la Tuque
December 12th, 2007, 09:55 AM
BJ: Morris comes up with the odd good article ;)
School coaches go far beyond call of duty By Morris Dalla Costa
It was a Monday night at TD Waterhouse Stadium. A number of high school students were having dinner as part of an introduction to the Western Mustangs football program.
Mike Hayes, coach of the Lucas Vikings, was there to support one of his players.
It's a Saturday and there's a day-long elementary school volleyball tournament being played. There's probably a ton of other stuff the coaches could be doing, like spending time with their families. Instead, they are making the weekend special for a bunch of young kids.
It's 8 a.m. or noon or 3:30 p.m. in any one of the gyms or arenas around London. Teacher-coaches and volunteer coaches are either running practices or games. If it's a home game, there's a dozen details to look after. If it's a game at another school, there's a dozen details to look after.
It's a long weekend. Time for friends to come over, have a nice dinner or maybe it's just time to hang around and do nothing. Not for some people. They are at a basketball or volleyball or hockey tournament with their school teams. Many of these weekends provide invaluable memories for those who participate in them.
The coaches' investment brings big-time returns for their students.
Coaches walk a fine line. They want to be competitive yet they want to teach and make the experience enjoyable for their kids. The good ones understand the difference and are able to balance their own competitive urges against the development and growth of their players.
It's often a thankless job.
There are times when kids don't understand why and how you do the things you do. What's worse is soemtimes parents don't, either.
But ask some of those parents if they'd like to take on the responsibility and most take off faster than your best 100-metre runner.
I get to spend a lot of time in high school and elementary school gyms. I do it because of the business I'm in and because I have kids who played and continue to play.
It never ceases to amaze me how much time teachers and coaching volunteers give to their students and teams.
It never ceases to amaze me the patience and wide range of skills these coaches have.
They are much more than coaches. They are a combination of child psychologists, trusted problem-solvers, character developers and builders of self-esteem.
Tecumseh Public School is my home school. It's a small school that does everything it can to make elementary school life a pleasure for its kids. The teacher-coaches go beyond the call of duty.
They are a combination of child psychologists, trusted problem-solvers, character developers and builders of self-esteem.
Like all schools, there are times when they don't have enough staff to cover all the sports, yet somehow they manage to make it work. Rather than let the kids go without, teachers take on multiple teams.
Volunteers from the community come in to help. The teachers care about what happens to those kids. They do the best they can. These kids and parents are fortunate to be in that situation.
It's not a unique scenario. It's one that's repeated in elementary schools and high schools throughout this board.
Is it all good? Of course not. With hundreds of coaches, you're going to get some who have lost their way. Wackos who believe they are but a few steps away from a higher calling. They become so competitive, they lose track of the who and why they are coaching in the schools.
Coaches should demand a different level of commitment at the high school level. That's when young athletes and students should be developing their competitive nature and strive to excel.
But elementary school coaches who place winning at such a high level that they call out their charges publicly, berate them for their mistakes and punish those errors by sitting them on the bench, need to reassess why they are in the business they are in.
Fortunately, the good far outweighs the bad.
It's Christmas and as coaches you may not get anything you can put under your tree. But what you have is the knowledge that without you, hundreds of children would have a less fulfilling life.
You may not be able to wrap a big thank you but you can take it with you wherever you go.
Thank you.
Morris Dalla Costa is the Free Press sports columnist.
mdallacosta@lfpress.com
http://lfpress.ca/newsstand/Sports/Columnists/Dalla_Costa_Morris/2007/12/12/4719736.html
School coaches go far beyond call of duty By Morris Dalla Costa
It was a Monday night at TD Waterhouse Stadium. A number of high school students were having dinner as part of an introduction to the Western Mustangs football program.
Mike Hayes, coach of the Lucas Vikings, was there to support one of his players.
It's a Saturday and there's a day-long elementary school volleyball tournament being played. There's probably a ton of other stuff the coaches could be doing, like spending time with their families. Instead, they are making the weekend special for a bunch of young kids.
It's 8 a.m. or noon or 3:30 p.m. in any one of the gyms or arenas around London. Teacher-coaches and volunteer coaches are either running practices or games. If it's a home game, there's a dozen details to look after. If it's a game at another school, there's a dozen details to look after.
It's a long weekend. Time for friends to come over, have a nice dinner or maybe it's just time to hang around and do nothing. Not for some people. They are at a basketball or volleyball or hockey tournament with their school teams. Many of these weekends provide invaluable memories for those who participate in them.
The coaches' investment brings big-time returns for their students.
Coaches walk a fine line. They want to be competitive yet they want to teach and make the experience enjoyable for their kids. The good ones understand the difference and are able to balance their own competitive urges against the development and growth of their players.
It's often a thankless job.
There are times when kids don't understand why and how you do the things you do. What's worse is soemtimes parents don't, either.
But ask some of those parents if they'd like to take on the responsibility and most take off faster than your best 100-metre runner.
I get to spend a lot of time in high school and elementary school gyms. I do it because of the business I'm in and because I have kids who played and continue to play.
It never ceases to amaze me how much time teachers and coaching volunteers give to their students and teams.
It never ceases to amaze me the patience and wide range of skills these coaches have.
They are much more than coaches. They are a combination of child psychologists, trusted problem-solvers, character developers and builders of self-esteem.
Tecumseh Public School is my home school. It's a small school that does everything it can to make elementary school life a pleasure for its kids. The teacher-coaches go beyond the call of duty.
They are a combination of child psychologists, trusted problem-solvers, character developers and builders of self-esteem.
Like all schools, there are times when they don't have enough staff to cover all the sports, yet somehow they manage to make it work. Rather than let the kids go without, teachers take on multiple teams.
Volunteers from the community come in to help. The teachers care about what happens to those kids. They do the best they can. These kids and parents are fortunate to be in that situation.
It's not a unique scenario. It's one that's repeated in elementary schools and high schools throughout this board.
Is it all good? Of course not. With hundreds of coaches, you're going to get some who have lost their way. Wackos who believe they are but a few steps away from a higher calling. They become so competitive, they lose track of the who and why they are coaching in the schools.
Coaches should demand a different level of commitment at the high school level. That's when young athletes and students should be developing their competitive nature and strive to excel.
But elementary school coaches who place winning at such a high level that they call out their charges publicly, berate them for their mistakes and punish those errors by sitting them on the bench, need to reassess why they are in the business they are in.
Fortunately, the good far outweighs the bad.
It's Christmas and as coaches you may not get anything you can put under your tree. But what you have is the knowledge that without you, hundreds of children would have a less fulfilling life.
You may not be able to wrap a big thank you but you can take it with you wherever you go.
Thank you.
Morris Dalla Costa is the Free Press sports columnist.
mdallacosta@lfpress.com
http://lfpress.ca/newsstand/Sports/Columnists/Dalla_Costa_Morris/2007/12/12/4719736.html