Principles of coaching and practice in sport - Essay Example

Principles of Coaching and Practice "The wise coach develops not only the fullest physical potential in his charges, but also those capacities andhabits of mind and body which will enrich and ennoble their later years." Geoffrey Dyson (cited in Dickerson, 2003) Coaching Styles Recent years have seen the art of coaching elevated from the simple task of improving a player's ability to compete in a sport to a complex occupation that involves fitness, training, psychology, and character guidance. Today's coaching staffs need to be aware of the player's needs and the expectations of the participants. The coach will need to vary their approach to accommodate the level of competition and the relative importance of winning. Coaching involves a wide range of knowledge that encompasses sports physiology and the latest research on training enhancements. All these factors are embodied in the individual coach who also has their own individual style. At one extreme of the coaching style spectrum is the autocratic coach who makes all the decisions, sets the goals of the practice, and evaluates the progress of the participant (Lee, 2003, pp.88, 89). This style of coaching is appropriate for beginning students just learning the sport or a young child who needs the total direction of an involved coach. This style is further broken down into subgroups called the telling and the selling style. The difference is that in the selling style the players are allowed some input and feedback on the decisions, though it is only in an attempt to sell them on the program. While this can be effective for novices, the style can be detrimental as the student progresses. The autocratic dominance on older and more proficient athletes was related to a relationship to coaching behaviours that emphasised negative feedback as opposed to positive encouragement (Coach burnout). As the athlete becomes more accomplished their loss of control can be perceived as dominance. At the other end of the scale is the democratic style of coaching. In this style, the coach mandates the overall goals and training requirements of the athletes. The athletes have more freedom to choose and make suggestions for their training as well as the strategy of play. The democratic coach will consider these inputs from the players and weigh them into the final decision. Professional players who have reached a high level of competency may be allowed to simply play the game using their own best judgement. As with the autocratic style, the democratic is also broken down into two subgroups. These are the sharing and the allowing style. In the allowing style the athletes are given much greater opportunity to make their own decisions on the training and objectives. In both groups, players choose the training session and the coach approves it based on rationality and safety. This style is appropriate where the players have sufficient skill and experience to make independent decisions. It may also be a useful style when the outcome is not highly critical such as participation simply for leisure activity. Though the democratic and autocratic represent the extreme styles in coaching, most coaches fall in the middle and are further defined by other characteristics. One such coaching method is the command style. The coach is a commander and the player is the receiver of the instruction. According to Brian Grasso (n.d.), President of Developing Athletics, "Coaches who display this habit believe that coaching success is based on how well the athlete can reproduce the skills as taught or demonstrated by the coach". This style can be effective in a sport where technical movements or standards must be met such as figure skating. However, it mandates that the athlete be open to total trust in the coach and their subsequent decisions. This style has been criticised because it fails to account for the various learning methods that young players may use as well as their individual needs. Coaches who are involved with highly trained and well-organised players may take the Laissez Faire approach to coaching and pursue a hands off style. There is minimal direction and few direct orders. The coach trusts the level of the player and allows them to make decisions on training, playing style, and play strategy. Barbara Woods in her book Applying Psychology to Sport (1998) describes a similar style she calls the guided method (cited in Mackenzie, 2007). The player is allowed much freedom in the decision making, but is guided through the process by the coach acting as a mentor. This is effective with high level athletes who wish to pursue several options while trying to attain the next level of competency. Woods also defines a style that works with athletes that are improving their skills at a relatively high level known as the reciprocal style. In this method, the coach and player are partners and each assume responsibility for the decisions, direction of the training, and the best path for improvement (cited in Mackenzie, 2007). Coaching Evaluation Model Creating a coaching evaluation model is a multi-tiered measurement of the external situation, the required technical inputs, and the outcome that is generated. The external situation is the wide variety of factors that the coach has responsibility for that may not directly influence the player's level of competence. These would include first and foremost the health and safety