Post on 19-Jan-2023
International Journal of Arts and Sciences 3(8): 143 - 152 (2010)
CD-ROM. ISSN: 1944-6934 © InternationalJournal.org
A Themed Multi-Activity Approach to Coaching Transferable Skills in Sport - Dr. Palmer’s Canoe Poling Clinic – Interactive Teaching and Learning Resource on DVD Clive Palmer, University of Central Lancashire, UK Tim Stott, Liverpool John Moores University, UK
Abstract: Usually coaching videos in sport display the perfect example – what to copy –
performed by an expert (Rock, 2005a, 2005b). The learning process is often not recorded so
is not available to the student to observe; a useful element in the learning process we think.
This resource deliberately incorporates an unusual skill acquisition, that of canoe poling and
develops the skill and coaching expertise of canoe poling through a series of related, mainly
land-based exercises. It also allows for focus upon the coaching of soft skills, for example,
feedback, encouragement, calming and focussing. The DVD aims to provide access to areas
of coaching expertise that are rarely captured for others to learn from. These „soft‟ skills are
often stressed as the important aspects of coaching once hard skills are mastered.
Keywords: Core stability, skill acquisition, themed and transferable skills
Introduction
Preamble
Poling a canoe is a very effective method of navigating rivers in low water conditions
allowing exploration without the need for time-consuming shuttles. The idea is to simply pole
upstream as far as you wish to go and then pole back to your car; simple on the practicalities.
Those who have encountered canoe poling will also testify that it‟s a pretty considerable
work-out mentally and physically. However, with practice the rewards are immense. As
confidence develops the poler tackles more difficult manoeuvres or ascends steeper rapids. It
was the sense of physical challenge and awareness of the core skills supporting the action of
poling that interested me to develop a project to support our teaching in the UK. In the USA
the sport of canoe poling is very well established (Beletz, Beletz, and Beletz, 1974; Beletz,
Beletz and Beletz, 2003; Conover, 1991) compared to UK where it is simply another skill
which appears on the syllabus of the Governing Body Award scheme in canoeing.
The DVD as a teaching resource
The DVD is divided into eight sections; most are more than five but under ten minutes long
and so may lend themselves well for use in the lecture/workshop setting. The intention
behind this short-clip structure was that it was felt to be more convenient and user friendly for
use in the classroom to supplement teaching, in whatever way the teacher may choose. As
this resource is directed towards teaching in sport we felt that having footage of competitive
canoe poling was important. That is, canoe poling is not just a convenient novelty to get our
point across, it is a serious sport on the national competition calendar in the USA.
Consequently the DVD includes clips of the authors who competed as the first ever British
entrants in the US National Canoe Poling Championships, 2008, at Times Beach on the
Meramec River in Missouri. A clip of the competition shows world Canoe Poling Champions
Chip Cochrane and Harry Rock in action (Palmer and Stott, 2008).
A pedagogical challenge confronted in this resource is how might we teach others to become
innovative with their stock of knowledge and experience in sport, whatever that sport might
be. The focus is to copy the idea of multi-skills training which is visibly demonstrated to the
viewer. Then to consider the transferable core skills (for example, balance, core stability, co-
ordination etc.) that could be devised in their own sporting context, such as, football or
badminton: attack / defence / passing / goal keeping. The viewer having considered what the
core skills of their sport might be, is then encouraged to devise their own coaching plan to
develop them.
In compiling this resource we have deliberately not overlaid a commentary to explain or
justify our actions in a given activity which might restrict how the footage can be usefully
interpreted in teaching (Stott and Huddart, 2005). Notwithstanding the explanations given
here it is left to the viewer to make these connections However, it is worth listing what we
regard as being transferable skills that may be useful to acquiring skilful movement in sport,
for example:
Balance: dynamic and responsive
Posture: adaptive and strong
Co-ordination
Efficiency of action
Weight bearing and weight transference
Awareness and anticipation
Risk taking and judgement
Physical conditioning and core stability
A sense of fun, a sense of challenge
Learning fine and gross motor control
Admittedly, these “transferable skills” are not the usual suspects of the “3 Ss” (strength,
stamina and suppleness), but collectively they may serve to broaden the scope of what may
be regarded as transferable skills in sport and become worthy of pedagogical attention in our
teaching and coaching (Jeffreys, 2002; Kibler, Press and Sciascia, 2006).
