Parents Coaching PD and training?

[Lilou]

I can't post in the Coaches forum but after reading various posts on coaching issues here, and having our own experiences with different coaches, it made me wonder if gymnastics coaches on all levels are required to do professional development training? Any compliance and ethics training as part of their annual association membership?
I am a coach for a different sport, and we are required to go through training every year if we want to be part of the professional membership association (which is generally required to coach anyway).
It really helps set a unified tone of how to speak to the young athletes and what's ok to say and what's not. And of course there's more you learn but given some of the posts I've seen here asking about how coaches are speaking and coaching their athletes, I wondered in gymnastics if this exists.
Is there an equivalent for gymnastics coaches?

 

[Jenny]

Not sure in US but here in the UK we have to do regular 'safe guarding' courses which covers a little of things like that and other stuff too.

But we have to pass strict coaching qualifications to be able to coach anyway. The first allows you assist another coach and the second allows you to take a group by yourself. The third allows you to run your own club. The qualifications include practical exams and a logbook which includes ethics and other things as well as planning and biomechanics etc. You also need a first aid certificate and professional membership.

I believe you don't need any qualifications in the US to coach just first aid and professional membership. Scary.

 

[Lilou]

Not sure in US but here in the UK we have to do regular 'safe guarding' courses which covers a little of things like that and other stuff too.

But we have to pass strict coaching qualifications to be able to coach anyway. The first allows you assist another coach and the second allows you to take a group by yourself. The third allows you to run your own club. The qualifications include practical exams and a logbook which includes ethics and other things as well as planning and biomechanics etc. You also need a first aid certificate and professional membership.

I believe you don't need any qualifications in the US to coach just first aid and professional membership. Scary.

I really hope there are some stricter qualifications and professional development requirements here for all levels of coaches. I hadn't really thought about it until I started reading how different it seems coaches are in their talking to gymnasts, training them, etc... by reading this forum. Glad to hear your country has requirements.

 

[Deleted member 14190]

We have to take a few courses yes, including a background check.

 

[Becauseisaid]

We have to take a few courses yes, including a background check.

That would be for team coaches who plan to be on the floor during meets. Rec coaches do not have these requirements.

A gym owner could quite literally hire anyone they want to be a recreational coach. Now, a conscientious gym owner will conduct background checks and provide ongoing training to their staff. But I don't believe it is anywhere in USAG rules that to be a member gym that you HAVE to do this with your rec staff with the exception of having 1 staff member 18 years or older who holds a professional or safety certified instructor certification in USAG.

https://usagym.org/pages/membership/pages/reg_requirements.html?prog=au

 

[Becauseisaid]

We have to take a few courses yes, including a background check.

That would be for team coaches who plan to be on the floor during meets. Rec coaches do not have these requirements.

A gym owner could quite literally hire anyone they want to be a recreational coach. Now, a conscientious gym owner will conduct background checks and provide ongoing training to their staff. But I don't believe it is anywhere in USAG rules that to be a member gym that you HAVE to do this with your rec staff with the exception of having 1 staff member 18 years or older who holds a professional or safety certified instructor certification in USAG.

https://usagym.org/pages/membership/pages/reg_requirements.html?prog=au

 

[Becauseisaid]

Crap. Got a bit of a stammer there.

 

[bogwoppit]

Here in Canada you are not allowed to coach in a gym without being qualified. That takes time and money. I do not believe that is the case in the US unless you want to be at a sanctioned gym meet.

 

[Jenny]

That would be for team coaches who plan to be on the floor during meets. Rec coaches do not have these requirements.

A gym owner could quite literally hire anyone they want to be a recreational coach. Now, a conscientious gym owner will conduct background checks and provide ongoing training to their staff. But I don't believe it is anywhere in USAG rules that to be a member gym that you HAVE to do this with your rec staff with the exception of having 1 staff member 18 years or older who holds a professional or safety certified instructor certification in USAG.

https://usagym.org/pages/membership/pages/reg_requirements.html?prog=au

That is very scary. Ours have to have a back ground check and be qualified coach (to be in charge of a group) and do safeguarding and first aid I think. For rec or team. You can assist unqualified I believe.

 

[Deleted member 14190]

I don't have anything to do with rec, but from what I hear from our Rec director, it's very hard to get personalities to do rec. I know as a club our rec coaches go through BC checks and I believe first aid. But I can't imagine how difficult it would be to hire rec coaches if they had to get certified first. They come and go all the time. Just saying.

 

[bogwoppit]

I don't have anything to do with rec, but from what I hear from our Rec director, it's very hard to get personalities to do rec. I know as a club our rec coaches go through BC checks and I believe first aid. But I can't imagine how difficult it would be to hire rec coaches if they had to get certified first. They come and go all the time. Just saying.

