Effects of Overlearning on the Retention of a Gross Motor Skill

Four groups of 20 subjects each practiced the skill of balancing on a stabilometer to a learning criterion and then received either 0, 50, 100 or 200 percent overlearning practice. One-half of the subjects in each of the four groups returned for retention testing after one week while the other half returned after one month. Absolute and relative retention scores were calculated for each subject and then statistically analyzed. The results showed that immediate recall of the skill following the two retention intervals was facilitated by overlearning, 50% overlearning proving, in most instances, as effective as 100 and 200 percent. Relative retention scores were not significantly better after one week and one month for those subjects receiving 50 and 100 percent overlearning; however, the subjects who received 200% overlearning had significantly better retention than the subjects who had 0% overlearning following the one-month retention interval. Further analysis of retention scores revealed that differential warm-up decrement effects may have partly accounted for the retentive superiority of the groups that received “extra practice.”