Viewing sequence and coaching explanations
1. Novice Canoe Poling - 1 minute 14 seconds
This clip is filmed on the River Irwell near Manchester, UK, and introduces the viewer to the
art of canoe poling as experienced by novices who are trying this activity for the first time
under the guidance of their bank based coach. The errors made may betypical of those new to
any complex skill in sport. The clip demonstrates how much is „going on‟ for the performer.
There are masses of sensory information to take in with the added threat of getting wet.
Almost to the point of sensory overload the performer is struggling to stay in control of his
boat. The boat is moving, the water is moving, there are shouts of instruction and
encouragement from the bank. Keeping balance, trimming of the boat (the position the keel
line in relation to the water – affected by the weight of the person and/or their kit) reading the
water and keeping contact with the river bed with the pole are a selection of the concerns
occurring simultaneously for the performer. One of the teaching points for this clip is to point
out the high degree to which the skills are broken down throughout the DVD. Until clip 8,
which is the National Championships in the USA, clip 1 is the only footage of canoe poling
which may indicate the extent to which the coaching process has been analysed and broken
down into micro-coaching sessions to create a linked and themed resource.
Poler: Andy Spruce, MPower Services
staff training.
Photo Clive Palmer.
2. Pool Poling Exercise - 7 minutes 56 seconds
In this sequence the coach (Clive Palmer) and novice (Tim Stott) take two open canoes into a
swimming pool. Coach and novice undertake a series of balance exercises - the theme for
students is one of „trying things out‟ and „experimenting with balance‟ and getting to „know
your limit‟. Akin to destructive testing we fall in a lot, but a great is learned from developing
a curiosity about our ability to balance in this context. The teaching point here is to encourage
experimentation to find the limits of our balance but a great deal more is actually being
learned by „crawling‟ around our boats in this clip. We are learning how the boats behave in
the water, how they find their balance and respond to our weights within them. We are
learning how the hull works in the water to create stability, that is, how the water reacts
against the hull to create drag and how it can slip through the water to create propulsion, for
example, gunwhale bobbing which is standing up in the boat and forcing the hull into the
water by squatting one‟s body weight - we find this propels us forward.
Clive and Tim, experimenting with balance,
in the swimming pool at I.M. Marsh
Campus, Liverpool John Moores
University.
Photo: David hardy
3. Gymnasium Balance Beams - 4 minutes 40 seconds
Here Clive Palmer and Tim Stott are in a gymnasium using canoe poles to experiment with as
aids/weights to affect balance, walking forwards and backwards along balance beams at
different heights. The aim is to develop familiarity with the canoe pole by holding it in
different positions and angles. This is a relatively short clip to watch but the experimentation
within it seems to capture the attention of the viewer. It is a quiet clip, a feature of the
filming, which seems to permit a degree of contemplation by the viewer. They are waiting for
Tim or Clive to fall off! The progressions here are easily followed. All the exercises are on
narrow beams which get higher over three stages. The first at 30cm, the second at 50cm, the
third at 75cm. Exactly the same tasks are performed at each height but the difficulty seems to
increase because of the height. The difficulty is psychological and concentrates the mind of
the performer. The task is just walking forward (and then backwards) with a pole, a simple
task with obvious inherent challenges. The position of the pole in the hands is altered on the
move and as the performer gets higher their visual reference points alter and they become
aware of having to devise a plan for “what if” they fall off. In terms of micro-coaching it
seems to be a useful strategy to strip away all the distractions of moving water and a moving
boat which appears to have been a problem for the performer in the first clip on the River
Irwell. Also, and not insignificantly in this balance exercise is the fact that this is a slow
walking action allowing the performer to over-emphasize the control they may have in the
task. They can demonstrate a degree of mastery which may lift their confidence to progress
on to more difficult things.
Tim using the pole to bance walking on the
high beam. Morrison Gymnasium,
Liverpool John Moores University.
Photo: Clive Palmer
4. Trampolining for Balance - 9 minutes 45 seconds
While this sequence seemingly has little direct bearing on the skill of canoe poling, i.e. its not
in the water and appears to have little to do with a canoe, we include it because we feel it
captures the learning process better than any of the other sections. The aim is to bounce on
one‟s back on a standard trampoline. Tim Stott, the novice, is filmed having difficulty after a
few minutes of trying. Following some intervention by the trampoline coach, Clive Palmer,
the realisation of what is required to be able to „back-bounce‟, is picked up by the novice and
the new skill is acquired. The „learning process‟ has been captured. The link to canoe poling
is that, like back bouncing, poling is a difficult skill to master at the start and novices pass
through a steep learning curve, as clip one on the River Irwell may demonstrate. This clip on
the trampoline shows the difficulty encountered in trying a new skill but also the success,
which is not so eveident in clip one! In teaching and learning in sport this is a valuable clip.
