SPSU9W6 – Sports Work Experience (Spring 2020)

Since the start of the lockdown I have found it hard to motivate myself to do work in my house, but in the last week I have got myself into a better routine and been able to focus a little more on my studies. I have had assignments due for other modules recently so I am only just getting started on the final report for this module. Hopefully I make a good job of it as I am aiming for a good grade overall.

I am keeping myself busy over this lockdown period by doing a workout most days at my home gym, also I have been out running to keep my fitness up. This has been challenging as I have nobody to push me on to work harder. I have also benefitted from having a brother of a similar age so I am able to do workouts with him as well as kick a ball about in the garden. This is good because it takes up some time during the day.

After the final report I still have an online exam. This means I will have to study for that which will again pass the time during this lockdown period. I am glad that we at least have something to work and concentrate on in these times. I hope everybody is well and staying safe.

From my last post I have tried to implement some kind of structure and routine into my days. I have done this by making a plan for each day to try and still be as productive as I possibly can during this strange time for us all. Trying to get university work done in my house is extremely challenging as the only space I have is at the kitchen table. This is very inconvenient as my family are constantly coming in and out and I find this very distracting. I have got into a good routine now and I feel like I am finding it slightly easier to concentrate, and, have been going on a run and doing some exercise each day which helps me to clear my head.

So far, I have completed the relevant appendices for the back of my final report and have contacted my supervisor Natalie to get her to fill in my final placement tracker. Since doing this I have been working on my dissertation to try and get a bit more progress on this, I will hopefully start to get some of my sports work experience final report in the coming days. I find mixing my days with dissertation and my final report very helpful as it means I am not working on the same thing constantly.

The more I reflect on my time at University of Stirling as it comes to a close, the more I realise how it has been the best years of my life. I have realised that this sports work experience module has definitely been the most valuable module I have completed in my time here. I have learnt great skills and it has set me up for my postgraduate course which I start in September. I am very excited for the future and I am constantly trying to stay positive in a time where such negativity is circulating.

Since my last blog post, I have been working a lot more shifts as I am seen to be a key worker and with my work struggling to have enough staff (we even had to close the shop last week because we didn’t have enough staff). Whenever I do have free time I am struggling to do any university work but I think that is because I overthink everything. I have managed to get a start on my final report, however, everything is taking me longer to complete work than it normally does.

I am still staying in Stirling right now as my dad is vulnerable and my job will put him danger. I am going out runs and walks to try clear my head in order to get more university work done. This seems to be working for me.

The final report is my last piece of uni work to complete. I am happy I have uni this to do, to keep me busy, I am not sure how I am going to cope after the semester is over. I’m sure it is the same for most people.

I am sad my placement has been cut short as there was so many big events coming up which I couldn’t wait to take part in. However, I know this is all happening to keep everyone safe. I hope everyone is well and staying safe.

From my last blog I have started back work. As I work in the care sector, I still have to continue to do my work, which has been unsettling in these times but has also been rewarding. The balance between work and university assignments has proven to be a challenge as my work are struggling with staff and so I have been picking up extra shifts in order to help out, but this has resulted in less time for assignments. I’ve had to prioritise my assignments over work this past week as it is coming up to final assignments and exams, but my work have understood, and this has taken a lot of pressure off my shoulders.

This week I have been working on my final report and given the current circumstances I feel I am coping quite well with it. I have been in touch with my mentor to discuss my final placement tracker and to see if there is any work that he wants me to complete for the remainder of my hours. Tony wants me to complete 3 lesson plans for a group of my choice before they start back, which I am looking forward to completing. However, I am also a bit apprehensive as I’ve never done anything like this, but as tony has sent me previous plans I have a bit of guidance as to what I should do.

Reading over the sample final report, I was a bit nervous because at first, I was bit unsure as to what I would include but after some time I was able to prepare to plan. Romie had given the class and extension of the final report which was good news as it gives more time to achieve an all-round better report and with the current circumstances it also provides those with dissertations more time to ensure that both pieces of work are prioritised hopefully making them feel less anxious.

