According to the recently released Australian Bureau of Statistics report, titled ‘Sport and Recreation 1996/97’, at least 4.1 million Australians are involved in playing sport each year and over 600,000 Australians are involved in coaching, instructing or teaching sport.
Although no figures are available on how many sport participants have been coached, instructed or taught, it is reasonable to assume that most sports participants would be offered this type of assistance at some stage.
At the moment, there is no legal requirement for a coach to have a minimum coaching standard before they can coach. In other words, anyone can coach! This raises the concern regarding how it can be ensured that coaches provide safe and quality experiences for sport participants?
Local Councils can play a vital role in ensuring ‘coaching quality’ by promoting the need for local sporting clubs and organisations to use National Coaching Accreditation Scheme (NCAS) registered coaches.
National Coaching Accreditation Scheme (NCAS)
The NCAS was initiated in 1980. Since then over 200,000 coaches from 92 sports have been registered with the NCAS. The NCAS is a partnership between the 92 participating sports and the ACC. The primary aim of the NCAS is to offer education, training and a nationally recognised qualification to coaches at a range of levels – from the beginner through to the elite.
NCAS courses focus on practical outcomes, emphasising the following.
- Efficient and effective organisation of practice sessions.
- Appropriate methods of teaching, analysing and correcting performance.
- Imparting sports skills by clear instruction and demonstration.
- Avoiding potentially unsafe and dangerous practices and knowing what to do if an athlete is injured.
To maintain their NCAS registration, coaches must fulfil updating, that is continuous education requirements over a four year period, as stipulated by the relevant National Sporting Organisation.
Updating ensures that NCAS registered coaches stay abreast with:
- rule changes;
- latest coaching techniques and strategies; and
- current safety practices.
The Australian Coaching Council
The NCAS has been developed and coordinated by the Australian Coaching Council (ACC). This was established in 1978 as an initiative of the Sport and Recreation Minister’s Council. ACC coordinates a national approach to coaching development through the establishment of State Coaching Centres in partnership with State Government agencies responsible for sport.
The main role of the State Coaching Centres is to provide a link between the ACC and sporting community at state and regional level. The Centres assist State Governments and State Sporting Organisations in developing and implementing short and long term coaching program strategies, in line with the ACC’s national policies.
Coaching quality is one of the keys to sport development. The coach is often the critical ingredient in ensuring an enjoyable and positive sports experience for children. At the high performance end of sport, the coach is a key factor in determining success.
ACC’s code of ethics for coaches provide guidelines to ensure coaching at all levels is executed in the most professional manner. It works closely with a range of bodies to ensure safety standards and risk management practices keep up with modern demands.
ACC is continuing to work to further develop coaching in partnership with local councils, the Australian Sports Commission, National Sporting Organisations, State Government Sports Agencies and other relevant organisations. Remember NCAS Registered Coaches Doing it Better!
For further information, contact the ACC, telephone (02) 6214 1550 or fax (06) 6214 1200. Email acc@ausport.gov.au Website www.ausport. gov.au/acc/
