Coaching Philosophy Paper

Philosophy Paper The level of coaching that I want to coach is high school and I would love to be the head coach for the girls’ cross-country team. I interviewed my cross-country coach from high school. His name is John Hay and he is the girls’ cross-country head coach at William Horlick High School in Racine, WI. I interviewed him via email and this took place on December 1st. Coach Hay believes that the most important aspect in coach is the development of athletes. Coach Hay says, “Helping athletes improve as the season progresses would be my main goal as a coach. A lot depends on the athletes work ethic and level of motivation to succeed as well.” He also believes that having fun can also tie into winning. Some people considering winning fun, but cross- country is a little different and much more than just winning. Coach Hay says, “You can have fun in this sport without a winning team. Individuals can run a personal record (PR) which I consider winning, but the team might finish poorly in a big meet.” Coach Hay believes that making practice fun is important, but it is also important to stress the importance of working hard to accomplish the goal of improving one’s time. Coach Hay has influenced my philosophy on coaching a lot since I have known him. He is what I strive for in my coaching ethics. I agree with all his beliefs in winning, development of athletes, and having fun. The development of athletes is definitely the most important in coaching because every coach wants to see their athletes improve over time, not get worse, but it also depends on the willingness of the athlete whether or not he/she wants to work hard to improve. I believe that fun would be the second important concept in coaching. Making practice fun will make your athletes actually want to keep pushing and working hard towards their goals. Lastly, winning, I believe that winning is important because winning will make the athletes want to keep participating, but I also believe that winning is not the most important concept in a sport. I want to enter the coaching profession because I believe that sports play an important role in shaping individuals into the person they become. I believe that everyone should get involved in sports as a kid and stick with it through middle school, high school, and even college. Participating in high school sports is not only good for your body because of the fitness, but also good for your academics. “A survey conducted by the Minnesota State High School League in 2007 and reported by the NFHS found that the average GPA of a high school athlete was 2.84, while a student who was not involved in athletics have an average GPA of 2.68.” (Chen) (Standard 1) Coaches play an important role in the athletes lives. Not just as the coach, but as a mentor, friend, or supporter. “Most athletes are highly motivated and therefore the task is to maintain that motivation and to generate excitement and enthusiasm.” (Role of Coach) Athletes look up to their coaches a lot and that it what mostly motivates them to do well and strive for the best. Athletes look at their coaches to motivate, support, and help them when they are struggling. (Standard 2) It is very important for coaches to know the subjects they are coaching. This is important because creating learning experiences for the athletes will stick with them for the rest of their lives and shape the person they will become. (Standard 1) Being a coach is much more than bettering athletes, but you also better yourself. Coaching can help you meet goals that you have for yourself, have a clear view of your morals, having more self-confindence, and you gain time management. Time management is very important in being a coach because you have to be able to manage having a family, but also having to put a lot of time into your job. Coaching takes up a lot of time. Some aspects that go into coaching that take up time are making practice plans, being at the high school before school ends for the students, being prepared for practice, and staying late for athletes to help them. Those are just a few that are important and that will take up a lot of your time. (Standard 9) I will measure success in my program by creating a safe and fun environment for athletes. I will make sure that practices are fun, but that the practices stress the importance of meeting goals that they set at the beginning of the season. I am motivated by pervious coaches that I have had. My pervious coaches make me want to strive for the same goals that they implemented. The benefits that I will get out of coaching will be that I helped many student athletes reach their goals, knowing that students look up to me as a mentor or friend, and knowing that I made a difference in my athletes lives.