Michigan State University's Sports Leadership and coaching
By taking three specific Kinesiology courses in my masters program, I have worked to earn a graduate certificate in Sports and Coaching. Knowing that I could get a grad certificate with my masters degree seemed ideal to me, especially as I become more involved in coaching at Huron. To earn this certificate, I took Legal and Administrative Issues (KIN 854), Psychosocial Bases of Coaching Athletes (KIN 855), and Physical Bases of Coaching Athletes (KIN 856). This course of study has done more than simply enrich my coaching tool kit; many of the strategies and ideas are useful in my classroom, too.
KIN 856: Physical Bases of Coaching Athletes
I took this class in the 2017 summer semester, and it was a challenge from the beginning. This class is based on the physics of movement, and how they come into consideration for athletes. While I remember enjoying anatomy classes, it had been a long time since I had studied the topic, and I had to readapt how I learn. I am so used to reading and analyzing literature in, often, abstract ways; I had remember how to think literally about concrete concepts. I had to apply physical concepts to movement, and analyze how physics are an important part of doing things correctly and safely. For assignments and quizzes, I had to practically apply physics to something from a sport of my choice (i.e. an outside pass in soccer). This made a lot of soccer concepts that I can see happening hands on because I had to explain what is happening in the body to execute a movement. A quiz that I completed is attached below. This was very helpful for me to know how to help athletes correctly execute movements to avoid injury. Also, I understand how injuries happen, and what muscles and areas to strengthen to avoid injury. The assessment style used was very different from what I am used to, but I took away strategies to use in my own classroom. For example, I've created assignments in which students look a feature of a text literally, and explain how those literal concepts relate to something symbolic in the text.
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kin 855: psychosocial bases of coaching athletes
Psychosocial Social Bases of Coaching Athletes addresses psychological aspects involved in participating in team sports, such as emotions, and how they impact performance. This course prepared me for how to help athletes through mental road blocks by addressing a lot of issues that can hinder performance. This class (which I took during the fall 2017 semester) allowed me to practice some "hands on," active activities to practice the things we are learning. One of the most helpful activities was a coaching observation, in which we had to observe another coach's style, approach, delivery, etc. to analyze what are effective ways of coaching. This was helpful because it showed me how another person deals with athletes getting off task; the football coach I observed was able to command his voice to draw attention, and used powerful vocabulary to get the team focused and ready to play. The best, most applicable assignment I completed was a communication protocol activity. For this activity, I had to use a specific model of questioning to help students answer thoughtfully and reflectively. This way of questioning allows the conversation to be athlete dominated, and they control the discussion. Additionally, it is helpful for athletes to hear themselves respond to questions about things like goals, progression, things to do in practice, etc. They are able to come to answers and conclusions they may not have thought about before. In the classroom, this questioning works very well when having discussions with students, especially if we are trying to get to the root of an issue or problem. Asking my students meaningful questions allows them to really think about what they say; as such, we often come to conclusions together to solve problems or make plans.
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kin 854: legal and administrative issues for administrators and coaches
Understanding federal and state laws for coaching is incredibly important, and can save money, reputation, etc. This class was my last KIN class before completing my masters, having taken it in the spring 2018 semester. Largely informational, this class outlined many things to consider that I hadn't even thought of. As I coach soccer and find myself getting involved in more sports, I have to be aware of legal rules, procedures, and processes to keep players, coaches, and fans safe, and to avoid lawsuits due to negligence or other breech of law. Many of the laws surrounding athletics are directly related to safety for more than just the athletes. I learned about setting up and maintaining facilities, looking out for potential hazards (i.e. electric wiring, spills, etc.), giving attention to spectator area safety, arranging for proper handicap accessibility, and more. Now, as I head down to the soccer field for practice, I find I am scanning the area constantly to make sure everything is in its place and that the threat of risk is reduced. Also, this class presented information on hazing, and the often dangerous/deadly outcomes associated with "initiatory" activities. One activity involved drafting an anti-hazing policy for a school that included a definition of hazing, warning signs, repercussions, etc. Being on the lookout for hazing is very similar to being on the look out for bullying, and many of the outcomes are equally dangerous. Since focusing on the warning signs of hazing, I have become more aware of how to identify students who are being bullied. Physical and mental harm can be an outcome of both hazing and bullying, and I feel even more prepared to look for warning signs of bullying in my students after learning more about the dangerous nature of hazing.
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