Consolidation Of Skills Research Articles

Exploring the Impact of Declarative Learning on the Consolidation of Acquired Motor Skills Under Valence Feedback.

Implicit motor learning involves the acquisition and consolidation of motor skills without conscious awareness, influenced by various factors. Punishment and reward have been identified as significant modulators during training, impacting skill acquisition differently. Additionally, the role of a second declarative task in offline consolidation has been explored, affecting both stabilization and enhancement processes during wake and sleep periods. However, how valanced feedback and learning a secondary declarative task can influence the learning and consolidation of implicit motor learning has not been explored. This study investigates whether receiving monetary feedback during motor sequence learning influences consolidation when declarative knowledge about the task is disrupted by a second word-list task. Participants' skill levels were assessed during training, immediately after training, 15 min post-training (after performing the second task), and 24 h later after night sleep. Concurrently, brain synchrony was measured using electroencephalography (EEG) recording. Results indicate that monetary punishment leads to early enhancement and higher performance after the second task compared to reward and control groups. However, after 24 h, no significant enhancement was observed in any group, with differences between groups diminishing. EEG analysis revealed distinct brain subnetworks across alpha, beta, and unexpectedly delta network which traditionally associated with sleep-dependent consolidation. These findings shed light on the complex interplay between valanced feedback learning, declarative memory disruption, and offline consolidation in implicit motor learning, highlighting the dynamic nature of skill acquisition and retention, offering potential implications for targeted interventions and future research directions.

“I mean, it kind of saved my life, to be honest”: a qualitative study of participants’ views of a dialectical behaviour therapy for multidiagnostic eating disorders programme

BackgroundDespite the increasing use of dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) as a treatment for eating disorders (EDs), there is little published evidence of its effectiveness for treating restrictive eating disorders. DBT for EDs may be particularly helpful for those who live with severe and enduring eating disorders (SE-EDs) given that it targets those for whom first-line treatments have not been effective, its focus on factors thought to maintain symptoms and its focus on improving quality of life. This study sought to evaluate the experiences of participants in a comprehensive DBT programme for people with SE-EDs.MethodsSemistructured interviews were conducted with seven participants who were treated in the ‘DBT for Multidiagnostic Eating Disorders (MED-DBT)’ programme at a regional eating disorders service in New Zealand. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed via thematic analysis.ResultsThe findings indicate that the MED-DBT programme was perceived as effective by participants. The skills learned provided participants with valuable tools that could be used to better manage emotions, crises, and tasks of daily life, which improved their quality of life and improved their management of their eating disorder symptoms. Several participants reported that the programme saved their lives. A key component of the MED-DBT programme was having access to phone coaching that supported participants with the acquisition and consolidation of skills to reduce crises and generalise learning of the skills. These skills have continued to be used by participants more than five years posttreatment.ConclusionsThe qualitative findings of the present study suggest that the MED-DBT programme is an effective and valuable treatment for participants. All participants endorsed the MED-DBT programme for ED treatment. The treatment programme was seen as a highly beneficial and feasible treatment that could provide greater options for treating complex clients with severe and enduring eating symptomology with confidence.

Intact ultrafast memory consolidation in adults with autism and neurotypicals with autism traits

The processes of learning and memory consolidation are closely interlinked. Therefore, to uncover statistical learning in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), an in-depth examination of memory consolidation is essential. Studies of the last five years have revealed that learning can take place not only during practice but also during micro rest (<1 min) between practice blocks, termed micro offline gains. The concept of micro offline gains refers to performance improvements during short rest periods interspersed with practice, rather than during practice itself. This phenomenon is crucial for the acquisition and consolidation of motor skills and has been observed across various learning contexts. Numerous studies on learning in autism have identified intact learning but there has been no investigation into this fundamental aspect of memory consolidation in autistic individuals to date. We conducted two studies with two different samples: 1) neurotypical adults with distinct levels of autistic traits (N = 166) and 2) ASD-diagnosed adults (NASD = 22, NNTP = 20). Participants performed a well-established probabilistic learning task, allowing us to measure two learning processes separately in the same experimental design: statistical learning (i.e., learning probability-based regularities) and visuomotor performance (i.e., speed-up regardless of probabilities). Here we show considerable individual differences in offline (between blocks) changes during statistical learning and between-blocks improvement during visuomotor performance. However, cumulative evidence from individual studies suggests that the degree of autistic traits and ASD status are not associated with micro offline gains, indicating that, like statistical learning, rapid memory consolidation is intact.