Well our rec coaches have to be qualified, and gyms will pay for that, they tend to stick around for a long time. This is the link to our training program.

http://www.gymcan.org/coaching/become-a-coach

I think the UK training is even more intense, and many coaches their are unpaid, they seem to have good retention too.

 

[wandrewsjr]

I don't have anything to do with rec, but from what I hear from our Rec director, it's very hard to get personalities to do rec. I know as a club our rec coaches go through BC checks and I believe first aid. But I can't imagine how difficult it would be to hire rec coaches if they had to get certified first. They come and go all the time. Just saying.

Yes, the sheer volume of kids in recreational gymnastics in the US I don't think they have in other countries. We really don't have physical education in schools any more here, so lots and lots of parents sign up their kids for gymnastics classes(1 or 2 hours a week), partly to get that recreational physical outlet. It is a big challenge for most gyms just to find enough staff. Most gyms have a fairly structured system of checklists, skills that are worked on in each class to help keep things consistent and safe.

I think I remember reading a stat somewhere that about 5 millions plus kids do gymnastics in the US(and that was just age 6+, not tot, preschool, kindergym classes). That would be roughly the equivalent of 1 millions kids in GB doing gymnastics. Just did a quick google search and found something that said participation in GB is about 100,000. If those stats are true it means in the US we have to find 10 times as many coaches to cover all the kids.

 

[Jenny]

I don't have anything to do with rec, but from what I hear from our Rec director, it's very hard to get personalities to do rec. I know as a club our rec coaches go through BC checks and I believe first aid. But I can't imagine how difficult it would be to hire rec coaches if they had to get certified first. They come and go all the time. Just saying.

Why would a professional sports coach not be qualified? Would you have your child taught by an unqualified teacher? It is expected here so it is done. You can start assisting unqualified. The qualifications are expensive and time consuming and not easy! So there is always a shortage of coaches. And they do come and go a bit it is true.

 

[Iwannabemargo]

preach about the expensive, the first assistant one is £500 !

 

[Deleted member 14190]

Why would a professional sports coach not be qualified? Would you have your child taught by an unqualified teacher? It is expected here so it is done. You can start assisting unqualified. The qualifications are expensive and time consuming and not easy! So there is always a shortage of coaches. And they do come and go a bit it is true.

Pro members do. On a rec level, I am sure some day it will get to that.

 

[wandrewsjr]

Never thought about it too much before, but it seems to be primarily a cultural difference. We do have a national governing body that sanction gymnastics competitions(USAG) so they get to say who can coach on the floor at those competitions and require a certification process for that. But they don't get to decide who is qualified to coach recreational gymnastics(and the furthest they could ever get is to say you can't bring kids to our competitions unless everyone employed at your gym does so and so). They will never get to the point of telling every gymnastics business in the US who they can and can't hire.

I think here recreational sports are viewed more as a consumer good than an educational endeavor that need to be regulated by the state. The consumer has all the power here in deciding what is best for their kid, and thus far consumers have not decided that having an extensive certification process is important to them when choosing a recreational gymnastics program. They want a safe, well lit, clean facility with nice new equipment and a teacher that their kids can have fun with.

 

[Aussie_coach]

Yes, in Australia. Coaches need to complete a minimum number of updating points every year in order to be reregistered the following year.

They can earn points from online courses, face to face courses, workshops, first aid courses, working with higher level coaches etc.

 

[Pineapple_Lump]

Pro members do. On a rec level, I am sure some day it will get to that.

I hope for the clubs that it does not go that way. While it sounds nice to say all coaches are USAG certified. The reality is rec coaches are generally casual employees and they tend not to last long term. For us they are often students who intend to move onto bigger and better things in another field. They are usually pretty good coaches but not in it for the long haul, most of the clubs in my area are able to operate because of these coaches who do a few hours here and there each week. To put them through GA's accreditation process is really expensive comparative to the number of hours worked and their long term plans. All persons involved with children must have a form of background check here, which I agree with. I don't agree with GA making strong requirements for the level of accreditation, especially since our coaches come away from beginner and intermediate courses saying it was boring and a waste of time (they learn more in the club) and that they learn't more from other participants than from the course/presenter. GA seems to be very good at doing things on paper, they look good on paper. I don't see a problem with 'unqualified' coaches in the club if they have experienced coaches around them and receive training.

 

[Aussie_coach]

All our coaches regardless of how many hours they do a week are required to be accredited. In order for gymnasts in a Gymnastics Australia club to be covered by the JLT insurance the gymnasts need to be in a class taught by a registered and accredited coach who is up to date with their points and are only teaching skills that their qualification allows.

 

[bogwoppit]

All our coaches regardless of how many hours they do a week are required to be accredited. In order for gymnasts in a Gymnastics Australia club to be covered by the JLT insurance the gymnasts need to be in a class taught by a registered and accredited coach who is up to date with their points and are only teaching skills that their qualification allows.

Exactly the same here.