The politics and policy of community sport coaching

This chapter examines some key aspects of the politics and policy of community sport coaching in England. It briefly: (i) examines the current and broadening policy landscape within which community sport coaches work; (ii) explores how community sport coaches’ work is increasingly perceived by government in terms of its contribution to non-sporting, rather than sport-for-all, objectives; and (iii) discusses how community sport coaching, as an aspect of the increasingly vulnerable and marginalised sport policy sector, is reshaping the role of the coach in delivering government’s policy priorities. We discuss how community sport coaches are now enmeshed in policy networks which constrain them increasingly to prioritise the delivery of government’s non-sport outcomes alongside the promotion of physical activity, and suggest that this raises a series of important questions about the nature and professional status of coaching, the role of the coach, and the status of sport as a policy sector. We also argue that the expected role of the community sport coach in delivering sport and non-sport objectives is becoming increasingly blurred and widened, and suggest that this is interdependent with the increasingly vulnerable and marginalised sport policy sector

An investigation into coach developers’ theories in practice, learning and development on a Continuing Professional Development course

Despite the importance of the coach developer in supporting coach learning, there is a limited understanding of how they develop. In response, this study explored the theories in practice of twenty-three English coach developers who undertook a continuing professional development (CPD) course. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, focus groups, and observations of coach developers’ practice and engagement on the course. The data were analysed using a phronetic-iterative approach, with Argyris and Schön’s ideas on theories in practice, mostly espoused theories and theories-in-use, providing the primary heuristic framework. The findings identified how before the CPD course the coach developers articulated espoused theories but as the course progressed there was a move to theories-in-use. This was due to their (re)constructed understanding of learning and working environment. The findings are discussed in light of how the CPD course, and tutors’ pedagogic approaches, influenced the coach developers’ knowledge and understanding. Based on these findings, it seems there is much to gain from supporting coach developers with a deconstruction and reconstruction of theories in practice

Toward a broader conceptualization of development: The role of gains and losses across the life span

Developmental psychologists traditionally have conceived of childhood primarily as a time of positive change, or gain, and old age primarily as a time of negative change, or loss. Life-span developmental psychologists recently have challenged these assumptions, asserting that gains and losses are ubiquitous across the life span. While generally supporting this assertion, we suggest that the relation between developmental gains and losses needs to be considered in more depth. Even life-span developmentalists seem to have assumed that gains and losses are causally related, and that the direction of causality is determined by age. In this paper, we review previous considerations of gains and losses. Then, we show that losses during early life are not necessarily responses to gains, and that gains during later life are not necessarily responses to losses. Finally we suggest criteria and methods for assessing four alternative models (unrelated phenomenon, spurious phenomenon, suppression, and compensation) relevant to the causality and directionality of the relation between developmental gains and losses.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/27897/1/0000317.pd

Exploring the interplay between learning, knowledge, biography and practice: The tale of an experienced track and field athletics coach.

This paper examines how the learning biography of Jack (pseudonym), an experienced track and field athletics coach, shaped his thoughts about coaching practice. Data were collected through seven in-depth, semistructured, narrative-biographical interviews that formed part of a cyclical and iterative data analysis process. Our analysis of Jack’s narrative revealed how his understanding of two distinct features of his coaching practice (i.e., implementation of periodization and pedagogical delivery style) developed in contrasting ways. Jack’s story was primarily, although not exclusively, interpreted using Alheit’s concepts of biographical learning and biographicity, Biesta and Tedder’s writings on agency and learning in the life-course, and Jarvis’ discussion of learning as a process of becoming. The findings of this study raise significant questions for how the field of sports coaching seeks to understand coach learning.</jats:p