“Learning the Hard Way”: Understanding the Workplace Learning of Sports Coach Mentors

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to understand the workplace learning of sports coach mentors. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 18 coach mentors employed by a sport governing body (SGB) as part of a formalised mentoring programme. ‘Current’ coach mentors (n = 9) had been employed for a minimum of one year by the organisation and were all interviewed once. ‘New’ coach mentors (n = 9) were all interviewed twice, once at the start of their employment and once again 9 months later. Moreover, regional mentors (n = 8) who oversee the training and practice of the coach mentors participated in one focus group. Data were analysed thematically, with the sociology of Pierre Bourdieu and relevant workplace learning literature used to support the analytical process. The findings highlight how habitus structures coach mentors’ participation in learning opportunities afforded to them in the workplace. In addition, habitus and embodied capital will impact how coach mentors interact with and interpret mentor training, whilst influencing their level of engagement with other employees. It is argued SGB social fields are crucial in the production of promoted norms and ‘legitimate’ knowledge within workplaces, which subsequently influences mentor learning. Recommendations are made for critically transformative approaches to training coach mentors.

An Investigation Into Coach Developers’ Theories in Practice, Learning, and Development on a Continuing Professional Development Course

“…Argyris (1990Argyris ( , 1991 identified that the gaps between espoused theories and theories-in-use were caused by inadequate training or organisational control by superiors. This separation between espoused theories and theories-in-use is a problem in any professional practice by potentially limiting learning opportunities, as well as being a source of uncritical acceptance and reproduction of knowledge, understanding, and practice (e.g., Cushion et al, 2019, Leeder et al, 2019, Stodter & Cushion, 2019. A person's espoused theories then may or may not match their observed theories-in-use in practice.…”

“…As these roles have become more established, research interest has also increased, as exemplified by a special issue in the International Journal of Sport Coaching dedicated to the coach developer (Callary & Gearity, 2019). What has become clear from this work is for coach developers to most effectively support coaches, they need a comprehensive knowledge and understanding of learning and pedagogy (e.g., Stodter & Cushion, 2019, Leeder, Russell & Beaumont, 2019.…”

Youth Basketball Coaches’ Perceptions and Implementation of Fundamental Movement Skills Training: Toward a Realist Evaluation

“…A limitation of this study is that we are asking coaches to describe their practice in relation to the implementation of FMS and non-sport skills. Thus, we want to emphasize that we are only exploring the experiences of coaching from perspectives of the coaches themselves and that we cannot therefore assume that the participants have any depth of awareness of their own practice (Leeder et al, 2019;Partington & Cushion, 2013). We argue future research is required to explore the implementation of FMS interventions in specific jurisdictions to better understand multiple dimensions of resistance when it comes to the implementation of policy in coaching practice.…”

Reviewing the sports coach mentoring literature: a look back to take a step forward

“…The recruitment process of mentors can be best described as loose and haphazard (Chambers, 2015), with individuals often recruited because they are simply enthusiastic, alongside exemplifying the right attitude (Chambers, 2015;Jones et al, 2009). Moreover, formalised mentoring programmes are often driven by institutional agendas (Leeder & Cushion, 2019;Sawiuk et al, 2018), hence, mentors might be recruited due to their portrayed acceptance of the employing GB's beliefs and values (Leeder, Russell, & Beaumont, 2019).…”