Tuesday, 27 August 2013

Positive Behavior Management in Sport

Recently, I attended another Sports Coach UK course which was called Positive Behavior Management in Sport. I was interested in the course because over the years I have had to deal with disruptive and unwanted behavior as a coach. I wanted to know what I could do to prevent this and deal with the behavior as it has become an important aspect which I would like to improve on, this is because at the moment we have one or two athletes who misbehave. This is due to behavioral problems such as ADHD but one of the options of dealing with this was asking the athlete to leave the group. I firmly believe that this is not an option! I feel that if this happened I would be letting the athlete down as a coach and be going against everything I believe in, this is in terms of developing and improving the athlete as a performer and a person. 

The course was very insightful and made you think about your coaching environment. They explained that at times what you do as a coach can allow opportunities for unwanted behavior to arise. For example transitions between activities and activities that are too easy or challenging can lead to athletes losing their focus. Another interesting aspect was looking into why might a child misbehave, the course taught me about the social element. Children learn a lot from their parents and friends, this is a massive factor in what kind of things they say or do when they misbehave. The tutor explained that you have to take into consideration the area the athletes live in and this could perhaps influence what they say or do etc. These stereotypes are controversial and can present some useful information to coaches which should be appreciated however, it's important not to judge or hold against the child before you really get to know them. 

The way you talk to the athlete, who has demonstrated unwanted behavior, is crucial because if the coach shows negative language and body language the athlete may feel threatened and this can be classed as bullying; for example, looking down at them and shouting. If you challenge the behavior in a negative manner you could get a clash and a confrontation. This is not helpful for you as the coach, the athlete and the other athletes. Children copy behavior so it's important that you demonstrate positive behavior, this can be sitting them down rather standing or crouching, speaking calmly etc. 

To conclude, as a coach you can prevent unwanted behavior from arising by going in to more depth with planning. Planning the transitions and making sure that the session has progressions and regressions so that the athletes don't find the activities too hard or too easy. Finally, children copy behaviors they see and it is important to set a positive example for the children to follow. 

@dannymaynard92