As discussed previously, learning is a result of perceptions that reach the brain through one or more of our senses (sight, hearing, touch, smell, taste).  Many experiments have been done that have found in general, normal individuals acquire about 83% of their knowledge through the sense of sight, 11% through hearing, 1.5% through touch, 3.5% through smell, and 1% through taste (Stolovitch & Keeps, 2002, p. 20).  You can locate different research that will have slightly different statistics but the gist is that visual learning is overwhelmingly at the advantage.  To improve learning even more, if a Coach can combine multiple senses at the same time, the brain then receives coordinated input allowing for multiple references to the new information being stored in memory – creating more and stronger neural pathways to the same information!

Perceptions

Perceptions involve more than just the five senses, they are the meaning assigned to the sensations gained through the five senses.  People base their actions on how they remember the input, believing what they are gaining information wise, based upon previous experiences where they were exposed to similar topics (Knowles, 2015, p. 80).  The experienced motorcycle rider, for example, perceives emergency braking quite differently than does an inexperienced student.  This is why coaches attempt to move from gross to fine in motor skill development, to counteract inexperience and build a base of knowledge that over time can be polished to a finer level of application.

Real Meaning

Real meaning begins inside of the student, regardless of the sensations being evoked from external stimulus typically provided by the curriculum, coach, other students, or friends.  With the information being derived through the senses, multiple factors can influence each student’s perception making perceptions the individual basis of all learning.  For the coach, knowledge of the student’s perceptual process can enhance methodologies to reach and facilitate student learning.  This can only be accomplished by getting to know the student as quickly as possible.