Teaching Games for Understanding: the difficulties and challenges experienced by participation cricket coaches

Background: Recent changes in the structure and delivery of formalised coach education courses such as the United Kingdom Coaching Framework (UKCF) and the United Kingdom Coaching Certificate (UKCC) has manifested in an increased importance on sports coaches adopting holistic and player-centred coaching pedagogy. For one National Governing Body of sport (NGB) this has prompted a change in the content and delivery of its formal coach education programme to include modules that contain approaches such as Teaching Games for Understanding which reflect constructivist learning theories. Purpose: Using constructivist learning theory and Windschitl's four dimensional model of constructivist dilemmas in practice from 2002 (conceptual dilemmas, pedagogical dilemmas, cultural dilemmas, and political dilemmas) this study examines the challenges and difficulties experienced by a number of participation sports coaches as they implemented Teaching Games for Understanding principles into an annual training programme (UKCC). Participants: Five UKCC 2 qualified cricket coaches currently coaching youth cricketers volunteered to take part in the study. Participants were purposely sampled through the author's own role as a coach education tutor. Intervention: The principle criterion of the pedagogical intervention was that the coaches embedded TGfU principles into their annual coaching programme. Research design: In order to capture the real life contexts of the participants and qualitative nature of inquiry a case study approach was adopted. Data collection: A total of 20 semi-structured interviews were conducted during a twelve-month training period. All the coaches were interviewed individually on four separate occasions. In addition 110 coaching evaluation forms were submitted for document analysis purposes. Data analysis: Interview transcripts and qualitative written comments recorded on the coaching evaluation forms were analysed separately using the constant comparative method of analysing data. Findings: The pedagogic dilemmas associated with TGfU pedagogy included the use of a questioning strategy, insufficient pedagogic content knowledge, and gaining access to appropriate support material. The conceptual dilemmas included maintaining a ‘true’ constructivist focus. The cultural dilemmas faced by the coaches included tensions within the coach-player relationship. Finally, the political dilemmas suggested the NGB could provide more guidance on the use of TGfU and in particular regular professional development opportunities. Although generally satisfied with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) UKCC 2 the coaches were in retrospect disappointed with the practical examples of the TGfU modules and were concerned that TGfU was not a shared philosophy amongst the core coach education tutor team. Conclusions: The adoption of constructivist Teaching Games for Understanding principles can be a complex process for many coaches, and NGBs should consider strategies to avoid over simplifying a challenging and demanding approach to coaching and teaching. It is argued that coach education courses and NGBs need to provide support in the form of additional resources as well as continued professional development.

[1]  D. C. Phillips.  The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: The Many Faces of Constructivism , 1995 .

[2]  Paul Morris,et al.  Department for Culture, Media and Sport Heritage Lottery Fund , 2002 .

[3]  L. Shulman.  Knowledge and Teaching: Foundations of the New Reform , 1987 .

[4]  William B. Strean,et al.  Expanding the Teaching Games for Understanding Model: New Avenues for Future Research and Practice , 2002 .

[5]  Paul Cobb,et al.  Constructivist, emergent, and sociocultural perspectives in the context of developmental research , 1996 .

[6]  Peter Werner,et al.  The effects of a 6-week unit of tactical, skill, or combined tactical and skill instruction on badminton performance of ninth-grade students. , 1996 .

[7]  Michael W. Metzler,et al.  Instructional Models for Physical Education , 2011 .

[8]  A. Turner,et al.  An investigation into teaching games for understanding: effects on skill, knowledge, and game play. , 1999, Research quarterly for exercise and sport.

[9]  Sylwia Męcfal.  Recenzja książki. Robert K. yin, Case Study Research. Design and Methods (fourth Edition), thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2009 , 2012 .

[10]  Mordechai Gordon.  Toward A Pragmatic Discourse of Constructivism: Reflections on Lessons from Practice , 2009 .

[11]  Joy Butler,et al.  Curriculum constructions of ability: enhancing learning through Teaching Games for Understanding (TGfU) as a curriculum model , 2006 .

[12]  A. Bowling.  Research Methods in Health , 1998 .

[13]  I. Rovegno,et al.  Learning to teach in a field-based methods course: The development of pedagogical content knowledge , 1992 .

[14]  I. Rovegno.  The development of in-service teachers' knowledge of a constructivist approach to physical education: teaching beyond activities. , 1998, Research quarterly for exercise and sport.