Rarely is the complete journey through the cognitive phase of learning captured for students
to learn from. As they watch the DVD my experience is that students can see and appreciate
the action being attempted and even point out what Tim needs to do to improve. If a coach
had access to trampolines they might go to experience the learning curve journey themselves.
That is, it is the learning curve sensation and experience through real-time physical challenge
that is important here, not necessarily the aquired skill of back bouncing. The clip also
features some body control exercises with the performer stood up on the trampoline. This in
itself is a progression as the centre of gravity of the performer is about a metre above their
centre of balance; their feet. They are stood up and therefore it is easier for them to fall over
in this complex skill. The actual risks have increased slightly compared to back bouncing
although to the layman this may not be so – it just looks like jumping about, but there is more
to it than that. By jumping and changing position about the quadrants on the trampoline the
performer has to anticipate where they are going by turning their head and looking to strike a
sight line which alters their balance and prepares for the next immediate jump. The arms are
used for balance and for protection should they fall. Clive manages to jump and change
position on every jump whilst Tim demonstrates the skill with an intermediate bounce before
each change of position/direction. Again this is the slower information processing and the
time needed to prepare by the novice in their cognitive learning phase compared to the more
practiced performer. Standing on the trampoline and bouncing on feet is also a step closer to
the poling senstation in a boat on the water in that there is a lot of kinesthetic feedback
received through the feet, the poler‟s only point of contact with his craft. Feedback through
the feet is telling the brain about what the boat is doing and how he might correct and direct
the hull. On the trampoline and in the boat these messages and decisions are being exchanged
through the feet many times a second, so this real-time simulation may be deemed to be good
practice.
Using the skill of back bouncing to demonstrate passing through the learning phases of a
complex action. Morrison Gymnasium, Liverpool John Moores University.
Photos: Clive Palmer
5. Land Boarding - 8 minutes 9 seconds
In this sequence Clive Palmer and Tim Stott visit Hales Superbole in UK, which is land
boarding centre in Cheshire but we use canoe poles to propel themselves up, down and across
the slopes. Gravity is the usual means of energy for this sport which is essentially
skateboarding on grass down a hill. However, it seemed to us that the dynamics of weight
transferance at a realistic speed for canoe poling are experiemented with in this clip. This
activity required anticipation of actions to control the board, preparation and practice with
balance to propel ourselves or block (snub) to slow down (going downhill) and to turn. Poling
uphill had similar pressure charachertistics to poling in a canoe, but without the water rushing
under the hull of the boat which is an added distraction for the novice learning poling. As a
progression in coaching strategy the removal of a major distracting feature may be useful to
master a physical motor-skill first. Then, the unpredictable nature of the distraction can be
introduced progressively (in the case of canoe poling, moving water) - an experiement with
“closed” and “open” skill learning perhaps?
Poler: Clive Palmer ascending the hill on a
landboard. At Hales Superbole, Harthill,
Cheshire, UK. Online: visit
http://www.halesuperbole.co.uk/
Photo: Tim Stott
6. Wobble Boards and Slack Line - 9 minutes 52 seconds
This sequence shows Clive Palmer demonstrating and Tim Stott learning balance skills on a
slack line – a length of material tape (25mm wide) strung horizontally (but not taught)
between two trees – with Tim Stott using a canoe pole to help him learn this new skill. In this
clip the degree of challenge to balance on the slack line is increased compared to standing in
a canoe to polarise the sensation of „movement in balance‟. A temporal equivilent to this may
be that of resistance training where the person trains with heavier weights than they will have
to use in competition. Similarly, moving and balancing on a much smaller more wobbly
object than a canoe may help when the canoeist transfers back to their boat. There are some
interesting coaching ideas which may be seen to emerge from this activity. Firstly is the idea
of giving support. It is very tempting as a coach to hold the person‟s hand, arm or shoulder to
steady them whilst they balance. The „temptation‟ may stem from the general coaching
responsibility that the coach is there to make other‟s more stable. In a sense this is true but
the performer must grasp the coach at the shoulder and not the other way around. The coach
cannot feel another person‟s balance which is an interesting metaphysical discusson beyond
the scope of this paper! Allowing the performer to use a shoulder for support if needed is the
strategy here. The decision for help is theirs, all the coach has to do is make sure their
shoulder is in reach. Developing trust and confidence may be the key to this exercise as it is
seemingly more psychologically demanding than physically demanding, unlike poling up
hill! (Mageau and Vallerand, 2003). Safety considerations are to clear the ground of any
obstacles which might be tripped on or fallen onto. Keep the slack line low and place feet
carefully – it is not an exercise to be rushed. A good tip for beginners is to flex both legs as
they step onto the slack line. Keeping legs flexed, cat-like, will allow them to step off the line
and recover themselves with growing confidence. Coaches beware – this activity can become
addictive!
