course notes

THE LEARNING PROCESS

There is a suggestion in some medical research that the functions of the brain are to some degree split between the left and right hemispheres. It was found that the left side seems more important for intellectual and analytical work, the right being associated with holistic, intuitive work. Whether this is strictly true or not, it makes a useful working model for our teaching of a physical skill.

LEFT BRAIN

LOGIC

REASONING

LINEAR THINKING

CONSCIOUS THINKER

RIGHT BRAIN

SPATIAL RELATIONS

EXPERIENCING

WHOLE SITUATIONS

NON CONSCIOUS DOER

Consider the difficulties in learning to drive. The first time in traffic can be a nightmare. There you are attempting to avoid other cars, let alone pedestrians, controlling the pedals, turning the wheel and attempting to change gear. Then that panic as you desperately try to find the right gear, after fumbling for the gear stick, nearly hitting the kerb in the process. The left side of the brain is trying to control the whole process, everything is an intellectual task. Contrast this with the process several years after passing the test; pedal control, gear change etc. is done smoothly without conscious thought.

No physical skill is truly learnt until it can be done without conscious thought.

Consider a student that you have just spent twenty minutes teaching a support stroke. You go off to run a rapid or play a game. The student starts capsizing. What do they do? Your superbly taught support stroke? No, they leave go of the paddle and out shoots their arm with a palm flat to the water often followed by frantic splashing at the water (amazingly it sometimes works). The stroke is still a conscious action, that is left brain. The right brain has a response to falling; it sticks the arm out to protect the upper body and head in a fall. Indeed in Judo (otherwise there would be a lot of broken wrists and collar bones), as in paddling we have to 'reprogram' the right brain with a more appropriate response. This can only be done by repetition, by doing the action.

This affects our teaching style; our pupils only truly learn by doing. Sitting listening to you or even watching you is not actually teaching them the physical skill, it merely sets up the learning action.

Consider the mnemonic IDEAS

It is a useful plan for teaching a skill, though unfortunately often used badly. The introduction often long and detailed, the demonstration talked through so the students cannot concentrate on the visual. A further long explanation followed by a short activity session. A disaster. Only during the activity phase is the physical skill being learnt right brain, all the rest is left brain exercise.

A short Introduction; 'This is a stroke for helping you turn. It is called a sweep stroke.'

A clear Demonstration uncluttered with talk; let them concentrate on what you are doing. Make sure they can see clearly; they are facing you and are not blinded by the sun or distracted by something else. If you talk some will not watch. The demo must be in silence.

A brief Explanation of what you are expecting them to do; 'Keep your arm straight, take the paddle blade in an arc just below the surface and follow the blade with your head.' The fewer points you give them the more likely they are to get it right. 3 is the maximum!

In the Activity phase set some goals. 'OK Everyone practice on their right.' Followed by practice on the left. See if you can do a complete turn with just two strokes. While everyone is busy you can concentrate on one person at a time to give feedback. A game is a useful extra during this phase.

Some skills are far too complex to teach in one go so IDEAS can be used to add small layers at a time as in the draw stroke.

The only exceptions you should have to whole group working are on activities such as surfing a wave or playing a stopper where it is not practical to have more than one person working.

NOTE :'In the Inner Game of Skiing,' Tim Gallwey describes this Left Brain/ Right Brain split as Self 1/ Self 2. An interesting book.

QUALITY FEEDBACK

Feedback should be positive, specific and honest. Too often it is either negative, dishonest or generalised. So here we go:

Being negative generally has a bad effect, people 'close down' and often dismiss the learning they have got from a situation. Remember that all physical action is giving the Right Brain information. So let us consider the sweep stroke. You have asked the group to: 1, have a straight arm; 2, take the blade in an arc just below the surface; 3, follow the blade with their heads. You concentrate on 'John'; his arm bends about halfway through the stroke. Starting with a negative slows the process. What John requires is awareness of what he is doing and how you wish him to modify it. 'John. Two good points; the paddle is travelling in a half circle and you are following it around with your head. Good. Now let's look at the arm on that side. At the moment you have a straight arm until the half way point then it bends. Watch me do the stroke as you are doing it' At this point you give a quick demo effectively playing the part of a video. 'That's what you did. What I want you to do is keep the arm straight throughout the stroke.'

