Aptitude to Self Actualisation (Sporting Talent 1)

Norman Brook recently presented a paper on the practice of identifying, confirming and developing sporting talent at a seminar in Fortaleza, Brazil, organised through the International Inspiration programme and hosted by the state government of Ceara.  Extracts from the paper will be featured in our blog over the next few weeks.

APTITUDE TO SELF ACTUALISATION

There are many young people in our communities that have an aptitude (gift or abilities) towards sport.  Testing or the “eye” of a coach or talent scout will often identify these young people, who have the potential to perform at a higher level than their age peers.   Whilst most with aptitude will possess good levels of sports skill and performance, in reality only a few, perhaps 5% will demonstrate that they have real talent.

According to Gagne’s (2002) giftedness (aptitude) is the potential to perform at a level significantly beyond what might be expected from one’s age-peers in any area of human ability. Talent is an achievement at a level significantly beyond what might be expected from age-peers in fields such as arts, technology, academic pursuits, athletics, sports and social action.

So whilst we can observe young people with an aptitude for a sport it is only when they have demonstrated achievement that we can confirm that they have talent.  This has led to greater importance in sport the being placed on the process that seeks to confirm talent rather than the initial process of identifying talent.

Once talent has been confirmed the real challenge is how it can be supported and nurtured so that it is given every chance of achieving international sporting success.

Success in terms of any national initiative aimed at identifying and developing talent has to be medal winning performances on the World stage.  These are the achievements that nations celebrate and want to invest in.

Ultimately we want all athletes with talent to realise their maximum potential and possibilities. The motivation to achieve potential and possibilities being described by Maslow (1943) as self-actualisation.  Those athletes with the talent and the right motivation will rise beyond levels of normal sporting achievement to achieve greatness and genius.

Figure 1: Aptitude to Self Actualisation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There a number of terms commonly used terms associated with the process of identifying, confirming and developing talent.

Talent Identification is the term used for the process of identifying individuals with an aptitude for a sport who are not currently participating in the sport

Talent Selection describes the process of selecting gifted individuals who are already taking part in the sport often through results or by talent scouts observing the athlete performing in trainin g or competition;

Talent Confirmation is the process through which an individual is confirmed as having the talent required to achieve excellence and will probably include evidence of performing in a competitive arena;

Talent Development is the process of providing an individual with the coaching and support required to enable them to realise their potential.

Talent Blending is the bringing together of a group of talented individuals and moulding them into a high performing team.

Talent Transfer is the process of identifying talent from one sport to another.

The development of a programme of ongoing talent identification, confirmation, and development that guarantees a flow over time of talent into the sport would be an organisation’s Talent System.

Competent or Capable Coaches?

The education and training programmes adopted by most sports federations to develop their coaching workforce have in recent years tended towards a competence based training approach.

Competence is often defined as a combination of awareness, skills, knowledge and attitude that enables an individual to coach to the agreed standards required to coach in a specified context.

Competence Capability Matrix

Competent coaches have demonstrated the ability to operate effectively in a familiar coaching situation.

A competence based training approach fits well with the aspiration that coaching is a vocation.  Vocational education and training tends to adopt a competence based training model.

Higher education has tended to promote the concept of capable rather than competent individuals.  Capability implies that an individual possesses a combination of awareness, skills, knowledge and attitude that allows them to operate effectively and appropriately in response to varied, familiar and unfamiliar circumstances.

There is a strong argument that coaches need to be effective in varied, familiar and unfamiliar circumstances.  To deal not just with the known but also with unknown problems and situations.

Capability may be harder to assess than competency, but it is coaches with capability that will be the innovative, creative, problem solving, learning practitioners that will assist athletes and teams to reach new levels of performance.  Levels of performance that may require coach and athlete/team to journey into unchartered territory.

Competency is more about process, whereas capability is more about the person and their ability to adapt to new and changing situations. There may be an argument that at the lower levels of the coaching pathway, assistant coach/leader or basic coach that we just need competent coaches.  However at the top end of sports coaching, our senior and master coaches need much more and need to possess capability.

Child Protection in Sport in South Africa

This week two reports were published detailing the alarming extent of child abuse in South Africa. Helping Hand Fund, an organisation for social care that was founded by the trade union Solidarity, reported that one child is raped in South Africa every three minutes.  SAPSAC, a professional body investigating child abuse in South Africa claimed that there are about 10 000 child prostitutes in Johannesburg alone and that the situation in Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth are “equally grave” writes Norman Brook.

Dee Moskoff, Manager of Connect Network, a coalition of 82 NGOs in the Western Cape wrote earlier this month about the extent of child abuse on the occasion of Child Protection Week in the Cape Argus “….as a nation, we’re failing to protect our children from abuse, neglect and extreme poverty.”  To demostrate her message she pointed out that:

• a child is assaulted every 15 mins in South Africa;
• a child is raped every 30 minutes in South Africa;
• the number of orphans increases by approximately 250,000 a year (77% AIDS related);
• 66% of children in South Africa live in poor households;
• only 25% of South African children have access to registered early childhood development facilities;
• 75% of children in South Africa are without the stimulation necessary for mental, physical and social development.

