For my last week on placement I focused on my Continuous Coaching Development (CCD) by completing Football Coach Education at Toryglen Regional Football Centre with the Scottish Football Association (SFA).

I chose to go on the SFA Children’s Pathway since I have already gained most qualifications in the Main/Adult Pathway. I feel this was very beneficial for my own personal development as it allows me to be qualified to work with a variety of ages and abilities in the Football context.

The course had 70 participants who were all attending for different reasons. I had the opportunity to network and speak with the other coaches participating on the course in order to build connections as well learning about their experience and background in Football. This was very enjoyable. Some coaches were just starting out their coaching journey whilst others were there for further training and development. Part of the criteria of the coaching course was to plan and deliver a 20-minute football session. I decided to tailor my session for 7v7s U11s and chose dribbling as the main skill to focus on. I was very excited to deliver my session as I Football is a sport I am very confident coching and I wanted to be able to show my coaching skills. I also knew this would be a very invaluable opportunity as I could gain feedback on my coaching style from individuals from the SFA.

At the end of my session there was a feedback session. This allowed for me to gain external feedback from SFA coaches as well as all the other participants on the course. The feedback I received was great! I was so overwhelmed by the great responses from coaches of all ages and experience. I gained a lot of new drills and practises to use within my sessions and learned more about good coaching practise.
A coach at the SFA also asked if he could interview me regarding the work I have been doing not only in Football but in sport overall over the past 6 years! I was delighted! I grabbed this opportunity with both hands.

Overall, this was an excellent last week on placement. I was able to continue my CCD as well as networking and receiving feedback from external outlets. The main message I gained from this week was regardless of your age and experience there is always new things to learn and there are always ways to improve and develop as a coach and as an individual. Although I have completed my 30 hours of the module, I will continue to take opportunities within sport and push myself out my comfort zone.

– Stephanie.

On my seventh week on placement I was coaching the Girls Football Team at Mount Vernon Primary School. I was very excited about this opportunity as Football is one of my favourite sports to coach and have an in-depth knowledge in. I coached the girls for an hour session on Tuesday before then taking them to a tournament on the Thursday.

The aim of the session was to increase the team’s knowledge of formations and positional roles and responsibilities. I wanted to help the girls gain a further understanding of Football, as well as providing technical assistance. I knew this would be a challenge as the girls were at a foundation level of performance and ability, however, the team was full of individuals with a willingness to learn and improve so I knew it would be possible with perseverance and patience. This tournament was 7 a side meaning I had the responsibility of choosing 10 out of 20 girls to attend and play. I found this very difficult as the majority of girls showed excellent behaviour, effort and attitude. Nonetheless, I completed the task of choosing the team whilst getting across the message that not only did everyone deserve to play but also reminding the girls of my philosophy of working hard, staying positive and the journey of continuous learning.

During the tournament the girl’s player 4 games in which they won 2, drew 1 and lost 1 – in my opinion a fantastic spell of performances, considering the team had not played together frequently. I was so proud of the girls and was so pleased with not only the actual performance in the games but also the team cohesion shown to support each other even when an individual’s makes a mistake – a message I continuously put across.

During the post-match team talk I focused my discussion on positivity and again my coaching philosophy. I echoed to the girls my feelings of pride towards them. I also mentioned my feelings of surprise, not because they performed so well – I knew this was well within their capabilities – but the continuous support for each other, how well they worked as a team and of course the amazing attitudes they displayed.

When returning to the school, I was greeted by the head teacher who asked to speak with me. She explained that the feedback she had received from the members of staff and parents about my coaching abilities and methods was exceptional. I was so pleased with myself when hearing this great feedback. It made me reflect on my 6 years of coaching and how much I have improved and grown, not only as a coach but as an individual. I am very excited to see what my last week of placement offers!

-Stephanie.

My sixth week on placement involved me sitting in a meeting with my mentor, Fraser and the PE teachers of Smithycroft Secondary School. I attended this school as a pupil and worked very closely with the PE department as a Sports Leader and Young Ambassador, so I was excited about discussing the current clubs and events being organised within the school.

The PE department at Smithycroft Secondary was going through a transition as new PE teachers had just started and previous had just left. This meant that as well as trying to get to meet deadlines, the new PE teachers were also becoming familiar with the staff, pupils and the school’s ethos.

