Perceptions of preperation and professional education of basketball coaches in taiwan

 

Introduction

The purpose of the study was to examine the reasons for participation and the opinions toward on-the-job training and certification programs of basketball coaches in Taiwan.  The results may bring new insights concerning participative motives of coaches, identification of criteria for being a successful coach, and common understanding of coaches related to on-the-job training and certification program. 

Methods

The participants of the study were 131 basketball coaches (male=100, female=31) at both collegiate and high school levels in Taiwan.  Their average age was 35.5 yr (SD=7.5) with an average coaching experience of 7.8 yr (SD=6.8).  The questionnaire, which was developed by Palmer (1997) was translated and modified for the study.  A high level of

reliability (Cronbach’s alpha= .7942) was obtained based on participants’ responses.  Questionnaires were distributed to participants by regular mails between the first and second week of August 2003.  The completion date of data collection was on October 15, 2003.  The rate of return reached at 65%.  The methods for statistical analysis included descriptive analysis, independent t-test, multi-variance analysis and regression analysis.  

Results

The results of the study included the following findings.  The top-three reasons of coaches’ involvement were "being a role model for students", "giving valuable experience to students", and "love for the sport". Females view coaching experience as a more important criterion for successful.  Participants who coached at different levels or held a different position showed different responses toward the importance of "practice preparation".  The importance of training courses could be effectively predicted by coaches’ perceptions on former athletic experience.  Coaches’ perception on the importance of education was a good predictor for reasons for participation.

Discussion/Conclusions

Unlike American coaches (Schweitzer, 1989; Palmer, 1997), Taiwanese coaches tend to emphasize "former coaching experience" and "having a physical education degree" as successful criteria for coaching.  The results suggested that more clinic and coaching courses should be offered and publicized to coaches.  For the contents of training courses, six of the seven listed items were considered as useful and vital.  The issue of compensating coaches should also be addressed because many of them were working in a volunteer basis. 

 

References

[1]. Palmer, R. (1997). Unpublished doctoral dissertation, United States Sports Academy, Daphne, Alabama.

[2]. Schweitzer, C. (1989). Washington, D.C.: ERIC Clearinghouse on Teacher Education.