Clive Palmer guiding Tim Stott on the slack line.
Harthill Forest, Cheshire, UK.
Photo: Clive Palmer
Clive Godfrey balancing and manoevering on the
wobbleboard. Hales Superbole Landboarding
Centre, Harthill Cheshire, UK. Online: visit
http://www.halesuperbole.co.uk/
Photo: Tim Stott
7. Athletics Pole Vault - 10 minutes 24 seconds
At this visit to an athletics track, Clive Palmer and Tim Stott perform some exercises with a
pole vault pole, practicing handling the pole and its interaction with their body. Balance
senstations are experimented with by coordinating the stresses on hands and feet and
transfering body weight principally with the arms. Again the experiments with the pole vault
allowed a greater range of movement experiences than the canoe poler might have in their
sport. Devising a practice which facilitates the performer going beyond their boundaries in
this related manner are worthwhile for increased physical and mental challenge and enhanced
feedback opportunities for the coach. A main coaching point of the pole vaulting/athletic
experience is that the performer will learn how much force the pole can generate against
them. For the canoe poler this will be a valuable experience as it relates to how they position
themselves to apply a force to the pole and what bodily position they might have to be in to
take advantage of that force. Contrary to popular opinion pole vault poles do not flick or
launch the vaulter akin to getting a ride at a fairground perhaps. It is not a „free ride‟ or a
„catapult‟, energy in equates to energy out and if the body management of positions and
weight transferance are not efficient then the energy will be wasted and lost. The footage at
the athletics track draws to a close as a basic vault onto the mats is made. At this point, i.e.
when the feet leave the ground the pole vault action as a linked and themed idea for poling
ceases to be as relevant. This may be a lesson in itself, for the coach to judge when a strategy
for cross-training ceases to be effective towards their aim. The clip of underwater pole
vaulting at the end of this section of footage might also stimulate some exciting coaching
ideas for skill breakdown and supporting the body whilst learning complex actions. The water
is seen to offer several advantages for the performer and coach. The pole vault action is
slowed down, water being more viscious than air, to permit slow motion technique analysis.
The body is also supported by the water through natural buoyancy to experience a range of
actions and positions that might not be possible under muscle power alone (in the air). The
underwater pole vaulting lesson may also be more inclusive allowing a wider range of
performers to have a go at this unusual athletic event. Clearly one safety precaution is to
make sure all participants can swim and are water
confident.
Pole Vaulter: Clive Palmer applying pressure to
the pole (action-reaction) to co-ordinate balance
and pressure through arms and feet. Wavertree
Athletics Stadium, Liverpool.
Photo Tim Stott
8. USA National Champs 2008 - 8 minutes 27 seconds
This sequence of footage shows the culmination of their „training‟ when Clive Palmer and
Tim Stott fly to Missouri to compete in the US National Canoe poling Championships on the
Meramec River in 2008. They compete alongside world canoe poling champions Chip
Cochrane and Harry Rock along with up to 20 other competitors. It was important to us to
have some evidence of competitive canoe poling, not only to be able to show competitors at
the height of their game but also to re-affirm that our coaching ideas in this DVD related to a
formal sport. An exercise in sporting credibility perhaps, this seemed important if we were to
encourage the viewer/coach to use this DVD as a model to develop their own linked and
themed coaching plan of training activities in their own sports. In competitive canoe poling
there are two main disciplines, the wild water racing and slalom. Wild water racing is the
fastest person around a set course propelling their boat upstream, downstream and across the
current. Slalom is to negotiate between 10-15 gates with buoys as markers comprising of
upstream and downstream gates and reverse gates. A feature of the slalom event is that the
poler has to “tie the knot” as the phrase goes. This means when the poler exits a gate he/she
has to cross the path of approach to the gate thereby making a „knot‟. This forces the
performer to make some very tight turns indeed, healing the boat over and using the
resistance of their pole to pry and thrust from the river bed. (To “pry” is to use the pole like a
lever against the side of the boat to alter the boat‟s direction rapidy and sometimes violently –
beware!) Some relevant inside information from this footage is to consider the physiology of
the two American national champions and how they use their energies to negotiate the
courses. Chip is a strong and stocky person with a long history as a competitive downhill
skier whilst Harry Rock is of a more slender build, more suited to cross-country skiing. The
net result seems to be a demonstration of poling with power from Chip which is awsome, and
poling with finess from Harry which is graceful. Both are extremely efficient styles which
have proved to be rewarding for these individuals. The key coaching point here is that Harry
and Chip might only be able to perform the poling skills in their way, it is a style that is
suited to them, it is their style. What works for one may not work for the other and after 20 or
so years of competing against each other Harry and Chip have dominated the sport with
approximately fifteen National titles each, shared over the years. It seems an important
message to coaches viewing the DVD that this point is emphasized, that personal techniques
are just that; personalised and adapted to suit the individual and that standard governing body
ways of performing skills can be tailored to the perfomer‟s advantage. It is up to the coach to
fathom how to do this. It is hoped that viewing this DVD resource might put them on a path
to discovering what that might be for them.