The main topics of discussion were Inter House League, Clubs and Parents evening. We discussed how the clubs on offer could be linked to the inter house league. For example, I suggested that because I run an Athletics Club in the school that we could use this as a training tool for the inter house sports day in June. I feel this would give the pupils a chance to improve their skills in a variety of disciplines which could therefore earn them more points and a better place in the sports day. Furthermore, as a coach I feel that gaining experience in competitions and open environments allows for athletes/players to apply what they have learned in training into a practical situation.

I feel I gave some invaluable points within the meeting and chose to speak at the correct times. As a former pupil I was able to give the teachers an insight the decision making and reasoning of a young person in secondary school.

At the end of the meeting the PE department thanked me for my input and stated they would use my opinions and experience to improve the pupil experience within the department. I thoroughly enjoyed being part of this meeting and I am looking forward to building a close working relationship with the new staff during my placement.

-Stephanie.

My fifth week on placement involved me coaching the Smithycroft Secondary Basketball Team. I attended this club when I was a pupil at the school, so I was really looking forward to the opportunity to coach the current pupils and get to know the team.

When planning my session, I decided to focus the session on the lay-up shot. I considered the age and ability of the group – S1-S6 – and acknowledged that a lot of technical coaching points would be required for this skill in order to help the players learn. I felt confident about this as I have been coaching Basketball for a few years now and have several coaching qualifications in this sport.
The session went very well. I was able to identify the players who were struggling and walk them step by step through the skill but also, I acknowledged those who were confident in the skill so therefore challenged them to use their weaker hand. I feel this was very effective as all players were working on the lay up but at their stage of development and ability levels.

I organised a 5v5 match to finish the session. I highlighted to the team about applying what they had learned in the drills and practises into the game situation. To prompt the players to do so, I added a condition to the game – performing a lay up will get you 1 point and a scoring a lay up will get you 3 points. The reason for doing this was to encourage players to try the lay up even if they do not feel as confident or score from the skill. I believe that players will learn from their mistakes and will improve by performing the skill in a open/pressured environment.

I thoroughly enjoyed the session and I observed that the players displayed excellent behaviour, effort and attitude. Next week I will be attending a meeting with Glasgow Rocks Basketball Club with my mentor, Fraser to discuss future opportunities and partnerships with the school and the organisation. I am really looking forward to this!

-Stephanie.

My fourth week of work experience seen me work as a mentor for Smithycroft Secondary’s Sports Leaders. Firstly, I ran a ‘Good Coaching Practise’ Workshop for the Sports Leaders and then I mentored them at the local Primary Schools. After winning Sports Leader of the Year in 2015 as well as previously attending Smithycroft as a pupil, the role of a mentor gave me the opportunity to share my coaching experience and teach the leaders about good coaching practise. I was very excited about this opportunity and I couldn’t wait to get started.

The Sports Leaders are doing a 4-week block of Tennis coaching in the learning community which will then lead to a Tennis Festival at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow. I feel this is a great opportunity for the leaders to make a change in their community as well as getting to experience a first-class sporting arena.

This was the first time the leaders had coached young people before, so I knew I would need to step in and support them during the session. I was more than happy to do this, however, I found it difficult not to step in too much and I realised it was important to let the leaders learn from their mistakes. At the end of the session I had a feedback session with the leaders discussing what they did well and what they could improve upon. I feel this was very invaluable for both myself and for the leaders because it allowed for reflection and evaluation to take place in order for any adaptions to be made for the future.

This experience made me reflect on my journey as a coach and how far I have come. Starting as a sports leader to now qualified in a variety of sports, coaching abroad and working for a variety sports organisation, it has shown me that I have worked hard, took opportunities and pushed myself out my comfort zone.

-Stephanie.

My third day of work experience brought even more opportunities that I had not experienced before. Myself and my mentor Fraser visited four Primary Schools within the Smithycroft learning community in the East End of Glasgow. I found this very useful and a chance to network and build more contacts.

Firstly, we discussed the clubs that would be running in the schools after the October Week which prompted the recording of the type of equipment and amount needed for each school. This allowed me to work on my inventory skills as well as my organisational skills. We dropped off the new equipment at the school whilst also tidying and organising the sports equipment cupboards. This was a great opportunity for me as I was able to meet some of the staff in each of the schools and continue to build working relationships with them. Although it was the October week, the staff were still in the school, which made me realise how much work and commitment they put into ensuring all aspects of the educational establishment is organised and ready for pupils returning.

Fraser informed me about how each school has their own budget for the year and how it must be used efficiently. I learned that because the schools are in the east end of Glasgow – an area of high socio-economic deprivation – that funding for sports related activities is fundamental but limited. This made me realise as a young person who grew up in a disadvantaged area, that more opportunities need to continue to be offered to these young people to get them as active as possible.

