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Understanding deliberate practice in preschool-aged children
Jac T M Davis1,2, Elizabeth Cullen1, Thomas Suddendorf1
1a School of Psychology , University of Queensland , Brisbane , QLD , Australia.
Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology (2006)
|August 15, 2015
Summary
Five-year-olds understand deliberate practice, selectively practicing future skills and predicting others
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Development
- Psychology
Background:
- Deliberate practice is crucial for skill acquisition and expertise.
- The development of deliberate practice in children is not well understood.
- Episodic foresight may influence deliberate practice.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate children's ability to engage in deliberate practice.
- To examine children's understanding of the role of practice in skill formation.
- To explore the relationship between age and deliberate practice capabilities.
Main Methods:
- Two experiments were conducted to test children's selective practice and reasoning about skill improvement.
- Participants included five-year-olds and four-year-olds.
- Children's ability to choose future-relevant practice and predict skill changes was assessed.
Main Results:
- Five-year-olds demonstrated explicit understanding of deliberate practice.
- Five-year-olds selectively practiced future-relevant skills and predicted skill changes based on practice.
- Four-year-olds showed some understanding but lacked consistent recognition of practice's role in skill improvement.
Conclusions:
- Five-year-olds possess an explicit understanding of deliberate practice.
- Children's grasp of the link between practice and skill improvement is associated with their understanding of information and knowledge.
- Cognitive developmental changes may underlie both concepts.
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