concerns for the athletes (Lawton, Freeman-Wright & Seghers, 2003, p.7). The security of the practice facility and the condition of the equipment needs to be assessed. Adequate staff, along with available medical assistance, needs to accompany any practice or workout session. In addition, scheduling should be such that it does not create a hardship for the players or their parents. The facility needs to be clean and adequately maintained for lighting and safety equipment. Recommended first aid should be readily available. Technical inputs are the coaching guidelines that directly affect the player's style and level of competition. Though the areas of communication skills, style, and attitude affect the players learning, they can not be dictated and will be addressed as a part of the outcome tier. The content of the training and instruction should be of a level that fits the player's needs and suits their direction of progress. It needs to be technically correct in regards to the current rules and knowledge of the sport and should be regularly reviewed and assessed (Bates, 2006). The coach should have a well thought out plan to cover both short term and long term goals. The coach is expected to maintain control of all the players involved in the session throughout the entire period of the practice. The coach must be aware of all the players' progress and vulnerabilities as well as any ongoing or emerging problems with individuals or within the group. The coach should offer realistic positive reinforcement as a means to motivate the players (Barker, 2003, p.70). The coach must bring to the team the dynamics and psychology required to motivate the players into a condition of focus and interest. The coach must also make regular and accurate assessments of the player's progress and weaknesses with the intent of making ongoing corrections in the process. The outcome of the coach's efforts and their impact on the players may be the most important product of the coaching profession. It is also the most difficult aspect to evaluate. The coach needs to maintain an ongoing evaluation of the player's progress in the areas of health, fitness, and skill level. These evaluations need to be assessed against the goals of the individual and the team. If the goals are not being met, the coach must reorganise the training regimen or reconsider the goals that have been set. Benchmarks and timetables should be regularly reviewed to determine if they are being met or why they are not. Aside from the technical progress of the player's skill and the team's success, there is the individual emotional outcome to consider. The coach needs to determine if the player's needs in the areas of self-esteem, self-perception, and satisfaction with their ability and competency are being met. These outcomes will have far more to do with the coach's behaviour than it does with the won and lost record or individual performance (Smith & Smoll, 1997, p.17). These qualities can only be measured by developing a sense of personal relationships with the players as individuals. Communication skills, empathy, and an interest in the players beyond the sport is necessary. The coach must demonstrate commitment and be mindful at all times, whether in practice or competition, that the players will follow their attitude and leadership style (Pavlovic, 2007). These characteristics can contribute heavily to the success or failure of a coach. Coaching Evaluation Session 1 A coach was observed during a coaching session at a local swim club. The participants were six males that were of a moderate skill level, though not regionally competitive. They were training for a variety of events and distances. The training session was scheduled for 150 minutes in the early evening. The session was broken down into a 60-minute training and physical fitness portion, a 60-minute technical skills improvement, and a 30-minute academic session on nutrition and sports physiology. All players were present on time and the coach was assisted by 2 facility staff members, one of which was a certified lifeguard, which insured an adequate level of safe supervision (Lawton, Freeman-Wright & Seghers, 2003, p.7). During the physical fitness session, the team worked independently with little or no supervision. I would recommend that the group utilise a common workout routine as a basis to build team unity. The independent actions of the members carried over into the technical skills session and players were noticeably detached. The coach's democratic style was unable to effectively communicate to the group as a unit and the team was seldom focused on the training. The coach requires skill training to improve the understanding of communicating with the dynamics of a group. The facility was well lit and well equipped for the training session. The coach came prepared with a schedule of events for the evening as well as a history of past performances. However, the coach gave very little feedback during the timed events as to the relationship of any progress the individuals may have been making. More positive reinforcement would have been a motivational factor to improve the overall performance. The coach was very knowledgeable of the sport and offered highly insightful instruction on areas that needed improvement. After the physical sessions of the practice, the team assembled for a discussion of the benefit of using diet to combat the potential for injury. The coach had informed