Reinforcement learning in motor skill acquisition: using the reward positivity to understand the mechanisms underlying short- and long-term behavior adaptation.

According to reinforcement learning, humans adjust their behavior based on the difference between actual and anticipated outcomes (i.e., prediction error) with the main goal of maximizing rewards through their actions. Despite offering a strong theoretical framework to understand how we acquire motor skills, very few studies have investigated reinforcement learning predictions and its underlying mechanisms in motor skill acquisition. In the present study, we explored a 134-person dataset consisting of learners' feedback-evoked brain activity (reward positivity; RewP) and motor accuracy during the practice phase and delayed retention test to investigate whether these variables interacted according to reinforcement learning predictions. Results showed a non-linear relationship between RewP and trial accuracy, which was moderated by the learners' performance level. Specifically, high-performing learners were more sensitive to violations in reward expectations compared to low-performing learners, likely because they developed a stronger representation of the skill and were able to rely on more stable outcome predictions. Furthermore, contrary to our prediction, the average RewP during acquisition did not predict performance on the delayed retention test. Together, these findings support the use of reinforcement learning models to understand short-term behavior adaptation and highlight the complexity of the motor skill consolidation process, which would benefit from a multi-mechanistic approach to further our understanding of this phenomenon.

Unraveling the time-of-day influences on motor consolidation through the motor-declarative memory conflict.

Competition between motor and declarative memory systems, both involved simultaneously in motor learning, has been shown to reduce motor consolidation. Here, we investigated this conflict during the learning of a sequential finger-tapping task (SFTT) scheduled for either the morning or the afternoon. Sixty participants, divided into four groups, trained on SFTT at either 10 a.m. or 3 p.m., and retested five hours later. To disrupt the conflict between the two memories, two groups underwent declarative learning immediately after SFTT training, involving word list training (G10DL and G3DL), while the two other groups (G10CTR and G3CTR) experienced no additional learning. The results revealed that after morning training without additional learning (C10CTR), skill consolidation deteriorated, while the addition of declarative learning (G10DL) significantly attenuated this decay, stabilizing consolidation. Afternoon training showed skill stabilization for both groups (G3CTR and G3DL). These results suggest that weaker consolidation after morning training may be due to an important competition between motor and declarative memories within the same motor task.

Different delayed consequences of attaining a plateau phase in practicing a simple (finger-tapping sequence learning) and a complex (Tower of Hanoi puzzle) task.

In practicing a new task, the initial performance gains, across consecutive trials, decrease; in the following phase, performance tends to plateau. However, after a long delay additional performance improvements may emerge (delayed/ "offline" gains). It has been suggested that the attainment of the plateau phase is a necessary condition for the triggering of skill consolidation processes that lead to the expression of delayed gains. Here we compared the effect of a long-delay (24-48h) interval following each of the two within-session phases, on performance in a simple motor task, the finger-tapping sequence learning (FTSL), and in a conceptually complex task, the Tower of Hanoi puzzle (TOHP). In Experiment 1 we determined the amount of practice leading to the plateau phase within a single practice session (long practice), in each task. Experiment 2 consisted of three consecutive sessions with long-delay intervals in between; in the first session, participants underwent a short practice without attaining the plateau phase, but in the next two sessions, participants received long practice, attaining the plateau phase. In the FTSL, short practice resulted in no delayed gains after the long delay, but after 24-48h following long practice, task performance was further improved. In contrast, no delayed gains evolved in the TOHP during the 24- to 48-h delay following long practice. We propose that the attainment of a plateau phase can indicate either the attainment of a comprehensive task solution routine (achievable for simple tasks) or a preservation of work-in-progress task solution routine (complex tasks); performance after a long post-practice interval can differentiate these two states.

Micro-consolidation occurs when learning an implicit motor sequence, but is not influenced by HIIT exercise

We investigated if micro-consolidation, a phenomenon recently discovered during the brief rest periods between practice when learning an explicit motor sequence, generalises to learning an implicit motor sequence task. We demonstrate micro-consolidation occurs in the absence of explicit sequence awareness. We also investigated the effect of a preceding bout of high-intensity exercise, as exercise is known to augment the consolidation of new motor skills. Micro-consolidation was not modified by exercise.

