Magazine

Recommendations

Info

The Boot Room Issue 15 April 2016 30 | 31 question cards IN YOUR COACHING USE OF ? Rich Cooper, FA County Coach Developer, explains why question cards are a useful tool to help the reflective process. ? Why is it important to get player feedback when reflecting on a session? I happened to be visiting a secondary school in Lincolnshire some years ago and on walking past the science classroom I became aware of the teacher using question cards at the end of the science lesson that had just been taught. This got me thinking that this could form part of my coaching sessions going forward, to either focus on what the players are going to do, or in this case, allowing players to review their performance in the session. This process has proved invaluable to me in listening to the players’ responses to my questioning to ascertain their understanding, thoughts and ideas prompted through interaction with their peers in small groups (pairs or threes at most).This in turn helps me shape further planning through the review process, based not just on my observations but also what the players say. ?? Why are the question cards an important part of framing a session (before/after)? Rich Cooper uses question cards to facilitate discussion with a group of young players. I used the question card process for the first time at a session I delivered at a primary school in Bristol and I was amazed at how well the young players enjoyed and were empowered by being given the responsibility and ownership to discuss with each other their thoughts and ideas. The question cards have also been used on several occasions early in the session after the players have had a chance to sample how the session works, so from a future tense perspective the players can discuss their ideas on where the difficulties may lie and how they can work together to problem solve. The players then quickly move on to experience their ideas in practice to see if they gain success. Towards the end, or at the completion of the session, different question cards in past tense can be used to review specific areas of their own and team performance relating to the session aims and outcomes.
The Boot Room Issue 15 April 2016 32 | 33 ? How do you choose what questions to ask? ?? How do you use the players’ responses to affect your next session? Top 5 tips for grassroots coaches to implement in their sessions The questions you select need to be carefully compiled depending on where the players are in their stage of development and their range and depth of experiences on which they can form an answer. This needs profound consideration and also at what stage of the session you intend to use your question cards and what you want to find out from the players' thoughts. I have highlighted six areas of the coaching session and example higher (H) and lower (L) level questions: 1 Knowledge and Recall What the players know already and what they can remember from the previous session, or sessions Eg. What two things did you do in the last session and why? L 2 Comprehension What the players understand and what areas of the session they are starting to have a grasp of Eg. I understand how…………………because……………..? H Can you assess from observing a players performance alone whether they are showing understanding or not? By listening carefully to the players’ responses then this can form your planning for your next session, whether that is to regress, revisit or progress on where you consider the players are in their learning. “It makes you think more about football than just playing it” Josh, U11 Collingham FC “It made us focus on what we did in the session” Malik, U9 Collingham FC 1 2 3 Choose your questions carefully. What do you want to find out and tailor the level of questions to the players’ age, ability and experience. The coaching world is a busy place to be but try and review your coaching session as soon as you can whilst reflecting on the responses from the players to inform your decisions on the planning of your next session. Use the question cards at the start of your next session which allows the players to reflect on what they did in the previous session, or sessions. This will help them link the learning together like building blocks. 3 Application How the players use their understanding or knowledge in practice Eg. If we……………because this will……………….? 4 Synthesis How the players can blend and fuse the elements of the session together and create links in learning Eg. At what times during the session did you find it was difficult? “I really enjoyed discussing ideas with my teammates” Harry, U9 Collingham FC “It helps me remember better what we have been doing so that I can improve next time” Ava, U11 Lincoln Girls Centre of Excellence 4 5 Maximise playing time by using drinks breaks and transition time between session elements to utilise the question cards. The players want to play and this process shouldn’t diminish playing time but instead make the play more meaningful and productive. Frequently review your question cards and amend through trial and error. You can let the players select or offer ‘pot luck’ to discuss. 5 Analysis How the players can investigate, scrutinise and explore their learning by trying new things Eg. What will you try to do in the next session and why? *The skilled use of question cards can help your players develop better metacognitive skills. H L 6 Evaluation How the learning taking place can be assessed and how the players can appraise their own performance or the performance of others Eg. What have you learnt in today’s session that makes you wonder how to…………..because…………...? L H “With the use of the question cards it makes it easier to link what I practice to game play. The cards are a visual reference point which makes me think about what I am going to attempt before performing it” Imogen, U15 Lincoln Girls Centre of Excellence *Metacognition refers to awareness of one’s own knowledge – what one does and doesn’t know – and one’s own ability to understand, control and manipulate one’s own cognitive processes (Meichenbaum, 1985) Richard Cooper is the FA County Coach Developer in Lincolnshire overseeing the coach development and coach education programme in the county. A former professional player, Richard has worked in the academies at Sheffield United and Scunthorpe United before joining The FA. He is particularly interested in how coaching embraces innovative learning and teaching processes.
Page 1 and 2: THE The FA Licensed Coaches’ Club
Page 3 and 4: 4 | 5 Foreword The Boot Room magazi
Page 5 and 6: The Boot Room Issue 15 April 2016 8
Page 7 and 8: 12 | 13 “With Dele we would celeb
Page 15: The Boot Room Issue 15 April 2016 2
Page 27 and 28: The Boot Room Issue 15 April 2016 H
Page 33 and 34: 64 | 65 Read The Boot Room and help

Magazine

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?