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Coach and Teacher Education
Our research group is working on several projects with national and international organisations and industries. Below provides some examples of this work.
Athlete to Coach Transition in UK Paralympic Athletes
Dr Tabo Huntley, Dr Colum Cronin, Dr Nic Robinson, Amy Elizabeth Hardwick, Sam Richardson and Dr Alex Blackett (University of Staffordshire) are conducting a research project supported by UK Coaching and UK Sport, exploring Paralympic athletes’ learning and development experiences as they transition into coaching.
The purpose is to generate evidence that can inform more inclusive coach education and development pathways.
Multidisciplinary approach to coaching Laser Run
The LaserRun Project is looking at developing coach education knowledge around the technical and tactical elements of the Laser Run discipline in Modern Pentathlon. We will be utilising an interdisciplinary approach to the data collection covering biomechanics, physiology and psychology. Currently recruiting athletes!
Staff: Dr Nic Robinson, Dr Joe Causer, Dr Amy Whitehead
Improving young children’s physical and cognitive outcomes through a gamified at-home intervention
“Closing the physical and cognitive attainment gap for early years children through a home-based, gamified stability skills intervention: a pilot study”
A 12 week gamified intervention based on developing stability skills of 4-5 year old children. Children work with their parents to complete 24 challenges within 6 missions based in a space adventure story arc. Children are assessed on certain physical, cognitive and affective aspects. If effective, it is hoped to create a free resource for families and schools to use.
Staff: Dr Katie Fitton-Davies, Professor Mike Duncan and Dr Sam Clarke (Coventry University, Professor James Rudd (Norwegian School of Sport Sciences)
Collaborating Organisations: Coventry University, Norwegian School of Sport Sciences
ParaCoach
The ParaCoach was an Erasmus Plus funded project, led by staff at LJMU, aimed at enhancing the learning, mobility and employment of para coaches across the EU, through the development of a number of outputs: a Para-Disability European Sport Coaching Framework, ParaCoach Work Force Audit, Best Practice Case Studies, Free Massive Open Online Course and the ParaCoach website.
Staff: Dr Tabo Huntley, Dr Amy Whitehead, Dr Gus Ryrie, Dr Colum Cronin, Amy Hardwick (Dr Charlotte Williams, UCLAN)
Collaborating Organisations: The International Council for Coaching Excellence (ICCE); European Paralympic Committee (EPC); Dutch Olympic Committee*Dutch Sports Federation (NOC*NSF); Institute of Sport Poland (ISP); Hungarian Paralympic Committee (HPC), The Immersive Learning Studio
Our collaboration with Special Olympics came to fruition through the ParaCoach Project. We conducted a workforce audit and follow-up interviews with Special Olympics coaches which aided the development of the ‘Introduction to Coaching Developmental Sports’ eLearning Course. The aim was to provide an evidence based understanding of the coaching workforce in order to inform policies and practice of Special Olympics.
Staff: Dr Tabo Huntley, Dr Amy Whitehead, Amy Hardwick
Collaborating Organisations: Special Olympics, The Immersive Learning Studio
Reorientating grassroots coach education – the selection-box metaphor for curriculum design
Inspired by a “selection box” metaphor, this approach encourages coach education to support coaches to somewhat choose what, when, and where to learn. We want coaches to be excited about learning.
For some, this represents a significant reorientation in how coach education is delivered. For others, these principles may already underpin existing programmes. Either way, the video offers valuable insights that could spark new conversations and ideas among education providers and coaches alike.
Co-development of a gamified physical education movement competence intervention with school stakeholders
Jenna Rice, Lawrence Foweather, Jonathan Foulkes, Ceriann Magill, An De Meester, David Stodden, Matthieu Lenoir and Katie Fitton Davies
Movement competence and emotional intelligence are positively associated and important for child development.
This study describes the process of co-developing a gamified PE intervention with school stakeholders to increase Motor Competence and Emotional Intelligence among primary-aged children. A total of 91 children and four classroom teachers from three primary schools participated in a series of co-development workshops. Data from the workshops were thematically analysed and informed the development of three school-specific gamified PE curriculums.
Findings from children included:
the social and foundational movement skills (FMS) to improve during the intervention
the enjoyable components of PE, which included skill development and social interaction
a desire to include more equipment in PE lessons
games, activities and gamification strategies to incorporate in the intervention
Findings from teachers included:
the barriers and facilitators to implementing a gamified model in PE
the successful components of PE lessons
the overall development of the intervention
This methodology provides a framework for co-developing PE interventions within a school context. Results provide strategies to operationalise gamification. Future research should explore the feasibility and acceptability of the co-developed interventions to increase MC and EI.
Experiencing the “unpredictable inevitables”: Creating opportunities on a taught master’s program for structured one-to-one physical activity behavior-change support for adolescent girls (The HERizon Project)
Hannah Clare Wood, Laura Carey, Emma S. Cowley, Isabella Cacciatore, Jennifer Ballinger, Ellie Glover, Payal Gore, Amelia Simpson, Nicole Wells, Chiara Mansfield, Gabriella Whitcomb-Khan, and Paula M. Watson
This case study presents the experiences of MSc Sport Psychology students delivering a psychologically informed behavior-change intervention within the context of a PhD research project to develop their applied practice skills. We aimed to provide an example of how higher education providers can create such an opportunity for master’s students to conduct individualized support sessions in a safe and structured environment, while preserving the autonomy needed for professional growth.
The placement was situated within the HERizon project (conducted between 2021 and 2022), an online physical activity behavior-change intervention for adolescent girls. MSc students worked as “Activity Mentors” and provided weekly one-to-one support for participants via video calls. In this case study, we reflect on what we learned as both students and supervisors responsible for the delivery of HERizon, both immediately after completing the project and 3 years after the experience, and offer recommendations for future practice.
