Purpose:
The improvement of a learning process through transferring a skill already acquired to another one which is being learnt is one of the factors contributing to increasing the effectiveness of teaching. The aim of this study was to compare the effectiveness of teaching performed on the basis of two plans, i.e. a traditional (intuitive) one and a network one.

Methods:
A pedagogical experiment covering 13 weekly sessions of self-defence elements were taught. The control group was taught according to an algorithm developed in a traditional (intuitive) way, whereas the experimental group was taught according to a algorithm developed on the network model. After the sessions had been completed, five experts evaluated the acquisition level of three randomly selected elements. The results obtained by 32 men (average age 21.29 ± 0.76 years) from the experimental group and 32 men from the control group (average age 21.18 ± 0.87 years) were analysed statistically with the Student's t-test, two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the Fisher post-hoc test.

Results:
The experts did not differ in evaluating both groups (p < 0.05). Moreover, no interactions were revealed (p < 0.05) between the method of planning the teaching programme and the experts who evaluated the acquisition level of the taught elements. The only significant difference between the experimental group and the control group was observed in the method of planning the teaching programme, according to which self-defence elements were taught (p < 0.01).

Conclusions:
The acquisition level of the taught self-defence elements according to the algorithm developed by basing it on the network model turned out to be significantly higher than in the case of those elements taught in the traditional (intuitive) planning process.