In this case the feedback has been specific and positive. The comment on what they are doing and which you wish to change is a neutral statement.

By limiting yourself to three key teaching points it becomes easy to give information to the group; you just concentrate on those points. That is what you have asked them to do, that is what they need feedback on. It is very important to get around all members of a group, so you glance around. Sarah is doing the task well but someone else is going to need some help. So quickly let Sarah know how she is doing. 'Well done Sarah. Good straight-arm, nice arc and you are rotating the body to follow the blade. Brilliant.' Again the praise is specific and enables the person to concentrate on what they are doing right. Merely to say 'Well done' does not help anywhere near as much.

The confirmation of correct practise is key. It gives your session a positive feel and allows the student to continue to practise the things they are getting right. They feel good. Your praise can be every thing from a gentle smile and thumbs up, a simple ‘that’s it’, ‘good’ or all the way through to whoops of delight at their success.

It is very easy to shout 'Well done' at a student who has just crashed and bumbled their way down a rapid with a lousy breakout to finish. They know that they have not paddled well. Your cheerful positive attitude has just been devalued in the eyes of the student. You have, in their eyes, become dishonest. It would not be diplomatic to say that was lousy but a more considered response than, 'Well done.' is necessary. Perhaps 'You did not look relaxed on that at all. We need to do some work on easy water and in particular breaking out.' You, the instructor, have noted what happened and you are going to help.

A more complex skill such as bow rudders demand an even more sensitive approach. Say that the students have already done the stroke on flat water and we are now working on a break in circuit. The three points that we have decided to work on are: 1, the blade clearly in the current (Quality water) and not in the eddy or even near the eddy line; 2, the blade is at right angles to the pull of the current so as to anchor it in the water (therefore the angle of the blade with the boat will vary throughout the manoeuvre); 3, pre-rotating the head and torso to the new direction to create a more powerful and dynamic turn. To work on all three at the start would be a disaster, so we build up the skill in layers. Working on point 1 only to start with. The students own internal feedback is critical at this level, only they know what it feels like. Provide them with feedback on where the blade entered the water. ' Sarah your blade was still a little close to the eddy line. Try it further out.' 'John. Your blade was in the right place. well out into the current. How did it feel?' Not only does this approach provide you with valuable information about what is going on but it speeds up the students awareness of their own paddling. Again the feedback is specific to the task, I asked them to get the blade into the current, that is what I give them information on.

Consider the Eskimo roll in kayaking. Our beginner has just completed their first ever unaided roll. It is so tempting to provide them with feedback. Try not to. Get them to sit quietly and run through the roll in their mind. Then do another and another. It is amazing how much the roll will smooth out with no interference from the instructor. The brain is receiving its own internal feedback, indeed interfering prematurely can cause a successful roll to disappear.

Enhance the internal feedback: ask the student how it felt

Giving quality feedback enhances the learning process. Remember, it should be Positive, Specific and Honest.

Tell them what they are doing and what change you want them to make (a neutral statement)

The group depends on good communications. The river environment with its noise, drops, bends and boulders is an extremely difficult one in which to pass information. It becomes an even more difficult process when things start to go wrong. The communication system must be agreed on in advance.

The briefing before getting on the river will need to include information on signals, particular hazards, procedure if one ends up swimming and the way to use a throw rope as a swimmer. With novices this amount of information in one chunk could easily be overload but remember you group may know part of it. The leaders job then is to ensure that everyone has the same understanding.

Rather than stand and lecture to a bored group, involve them. This is their trip remember. Quickly run through the signals you are going to use but show a signal and get the group to tell you what it means. Ask them about swimming in rapid and throw bags. Draw their knowledge out.

Keep the signals simple. The more you use the greater the chance of a misunderstanding. One for left or right, one to stay where you are, one for people to come down one at a time and one for the group to follow each other down. Most others can be improvised when needed.

