Sports Coaching BSc (Hons) with foundation year

The module aims to develop personal skills and professional skills in the field of sports coaching. The development of personal skills will support you on your learning journey providing opportunity for reflection, personal development and the improvement of graduate attributes. Study skills will be supported and developed promoting an evidence-based approach to coaching practice. A focus will be placed on developing a range of written, verbal and digital platform skills to enable communication to scientific and non-scientific audiences. You will explore scientific method, research design and how to manage, explore, analyse and interpret different types of information. In addition, the ability to manage your own time effectively in order to balance life, work and university demands will be developed.

Compulsory

The module introduces you to a range of issues that underpin the delivery of a practical coaching session. The module will introduce the coaching process in which the requirements of the participant (Who), the specific demands of the activity (What) and the pedagogical approaches used to structure the learning environment (How), inform decision-making, planning and reflection. You will be introduced to the ‘what’ and sample the range of different sports you may coach. The module will have a focus on the practical delivery of coaching sessions underpinned by theoretical concepts with a focus on developing the core components of the coaching process: planning, delivery and evaluation. As part of this module you will complete and reflect upon an appropriate coaching qualification facilitating opportunities to gain work experience² in the coaching sector.

Compulsory

This module aims to provide you with an understanding of the exercise physiology that underpins paediatric participant development. More specifically, a focus will be placed on understanding the impact of safe and effective training programmes on participant development when considering growth, maturation and training adaptation. You will also be exposed to important contemporary issues for coaches to understand, such as relative age effect, sport-specialisation and the selection hypothesis. You will also be required to perform field-based tests and consider the reliability and validity of such tests.  

Compulsory

You will build on your knowledge of ‘what’ they are coaching and begin to develop an understanding of ‘how’ you are coaching. This module will challenge your current understanding of what effective coaching is and how to create an effective learning environment in practice. Through a series of practical sessions and workshops you will be asked to deconstruct and reconstruct the coaching process through exploration and experimentation with pedagogical theory. You will start to understand and develop your own coaching philosophy and gain an understanding of what ‘coaching’ means to you.

Compulsory

The purpose of this module is to support you to explore the psycho-social needs of the participants you work with. The indicative content will provide an evidence base of psychological skills/characteristics, social considerations and most importantly, how this knowledge can be considered and applied within your sports coaching practice. This module will support you to approach sports coaching practice in an empathetic manner, beginning with the participants’ needs in mind ahead of any technical or tactical objectives. 

Compulsory

This module introduces you to the principles of motor learning, skill acquisition and sport and exercise psychology in the sport and exercise environment. You will develop knowledge of the structure and function of the brain, how individuals develop motor control, and methods of structuring the environment to maximise learning and performance. There will also be the opportunity to evaluate current research and gain and apply practical skills in laboratory/tutorial settings. The module provides an opportunity for you to develop skills and behaviours that foster graduate attributes such as valuing differences, being agile/adaptable thinkers, motivated contributors and being socially mindful.

Compulsory

This module will develop and demonstrate both theoretical knowledge and applied practical skills in sports coaching. You will again focus on an experiential approach to learning and be exposed to a range of academic literature which underpins physical literacy within specialist age groups. In addition, you will explore and evaluate a range of current theoretical thinking developed by national and international policies and frameworks for sport and physical activity and how these influence the design of their own practice. The learning environment will be considered in further depth with a particular focus on deliberate practice and deliberate play.  

Compulsory

This module focuses on a participant-centred, needs-based approach in which you will evaluate psychological and social theories to inform the practice of sports coaching. You will be exposed to several key psychological and social frameworks allowing you to develop informed and critical approaches to their coaching practice. Key topics such as personal processes, interpersonal processes and motivation will be evaluated with consideration of how they impact on communication skills and the learning of the individual. 

Compulsory

Physical education is key to developing a lifelong engagement in children with sport and physical activity. This module offers a blended range of theory and practical learning designed to give you an in-depth understanding of the National Curriculum for Physical Education and School Sport. You will develop your skills in delivering high-quality PE across a range of activities, including Invasion Games, Net and Wall Games, Striking and Fielding, and Problem-solving activities. You will focus on understanding and exploring the national curriculum and its priorities, including the use of the School Sport Premium Funding and how this is utilised as a vehicle for whole school improvement. You will also explore the benefits that PE and School Sport have to offer in the areas of attainment, cognitive function, behaviour, attendance, health and physical and mental wellbeing. 