With the blogs and the placement, I have enjoyed this module as it provided me with different skills and gave me further insight into what I would like to achieve after university. I am hoping this will help with my employability when I go onto apply after hopefully getting my degree.

Since my last Blog post I have been working at home being a ‘Key worker’. It has been very hard to balance both my dissertation, course work and work life during this period but I am sure it has for everyone else. Yesterday I started the final report assignment and have got around 400 words completed so far. I hope to have the assignment done by the end of the weekend so I can focus on my dissertation. In terms of my dissertation I thankfully have an extension and have had a recent meeting with my supervisor over Skype. Everything seemed to be going alright and my supervisor seemed happy with my progress and the lines I’m going along.

The on going situation has changed my life quite significantly being a very active person it has been very challenging getting a limited amount of fitness and of course football. It seems to be a very sore way to finish what has been a fantastic 4 years at the univeristy and bow out not really getting a proper goodbye and a postponed graduation.

Looking at my Placement with the campus 5k and Dumyat hill race being cancelled it has saw my work placement came to a full stop which was a shame considering i had put a lot of time and effort into it. I had been enjoying it very much and felt it had been a very good experience for myself in a completely new field.

My plan for the rest of the semester is to get my last assignment done and as I’ve already mentioned my dissertation by the end of the month. Luckily i have no exams i need to revise for, so when my dissertation is submitted I will have a bit of time to relax and hopefully by that point this chaos is over. Hope everyone reading this is well and stay safe!

Andrew

Since my last blog post I have managed to complete some more placement hours. My mentor has been giving me work to do to help set up the six-a-side league programme for next year, alongside organising a knockout tournament for the first week of September for all teams who are avaliable to compete in. This will mean an overall winner can be established for the spring 2020 league. The work has main consisted of emailing team captains and communcating with my mentor. This hasn’t been as exciting as the rest of my placement was, however, there is not much else I can do due to the social restrictions in place because of the COVID-19 outbreak.

The final assessment in this module is the Final Report. Rommie has changed the dealine for this to the 21st of April, giving us an extra week. This was great news because I also have a dissertation due on the 16th of April, which means I now have more time to complete the assignment and hopefully get a better grade. Having said this, I have already written a first draft of the final report and only need to add in all the require appendicies. Having the extra week though will give me more time to review what I have written and make any changes I need to. I also found the example Rommie put up very helpful. It made it much easier to understand what is expected for a good grade in the final report.

I was also happy with the grade I recieved in my presentation. I was unsure what to expect as I had never submitted an online presentation before, but I actually think this may have helped me. Having said that, I do feel like it did not improve my presentation skills as much, but it couldn’t be avoided.

Overall, I have enjoyed this module. I have found my placement interesting, educational and flexible, which has been a big help during a busy fourth year. I am hoping the experince I have gainned will help my employability in the future.

Over the past couple of weeks, I have not had a proper routine due to Covid-19 and my work has stopped as they are not essential. I am still trying to be active in my house so that I can keep positive. I have tried to be productive every day so that I am not just sitting in my house all day. I have finished all of my work for university but I am feeling very unsettled about my future career due to the current situation. Getting out the house for a walk has been a great way to clear my mind so that I don’t overthink it too much.

Since my last post, I have finished and submitted my dissertation. The only assignment I have left is the work experience report, I have planned out what I am wanting to include in my final report and bullet pointed all of the facts which I think are the most important. I have completed all of my documents for the appendices section, including my final workplace tracker. Over the next couple of days I plan to finish my report and have it submitted. I liked looking at how much I have improved over my placement after I completed my final skills audit.

I have enjoyed being apart of this module this semester as I think it will help me in my future.