Defining the learning curve for robotic pancreaticoduodenectomy for a single surgeon following experience with laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy.

Robotic pancreaticoduodenectomy (RPD) has a learning curve of approximately 30-250 cases to reach proficiency. The learning curve for laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy (LPD) at Duke University was previously defined as 50 cases. This study describes the RPD learning curve for a single surgeon following experience with LPD. LPD and RPD were retrospectively analyzed. Continuous pathologic and perioperative metrics were compared and learning curve were defined with respect to operative time using CUSUM analysis. Seventeen LPD and 69 RPD were analyzed LPD had an inverted learning curve possibly accounting for proficiency attained during the surgeon's fellowship and acquisition of new skills coinciding with more complex patient selection. The learning curve for RPD had three phases: accelerated early experience (cases 1-10), skill consolidation (cases 11-40), and improvement (cases 41-69), marked by reduction in operative time. Compared to LPD, RPD had shorter operative time (379 vs 479min, p < 0.005), less EBL (250 vs 500, p < 0.02), and similar R0 resection. RPD also had improved LOS (7 vs 10days, p < 0.007), and lower rates of surgical site infection (10% vs 47%, p < 0.002), DGE (19% vs 47%, p < 0.03), and readmission (13% vs 41%, p < 0.02). Experience in LPD may shorten the learning curve for RPD. The gap in surgical quality and perioperative outcomes between LPD and RPD will likely widen as exposure to robotics in General Surgery, Hepatopancreaticobiliary, and Surgical Oncology training programs increase.

Spindle-slow wave coupling and problem-solving skills: impact of age.

We examined how aging affects the role of sleep in the consolidation of newly learned cognitive strategies. Forty healthy young adults (20-35 years) and 30 healthy older adults (60-85 years) were included. Participants were trained on the Tower of Hanoi (ToH) task, then, half of each age group were assigned to either the 90-minute nap condition, or stayed awake, before retesting. The temporal co-occurrence between slow waves (SW) and sleep spindles (SP) during non-rapid eye movement sleep was examined as a function of age in relation to memory consolidation of problem-solving skills. We found that despite intact learning, older adults derived a reduced benefit of sleep for problem-solving skills relative to younger adults. As expected, the percentage of coupled spindles was lower in older compared to younger individuals from control to testing sessions. Furthermore, coupled spindles in young adults were more strongly coupled to the SW upstate compared to older individuals. Coupled spindles in older individuals were lower in amplitude (mean area under the curve; μV) compared to the young group. Lastly, there was a significant relationship between offline gains in accuracy on the ToH and percent change of spindles coupled to the upstate of the slow wave in older, but not younger adults. Multiple regression revealed that age accounted for differences in offline gains in accuracy, as did spindle coupling during the upstate. These results suggest that with aging, spindle-slow wave coupling decreases. However, the degree of the preservation of coupling with age correlates with the extent of problem-solving skill consolidation during sleep.

Building knowledge from the epistemology of the South: the importance of training researchers in initial teacher training

This study aims to reflect on the importance of considering epistemologies of the South and research training as benchmarks in the initial teacher of educators in the Latin American context. In recent years, there has been a growing recognition of the need to diversify and decolonize knowledge production in education, especially in the Global South. The epistemology of the South provides a conceptual framework that challenges traditional Eurocentric perspectives and promotes alternative ways of knowing and understanding education. To achieve the research objective, a literature review was conducted focusing on key concepts such as Southern epistemology, researcher training, and initial teacher education. The review encompassed academic articles, books and relevant theoretical frameworks. Content analysis techniques were employed to critically examine the literature, identifying themes, theoretical perspectives, and implications for research training in Initial Teacher Education (ITE). The findings of this study suggest that the incorporation of the epistemology of the South into researcher training can have a transformative impact on the educational sector. By adopting ways of knowing and understanding, future researchers can develop a more nuanced and contextualized understanding of educational phenomena. This approach promotes critical thinking skills and encourages researchers to question dominant narratives and power structures in education. Additionally, the study highlights the importance of integrating research training into initial teacher education. By fostering the development and consolidation of research skills and a critical mindset in future teachers, it promotes their transformation into change agents within the Latin American educational system in which they operate. From this perspective, research-oriented teacher training programs empower educators to engage in evidence-based practices, contribute to educational research, and advocate for pedagogical approaches that respond to local contexts and social realities in which they act. This study underscores the need to integrate Southern epistemologies and research training within into initial teacher education. By doing so, we can nurture a new generation of educators with critical thinking skills capable of effecting significant societal changes. This research contributes to the ongoing dialogue on the decolonization of education and promotes the development of inclusive and contextually relevant educational practices.

