Seeing The Beauty Of Positive Coaching

While positive coaching can mean many different things for coaches, its general goal is inculcating excellence. Positive coaching offers coaches and leaders a scientifically and philosophically sound way to help athletes achieve more, perform better, be happier and healthier, and to aspire for more.

Coaches are influential in the lives of young athletes. When adults are asked to share their fondest memory of being in school, they would most likely pause and think, and can sometimes go blank. But when asked about their times in sports teams, they have a concrete memory of their winning shot or successful clutch move. The meaning parents and coaches incorporate into a child-athlete’s achievement stays with them through their adult years.

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Nowadays, coaches and parents pressure star players with a barrage of important shots. This transforms the experience of sports into a chore. Sports start to feel less fun for kids when the main goal is to win. The pressure mounts when sports performance determines the obtention of scholarships from good schools.

Positive coaching aims to change the way the sporting world has shaped kids in the previous years. Sports has become too selective and competitive instead of enjoyable and educational. Positive coaching strives for excellence, helping athletes understand that it does matter to win. However, it should respect and protect the self-worth of every athlete; it is demanding, yet never demeaning. It must shape an athlete’s spirit, rather than break it.

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James Padlock is a special education teacher and coach at Northside High School in Roanoke, Virginia. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Physical Education from COE College. For quick updates from James Padlock, follow this Twitter.

Teacher factor: Ways teachers affect student achievement

In its most basic form, student achievement is affected by three key elements: the student, the school, and the home. While curricula, reduced class size, school, family, and community are all contributors to a student’s success, the quality of the teacher is the most notable influencing factor. 

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Research suggests that teacher quality makes up for 30 percent of the difference in student performance. Another study supports this argument as it has revealed that the most effective 10 percent of teachers can achieve in half a year what teachers from the bottom 10 percent can accomplish in a whole year. Effective teachers are educators who can provide students with stimulating environments, a platform that is appropriate for the needs of the students, structure, and stability, support for weaker students, consistency and direction, encouragement and emotional support, learning tools and resources, and feedback and goal-setting. 

In addition to all these, educators give advice for parents, guidance for the future, knowledge and skills, diagnosis of weakness, opportunities for unusual experiences, hands-on learning, conditions for curiosity, guided questioning, a model of lifelong learning, opportunities for teamwork and support, desire for learning, high expectations, and programs that fulfill learning in a significant and conscious way. 

The factors that limit a teacher’s impact are the student and home factors. Parents can help their children achieve more by supporting their teachers, having trust in the teacher and school processes and their child’s ability to learn. They should also convey to their child how much they value learning, education, and its benefits. It would be best if they can be models of lifelong learning to their children. 

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In his career as an educator, James Padlock has gained a wide range of skills in classroom teaching. He is proficient in developing and presenting differentiated lessons within multiple grade levels and subject areas. For more updates like this, visit this blog.