it more likely these same patterns can be mimicked during practice.

Mirror neurons are also important in developing the ability to anticipate what others on the ice are about to do, perhaps the most important skill in hockey. When a baseball player observes another starting to throw — even in the initial stages, the familiarity of the throwing motion is actually felt by the observer — not just seen — and the player’s brain knows the rest of the throwing program. In this way, an athlete actually feels what an opponent is about to do.

This research leaped forward by accident when a monkey was sitting quietly in a lab after physiologists monitored brain activity associated with arm movements as the monkey picked up peanuts to eat. Then, when a grad student made the same motion, picking up something and bringing it to his mouth, the brain of the monkey was active in the same region as before, even though the monkey had made no movement at all.

Since that time it has been learned that humans have a much more active “mirror system” than other primates. This is one reason humans have a greater ability to learn from each other — thus the more rapid growth of language, knowledge and culture.

Computer and imaging technologies yet to be discovered will continue to uncover concepts related to motor learning. Therefore, knowledge in these fields is growing at an exponential rate, and coaches should race along with it to find effective ways to teach.

Visit Jack’s website at www.overspeed.info.

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