Coach Education Essentials

Sport coaches have a tremendous influence—positive or negative—in the lives of athletes. Too often, however, the delivery of quality coaching is left to chance. Athletes deserve coaches who create positive environments, foster skill development, and build character.  

In Coach Education Essentials, leading coach educators and professionals from around the world cover the core elements of coach education and development, and describe how best to understand, cultivate, and evaluate quality coaching.

Edited by Kristen Dieffenbach, PhD, and Melissa Thompson, PhD, this text is the most authoritative resource on the topic ever assembled, and the book’s contributors represent a who’s who of coach education:

John Bales
Gordon Bloom
Trey Burdette
Penny Crisfield
Edward Cope
Kristen Dieffenbach
Lori Gano-Overway
Brian Gearity
Wade Gilbert
Daniel Gould
Matthew Grant
Stephen Harvey
Luke Jones
Cameron Kiosoglous
Clayton Kuklick
Sergio Lara-Bercial
Sarah McQuade
Jenny Nalepa
Christine Nash
Matt Robinson
Ronald Smith
Frank Smoll
Melissa Thompson
Cecile Reynaud
Charles Wilson Jr.

Grounded in current research and emerging trends in the field of coach education, Coach Education Essentials adheres to the guidelines for coach education and development established by the International Council for Coaching Excellence (ICCE) and is consistent with the ICCE’s International Sport Coaching Framework.

The chapters cover the roles and responsibilities of the coach across various levels of sport, ranging from prepubescent participation to Olympic-level competition; current models of coaching education, training, and certification used by leading international sport organizations; and the evaluation of coach education.

Coach Education Essentials is a comprehensive, insightful, and practical resource for those invested in the development and advancement of quality coaching and coaching education. It will be an asset to all who promote coaching as a profession.

Audience

Instructors of upper-level courses on coaching, sport management, and sport psychology; academics and researchers in coaching education and related fields; and academic libraries. Also for coach developers and athletic administrators as well as coach education directors in coaching associations, sport federations, and sport organizations.

Part I. Establishing a Strong Educational Base to Coach

Chapter 1. Frameworks for Coach Education and Development
Kristen Dieffenbach
The Intersection of Sport Culture and Coaching
Coaching Education: Time for an Upgrade
Future Directions
Summary

Chapter 2. Ethical and Philosophical Grounding of Coaches
Melissa Thompson
Ethics in Sport Coaching
Approaches to Understanding Ethics
Developing Ethics
The Coaching Philosophy
Summary

Chapter 3. Holistic, Athlete-Centered Coaching Orientation
Charles H. Wilson Jr. and Trey Burdette
Coaching in the Real World
Foundations of HACC
Becoming a Holistic, Athlete-Centered Coach
Create the Right Motivational Climate and Culture
Challenges to Holistic, Athlete-Centered Coaching
Conquest Coaching
Summary

Chapter 4. Athlete Development Process and Coaching
Matt Robinson
Athlete Development
Athlete Development Defined
Status of Athlete Development in the United States
The Role of the Coach in the Developmental Stages
The Role of the Coach in Athlete Development
Coaching in an Athlete Development Model
The Five-by-Four Coaching Model
Summary

Chapter 5. Coach Instruction for Effective Athlete Instruction
Matthew A. Grant
What Coaches Should Know
What Coaches Should Do
Summary

Part II. Teaching Coaches to Excel Within Their Context

Chapter 6. Educating Youth Sport Coaches: An Empirically Supported Training Program
Frank L. Smoll and Ronald E. Smith
Theoretical Model and Research Paradigm
Measurement of Coaching Behaviors
Coach Behaviors and Children’s Evaluative Reactions
Achievement Goal Theory and Coaching
Translating Basic Research Findings Into a Coach Intervention
Outcome Research
Dissemination
Summary

Chapter 7. Coaching Club and Interscholastic Sports
Daniel Gould and Jenny Nalepa
Characteristics of Scholastic and Club Athletes
Participation Effects or Outcomes
Best Coaching Practice
Challenges, Barriers, and Key Issues
Implications for Guiding Practice
Summary

Chapter 8. College and High-Level Amateur Sports
Cecile Reynaud
High-Level Amateur Sports
Collegiate Coaching
Set the Vision and Strategy
Shape the Environment
Build Relationships
Conduct Practices and Structure Competitions
Read and React to the Field
Learn and Reflect
Summary

Chapter 9. Coach Education of Professional- and Olympic-Level Coaches
Cameron Kiosoglous
Defining and Understanding the Context of Professional and Olympic Sports
Understanding Deliberate Practice in the Context of High-Performance Coaching
Defining Sport Coaching Success
Excelling Within This Context
Application in Practice
Summary

Chapter 10. Paralympic Sport Coaching
Gordon A. Bloom
History of Paralympic Sport
Career Progression and Learning of Paralympic Coaches
Paralympic Coach Leadership
Summary

Part III. Developing the Best Coaches

Chapter 11. Current Models of Coach Education, Training, and Certification
Sarah McQuade
The United Kingdom
South Africa
New Zealand
Canada
Summary

Chapter 12. International Coach Education and Development: A Case Study
Sergio Lara-Bercial and John Bales
The International Council for Coaching Excellence
The International Sport Coaching Framework
Examples of a Framework Approach to Coach Education and Development
Implementation Challenges
Summary