A warm up can be on the bank or the water My personal preference as a paddler is for the latter but if you are straight off into a rapid it is best on the bank. Avoid violent twists and bends. Allow the body to warm up before stretching.

Once on the water watch your paddlers not just to make sure they are safe but to make an assessment of their ability. On the first rapids I will do a lot of eddy hoping and playing to enable me to see each individuals strong points and weaknesses. I can then base latter decisions on this information.

Even if the leader knows the river well he/she will need to scout all the bends and rapids. A flood the previous week could easily put a tree into a narrow slot. When looking downstream the leader should not only be concerned with whether the party can paddle the section or not but whether there is an eddy that they can guarantee that the whole party can make. It is this ability to stop that is so important.

On easy sections the leader should be looking well ahead. What is around that next bend? Is there an easy eddy to stop in should you need to.

Some candidates take the above as a reason to jump out of their boats at every opportunity and then scout from the bank. Misplaced caution is every bit as tedious to the group as a gung ho approach is dangerous. From that safe group eddy look ahead. Is there another eddy? If it is not one suitable for the group can you paddle back up from it?

From this lower eddy you can signal the group whether to come on or get out. If there is no suitable eddy will you get a better view downstream by ferrying across the river? (I normally do this using a forwards ferry glide and looking over my shoulder). If it is difficult do they need to see the section from the bank? These are all judgements that can only be based on experience hence the emphasis on logged evidence of a range of river trips in the syllabus.

When running easier section the leader does not even have to be at the front to scout. Let other members have the frill and experience of being out ahead. The leader should move back into the lead when there is no longer a clear view ahead.

The leader has to make a decision on where to position themselves in a rapid. There are a whole range of factors to be taken into account. These will include: the ability of each individual in the group; hazards and both the likelihood of avoiding them and the consequences of not; the ease of communication between leader and group; the ease or not of rescuing a swimmer and kit.

Information is best given either in the large 'group' eddy. The plan must be explained simply. The more complex and elaborate the information the greater chance that an individual will get it wrong. Vital information should be given twice; once during the whole explanation and again at the end, this may be as simple as saying ‘Wait for my signal’. With all the noise and with helmets on make sure that people are looking at you and can hear. Perhaps get someone to repeat the vital stuff. If the your briefings are constantly taking a long time you are trying to give too much information.

From the learning notes: Research shows that the number of new physical points we can hold consciously is: 3 + or – 2 When it gets difficult or stressful the max is therefore one.

This is also true on briefings! Giving lots of points on the harder rapids does NOT work. The individual will tend to remember the negative point or last words given. Keep it Simple Safe

As you leave the eddy glance back at the group. Take the chance on easier parts of the run to again glance back. Group members can do incredibly stupid or careless things. By being aware you may be able to prevent them happening and at worst you will be able to react. Those leader who do not have that touch of paranoia give the indication that they have not led many real groups!

If the rapid is straight forward allow people to run it their own way rather than dictate a route but give weaker paddlers advice. Allow people to play if the spot is suitable and there is no time pressure.

Try teaching in the rapids. If you have been teaching breaking in and out let the individual choose the eddies they are going to get. Perhaps practice reverse ferries. This after all is the real thing.

There may be very rare occasions when it is not possible for the leader to see the whole rapid from any position. This poses grave problems for both communication and overseeing the descent. A second paddler must be positioned to see the 'hidden' section and also to be in sight of the leader. This paddler may be in their kayak or possibly out on the bank. The leader can then position themselves in the best place to assist anyone in difficulties.

All sorts of possibilities exist. Leader may stay at the top so they can come down on to any problem. They might go to the bottom to pick up the debris. It may be best to position oneself in a eddy in the middle of a rapid to get the best view of the proceedings.

At times it will be important to get the whole group out to scout a section. In which case carry throwbags with you. Then if you need to protect the rapid there is no need to go back to the boats.

Being a leader on fast flowing rivers is no easy task. All of us, what ever our level of experience, will make errors. The best leaders will learn from their mistakes. It is called experience.