Early sleep after action observation plus motor imagery improves gait and balance abilities in older adults

Action observation plus motor imagery (AOMI) is a rehabilitative approach to improve gait and balance performance. However, limited benefits have been reported in older adults. Early sleep after motor practice represents a strategy to enhance the consolidation of trained skills. Here, we investigated the effects of AOMI followed by early sleep on gait and balance performance in older adults. Forty-five older adults (mean age: 70.4 ± 5.2 years) were randomized into three groups performing a 3-week training. Specifically, AOMI-sleep and AOMI-control groups underwent observation and motor imagery of gait and balance tasks between 8:00 and 10:00 p.m. or between 8:00 and 10:00 a.m. respectively, whereas Control group observed landscape video-clips. Participants were assessed for gait performance, static and dynamic balance and fear of falling before and after training and at 1-month follow-up. The results revealed that early sleep after AOMI training sessions improved gait and balance abilities in older adults compared to AOMI-control and Control groups. Furthermore, these benefits were retained at 1-month after the training end. These findings suggested that early sleep after AOMI may represent a safe and easy-applicable intervention to minimize the functional decay in older adults.

Embedding simulation in genetic counselor education from the first week of training: Learning outcomes, standardized clients, and students' satisfaction.

Health professional educators routinely utilize simulation to prepare students for practice. However, there is little evidence to show whether simulation enhances learning for genetic counseling students. This study aimed to (i) develop simulation learning outcomes and standardized clients for genetic counselor student education and (ii) evaluate students' experiences of learning from face-to-face and virtual simulation in the first week of training in an Australasian master of genetic counseling program. Using the principles of co-design, eight experienced genetic counselors from across Australasia attended an online discussion and one-to-one meetings to develop simulation learning outcomes and build detailed authentic standardized clients. Six learning outcomes were identified: establishing an effective counseling relationship, eliciting information, assessing need, delivering difficult news and helping clients cope with complex emotions, effective communication and facilitating adaptation. Standardized clients were mapped to the learning outcomes and other requirements of the program. Between 2019 and 2022, 106 first year students participated in face-to-face or virtual simulation workshops with two standardized clients on Day 5 of their training. Following the experience, 103 students completed an anonymous survey using a modified version of a validated satisfaction with simulation scale (n = 49 face-to-face in 2019 and 2020 and n = 54 virtual in 2021 and 2022). Responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics and content analysis. Mean satisfaction overall was 95.9% (SD 3.5), 96.2 (SD 4.0) face-to-face, and 95.8 (SD 3.7) virtual. Overall, responses indicated that simulation-based learning and working with standardized clients was a valuable learning experience (100%), developed communication skills and created a sense of reality (99%). For a minority of participants (n = 4), the simulation was too challenging. Key learning related to consolidation of counseling skills, reflective practice, and preparation for clinical placement. In conclusion, exposing novice student genetic counselors to authentic clinical scenarios using standardized clients in face-to-face or virtual classrooms enhanced clinical learning.

Circuito dos Cuidados Psicossociais: sistematização de intervenção na crise psíquica no atendimento pré-hospitalar móvel

An experience report that aims to present the systematization of care for the management of psychic crises developed by the SAMU-DF Mental Health Center. The methodology, based on the steps of the Maguerez’s Arch, allowed both the identification of professionals’ difficulties regarding psychic crises management and the construction of the system called “Psychosocial Care Circuit’’ to guide the assistance of the mobile pre-hospital care. The Circuit has as mnemonic AEIOU, and each letter corresponds to an element evaluated as necessary for the psychic crisis intervention. Therefore, it is possible to affirm that the permanent education in health enables the transformative action of professionals, in addition to transforming the reality in which they are inserted, and that the systematization has accelerated the consolidation of the necessary skills for psychic crises care.