The past few weeks have been very strange. My work has closed due to the Covid-19 situation, which has put me out of a routine. I felt myself wake up late and just laze about all day and was not being very productive. After a few days of this I decided it was very important to have structure in place. I make sure I get up early every day and fill my day with tasks. By doing this, it keeps my mind occupied and busy. I make sure I set some time to complete my uni work, as well as time to relax and destress. I also try to go a walk every day. However, because my full family are in the house, I find it very hard to focus on my uni work so I just try to do as much as I can. I have also been trying not to watch too much news or read too much about the virus as it makes me worry.

I have 2 assignments left to complete: the work experience final project and my dissertation. My dissertation is due next week so I have been putting more focus on that. So far for my final project, I have made a plan, so I know what needs to go in each section, and I have also started my introduction. As well as this, I have completed all the additional documents we need to include in our appendix section. I gathered my project evidence and decided to include a coaching plan and my project questionnaire. I had already received my final placement tracker from a few weeks ago so that was easy enough to attach to the document. Next, I completed the career management audit. The first part was easy enough to do but the second half took me a bit more time. After this I completed my final skills audit form. I made sure I was comparing it to my first skills audit allowing me to see some improvements. I am hoping to start the rest of my report this week and I am looking forward to completing both of my assignments.

The last two weeks have certainly been challenging for everyone, since my last blog post I have moved out of my flat in Stirling due to the Coronavirus crisis, and I have found working back at my family home quite challenging at times. However, I have managed to complete my final report and all the appendices, before submitting it this morning. This means I can use the next week and a bit finishing off my dissertation without the thought of having to complete my report afterwards.

Before I starts writing my final report, I made sure I completed all the relevant appendices to be placed at the end of my report. I used these documents to help plan my report, looking back on my identified areas of weakness from the first skills audit for example, and reflecting on the development over my placement. In completing this exercise, I felt there were areas I had improved throughout my placement, but I also realised there maybe areas I had not identified before that I could improve upon.

The main areas of improvement I saw within myself upon reflection were in communication, organisation and problem solving, which I was especially proud of as I am not usually the most creative thinker. My placement taught me that being prepared is extremely important, but also that being flexible and adaptable within sessions to overcome problems is a large part of being successful in the sports industry. The report definitely helped me reflect on the module as a whole and recognise the value the experiences I have gained through my placement have given me in respect of gaining future employment in sport.

Overall, I have really enjoyed the challenging nature of this module and I am extremely happy I decided to throw myself into it, as I was not sure about it before I started. The module gave me different experiences than I have had at University before and I appreciate the opportunities given to me. It is not common for sport students to gain work experience like this during their studies, as opposed to PE teachers or nurses for whom placement is a key part of their University career, so this made me even more grateful.

I look forward to finishing my dissertation as my last piece of work at the University and having a bit of time off before starting my next chapter post-University.

The past few weeks have been quite difficult to adjust to.  It’s really de-motivating being stuck inside for most of the day and so at times, I am finding it hard to concentrate on and be motivated to complete assignments.  Each night I make a to-do-list for the following day so that I have a bit of structure and routine so that I’m not left with nothing to do as I get bored easily.  I try to break my day up as much as possible so that I’m not spending hours doing uni work.  Every day I exercise, do some work to stay productive and ahead of my deadlines, and I always make sure I set some time aside to facetime my friends and family as it’s been really hard not being able to see them.

I have just finished completing an assignment for another module so I am starting my report today.  I’m looking forward to writing my report as I think it will be good to reflect on my experience and also learn more about employability through the literature I will be using.  This will be my last assignment before I have to start revising for my exam so I hope it doesn’t take me too long as I am quite stressed about having enough time to revise as I’ve been finding it difficult to stay motivated and so, I know I will procrastinate a lot if I don’t leave enough time.

Overall, I’ve really enjoyed this module as I’ve learned a lot about the job sector and what the best ways are to network with people and to locate jobs and volunteer opportunities.  It has also allowed me to develop as a person, mostly in confidence, so I think the module has been really beneficial and I think that it is great that it is offered at the university.

I hope that things calm down soon and we can get back to normality in the next few months and be able to see friends and family again, as well as return to normal university life in September.