My third day of work experience taught me more about the roles of an Active Schools Coordinator. It made me realise that Sports Development is more than just organising clubs for young people to attend and that there is also logistical and administrative work the coordinators undertake that people aren’t aware of.

-Stephanie

During my second day of my work experience placement with Active Schools, I learned about the collection, gathering and analyse of data using a spreadsheet database. I felt quite nervous about this as ICT literacy is an area that I feel I need to improve my knowledge and understanding of. However, this inspired me to take the opportunity to develop my admin skills and learn how to use this in the sports development industry.

My mentor Fraser showed me how to input information into the ASMO (Active Schools Monitoring) system which then is transferred over onto the main system at Sport Scotland. I learned that this system is used over the academic year. The Network of Active Schools coordinators and managers collect data on the sports which they have established in schools. This data is used to maintain the planning and delivery of the Active Schools programme. At the end of each academic year, this information is collated into a report, which summarises the activity across Scotland (Sport Scotland, Active Schools Report: 2018-2019). I feel this would play a pivotal part of the learning and reflection of an active schools’ coordinator and gives them quantitative data to summarise the year of sport within the learning community.

Fraser then allowed me to begin inserting the information and data for the first school term from five different schools. At first, I found this overwhelming but after observing a few examples and trying myself, I soon became very confident. I added the sports being offered in each school as well as the number of participants and whether they were male or female. I learned that interpreting data to find trends is an important part of collecting data in sport. For example, another tool used is SEAMUS. This gives information about every pupil and their position on the social deprivation chart. By looking at the information I found one pupil who attend no extra curricular activities in the first term. This pupil was also very high on the social deprivation chart. I concluded that a possibility may be that this pupil may not be participating in sport due to their personal and social, economic status. Fraser also agreed with me on this judgement. Although the collection of quantitative data is very useful, I feel that Active Schools and Sports Scotland could use qualitative methods to find out more in depth and descriptive reasons to statistical trends. This task made me use my interpretative and analytical skills to identify and explain why participation levels differ in social groups.

I thoroughly enjoyed my second week of placement. I found it really tested me and my areas of development. I learned a lot and feel I improved my ICT literacy skills massively, which was an area I mentioned in my skills audit. I look forward to my next day at placement, where I can challenge myself and learn something new.

-Stephanie.

During my first day of my work experience placement shadowing Active Schools Coordinator, Fraser, I had the opportunity to be involved in different aspects of sports development. I found each situation I worked in allowed me to interact with a new group of people, offered new challenges and a chance to develop my knowledge, something I thoroughly enjoyed.

If I had to select my highlight from my first day it would be typing the minutes for the Leadership meeting with Active Schools Coordinators and Physical Education and Physical Activity in School Sport (PEPASS) representatives. I was very surprised yet excited about this opportunity as this was the first meeting I had attended and was not expecting to be given such a significant role. Through this opportunity I learned that my listening skills were required and that I must have the confidence to be able to speak up – where appropriate – to clarify points. I found this quite challenging as I usually take the lead in topically discussions and I had lots of thoughts and perspectives that I was eager to share. My critical thinking was also put into use as I needed to be able to analyse the information and determine the necessary points to be recorded. This is a skill I need to continue to work on as there was a lot of discussion surrounding a variety of themes. This experience showed me the organisation and reflection that goes into meetings within Active Schools.

In the afternoon, I was coaching a P7 mixed gender basketball team in the East End of Glasgow. I felt very prepared and comfortable about this session as I have been a multi-sport coach for the preceding 6 years. However, I soon observed that the team seemed to become very frustrated with each other whenever a mistake was made by a player. I was surprised when this was reoccurring as the team have been together for a year now. This experience taught me that although my role of the coach is to improve the players basketball skills and knowledge, I also have the chance to influence the young people’s attitudes, outlook on life and how to treat each other with respect which I feel very grateful to have the opportunity to do. What I will do differently in my next session is use appropriate interaction strategies to support communication among the team. For example, I will implement some team building exercises as well as implementing a team ‘cheer’ to build team chemistry and moral. I have learned that young people are still learning about social interaction and standards, however, they are more adaptable than adults as they are still discovering who they are and their perspectives.

Next week I will take forward my reflections from my first day at my placement and use them to learn and develop. I look forward to learning more about the sports development industry, pushing myself out my comfort zone and taking on new challenges and opportunities.