[15]  Alan S. Kornspan,et al.  Interactive Decision Making and Behavior of Experienced and Inexperienced Basketball Coaches during Practice , 1997 .

[16]  K. Alexander,et al.  A Spring in their Steps? Possibilities for Professional Renewal through Sport Education in Australian Schools , 1996 .

[17]  A. MacPhail,et al.  Learning to teach sport education: The experiences of a pre-service teacher , 2007 .

[18]  Learning to Teach Sport Education: Misunderstandings, Pedagogical Difficulties, and Resistance , 2004 .

[19]  Lyn Richards,et al.  Readme First for a User's Guide to Qualitative Methods , 2002 .

[20]  Matthew D. Curtner-Smith,et al.  Preservice teachers' conceptions of teaching within sport education and multi-activity units , 2004 .

[21]  Phillip Ward,et al.  The transfer of learning from play practices to game play in young adult soccer players , 2006 .

[22]  Kate Corby,et al.  Silverman, Stephen J. and Catherine D. Ennis, (eds.). (1996). Student Learning in Physical Education: Applying Research to Enhance Instruction. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics. , 1996 .

[23]  K. E. French,et al.  Foundations for the Learning and Instruction of Sport and Games , 1996 .

[24]  Diane M. Culver,et al.  Learning how to coach: the different learning situations reported by youth ice hockey coaches , 2007 .

[25]  Richard Light,et al.  Coaches' experiences of Game Sense: opportunities and challenges , 2004 .

[26]  M. Mcneill,et al.  Teaching teachers to play and teach games , 2005 .

[27]  Herbert Snyder,et al.  Qualitative interviewing: The art of hearing data , 1996 .

[28]  Christopher J. Cushion,et al.  Reflection in Coach Education: The Case of the National Governing Body Coaching Certificate , 2006 .

[29]  Linda Darling-Hammond,et al.  The Right to Learn and the Advancement of Teaching: Research, Policy, and Practice for Democratic Education , 1996 .

[30]  John Lyle,et al.  Sports Coaching Concepts: A Framework for Coaches' Behaviour , 2002 .

[31]  I. Rovegno,et al.  Norms of the School Culture That Facilitated Teacher Adoption and Learning of a Constructivist Approach to Physical Education , 1997 .

[32]  P. Schempp,et al.  ‘In the local context’: Singaporean challenges to teaching games on practicum , 2004 .

[33]  Pierre Trudel,et al.  Role of the Coach: How Model Youth Team Sport Coaches Frame Their Roles , 2004 .

[34]  C. Fosnot.  Constructivism : theory, perspectives, and practice , 1996 .

[35]  Peter R. Giacobbi,et al.  Stress and coping during the transition to university for first-year female athletes. , 2004 .

[36]  Joan M. Fry,et al.  Book review: Play practice:The games approach to teaching and coaching sports by A. G. Launder. , 2001 .

[37]  Martyn Hammersley,et al.  Ethnography : Principles in Practice , 1983 .

[38]  D. Kirk,et al.  Implementing a Game Sense Approach to Teaching Junior High School Basketball in a Naturalistic Setting , 2000 .

[39]  Jan Wright,et al.  A social semiotic analysis of knowledge construction and games centred approaches to teaching , 2007 .

[40]  N Konttinen,et al.  Brain slow potentials reflecting successful shooting performance. , 1995, Research quarterly for exercise and sport.

[41]  David Gilbourne,et al.  Reflecting on reflection: exploring the practice of sports coaching graduates , 2006 .

[42]  I. Rovegno,et al.  Content-Knowledge Acquisition During Undergraduate Teacher Education: Overcoming Cultural Templates and Learning Through Practice , 1993 .

[43]  D. Penney,et al.  Teaching under the influence: feeding Games for Understanding into the Sport Education development-refinement cycle , 2005 .

[44]  M. Windschitl.  Framing Constructivism in Practice as the Negotiation of Dilemmas: An Analysis of the Conceptual, Pedagogical, Cultural, and Political Challenges Facing Teachers , 2002 .

[45]  J. Butler.  TGfU pet-agogy: old dogs, new tricks and puppy school , 2005 .

[46]  Ann MacPhail,et al.  Teaching Games for Understanding and Situated Learning: Rethinking the Bunker-Thorpe Model , 2002 .