That last statistic begs the question what role sport has to play in engaging with young people in poor communities.  Sport was withdrawn from the school curriculum denying many children the opportunity of developing fundamental movement skills.  However, President Zuma in his first State of the Nation speech has pledged to return sport to the curriculum.

The NSPCC and Sports Councils in the UK operate a support organisation for sports organisations in child protection.

In the UK child protection is high on the agenda of all sports organisations.  The four national sports councils lead on this work with the NSPCC’s Child Protection in Sport Unit.  This work has most sports organisations:

• recognise their responsibility to protect children and young people left in their care;
• develop strategies and standards to protect children and young people;
• identify and respond to adults who are a threat to children and young people;
• develop child protection knowledge and skills among all staff and volunteers.

If you search for ”child protection in sport policies” using the Google UK website up will pop links to hundreds of sports organisation and clubs published child protection policies.  When a similiar search is performed using the Google South Africa website up pops a solitary link to an article by Professor Paul Singh on Child Protection in Sport on the Department of Sport and Recreation’s website.

It is clear that the sport in South Africa has not yet recognised the role that it can play in helping to protect young people from physical, sexual, emotional abuse and neglect.  Experience in other countries has shown that those who wish to abuse children often access them through sport and sports organisations need to be aware of this and know how to deal with such incidents.  Sports coaches like school teachers get unique access to young people and often observe symptoms of abuse or as trusted adults hear discloures of abuse.  They therefore play an important role in protecting children and need to know what to do when they suspect abuse.

The South African constitution states that “every child has the right to be protected from maltreatment, neglect, abuse or degradation.”  All though sports clubs provide partial care for children attending sports training and competitions they are exempted from being a partial care organisation and are not required to be registered.  Nor do the coaches and other volunteers who work with the children require to be vetted or qualified.  Whilst the standard set in the Children’s Act Regulations for partial care organisations might be too onerous for voluntary sports, a requirement for all organisations working with children to adopt child protection protocols might be a reasonable expectation.

The Childen’s Act in South Africa makes provision for “any person who on reasonable grounds believes that a child is in need of care and protection may report that belief to the provincial department of social development, a designated child protection organisation or a police official.”  They will have to “substantiate that conclusion or belief to the provincial department of social development, a designated child protection organisation or police official;” but have the comfort of knowing that someone who ”makes a report in good faith is not liable to civil action on the basis of the report.”  This is different from the UK where a person who believes that a child needs protection has a common law duty of care to that child.

Whilst teachers and other professions must report concerns, those who work in sport may, but are not required by law to do so.

Childline South Africa believes that all organisations that provide partial care for children should have Child Protection Policies as an essential requirement for registration or funding. ”Few organisations in South Africa that have children in their care have written child protection policies; therefore when children report abuse, either in the home or partial care facility, by either caretakers or other children, this tends to be dealt with in an ad hoc and inconsistent manner. ”

They recommend that organisations working with children have policies that provide:

• a brief statement of legal obligations when abuse is reported or witnessed;
• procedures to be followed when abuse is observed;
• procedures to be followed when a staff member or volunteer is alleged to have abused and/or neglected a Child;
• procedures to be followed when a child reports/alleges abuse and/or by a parent or caretaker;
• procedures to be followed when child on child abuse is observed or reported by either an employee/volunteer in the facility, reported by a parent or caretaker, or by a child;
• how records of such incidents should be kept;
• who has access to such records.

Sports organisations in South Africa that work with children should consider placing child protection protocols on their agendas.  They should put in place appropriate policies and increase awareness of child protection issues amongst their coaches and volunteers.  The reported high levels of child abuse in South Africa would leave one to conclude that sport should be playing its part to protect young people. South African sport should followfrom other leading sporting nations by introducing a national child protection policy. 

Norman Brook has contributed to the development of child protection in sport through his work with Sportscoach UK helping to deliver training to a wide range of sports organisation in the UK and training tutors to deliver child protection training.

Companies should include Sport in their CSR Programmes

When I was CEO at the British Triathlon Federation, we successfully secured Corus Steel as our Premier Sponsor writes Norman Brook.  That sponsorship included a strong Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) element that attracted match funding from the National Sports Foundation.

The CSR element of this sponsorship allowed British Triathlon to launch a series of children’s events, the Corus Kids of Steel,  aimed at introducing increased numbers of young people to the sport of Triathlon especially children from under-represented groups and from socially disadvantaged areas.

The sponsorship also enabled the employment of an equity officer and introduced initiatives to promote triathlon amongst diverse and under-represented groups.  Big advances were made in respect of triathlon for people with a disability, known as Paratriathlon and other initiatives addressed women, black and ethnic minorities and the gay and lesbian community.