Chapter 13. Professional Development Opportunities for Coaches
Christine Nash
A Professionalism Approach
Transitions to Expertise
Career Transitions in Coaching: The Importance of Context
Summary

Chapter 14. Career Guidance and Mentorships for Coaches
Clayton R. Kuklick and Brian T. Gearity
Types of Sport Participation
Types of Knowledge Needed for Effective Coaching
How Coaches Learn to Be Effective
Career Development
Summary

Chapter 15. Long-Term Coach Development Process
Penny Crisfield
The Complexity of Coaching: The Changing Role of Coaches, Coaching, and Coach Development
Developing Coaching Expertise
How a Professional Learns: Opportunities for Improving the Current Approach
Exploring New Models of Learning Within Sport Coach Education
Coach Developers
Summary

Part IV. Evaluating the Impact of Coach Education

Chapter 16. Reflection on Accreditation and Endorsement of Coach Education and Development Programs
Lori A. Gano-Overway
Accreditation: What It Is and Why It Is Important
Insight Into Accreditation and Endorsements: What It Looks Like Now
Coach Learning and Development: Issues and Concerns for Accreditation and Endorsement Programs
Sport Coaching Standards and Competencies: Issues and Concerns for Accreditation and Endorsement Programs
Future Considerations for Accreditation and Endorsement Schemes
Summary

Chapter 17. Standards for Coaching Effectiveness
Wade Gilbert
The Journey From Coaching Legend to Scientific Frameworks for Quality Coaching: Learning From the “Coach of the Century”
Scientific Frameworks and Standards for Coaching Effectiveness
Measuring Standards of Coaching Effectiveness
Summary

Chapter 18. Coach Behavior and Performance Analysis
Stephen Harvey, Edward Cope, and Luke Jones
Coaching Behavior
A Rationale for Performance Analysis Practices in Coaching
Summary

Appendix A. The Role of the National Standards for Sport Coaches in Coach Learning
Appendix B. Coaching Education Program Accreditation Requirements
Appendix C. Bachelor Degree Coaching Education Program Guidelines

Kristen Dieffenbach, PhD, is an associate professor of athletic coaching education at West Virginia University. She earned her doctorate in exercise science with an emphasis in exercise and sport psychology from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She is the president of the United States Center for Coaching Excellence and has served as a member of the executive board of the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP). She also serves on the research committee for the International Council for Coaching Excellence.

Dieffenbach’s areas of educational, research, and consultation concentration include coaching education, professional issues in coaching, ethics in coaching, performance enhancement, and long-term athlete talent development. She has worked on numerous grants, projects, and consultations in these areas for the U.S. Olympic Committee, U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, United States Tennis Association, USA Cycling, USA Hockey, USA Triathlon, U.S. Paralympics, USA Swimming, USA Water Polo, Peaks Coaching Group, and Carmichael Training Systems.

Dieffenbach has published research articles in scientific journals, authored and co-authored numerous book chapters, and written for applied publications such as Olympic Coach, VeloNews, and Dirt Rag. She has also served as an expert panelist for the Outdoor Life Network and for publications such as Runner’s World, Performance Conditioning for Cycling, Backpacker, Bicycling, and Adventure Sports.

Together with Steve McCauley, Dieffenbach co-authored Bike Racing for Juniors, a book for coaches, parents, and young cyclists. She has also written or co-authored chapters for U.S. Tennis, USA Cycling, and the U.S. Marine Corps. As an AASP-certified consultant, Dieffenbach works with a wide range of athletes and coaches as a consultant and educator.

As a coach, she holds an elite-level USA Cycling license and has earned a level 2 endurance specialization from USA Track and Field. She has coached at the high school, collegiate, and elite levels. Currently, she coaches both semi-professional and professional road cyclists, mountain bikers, and adventure racers. She specializes in working with junior and Espoir elite athletes, and she runs a mountain bike development camp for USA Cycling.

A former Division I runner and road cyclist, Dieffenbach now enjoys endurance and ultra-endurance multi-sport racing. She specializes in 24-to-72-hour adventure racing events.

Melissa Thompson, PhD, is an associate professor at the University of Southern Mississippi, where she has coordinated the sport coaching education program since 2008. She instructs sport psychology and sport coaching courses at the undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral levels. She was appointed director of student-athlete development for the university’s athletic department when the program was established in 2017.

Thompson is a board member of the United States Center for Coaching Excellence. She is certified by the Association for Applied Sport Psychology, the International Council for Coaching Excellence, and the National Strength and Conditioning Association, and she is a member of the U.S. Olympic Committee Sport Psychology Registry and several other organizations. She previously served on the national sport steering committee for SHAPE America as the coaching representative, a position that allowed her to co-author the alliance position statement on minimum levels of coaching education for all levels of sport. Her publications, in both scholarly and trade journals, are focused on coach development and are a combination of empirical research and application-based articles.

From 2007 through 2008, Thompson served as a lead graduate teaching assistant at Florida State University, where she earned her doctorate of philosophy in educational psychology with an emphasis in sport psychology. She received her master of science degree in kinesiology from Georgia Southern University, where she also served as an assistant softball coach. Thompson was a member of the women’s softball team at Rockford University (Illinois), where she graduated magna cum laude with a double major in psychology and elementary education.

Create the Right Motivational Climate and Culture
Previous Sporting Experiences and Desire to Coach Disability Sport
The Lost Continuum of Physical Education and Sport

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Test package. Includes 90 questions that can be used to create customized exams.