Individual Project: Practice Alone does not make perfect

          "Practice makes perfect.” This is one of the usual advices we hear when we do not succeed. Teachers, parents, and elderly people say this with confidence which makes the younger generation hope. But does practice really makes perfect? Recent research suggests otherwise. 

As an introduction to my individual project, allow me to share with you a short original composition regarding my topic. For the audio of this song, refer to the link: https://soundcloud.com/hesedmarasigan/practice-may-not-make-perfect

Practice may not make Perfect

Verse 1:

They say when people fail

Get back up, start it from the top

And try again

Verse 2:

Well let me add to what they say

Cause first stop

Is to use it as a prop

The mistakes you made

Pre-chorus

You may be wondering what’s the difference between learning and trying again

Chorus 1:

Now, practice may not make perfect

It’s the way you practice that makes it worth it

Learning and Analyzing is the way to go

If you wanna learn some more in life

Chorus 2:

Practice may not make perfect

It’s your way to practice

That makes everything worth it

Frequency really matters

but optimal learning, yeah, is achieved by one’s manners

…in practicing that is…

This song is based on a recent study done by University of Sheffield psychologists, headed by Dr. Tom Stafford and Dr. Michael Dewar. The purpose of the study is to explore the learning curve in the field of online gaming (Whiteman, 2014). Based on the function of the name itself in neuroscience, Axon is a game of growing neurons by clicking the available protein targets in the sphere of light (or rather influence) (Axon: http://axon.wellcomeapps.com/). With this game, the researchers have analyzed data from 854,064 players who were tested on their “rapid perception, decision making and motor responding” (Parkin, 2014). Participants are monitored by tracking codes into each computer once the game is played. Studies show that individuals give the same amount of time to practice or play registered either high or low scores, obviously, meaning that some are better than others. This suggests that “…individuals who were able to learn faster had spaced out their practice or had registered fluctuating results during early game performances, [farther] indicating that these participants were analyzing how the game works, leading them to perform better,” say Stafford.  The study is highly significant because in a fast-paced society where complex learning should be enhanced, this study suggests with reliable proof that optimal learning can be attained by one’s ways of learning.

            Additionally, Zach Hambrick of Michigan State University happens to agree with this as the study which includes the top 14 chess players and musicians was reanalyzed last 2013. Hambrick and his colleagues focused their attention to the practice hours and the rankings and related them with one another. They have found that the hours spent in practice only account for 30% in musicians’ performances and 34% in the chess players’ ranks (Szalavitz, 2013).  He strongly suggests, therefore, that the innate ability, age and intelligence of a person are what it takes to be proficient, since these compose two-thirds of the subjects’ overall performance. Moreover, this assumption is based on previous studies done by other psychologists and, most probably, from Hambrick’s previous study on working memory capacity. That study stated that people with higher levels of working capacity memory outperformed those who have lower ones; hence, Szalavitz suggests that one should enhance working memory by means of practicing.

            In all of these, we can conclude that practice is still essential to the development of one’s abilities, but it is not the only thing that makes people excellent in their field of (desired) expertise. Stafford and Dewar suggest that analyzing and recognizing patterns help in performing better while Hambrick states that genetic influence and age are major factors in determining the proficiency of individuals. Furthermore, Szalavitz concludes that working memory capacity could be enhanced by practicing. Therefore, as Hambrick says, “The silver lining here is that if people are given an accurate idea of their abilities, they can select activities where they actually have a realistic chance of becoming expert through deliberate practice” (Szalavitz, 2013).

References:

Szalavitz, Maia, 2013.  10,000 Hours may not make a master after all. Time: Health and Family.  http://healthland.time.com/2013/05/20/10000-hours-may-not-make-a-master-after-all/.  March 8, 2014.
Parkin, Clare, 2014. Practice doesn’t make perfect, say psychologists. University of Sheffield: News. http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/news/nr/practice-does-not-make-perfect-say-psychologists-1.338004/. January 12.

2013. Practice makes perfect? Not so much. Michigan State University. http://msutoday.msu.edu/news/2013/practice-makes-perfect-not-so-much/. March 8, 2014

Whiteman, Honor. Practice may not make perfect after all, study suggests. MNT. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/270927.php. January 9, 2014.

Axon: http://axon.wellcomeapps.com/