A Coach Developer working in a High Performance sport organisation. The what, the how and what the research tells us about its impact
Have you ever asked yourself “what is the best method of developing High Performance Coaches (HPC)?”
The South Australian Sports Institute (SASI) is tasked with providing a training environment where high performance athletes develop and flourish to compete successfully on the world sporting stage.
Just over two years ago SASI took the bold step to engage a coach developer (CD) who was tasked with enhancing the learning and most importantly impacting the practice delivery of its HPC.
Although the employment of a CD within a high performance sporting organisation is supported by existing evidence on coach learning and development, reports of its existence are rare and evaluation of its impact scarce.
In order to truly understand the impact of their CD on its HPC, SASI commissioned an independent evaluation project that considered the current literature on the subject and matched this with evidenced drawn from direct interviews with SASI coaches on their experiences with the CD.
It was reported by SASI coaches “that the CD provided regular feedback on practice, opportunities to reflect on learning and practice through the provision of individualised services that were specific to the coach’s needs.”
Interestingly coaches reported “it was a benefit to the coach-CD relationship that the CD did not possess sport-specific knowledge about their respective sports.”
As one coach offered “[The CD] doesn’t really need to have a knowledge of [my sport], because he’s got a knowledge of sport and coaching and delivery. He’s able to ask me some really good questions about how to make my delivery more efficient and effective without knowing the sport. He’s helped me change the style in which I coach, and the way I draw things out of players. He’s videoed and microphoned me. We’ll then sit down and review weekly, and set some new goals.”
The Report found “all coaches agreed that working alongside the CD has added value to their professional development and the vast majority of coaches preferred the CD’s services over formal sources of learning.”
The Report finally concluded that “given the overwhelmingly positive evidence in both the literature review and the data collection interviews, investing in the services of a CD is likely to be the most effective way a high performance sporting organisation can develop coaches. Importantly, it is also a method preferred by high performance coaches.”
If you would like a copy of the full (55 page) report contact me directly at Ashley.ross@sa.gov.au