Educator. Athlete. Coach
I chose to start a master’s program pretty soon after I started a career in coaching and in teaching. I had been coaching for years in other capacities, but my first paying coaching job was as a Junior Varsity high school coach, at the same school that I started my first teaching job as an Algebra teacher. If you have read or even skimmed through my portfolio, you have already heard about how a lot of things have changed for me over the last two years in where I want my career to go. I have learned so much through my Sport Coaching and Leadership courses. My main mission is to continue to spread my passion and love for the sport of volleyball for any and all age groups I can find the opportunities to do it with. The next three goals that I hope to accomplish over the next five or so years reflect the push towards athletics in my future.
The first goal that I want to accomplish is to continue to research instructional methods and the best approaches to coaching over the next few years. Recently there has been a big push on a hands-off coaching style that has proven to work best for athletes. To really let the game of the sport teach the athletes the skills they need. One of the reasons that this approach is showing to have the most increase in an athletes performance is because it is human nature to learn implicitly meaning that they are numerous things that we learn to do every day without ever being instructed on how to do it. To continue my research on this coaching method, I plan to continue to listen to a podcast by Rob Gray called the Perception and Action Podcast. It is a continuing podcast that covers the Constraints-Led Approach that also has the scientists doing the research on this approach as guests. This podcast was one of the requirements to listen to in one of my Kinesiology courses and has helped in providing a deeper understanding of the material. One of the instructional methods that has shown to have a major positive affect on athletes is the use of analogies, which through reflection I found I was not the best at. The video that I have linked is a great explanation and use of this instructional method. Finally, I hope to continue to read more scholarly articles and books to further my research on coaching and the most current instructional methods. I have purchased a book called The Dynamics of Skill Acquisition as a start and plan to use that text, abstract linked below, and others to do so. As someone who wants to continue on a coaching career path, I think that it is important that I continue to stay caught up on this research to push myself to be the best coach I can and to influence my athletes in a positive way.
The Use of Analogy in Coaching
The Dynamics of Skill Acquisition
Scholary Articles on Constraints-Led Approach to Coaching
The second goal that I wish to focus on is the development of a positive learning environment, whether it be as an educator or as a coach. I think that as someone who works with younger kids, it is important to find ways to make kids comfortable and to help them develop positivity. There is a lot that goes into trying to develop a positive environment for athletes and students. We also do not know the experiences that they have outside of the time that they are with us. We have some athletes that may be getting a lot of negative talk at home and never getting any positive reinforcement, we have some who may be extremely supported at home and are experiencing that positive environment. To develop a positive learning environment we need to create a space that is open and comfortable to the athlete/student. I want to hold them all to a high standard, one that I know that they can achieve. I need to provide support nd encouragement to each individual. The environment needs to be one that shows it is okay to make mistakes because that is how we continue to learn and improve. Sport has a way of helping athletes develop psychologically from a very young age. I have linked a website to the Ron Clark School. Ron Clark is an educator who built a complete non-profit school that has done wonders with their children. I would love to have time to go and visit and see the ways that he has taught his staff to interact with students and get them engaged in the learning process. I have also started to read some different blogs on how the different perspectives that coaches have taken to create their own positive learning environment. I have linked a few of those below. I think that it can be beneficial to see how others are developing their own environments and then I can take that information and use it how I believe it would be most successful in my own gym or room. There is a huge connection to be made between coaching and teaching and being able to develop a positive environment is beneficial in both.
Ron Clark Academy Ron Clark Himself
Educated Coaches Work in Sports Blog/Podcasts
Finally, my third goal is to take on a larger leadership role within the coaching community, whether it be as a college coach, an athletic director or something else. I think that with all of the training and learning I have done through my program here at Michigan State with regards to leadership, I feel confident that I can take on and exceed in a leadership position. Leadership is not only something that I have learned, but it is something that needs to be taught to all athletes. Being a leader is to always put the team and their goals before yourself. It is to be a mentor for all athletes and give them choice in their learning. It is to create a positive environment that promotes the athlete/student to grow and improve in their skill and as a person. One of the things I would like to do is to attend the Art of Coaching Conference. Although it may seem like a simple resource, but it brings in speakers from all over and it brings in some of the top volleyball coaches to speak as well as teach drills that they use and how they work to develop athletes. Below is a link to some of the keynotes from years past and the Art of Coaching Channel that I frequent often. All coaches can attest to finding a captain on their team that shows leadership qualities, but why not teach these students how to all be leaders. I believe that I can find a job opportunity that is going to allow me to work with students in some aspect where I can focus on my passion for volleyball and coaching and being a leader.
The Art of Coaching Conference
The Art of Coaching Volleyball Channel
The Art of Coaching Keynote Speaker 2019
So, in terms of what comes next, I think that it could be a variety of things for me. I am at the point where I want to start researching and thinking about jumping on a new career path, which is where following through on my first goal of continuing to stay up to date on the most recent coaching methods is going to give me an advantage in my field. By focusing on researching more about the positive learning environment I can show future employers that I can build a culture that fosters strong athletes mentally and not just physically. My third goal is going to help me find this new career. I want this new career path to continue to challenge me whether it be in the high school system where I am now, or it ends up at a college. I look forward to what the future holds.
All pictures are credit to wix images at wix.com
