REGIONAL DEVELOMENT – A MODEL FOR SCHOOLS AND CLUBS
Roger Draper, Head of Sport England, said recently that he wanted sports development to take people ‘from playground to podium’. We in rounders certainly want players to have the opportunity to progress to whatever level they have the ability or the inclination for, whether it be playing for England, coaching the local school, umpiring matches or playing in an adult club.
We have worked with several schools and sports colleges over the past two years to develop models of good practice which can be applied to most sports.
Our model is financed from the Awards for All scheme, but if schools or clubs have sufficient funds they could finance themselves.
Lets start with the Primary schools. What we do is train the teachers to incorporate rounders into their PE lessons by delivering a Preliminary Coaching for Teachers course. The teachers then work with the pupils to improve their rounders skills, perhaps using the basic skills award to help them, and perhaps local coaches (more about these later). Many schools find that working towards a specific target, such as competing in the local Primary Tournament helps a lot because it gives the pupils a chance to play competitively. The basic skills award allows pupils to develop rounders skills individually, achieving gold, silver or bronze standard after completing pre planned activities.
Moving on to the older pupils, we offer courses at Preliminary level 1 in both Coaching and Umpiring. These can be taken by pupils age 14 and above, and are ideal for GCSE pupils and those doing the Junior Sports Leader or the Duke of Edinburgh Awards. A qualified tutor comes into school and delivers these courses (we often find that the PE staff attend the course as well as their pupils!). So now we have a pool of young qualified coaches and umpires. How can they use their new skills? Well, they can help coach at the local Primary After School Rounders Club, which has been set up by the Primary Teacher who came on the Coaching for Teachers course. They can also organise a Primary Rounders Event for all their feeder schools, with the help of their teachers. This can take the form of a festival where the emphasis is on skill acquisition, or a tournament. The tournament could be a qualifying event for the Y6 National Finals, giving the winners another step up the performance ladder. The newly qualified coaches and umpires can apply their skills at the Primary event, giving teachers a welcome break from umpiring matches and coaching their teams. This is also a great way for the Y6 pupils to be introduced to their new school as the Primary event is usually held at the secondary school.
The secondary schools are encouraged to set up a STAR centre, where players of all abilities can train, have fun and play against other STAR centres. These can be run by a teacher or a Level 2 Coach.
It really does work! All that is needed are the people willing to organise it. These can be Primary school teachers or Secondary school teachers, either individually or through the local school sports association. If you are a School Sports Coordinator, it is a fantastic opportunity to develop rounders in your partnership. Other organisers could be the local club who are looking to develop their school – club links, or local authorities who want to involve the whole community in a sport which is suitable for all ages, sexes and abilities.
You don’t have to follow this model exactly, just use it to generate ideas. If you find a variation that works well, let us know so we can spread the word.
If you want to discuss any of this, please ring the Director of Development, Alan Fergus, on 07957682986
What happens after the Primary event? Hopefully the winners go to the National Finals, and learn valuable lessons about competing, as well as having fun. The other participants are left with memories of a fun event, and look forward to playing rounders again at the ‘big’ school. The young umpires and coaches link up with a local adult team, are welcomed at training sessions and eventually progress to playing and officiating in the adult league. Some schools have even entered a team of older pupils straight into the adult league.