Compulsory

The module aims to develop employability and a range of graduate skills. You will be required to apply for and undertake a work-based learning experience² in an appropriate organisation. During the experience employability skills will be developed including professional knowledge, practical leadership / activity facilitative skills and vocational competencies. You will have the opportunity to reflect on the world of work and explore various employment opportunities they may wish to pursue in the future.

Compulsory

This module aims to develop the understanding of the physical development in youth within a sports coaching context. Evidence-based training interventions to improve a range of physical characteristics (speed, strength, power and endurance) will be considered in detail in terms of growth and maturation in young athletes. You will apply this knowledge to design, implement and monitor safe and effective physical development programmes. Further to this, you will examine overtraining, injury prevalence and periodisation strategies and their impact on development. 

Compulsory

This module aims to enhance analytical skills allowing you to develop a deeper understanding of research skills related to sports coaching. You will explore qualitative and quantitative approaches to research with focus on critical analysis leading to problem solving and discovery. These skills will enable you to construct appropriate research design to explore novel insights in the field of sports coaching. Furthermore, the application of scientific and non-scientific communication will be developed, supporting you in the dissemination of research. 

Compulsory

This module² provides you with an opportunity to reflect upon and gain experience for an approved placement undertaken during your programme. A placement should usually be at least 26 weeks or equivalent; however, each placement will be considered on its own merits, having regard to the ability to achieve the learning outcomes.

Optional

This module² provides you with an opportunity to reflect upon and gain experience for an approved international study/work placement undertaken during your programme. A work/study placement should usually be at least 26 weeks or equivalent; however, each placement will be considered on its own merits, having regard to the ability to achieve the learning outcomes.

Optional

The knowledge and understanding of the scientific research process developed in the second year of study will be applied to create a research question within a chosen topic area. An independent research study will then be designed and communicated in the form of a critical literature appraisal and portfolio. This assessment will showcase, amongst other things, your ability to seek and identify relevant information, develop research question(s) and make evidence-based informed judgments. These are all key graduate level skills desired by employers as they are often representative of an individual’s ability to perform work-based tasks such as write reports, develop business cases and conduct audits. In addition, this module provides the opportunity for you to evaluate and practice specific skills and methods relevant to your proposed research. You will also gain valuable experience in exploring ethical and health and safety issues, including completing appropriate documentation, surrounding their proposed research.

Compulsory

In this module you will explore contemporary perspectives in sports coaching. The aim of the module is to develop a theoretical knowledge of current perspectives in sport coaching and critically evaluate their influence on, or how they might inform, coaching practice. Topic areas covered will be dependent on current perspectives influencing today's coaching practice. You will be required to disseminate current thinking on contemporary coaching topics to scientific and non-scientific audiences. 

Compulsory

The purpose of this module is to appraise strategies for sports promotion leading to the creation and critical evaluation of effectiveness of events to promote sports participation and deliver long term solutions to contemporary perspectives in sports. The study of sport participation perspectives including equality of opportunity, community engagement, health and wellbeing and development of identity through sport.  

Compulsory

This module examines the requirements of developing professional athletes over the period of their athletic career, in both individual and team sports, in the context of management inputs. The focus is to provide a toolkit of core management competencies, specialist specific knowledge and skills, for you to develop your own management development plan to operate within the industry as a coach or manager of professional athletes or teams. 

Compulsory

The module aims to give you a better understand the full coaching process, more specifically nested planning, coaching delivery and critical reflection over long-, medium- and short-term durations. In order to do this, you will be required to consider a range of theoretical, evidence-informed practical coaching methods with reference to who they’re coaching, what they are coaching and how they are coaching given the needs of a group of individuals.

Compulsory

Within this module you will conduct, analyse, interpret and communicate, via a scientific research paper and oral presentation, a scientific investigation in a specialised area of sport and/or exercise. You are expected to demonstrate an ability to work independently and show high levels of organisational skills throughout all phases of their work. Once analysed, data must be presented and critically evaluated in light of the current literature. You will reflect critically on day-to-day experiences of conducting research and are expected to behave professionally when interacting with research participants, students and module staff at all times.

Compulsory