A qualitative study of undergraduate nursing students’ experience of clinical placement based on Nvivo software - a service learning theory perspective

Abstract OBJECTIVE To explore the experiences and feelings of undergraduate nursing students during their 4-month clinical placement through the lens of service learning theory. METHODS A semi-structured questionnaire survey was conducted on 233 undergraduate nursing students who had completed their internships, and the content of the questionnaire was analyzed according to the rootedness theory using Nvivo 12.0 software. RESULTS The interns thought that internship could appreciate the insufficiency of their knowledge and ability, and through the tutoring teachers’ counseling and their self-study could be of obvious help to the consolidation of knowledge and skills, especially to the enhancement of communication and collaboration ability, clinical practice ability, and professional and related knowledge; humanistic care and nurse-patient relationship in the internship process were the main factors for the development of emotion, and successful humanistic care could enhance the nurse-patient relationship, and the failed operation and ineffective communication can also experience verbal violence; internship experience can form professional confusion and professional identity. CONCLUSION The use of learning and reflection promotes clinical nursing competence; both humanistic care competence and timely care for interns should be assessed, and career counseling promotes the formation of professional identity.

Associations between students’ reading performance and literacy instruction in first grade: a cross-lagged study

This cross-lagged study examined the classroom-level associations between the reading performance of first-grade students (N = 537) and observed literacy instruction activities in classrooms (N = 30) in the autumn and spring terms. The multilevel analyses indicated that lower average word reading skills in the classrooms (i.e., there were more students who were learning to read) in the autumn were associated with higher amount of activities supporting consolidation of reading and spelling skills in the spring. In contrast, higher average word reading skills in the classrooms in the autumn were associated with higher amount of independent meaning-focused activities in the spring. Higher extent of whole-group meaning-focused activities in the autumn was positively associated with reading comprehension at classroom level in the spring, whereas independent phonological recoding practice in the autumn was negatively associated with reading comprehension in the spring. The study provides novel understanding of the associations between students’ reading performance and literacy instruction especially showing how students’ reading skills at classroom level may inform instruction in the classroom. This information may guide teachers to adapt their instruction at classroom level but also to identify the students needing differentiation. The results also acknowledge the affordances and limitations students’ skills may set for the instruction.

Local field potentials and single unit dynamics in motor cortex of unconstrained macaques during different behavioral states

Different sleep stages have been shown to be vital for a variety of brain functions, including learning, memory, and skill consolidation. However, our understanding of neural dynamics during sleep and the role of prominent LFP frequency bands remain incomplete. To elucidate such dynamics and differences between behavioral states we collected multichannel LFP and spike data in primary motor cortex of unconstrained macaques for up to 24 h using a head-fixed brain-computer interface (Neurochip3). Each 8-s bin of time was classified into awake-moving (Move), awake-resting (Rest), REM sleep (REM), or non-REM sleep (NREM) by using dimensionality reduction and clustering on the average spectral density and the acceleration of the head. LFP power showed high delta during NREM, high theta during REM, and high beta when the animal was awake. Cross-frequency phase-amplitude coupling typically showed higher coupling during NREM between all pairs of frequency bands. Two notable exceptions were high delta-high gamma and theta-high gamma coupling during Move, and high theta-beta coupling during REM. Single units showed decreased firing rate during NREM, though with increased short ISIs compared to other states. Spike-LFP synchrony showed high delta synchrony during Move, and higher coupling with all other frequency bands during NREM. These results altogether reveal potential roles and functions of different LFP bands that have previously been unexplored.

Problem-cognitive task - instrumental resource of pedagogical design in increasing the quality of university education

The article reveals the phenomenon of a problem-cognitive task as an instrumental resource of pedagogical design and a mechanism for improving the quality of training future teachers for professional activities; a program of experiential learning based on the principles of a problem-based approach, pedagogical conditions that ensure its effectiveness, and experimental verification of the productivity of the methodology and technology for using a problem-cognitive task in the educational process of higher education. The basis of the obsession with experiential learning was the "Workshop for solving problem-cognitive tasks", which provides for the development and consolidation of future teachers' skills: to analyze the conditions and requirements of the task; draw up a plan for its solution; to structure the model of the task-problem situation; apply general logical and general subject methods, heuristic methods for solving problem-cognitive tasks; analyze and evaluate the results.

