AQA GCSE Physical Education Paper 2: Socio-cultural influences and wellbeing in physical activity and sport, June 2025: Question 12

💡 Key Knowledge

• Manual Guidance: The coach physically moves, supports, or touches the performer into the correct position/movement (e.g. supporting a gymnast during a vault or adjusting a golfer's grip).
• Visual Guidance: The learner sees something to help them learn, such as a demonstration, video playback, photo, or physical gesture.
• Kinesthesis: Feeling the movement from within muscles and joints.

🧠 Exam Technique: "Say What & Say Why"

Because the command word is Explain for 2 marks each, you must provide:

1. What the coach does (1 mark).
2. How/why that improves performance (1 mark).

Always connect the action to the player's understanding, feel, or error correction.

✅ Model Answers & Mark Breakdown

Manual (2 marks):

• The coach physically supports or moves the player through the correct movement [1 mark], so the player understands how the movement should feel / gains kinesthesis [1 mark].

Visual (2 marks):

• The coach demonstrates the skill or uses video analysis to provide a visual picture of correct technique [1 mark], allowing the player to copy the model and correct errors [1 mark].
• Alternative: The coach uses hand/body gestures during play [1 mark] so the performer can adjust their technique in real-time [1 mark].

❌ Common Errors & Lost Marks

• Only defining the term: Stating just "Manual is hands-on" only scores 1 mark. You must explain how it improves performance.
• Confusing manual with mechanical: Manual is human contact/support. Mechanical involves equipment (e.g. harnesses, floats, stabilisers).
• Vague benefit: Saying "so they get better" is too generic. Specify that they "replicate the mental image" or "feel the correct kinesthesis".

💡 Key Knowledge: The Beginner (Cognitive Stage)

• Beginners do not yet have a mental picture of what good technique looks or feels like.
• They lack familiarity with sport-specific terminology or technical jargon.
• They suffer easily from information overload because they have to concentrate consciously on every single part of the skill.

✅ Mark Scheme Points (Award up to 2 marks)

• It can be difficult to understand spoken instructions [1 mark] without having a visual demonstration / picture alongside it [1 mark].
• Spoken instructions may be too complex or too lengthy [1 mark], leading to confusion, information overload, or loss of motivation [1 mark].
• Beginners may not know the technical jargon [1 mark], meaning they cannot translate words into physical actions [1 mark].

🧠 Examiner Insight

Top-scoring students linked the difficulty directly to the nature of a beginner:

"Beginners struggle with verbal guidance alone because they have no prior mental image of the skill [1], which means hearing technical words can cause information overload and demotivation [1]."

❌ Common Misconceptions

• "They can't hear the coach": Environmental issues (like a noisy sports hall) are generally not credited unless specifically linked to beginner processing difficulties. Focus on cognitive limitations.
• Single unexpanded points: Writing "It is confusing" only gives 1 mark. Explain why (e.g. lack of visual cues or too much information).