EFFECTIVE
COACHING
PRACTICES
WHAT IS A SPORTS COACH?
• A sports coach is someone responsible for training an athlete or a
team.
• What do you want from a sports coach?
THE ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF A
COACH
As a class… lets brainstorm
Write down as many as you can think of..
SOME ANSWERS MAYBE…
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
OF THE COACH
• On-field
– Improve performance
– Risk Management
• What does this involve?
– Coaches Code of Conduct
• Australian Sports Commission (ASC)
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
OF THE COACH
• On-field
– Improve performance
– Risk Management
• What does this involve?
– Coaches Code of Conduct
• Australian Sports Commission (ASC)
– Always to be inclusive
• Ethical issues that may present
• What is right and what is wrong
ETHICAL ISSUES A COACH
MAY HAVE TO DEAL WITH
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
OF THE COACH
• Off-field
– Professional development, accreditation and coaching pathways
• Coaches must stay up to date with current practices
• Conferences and clinics
• Work with others e.g. parents, officials, media
– Plan and review of the season
• What do you want to achieve? By when?
• Periodisation – breaking the season up into time periods and then further
breaking it down into macrocycles
• Plan each training session to maximise time
• Organisation for game day e.g. players, equipment, first aid, travel
• Review practices to determine the effectiveness of a program
THINK ABOUT YOUR
COACH????
• What roles does your coach do well?
• What roles does your coach need to improve on?
• Why? please discuss.
STYLES OF COACHING
• 3 Main Styles of coaching
- Authoritarian or Autocratic Style
- Democratic or Cooperative Style
- Casual Style
AUTHORITARIAN STYLE
•
•
•
•
•
•
A strict and disciplined approach
Thorough organisation and planning
Meticulous attention to detail
Total devotion
Communication is one way (coach to player)
Often critical and harsh to players
• Not a good coaching style of the sensitive or deep
thinking player
DEMOCRATIC STYLE
• Cooperative style of coaching
• Consultation and shared decision making between coach and players
• Flexible and creative
• Awareness of individual needs
• Develops trust and respect
• Friendly, approachable, safe
CASUAL COACH
• Highly relaxed, almost detached from players
• Loosely organised & lack of preparation, which
can hinder skill & fitness development
• The coach acts more like a consultant than a
coach
• Appears to be a coaching style which lacks
commitment
THE COACHING STYLE
CONTINUUM
What style or combination of styles of coach do you think you would be?
Authoritarian
Democratic
Casual
VARIETY OF COACHING
STYLES
• There are obviously advantages and disadvantages with each
coaching style, but all styles can be successful
• It depends on the;
– Relationship between the coach & players
– The purpose of the players involvement
– Age and experience of both the coach & players
– The period of time the coach & players have worked together
• Some coaches have a combination of one or more of the
different coaching styles
• Read page 225-226
Coaching Style
Authoritarian
Democratic
Casual
Advantages
Disadvantages
ROLE PLAY
Activity One:
• Work in groups of 2 or 3
• Select a coaching style
• Simulate a sporting role play using the allocated coaching style
• Guess what coaching style is being used……
ROLE PLAY
Activity Two:
• Work in the same groups, select another coaching style
• Simulate another sporting role play that is non verbal only
Guess what coaching style in being used….
SKILLS AND CHARACTERISTICS
REQUIRED BY THE COACH.
Patience
and
persistence
Dedication
and
enthusiasm
Motivating
Integrity
Ability to
model
behaviour
High
Expectations
Knowledge
of sport
Qualification
Organisational
skills
More on page 235
SKILLS AND CHARACTERISTICS OF A
RESPECTED COACH
• Skills
– Observation skills (analyse performance)
– Knowledge of sport (up to date knowledge of rules, skills, techniques, strategies.
Also analyse and interpret information from a game)
– Communication skills (both send and receive information to and from players.
Also non verbal cues)
– Organisational skills (plan goals and training sessions for success)
– Understanding and empathy skills (personal motivations and goals)
– Ability to improve performance (using other resources or professionals)
– Cater for individual differences (age, learning style, stage of learning)
– Develop effective relationships (group dynamics, conflict resolution, develop a
team culture).
• Characteristics
- Knowledge and intelligence (physiology, nutrition, injury
management, techniques, tactics. Curious and creative intelligent
drills and game simulations)
- Enthusiasm and high expectations (passionate, positive attitude
and commitment, lead by example)
- Character and integrity
- Effective communication (verbal & non verbal)
- Patience and persistence (positive and constructive feedback)
- Organisation and preparation
- Model of appropriate behaviour
EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
SKILLS
• Effective communication - Is the
imparting or interchange of
information, producing the
intended or expected result.
VERBAL COMMUNICATION
• Most Common
- Direct play
- Manage athletes
- Organise drills
- Provide feedback
- Instruct and question athletes for understanding
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXfCTyJDDDk
NON-VERBAL
COMMUNICATION
• Body Language
• Facial expressions
- Head nods, smiles, frowns, eye movements etc
What are these faces telling you?
LISTENING
• Good coaches listen to their athletes!
• Listening to both Verbal and non-verbal responses.
• This makes the athlete feel that the coach is interested in what they
have to say.
BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE
COMMUNICATION
• Environment –
Can all athletes see and hear you?
Are there any distractions in the background?
• Physical -
Do all the athletes have good vision and hearing?
• Intellectual -
Can all the athletes understand what you are saying?
How long can the athletes pay attention?
• Background -
Do all the athletes speak English?
Are there terms you use that might be specific to you?
Could there be specific cultural considerations?
How can coaches overcome these barriers?
SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY
“ Elite Sport in the modern era is now 5 percent physical and
95 percent mental.”
 Motivation
 Arousal and Anxiety
 Confidence
 Mental Imagery
 Concentration
 Goal Setting
AROUSAL AND PERFORMANCE
• Best illustrated by the inverted U hypothesis
• For optimal performance arousal must not be too low, yet too high
• Athletes can develop coping skills such as physical relaxation, positive
thinking and refocusing to deal with pressure situations
INVERTED U HYPOTHESIS
Sport Specific Optimal Levels of Arousal
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
Athlete Specific Optimal Levels of Arousal
Roger Federer
Lleyton Hewitt