STUDY REGARDING THE USE OF DYNAMIC GAMES DURING THE SPORTS TRAINING LESSON FOR BEGINNER CHILDREN, IN ORDER TO TEACH THEM THE ELEMENTS OF RUNNING

The role played by dynamic games in the sports training lesson is precious and very attractive, because it ensures the consolidation of the applicative motor skills and it contributes to the development of general motor skills, especially during the first part of athletic selection. The children take the game very seriously, putting it above any other activity. Taking this information into consideration, the authors have initiated various games through which beginner children would learn running. The purpose of this paper was to highlight the use of dynamic games by track and field coaches who have helped the children learn running as fast and as efficiently as possible, especially at the beginning of sports training, using the following methods: the study of the professional literature, the observation, the data analysis, the graphical representation. The research was conducted at the Athletics Halls of Bacau and Targu Mures, where the training of the beginner groups took place. The subjects were athletes selected for professional groups. The research was conducted over 3 months, on 4 groups (2 female groups and 2 male groups) - 2 groups where dynamic games were applied to teach running and 2 groups where running was taught in a classical manner. The coaches applied an initial testing and a final testing, using a 50m running with a standing start challenge (initial testing was conducted in October, and the final testing, in February). The final conclusions show that the athletes who learned running through dynamic games have learned it better, recording 0.05 seconds less than the athletes who learned running in a classical manner.

Application of Revit Software to Improve Spatial Intelligence in Architecture Students in a Private University – Huancayo

Objective: To determine the effect of the application of the Revit program in the improvement of spatial intelligence in Architecture students in a private university in Huancayo-Peru.&#x0D; &#x0D; Theoretical structure: Armstrong (2006) expressed that spatial intelligence refers specifically to the content of forming a mental model in the spatial world and to control, act using this pattern, in an aggregate of attitudes and skills that combine a subtle understanding in shapes, lines, color, dimensions and spaces and the relationship of elements, which in turn allows largely to visualize and graphically represent a spatial or visual idea, mostly involves the improvement of visual perception. As stated by Rossado (2017) students use manual graphic expression to convey ideas quickly, and in the future, they should be able to combine the use of technology and manual expression, in addition to allowing students to express their design project anytime and anywhere, this will give them fluid cooperation, communication, empathy, cooperation, respect, ethics, honesty and teamwork skills, all of which provide adaptability to any work situation.&#x0D; &#x0D; Design/Methodology/Approach: The study was conducted through a quantitative approach, according to Hernandez et al. (2014) is quasi-experimental which will be composed of two groups, the control and experimental, which will receive the treatment or stimulus, it is of longitudinal cut will collect the results of the studies that are conducted by collecting data at a single time and with the execution of the post test allows us to measure the effect of the program on spatial intelligence.&#x0D; &#x0D; Conclusions: Differences of ranges of spatial intelligence have been observed between the control and experimental group; the value of Z was found below the critical value Zc= -1.96 where (-6.137&lt;-1.96) and the p=0.000&lt;0.05; with such result it can be affirmed that by using the Revit program a significant impact in the improvement of spatial intelligence is achieved, therefore the H0 is rejected and Ha is admitted.&#x0D; &#x0D; Originality/Value: The present study is a significant contribution because it postulates the results obtained through field work and whose statistical treatments allow understanding the importance of the development of special intelligence in university students of the professional career of architecture in the consolidation of technical skills and management of technological applications such as Revit.

Time of day and sleep effects on motor acquisition and consolidation

We investigated the influence of the time-of-day and sleep on skill acquisition (i.e., skill improvement immediately after a training-session) and consolidation (i.e., skill retention after a time interval including sleep). Three groups were trained at 10 a.m. (G10am), 3 p.m. (G3pm), or 8 p.m. (G8pm) on a finger-tapping task. We recorded the skill (i.e., the ratio between movement duration and accuracy) before and immediately after the training to evaluate acquisition, and after 24 h to measure consolidation. We did not observe any difference in acquisition according to the time of the day. Interestingly, we found a performance improvement 24 h after the evening training (G8pm), while the morning (G10am) and the afternoon (G3pm) groups deteriorated and stabilized their performance, respectively. Furthermore, two control experiments (G8awake and G8sleep) supported the idea that a night of sleep contributes to the skill consolidation of the evening group. These results show a consolidation when the training is carried out in the evening, close to sleep, and forgetting when the training is carried out in the morning, away from sleep. This finding may have an important impact on the planning of training programs in sports, clinical, or experimental domains.