me that this type of knowledge workshop was held on a frequent though somewhat irregular basis. The coach was a teacher and respected the value of learning as it applied to a sport. In recent weeks they had discussed the history of competitive swimming and the myriad of rules for Olympic swimming. I would recommend the coach carry this out to a more formal arrangement with regular scheduled sessions. The coach should also include a review of the material as well as assessment testing. This activity generated an interest in the sport and motivated the players to take a more active interest in the sport. The coach requires better interpersonal skills to form a relationship with the individuals. There was no personal discussion of any activities outside the swimming facility and very little conversation that did not centre on the swimming at hand. The coach had a good command of the techniques required for swimming at a competitive level, but the team could benefit from the personal improvements brought about by the psychology of self-improvement. Coaching Evaluation Session 2 The team meets twice a week, which is an appropriate training frequency to accomplish the team's goals. The facility was clean and available on the second evening. The coach was assisted by the same facility trainers that were present on the previous night and the team members were the only other participants in the facility. At the beginning of the session, two team members had arrived late. The coach sanctioned their behaviour by penalising them to swim additional laps during the warm up exercises. This was sending a bad signal to the team by punishing the players by having them do what they had come there for, which was to swim (Baribeau, 2006). I would suggest that the coach find some other event related sanction that would not result in a punishment of swimming. In addition, the coach neglected to speak to the individuals on a one-on-one basis to relate the importance of timelines for the sake of the rest of the team. The coach further compromised his position by announcing that practice would be cut short due to a personal scheduling problem. This was an indication of lack of commitment on the part of the coach and further highlighted the players' punishment for being late as ambiguous. The coach did not explain the importance of his prior commitment nor make any apologies to the team for his actions. The coach had come prepared with a schedule of routines, but due to the truncated practice, they were largely ignored. The swimmers trained on timed laps and each had a goal to meet. If a goal was not met, the coach would analyse the problems and suggest remedies for the future. These were all technical changes in style and did not go into the area of the psychology of belief or positive thinking. The coach was unable to reach the participants on an individual or emotional level. This is a major obstacle to the success of the team and its members. After the practice I interviewed 3 of the swimmers to get their opinion of the coach. They were all satisfied that they had become better swimmers by working with this coach, though there was no mention of gaining a greater self-esteem or self-image. The coach's lack of interpersonal skills had prevented the team from improving in this very important area. It had also been an obstacle to forming a tight team bond. They were in agreement that they liked him and his style was easy to get along with, but none could say they knew him very well. After neither session were the swimmers told what they could do between training sessions to improve their skill. Nor were they alerted to what to expect during the upcoming practice period. This left the swimmers without a clear goal or a clear image of what they were expected to accomplish. There was some discussion of an upcoming local swim match, but it did not generate a great interest in winning. Without the personal rewards that sport can offer, the coach contributed only marginally to the growth of these young men. References Baribeau, J. R. (2006). Discipline and punishment. Coach & Athletic Director, 76(5). Barker, C. (2003). Personality theory in coaching: Positive reinforcement. Coach & Athletic Director, 68-75. Bates, R. (2006). Adjust your teaching style to the modern athlete. Coach & Athletic Director, 75(10). Coach burnout influences athletes' training responses. (2000). Coaching Factors, 6(1). Retrieved May 2, 2007, from http://coachsci.sdsu.edu/csa/vol61/vealey.htm Dickerson, R. (2003). The importance of good coaching in football. Retrieved May 2, 2007, from http://www.thesportjournal.org/sport-supplement/Volume11,%20No%203/article-5.htm Grasso, B. (n.d.). Coaching styles & methods. Retrieved May 2, 2007, from http://www.brianmac.co.uk/articles/article003.htm Lawton, J., Freeman-Wright, D., & Seghers, G. (2003). Guidance booklet for the management and delivery of teaching and coaching of swimming. London: The Swimming Forum. Lee, M. (2003). Coaching children in sport: Principles and practice. London: Taylor & Francis. Mackenzie, B. (2007, January 24). Coaching Styles. Retrieved May 2, 2007, from http://www.brianmac.demon.co.uk/styles.htm Pavlovic, S. (2007). Ten qualities of a successful coach. Coach & Athletic Director, 76(9). Smith, R. E., & Smoll, F. L. (1997). Coaching the coaches: Youth sports as a scientific and applied behavioral setting. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 6(1), 16-21. Read More