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The Open University

Exploring sport coaching and psychology

The Open University via OpenLearn

Overview

Have you experience of sport or fitness coaching either as a participant or a coach? Are you inquisitive about how sport works behind the scenes? In this free course, Exploring sport coaching and psychology, you will explore the influence of coaching and psychology through the lens of sports people and teams who have been successful. You will focus on coaching practices used with young people and adults, including research and advice of leaders in their fields.The course is introduced by GB hockey player Alex Danson. Alex features throughout the course and you will learn about how coaching and psychology have contributed to her success in sport.Transcript351The course investigates how scientific and management ideas contribute to success, while also taking you on a journey through unique sporting case studies and insights that will change how you view and study sport. You will consider how the mind, the body, the environment and training techniques all contribute to optimum fitness.By understanding coaching and psychology's influence on sporting careers, you will begin to identify useful aspects that might contribute to your own development, whether that be in sport, study or life in general. Working through this course will help you to gain the inside knowledge to impress in any applications or at interviews. The course will also prepare you for further study. The course is supported and strongly recommended by UK Coaching (formerly Sports Coach UK). Whether you're just starting out or have been coaching for many years you will learn new skills and demonstrate that you have been proactive in your professional development. Enrolling on the course will give you the opportunity to earn an Open University digital badge. Badges are not accredited by The Open University but they're a great way to demonstrate your interest in the subject and commitment to your career, and to provide evidence of continuing professional development.Once you are signed in, you can manage your digital badges online from My OpenLearn. In addition, you can download and print your OpenLearn statement of participation - which also displays your Open University badge.Other organisations using thiscourseThe International Olympic Committee: the AthleteLearning Gateway 352 recommendthis course as part of onward study for their users.The ProfessionalGolfers Association 353(PGA): PGA Members will be able to download a certificate of completion from the PGA so that learning can be added as a structured formal learning opportunity on their CPD records. British Canoeing  recognise the badge awarded forcompletion of this course as coaches’ continual professional development validfor 18 months from the issue date of the badgeThis course is accredited by the CPD Standards Office. It can be used to provide evidence of continuing professional development and on successful completion of the course you will be awarded 24 CPD points. Evidence of your CPD achievement is provided on the free Statement of Participation awarded on completion.Anyone wishing to provide evidence of their enrolment on this course is able to do so by sharing their Activity Record on their OpenLearn Profile, which is available before completion of the course and earning of the Statement of Participation.

Syllabus

  • Introduction and guidance
  • Introduction and guidance
  • What is a badged course?
  • How to get a badge
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session1Session 1: Exploring sporting success
  • Introduction
  • 1 Sporting success
  • 2 Your beliefs about sporting ability
  • 3 The anatomy of a world record
  • 4 Champions talk
  • 5 Coaching and psychology in sports performance
  • 6 What conversations do coaches and psychologists have?
  • 7 This session’s quiz
  • 8 Summary
  • References
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session2Session 2: Coaching children: enhancing fun and friendships
  • Introduction
  • 1 One sport or many?
  • 2 The making of an ice princess
  • 3 What does excellent child coaching look like?
  • 4 Maintaining enthusiasm in a professional sport
  • 5 What does ‘fun’ mean in children’s sport?
  • 6 Play the ‘Medal Quest’ online game
  • 7 This session’s quiz
  • 8 Summary
  • References
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session3Session 3: Guiding teenagers towards success and life
  • Introduction
  • 1 How fast do teenagers grow?
  • 2 Why being born in May has its advantages
  • 3 What about brain maturation?
  • 4 A psychologist’s experience of working with teenagers
  • 5 Confidence and emotions in teenagers
  • 6 I could do that: role models
  • 7 This session’s quiz
  • 8 Summary
  • References
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session4Session 4: Comparing international level coaches
  • Introduction
  • 1 What drives international athletes?
  • 2 Comparing top coaches
  • 3 What about coaching individual-based sports?
  • 4 How would you recruit a team?
  • 5 This session’s quiz
  • 6 Summary
  • References
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session5Session 5: Mindset and attitudes towards sport and learning
  • Introduction
  • 1 Revisiting your attitudes towards success
  • 2 Your experience of ‘mindset’
  • 3 Where do beliefs about ability come from?
  • 4 Making it early in sport
  • 5 Sports psychologists explain their work
  • 6 Psychological characteristics explained
  • 7 This session’s quiz
  • 8 Summary
  • References
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session6Session 6: Psychological skills for life and sport
  • Introduction
  • 1 Chris Hoy’s story
  • 2 The art of performing under pressure
  • 3 Fear and anxiety
  • 4 Managing your emotions and anxiety
  • 5 Seeing challenge as an opportunity
  • 6 Emphasising the familiar: pre-competition routines
  • 7 Self-talk before important sporting moments
  • 8 Self-talk before penalty taking
  • 9 This session’s quiz
  • 10 Summary
  • References
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session7Session 7: A fresh look at coaching
  • Introduction
  • 1 How do coaches design practice sessions?
  • 2 Richard Bailey’s ‘coaching commandments’
  • 2.1 You learn to play by playing the game
  • 2.2 Coaching and creativity
  • 3 Quality not quantity of practice
  • 4 Richard Bailey’s other commandments – how to coach
  • 5 Final thoughts: a fresh approach?
  • 6 This session’s quiz
  • 7 Summary
  • References
  • Acknowledgements
  • Session8Session 8: The future of coaching: technological influences
  • Introduction
  • 1 Where next in coaching and exercise?
  • 2 Recovering from intense exercise
  • 3 Wearable technology
  • 4 How much can we trust what journalists say?
  • 5 How to evaluate a claim or innovation
  • 6 Examining ‘The filter that spots trainability’
  • 7 Examining ‘Tools to warm up the mind’
  • 7.1 Exploring further
  • 8 Thinking about where your sport and/or coaching is going
  • 9 This session’s quiz
  • 10 Summary
  • 11 Where next for developing your future?
  • Tell us what you think
  • References
  • Acknowledgements

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