How do you know if your child’s coach is a good one? The mistreatment of athletes by coaches is nothing new (see Knight, Bobby), but it does seem to be getting more attention in the past few years. Stories of athlete abuse and harassment at such universities as Rutgers and the University of Tennessee — and even at the Olympic level — have made national headlines, while stories of coaches to younger athletes are chilling: The California teen paralyzed after tackling an opponent head first during a football game, a technique taught to him by his Pop Warner coaches, or the story of a coach berating a young player in front of his teammates, calling him a “f—ing retard.” Studies back up these anecdotes. A 2011 paper published in the UK found that among 6,000 student athletes polled across the U.K., “75% said they suffered ‘emotional harm’ at least once, and one-third of them said their coach was the culprit.” And a 2005 study in the U.S. found that “45% of the student athletes said their coaches called them names, insulted them or verbally abused them another way during play.” How can we make sure our childrens coaches encourage with positive reinforcement?So how do we protect our children and make sure their coaches encourage with positive reinforcement, rather than belittling them? - See more at: physiquality/blog/?p=7095#sthash.Q1MCNtaT.dpuf
Posted on: Fri, 16 May 2014 12:41:18 +0000