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No matter what slogan you choose to hook up your wagon up to what do athletes have to say about coaches and how they teach and what they teach.
What motivates the athlete and how do they learn?
This is only part of the article however it may serve a purpose for how you are communicating what you actually know verses what and how you say to do it, how do you explain it so they can understand it, in my opinion.....
It?s Not What They Do, It?s How They Do It:
Athlete Experiences of Great Coaching
Andrea J. Becker
Department of Kinesiology, California State University, Fullerton,
P.O. Box 6870, Fullerton, CA 92834-6870, USA
E-mail: anbecker@fullerton.edu
Teach
One of the most basic actions that these great coaches engaged in was teaching. Athletes
discussed how their coaches taught sport skills that were cognitive (strategies, tactics, and
systems of play), physical (fitness, performance techniques, and fundamental game skills), and mental (focus, imagery, anticipation, and mindset). However, these athletes also
expressed how ?great coaches actually teach you about life? (p16) [44]. The category of life
skills included values, attitudes, and beliefs. Some of the skills that these athletes learned
were how to deal with pressure, handle adversity, and work with others. They also learned
respect, patience, and self-reliance. Their coaches didn?t just teach these skills, they modeled them: ?We learned to have a good attitude because coach had a good attitude? (p2).
In addition to modeling behaviors, these great coaches adopted a multi-dimensional
approach to teaching their athletes. Athletes discussed how their coaches used a combination of verbal, visual, and physical methods: ?Some people get it from reading it, some people get it from the visual, and some people get it from actually doing it, but those are the three ways [that these coaches] presented it? (p1). Verbal methods included basic instruction, feed back, and questioning. The coach encouraged athletes to be active rather than passive learners. ?He would question you and make you think about what you were doing and why it was wrongand what you needed to do next time? (p11); ?Then he would tell you what he saw? (p1).
Some of the visual methods that these coaches implemented to teach skills were physical
demonstrations, chalk talks, scouting reports, and video clips: ?I?m a visual learner so she
didn?t just talk to me. She kind of got in there and showed me, held my hand, and we video-
International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching Volume 4 ? Number 1 ? 2009 107 taped? (p13); ?A lot of coaches teach you how to study film, how to study a different player, how to study your opponent? (p16). As a result, these athletes also developed the ability to identify their own strengths and weaknesses. Some athletes got to the point where they could coach themselves.
Physical teaching methods included manual manipulation and repetition. Manual
manipulation represented instances in which the ?coach physically moved [players] to
certain places? (p17). However, most of these athletes focused on how their coaches
emphasized repetition: ?It was just making you do it over and over and over again until you
got it right? (p5). Repetition did not mean going through the motions. It meant performing
with precision: ?I think we ran 80 something perfect plays one day after practice. If you do
it perfect in practice, it carries over to the game? (p1). It appears that great coaching involves
utilizing a combination of teaching methods, which maximize athlete learning.
The athletes also spoke about the quality of their coaches? teaching methods. Specifically,
they emphasized how their coaches paid ?great attention to the little details? (p13). These
coaches had the ability to ?pull out the finer things when teaching a player? (p14), and
instructions were specific. They did not tell their players to ?just get it done? (p1). Instead,
they explained exactly how to get it done [2, 3, 8]. The athletes also mentioned how their
coaches simplified the process. One athlete explained how his coach ?always found a way to
break things down to the most simplistic sense? (p15). Another athlete said that his coach
sometimes had players practice their skills in slow motion. In general, training sessions were designed so that there was a progression from simple to complex: ?You would start out small and go big and he would build on his teachings. When we moved from simple to complex, the purpose of the drill was not lost. The same theme ran through each progression? (p12).These athletes? comments suggest that great coaches pace their instruction according to each athlete?s learning curve.
Note: This is just a part of the study and not the complete article!
What motivates the athlete and how do they learn?
This is only part of the article however it may serve a purpose for how you are communicating what you actually know verses what and how you say to do it, how do you explain it so they can understand it, in my opinion.....
It?s Not What They Do, It?s How They Do It:
Athlete Experiences of Great Coaching
Andrea J. Becker
Department of Kinesiology, California State University, Fullerton,
P.O. Box 6870, Fullerton, CA 92834-6870, USA
E-mail: anbecker@fullerton.edu
Teach
One of the most basic actions that these great coaches engaged in was teaching. Athletes
discussed how their coaches taught sport skills that were cognitive (strategies, tactics, and
systems of play), physical (fitness, performance techniques, and fundamental game skills), and mental (focus, imagery, anticipation, and mindset). However, these athletes also
expressed how ?great coaches actually teach you about life? (p16) [44]. The category of life
skills included values, attitudes, and beliefs. Some of the skills that these athletes learned
were how to deal with pressure, handle adversity, and work with others. They also learned
respect, patience, and self-reliance. Their coaches didn?t just teach these skills, they modeled them: ?We learned to have a good attitude because coach had a good attitude? (p2).
In addition to modeling behaviors, these great coaches adopted a multi-dimensional
approach to teaching their athletes. Athletes discussed how their coaches used a combination of verbal, visual, and physical methods: ?Some people get it from reading it, some people get it from the visual, and some people get it from actually doing it, but those are the three ways [that these coaches] presented it? (p1). Verbal methods included basic instruction, feed back, and questioning. The coach encouraged athletes to be active rather than passive learners. ?He would question you and make you think about what you were doing and why it was wrongand what you needed to do next time? (p11); ?Then he would tell you what he saw? (p1).
Some of the visual methods that these coaches implemented to teach skills were physical
demonstrations, chalk talks, scouting reports, and video clips: ?I?m a visual learner so she
didn?t just talk to me. She kind of got in there and showed me, held my hand, and we video-
International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching Volume 4 ? Number 1 ? 2009 107 taped? (p13); ?A lot of coaches teach you how to study film, how to study a different player, how to study your opponent? (p16). As a result, these athletes also developed the ability to identify their own strengths and weaknesses. Some athletes got to the point where they could coach themselves.
Physical teaching methods included manual manipulation and repetition. Manual
manipulation represented instances in which the ?coach physically moved [players] to
certain places? (p17). However, most of these athletes focused on how their coaches
emphasized repetition: ?It was just making you do it over and over and over again until you
got it right? (p5). Repetition did not mean going through the motions. It meant performing
with precision: ?I think we ran 80 something perfect plays one day after practice. If you do
it perfect in practice, it carries over to the game? (p1). It appears that great coaching involves
utilizing a combination of teaching methods, which maximize athlete learning.
The athletes also spoke about the quality of their coaches? teaching methods. Specifically,
they emphasized how their coaches paid ?great attention to the little details? (p13). These
coaches had the ability to ?pull out the finer things when teaching a player? (p14), and
instructions were specific. They did not tell their players to ?just get it done? (p1). Instead,
they explained exactly how to get it done [2, 3, 8]. The athletes also mentioned how their
coaches simplified the process. One athlete explained how his coach ?always found a way to
break things down to the most simplistic sense? (p15). Another athlete said that his coach
sometimes had players practice their skills in slow motion. In general, training sessions were designed so that there was a progression from simple to complex: ?You would start out small and go big and he would build on his teachings. When we moved from simple to complex, the purpose of the drill was not lost. The same theme ran through each progression? (p12).These athletes? comments suggest that great coaches pace their instruction according to each athlete?s learning curve.
Note: This is just a part of the study and not the complete article!