Poler: Chip Cochrane, racing towards first
place in the Wildwater competition - Open
Class at the US National Canoe Poling
Championships, 2008, at Times Beach,
Eureka, Missouri.
Photo: Mena Schmid
Suggestions for using this DVD We consider this DVD to work at many levels in teaching and learning and numerous links
may be made by the viewer to wider coaching concepts in sport. However, here are a few
ideas which may be useful:
Show clips and encourage students to copy the concept of linked themed coaching
practices in their own sport and to experiment with them.
Show clips and copy the exercises for balance and kinesthic development.
Ask students to devise and try out their „new‟ coaching ideas on peers, to actively
experiement and redesign in the light of practice.
How might exercises (in the DVD and/or the ones you develop) be made easier for
novices or adapted for more challenge?
How might the coach recognise novice attempts at a complex skill and perhaps more
importantly, how might the coach talk the novice through to having another go?
When do we give praise, what kind of feedback is useful, when and why?
In focusing upon these core and transferable skills for improved physical action,
where does it leave the “can do proficiency” awards of the National Governing
Bodies of Sport skills specific qualifications?
Are we physically educating the person or „just‟ coaching them in sport?
How might the coach intervene (if at all?) during the cognitive phase of skill learning?
Brainstorm – what are the skills being developed in these clips?
What is interesting about watching people trying to balance? What do we admire?
What do we hope for?
What is the value of watching a novice attempt a new a skill?
Use as a blended learning resource which might lead others to become innovative
with their own stock of knowledge in sport
The idea underpinning this resource is to demonstrate visibly a range of transferable skills
across different activities which complement each other and might therefore be categorised as
„core skills‟ such as balance, co-ordination, stability posture etc. The rationale for using this
resource in teaching is that by using the relatively obscure sport of canoe poling as an
example of combining activities, it is hoped that the student/coach might generate their own
ideas about linking activities in their own sporting context, knowledge and experience. The
„take home‟ message is not, necessarily, to copy me and become a canoe poler but rather to
copy the idea of combining activities to teach the core skills of sporting action.
Conclusion/Summary One possible [unproductive] outcome from this resource may be that it will be shown that
genuinely transferable skills are unfeasible and unattainable to most coaches due to a lack of
specialism in other sports – i.e. transferable skills may be a pipe dream (or illusion) due to the
practical difficulties of doing other sports well enough to gain a benefit towards the main
purpose. This may be the worst kind of tokenism in multi-skills coaching. One possible
[productive] outcome will be that, regardless of the event specialisms, students might follow
the ideas and see the value in the exercises which they design and can justify in terms of their
own practice/experience how they relate to each other. A sense of ownership and personal
investment in a coaching plan may help towards motivation from the coach and the
performer.
As a teaching tool, the focus of the resource is to help students consider how they might
break down complex skills and create coaching experiences for others. What student‟s might
produce in response to this DVD is their own sport related coaching theories which are
grounded in transferable skills and core conditioning for their sport (for example see Prior
and Palmer, 2008; McCombs and Palmer, 2008). This resource may help to teach other‟s to
become innovative with their stock of sporting knowledge. In doing so they might also give
consideration to the ethical issues for coaching in certain ways and the challenges of
presenting innovative teaching methods in sport and in Physical Education; given that the
demands, freedoms and expectations of the two may be very different.
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