Social Learning in Communities and Networks as a Strategy for Ongoing Coach Development

Coaches’ Perspectives of the Continuing Coach Education Program in the Development of Quality Coach Education in Singapore

“…Coaches' preference for self-directed and experiential sources of learning corroborates previous literature on the merits of informal sources of learning (Culver et al, 2019;Koh et al, 2018) and that coaching experience plays a pivotal role in the development of coaching knowledge (Stodter & Cushion, 2017). Moreover, as discussed earlier, this substantiates the view that intrapersonal knowledge is important (e.g., "ability to reflect"; M = 4.60, SD = 0.54), self-guided hours are favored (M = 3.35, SD = 1.13), and CCE coaching practice activities are highly valued (e.g., "assisting a more experienced coach"; M = 3.30, SD = 0.64).…”

“…These are valuable bits of information which you can piece the whole jigsaw to a complete picture" (C6). Corroborating the literature, informal sources, such as learning communities (Culver et al, 2019), are valued by coach learners as they would account for the complex (Cushion et al, 2010) and context-specific (Griffiths et al, 2018) nature of coaching. Furthermore, considering the individualized learning needs of coach learners (Nash & Sproule, 2012) and that coaches are social beings who value knowledge sharing through interaction with other coaches (Van Woezik et al, 2021), the findings from the present study echo the view that CCE activities should provide ample opportunities for collaborative learning.…”

“…Coach education research has widely indicated that coaches acquire knowledge through formal, nonformal, and informal means (Mallett et al, 2009;Nelson et al, 2006). Although some studies suggest that informal sources have greater learning value (Culver et al, 2019;Koh, Bloom, et al, 2014;Maclean & Lorimer, 2016;Van Woezik et al, 2021), other studies contend that both nonformal (e.g., Armour, 2010) and formal (Araya et al, 2015;Vella et al, 2013) sources have merit as well. The main argument that informal sources of learning have greater impact on a coaches' knowledge is that it addresses the unique coaching issues relevant to a coach's context (Cushion et al, 2010).…”

“…The main argument that informal sources of learning have greater impact on a coaches' knowledge is that it addresses the unique coaching issues relevant to a coach's context (Cushion et al, 2010). For example, communities of practice sessions appreciate coach learning as a social process (e.g., Stoszkowski & Collins, 2014;Van Woezik et al, 2021) that allows the cocreation of knowledge and sharing of experiences that would be applicable to the coaches' practice within their context (Culver et al, 2019). Key benefits of communities of practice reported by coaches were that they provided them the opportunity to network with more experienced coaches, to acquire knowledge from others that was more relevant to improve athlete performance in their context, and to hone their interpersonal and intrapersonal coaching knowledge during interactive and reflective activities (Araya et al, 2015;Culver et al, 2019).…”

“…For example, communities of practice sessions appreciate coach learning as a social process (e.g., Stoszkowski & Collins, 2014;Van Woezik et al, 2021) that allows the cocreation of knowledge and sharing of experiences that would be applicable to the coaches' practice within their context (Culver et al, 2019). Key benefits of communities of practice reported by coaches were that they provided them the opportunity to network with more experienced coaches, to acquire knowledge from others that was more relevant to improve athlete performance in their context, and to hone their interpersonal and intrapersonal coaching knowledge during interactive and reflective activities (Araya et al, 2015;Culver et al, 2019). Although it should be acknowledged that nonformal and informal sources contribute toward the majority of coaches' learning experiences (Mallett et al, 2009;Walker et al, 2018), formal sources provide an important foundation for novice coaches to practice competently and further develop their knowledge when they are "open-minded" (Stodter & Cushion, 2017, p. 333) toward coach learning.…”