This week a major report was released titled “Corporate Social Responsibility and Sports Sponsorship”.  The report includes a number of case studies including the Corus sponsorship of British Triathlon and one of its conclusions is that companies delivering CSR programmes need to include sport in their strategies.

The report suggests that companies have tended to spend their CSR budgets on supporting environmental or arts-based projects but the report concludes that sport is now an ideal way for companies to be seen fulfilling their social and community obligations.

Steven Hemsley, the report’s author, suggests that sport is now an effective CSR medium because: “It boasts values that all socially-responsible businesses should be striving for. These include fair play to everyone involved including employees, customers and suppliers, transparency and opportunities for all to succeed, as well as good community relations.”  He adds: “During difficult financial times it becomes even more important for businesses to strengthen relationships with their key stakeholders and linking CSR to sport allows organisations to do this.”

The study also outlines the struggle that many organisations face in overcoming media, public and employee cynicism when associating their CSR strategy with sport. It explains that there are pitfalls to avoid if a CSR programme is to work and how organisations must ensure that the activity is run with integrity.

Whilst pure sports sponsorship is often based on hard-nosed marketing and business decisions, CSR investment is based more on how a business can improve the communities in which it operates. The report emphasises how important it is that companies chose a cause and sport which has a synergy with its own mission statement and values as well as its products and services.

The report includes a number of case studies examining how major companies link their CSR agendas to their support of sport. In addition to Corus supporting British Triathlon there are case studies looking at companies such as Nike, Standard Chartered Bank, McCain, Aviva and Ricoh.  The report looks at sports such as  athletics; soccer including the Premier League and the Homeless World Cup; tennis; hockey; volleyball; yachting, F1 motor racing; cycling; table tennis; Major League Baseball; and the NFL.

Corporate Social Responsibility and Sports Sponsorship is published by the marketing intelligence company International Marketing Reports.  Full details can be found here.

Congratulations Baroness Sue Campbell

Norman Brook, proprietor of Norman Brook – Sports and Leisure Consultants, extends his congratulations to his esteemed colleague Sue Campbell CBE who has today been appointed to the House of Lords as a new non-party-political peer.

Sue Campbell is the Chair of UK Sport, a non departmental public body that works in partnership with the home country sports councils and other agencies to lead sport in the UK to world-class success. She is also the Chair – and prior to that the Chief Executive – of the Youth Sport Trust, a charity that aims to build a brighter future for young people by enhancing the quality of their physical education and sporting opportunities.

Baroness Campbell was the non-political adviser on sport to the Department of Media, Culture and Sport and to the Department for Education and Skills between 2000 – 2007.

Previously she was the Chief Executive of the National Coaching Foundation from 1985 to 1995. She has worked as both a lecturer and teacher of physical education. Baroness Campbell represented her England in netball and was the British Colleges Pentathlon champion. She has coached athletics and netball at every level and acted as team manager for national teams in basketball and at the World Student Games.

In 2003 she was awarded the CBE for services to sport.

Norman Brook stated “I am delighted to learn of Sue Campbell’s appointment to the House of Lords. I had the pleasure in working with Sue at the National Coaching Foundation (now Sportscoach UK), Youth Sport Trust and at UK Sport. She is an inspirational figure who has changed the face of sport in the UK at school, community and international levels. Over the years I have enjoyed her council and been inspired by her vision. I can think of no one in sport more deserving of this appointment.”

London 2012 Inspire Mark

Norman Brook – Sport and leisure Consultants are delighted to learn that London 2012 has launched a new mark for use by non-commercial organisations.

News of the mark was released last week at Downing Street reception along with details of the Legacy Plans for the 2012 London Olympic Games.  The DCMS press release announced the unveiling the `Inspire Mark’, part of the 2012 brand family. This is the first time the International Olympic Committee have approved a non-commercial brand which can be awarded to non-commercial projects and programmes that help to deliver our legacy ambitions for 2012 and beyond.”

As a member of the British National Olympic Committee, Norman Brook was a strong voice in asking for a mark that could be used by the National Governing Bodies of Sport to inspire a new generation of young people to take up sport.  He raised the issue on a number of occassions along with fellow CEOs from other Olympic sports at meetings of both the NOC and LOCOG including directly raising the issue with Lord Sebastian Coe, the Chairman of the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Norman Brook stated “I am delighted that sport now has a brand identity that it can use to associate its non-commercial activities with the London 2012 Olympic Games. The “inspire” mark will create a tangible link between sports activities and the 2012 Games.”

The Little Book of Leadership

Norman Brook – Sport and Leisure Consultants understand the importance of good leadership within sports organisations. If you do to, you may be interested in the viewing this free resource – The Little Book of Leadership. It is a great online open resource that will get you thinking about your role as a leader. We hope you enjoy viewing it.