The Effect of External Focus of Attention Strategy on Learning the Volleyball Spike Skill Among Students of the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences

Abstract

The study aimed to develop an educational program based on the External Focus of Attention Strategy and to investigate its effect on learning the volleyball spike skill among second-year students at the College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences Al-Mustansiriyah University. The researcher employed the experimental method using an equivalent groups design due to its suitability for the nature of the study. The research sample consisted of 28 students who were randomly assigned into two equal group  an experimental group (n. 14) and a control group (n. 14). The study variable was the technical performance of the volleyball spike skill which was evaluated using a specially designed technical performance assessment form. The educational program was implemented for seven weeks at a rate of one instructional unit per week with the External Focus of Attention Strategy applied to the experimental group. The results revealed statistically significant differences between the pre- and post-tests for both groups in favor of the post-tests. Furthermore the experimental group significantly outperformed the control group in the post-test of technical performance of the volleyball spike skill. The researcher concluded that the External Focus of Attention Strategy was effective in learning the volleyball spike skill and improving its technical performance among the participants. The study recommends incorporating the External Focus of Attention Strategy into instructional units designed for teaching volleyball skills and conducting similar studies on different samples and age groups.