Why Play Games? Games Sense A Model

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Why Play Games?Games SenseA Model

• Playsport (TOP play TOP sport) and Teaching Games
  for Understanding, equals Games Sense

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There is no right way to coach

• But we are able to identify coaching approaches
  that are inappropriate.
• Some approaches, and particularly the traditional
  ones, often do not produce the outcomes we
  require.
• Often methods that produce short term results are
  in the longer term disadvantageous.

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My Football (Soccer)

• Scoring the winning goal in the FA Cup
• How did I learn to play football?
• How did you learn to play RL?

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A change in the way we educate our coaches.

• Learners learn
• Coaches only help that process, sometimes

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Traditionally great nations

• Football (Soccer) Brazil
• The UK premier leagues who are the play makers?
• Basketball USA
• Cricket Sri Lanka/Australia
• Hockey Australian Women (designer games)
• Rugby Union New Zealand
• Sailing UK
• Play or situational practice

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Observational Learning

• Incidental observational learning
• (Different from the demonstration)
• Which models work best?
• Structuring sessions

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Some thoughts on the young. Why did we change the
way we taught and coached.

• Technical model suited average talented wasting
  their time, less able convinced yet another
  sport they could not do.
• Frustration when can we play a game?
• Technique did not occur in the game little
  development.
• Youngsters did not know why they were doing
  things no challenge in the game.
• We were producing players who did not understand
  the game they played and did not make good
  decisions

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1994 Year of the Coach (Australia)

• We (Australia) are beating you (Poms) at most
  things so please come and talk to us about the
  areas where you think we have got it wrong.
• Documented shift in NZ coaching. (Kidman)
• Games Sense was developed over a number of
  interactive workshops.

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Games Sense (Australia recognised the value of
the approach, quickly followed by the New
Zealanders)

• It makes sense to play games playsport
  TOPplay/TOPsport consider this for the entry
  coach/teacher!
• Making sense of games teaching games for
  understanding (TGfU)! As confidence is gained the
  coach can start to accelerate the learning in the
  game.

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Why might it be useful for community coaches? Why
now?

• The community coach is faced with many of the
  problems of the teacher
• - large mixed ability groups,
• - players who do not yet understand the reasons
  for intensive skill practice.
• - players who value interacting with their
  friends.
• - players who just want to play.

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Why might it be valuable for performance coaches
now?

• Coaches of performance players realise
• -we have worked very hard to improve the machine
  conditioning, TECHNICAL ANALYSIS nutrition,
  massage, physio, etc. GREAT
• -BUT have we spent enough time on perception and
  decision making that are key in some sports.
• -we know that much of our isolated technical work
  does not transfer to the game,
• -we know the truly greats are self motivated.
• -we know a great performance on competition is
  the amalgam of many things

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So what is Teaching Games for Understanding
(TGfU) does it help?

• Following an appropriate warm up, the players
  enter a game, selected for a particular learning
  effect. GAME FORM
• The coach ensures the players really understand
  what they are trying to do. GAME APPRECIATION
• Questions are posed to challenge players ability
  to assess options. TACTICAL AWARENESS
• The player then has to decide What To Do and How
  To Do It. DECISION MAKING
• The individual movement, for that individual
  occurs. SKILL, not technique. (The performance
  can be assessed)

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Key aspects

• Does the game challenge (appropriately)?
• Learning outcomes, this is not just playing a
  game (valuable as that is!).
• Let the game ask questions. If you ask the
  question, use SHOW ME dont tell me.
• Principles of Games (Space/time)
• The common answer It depends.

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So what is playsport TOP play TOP sport

• It was said TGfU is too difficult for the Level 1
  coach or non-specialist teacher.
• Key at this stage is management and motivation.
• A series of progressive games that children can
  almost set up themselves.
• LETs GO AND SEE
• PRACTICAL

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So why does it work?Let us see how it fits
what we know about skill and game
developmentA bit of science
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Some thoughts from the researchers

• To become good at something you have to do it a
  lot.
• Key is why would you do it a lot? What are the
  motivations?

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Observation of traditional technique dominated
lessons - underlying motivations not met

• Affiliation
• Competence
• Sensation
• THE GOOD TEACHER/COACH COULD OVERCOME SOME OF
  THESE ISSUES, EVEN WITH TRADITIONAL COACHING
• Many youngsters are taught by less experienced
  teachers and coaches.

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Some thoughts from the researchers

• Transfer from the practice to the game.
• more well learned the skill
• greater similarity between practice and play
• used in the same way conditions similar.
• Bob Christine Un of North Carolina
• ? Can the skill be learnt in a game.
• Technique and Skill Barbara Knapp

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Why are Skill Acquisition scientists interested
in Games Sense TGfU

• Dynamic systems/ coupling
• (Dynamics of Skill Acquisition a constraint led
  approach Keith Davids, et al 2007)

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What do researchers tell us about decision making?

• To think or not to think!
• The limited concentration channel.
• (autonomous action)
• When the body knows what to do disrupt it at
  your peril. Care with the very skilled.

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Key aspects when coaching

• Allow thinking time. Handling information.
• simplify the technical demand (volleyball -
  badminton, tennis)
• -simplify the tactical demand rugby rounders
• - use waiting players particularly in team games.

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Dont be flattered by the great session!

• The Basketball Experiment.
• Performance or Learning?
• Challenging memory
• Delay
• Interference
• CONDITIONED GAMES.

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In the UK now

• Children have most of their experiences in adult
  organised/controlled environments.
• Because we know more than them we want to TELL
  them everything. (Parents expect this!!! Educate
  them)
• Coaches of junior sides are often judged by the
  success of that team not by their production of
  adult players.
• We have to let children play and we need to step
  back.
• The Cricket DVD

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Robson (NZ) 2005

• With our community coaches it seems logical to
  use a Games Sense (TGfU) approach in our weekly
  sessions, because we can make progress in the
  development of the game fairly quickly.
• Couple this with giving the youngsters back the
  backyard games, that encourage them to have lots
  of goes at the skills.

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New Zealand Rugby- Guardian Saturday July 2nd
2005 Darren Shand

• in the past nine months . ethos a more
  formal shift than in the whole of the preceding
  century
• ..austere, narrow minded, coach dominated
  regimes have gone the way of the dodo
• .. in 1999 and 2003 inability on the field to
  make correct decisions at the correct times
• Wayne Smith a PE teacher

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A Change in the Way we train coaches.

• We spent too much time on how to deliver
  demonstration, clarity of voice, technical
  analysis, etc.
• We told and showed too much
• We neglected how people learnt (VARK), also what
  motivated them.
• We failed to challenge

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Revisit motivation

• Working it out together AFFILIATION
• I can play this playing well (tactically)
  appropriately for me (technically) is it bad if
  it is right for the individual? COMPETENCE
• Game can be exciting (if you like competition),
  tiring (if you play to be active), frustrating
  (if you play golf) - SENSATION

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Thoughts for further enquiry

• Winston Churchill Fellowships ltWCMT.orggt
• www.tgfu.org
• Lynn Kidmans books Decision Making
• Athlete Centred Coaching,
• The INNER GAME - Gallwey

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