Three continua, not three boxes
A continuum is a sliding scale between two extremes, not fixed boxes. 0413 uses three: basic-complex (decisions and sub-routines), fine-gross (precision and muscle size), and open-closed (how predictable the environment is). A skill is classified on all three at once and can sit anywhere along each line. Name the whole continuum, say roughly where it sits, then justify with a feature of the skill or its environment.
Basic-complex and fine-gross
Basic-complex is about decisions and sub-routines. A basic skill has few decisions or sub-routines -- e.g. jogging. A complex skill links many decisions and several sub-routines -- a gymnastics vault (run-up, take-off, rotation, landing). Fine-gross is about precision and muscle size: a fine skill uses small muscle groups (a dart throw); a gross skill uses large muscle groups (a sprint start). They measure different things.
Open-closed: the environment
Open-closed describes how much the environment controls the performer. An open skill is done in a changing, unpredictable environment, so the performer must constantly read and adjust (a football tackle). A closed skill is done in a stable, predictable environment and is often self-paced (a basketball free throw). The test is whether the immediate environment of this skill changes while it is performed -- one sport can hold both.
Drawn from real examiner reports.
Name the full continuum
The topic's key trap. When classifying a skill, name the full continuum ("open-closed"), not just the single word for where it sits. Two slips lose the mark: giving only part ("closed" alone), and naming the point ("very closed", "extremely complex") as if it were the continuum. Name the continuum in full, then say where on it the skill sits.
Digest (### 3.3): candidates name only PART of a continuum (a single word) rather than the full skill continuum required, or name the POINT closest to the skill (e.g. "very closed") rather than the CONTINUUM itself (e.g. open-closed) (s23 P11 Q3c; w23 P13 Q1d).
Basic-complex vs fine-gross
Don't mix the basic-complex and fine-gross continua -- they measure different things. Basic-complex counts decisions and sub-routines; fine-gross measures precision and muscle-group size. A skill can be complex yet gross (a rugby tackle) or basic yet fine (a simple dart flick), so its position on one continuum does not fix the other.
Justify both skills, not one
Comparison questions place two skills on the same continuum, but a common error justifies the first fully and leaves the second as a single word. A candidate may explain why a free throw is closed, then write only "a pass is open" with no reasoning. Both skills need the same justification -- a named feature for each -- or the second mark is lost.
Digest (### 3.3): comparing two skills on one continuum, one skill often gets full detail while the second is left underdeveloped (s23 P13 Q6a(ii); s23 P12 Q12b).
'Hard' isn't a justification
"It is hard/easy/difficult" never justifies a placement -- and "difficult" is not a synonym for "closed" or "complex". Tie every justification to the mechanism: decisions and sub-routines (basic-complex), precision and muscle size (fine-gross), or how much the environment changes (open-closed). Name the feature, not a difficulty word.
Open/closed: wrong test
Don't decide open or closed from "does the sport have an opponent". The test is whether the immediate environment changes while this skill is performed. A tennis serve is closed (self-paced, stable when struck) even though tennis has an opponent, while a return in the rally is open. Judge the skill's moment, not whether the sport is competitive.
A continuum is a scale
A continuum is a scale, not two boxes -- most skills sit between the extremes. A penalty kick is mostly closed (stationary ball, unopposed, self-paced) but has an open element (the keeper's movement affects placement), so it sits near the closed end, not fully at it. Say roughly where on the line a skill sits, not just which extreme.
Classify the skill, not the sport
Students think classification applies to a whole sport, not the specific skill. Different skills within one sport sit at different points on a continuum: in football, dribbling past a moving defender is open, but a penalty kick is near the closed end (stationary, self-paced). Classify the specific skill named, in that moment -- not the sport.
Name, place, justify
Classification questions reward three steps, not a label: name the full continuum, place the skill roughly on it, and justify with a specific feature -- decisions, precision or environmental change -- applied to a named activity. A single label caps the marks.
Both skills in a comparison
When comparing two skills, run all three steps -- name, place, justify -- for both, giving each an equal named justification. Justifying only the first and merely labelling the second is the commonest way marks are lost here. Match skill two's depth to skill one.
Classify on all three continua
Asked to classify a skill fully, place it on all three continua, each a separate judgement -- a skill can be complex, gross and open at once. Justify each with its mechanism (decisions, muscle size, environment). Keep the same named skill across all three.
A continuum is a sliding scale between two extremes, not a choice of two labelled boxes. Every physical skill is classified on three separate continua at once:
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