"I'm going to coach whoever shows up"

I recently completed Roland Lazenby's Michael Jordan: The Life. As I anticipated, I've come away from the experience with more than a few thoughts and ideas that translate pretty well to the classroom.

I spent my high school and college years completely fascinated (translation = obsessed) with Michael Jordan and his Chicago Bulls. Only later in life, once I became a teacher and a coach, did I realize that one of the fundamental factors in the success of both Jordan and the Bulls was a gentleman and master teacher named Tex Winter. Winter, a veteran coach and the godfather of the Triple-Post (Triangle) Offense perfected under Coach Phil Jackson's Bulls, epitomizes "teacher" better than most any coach around, save perhaps John Wooden. Phil Jackson once tweeted me that Tex Winter was the greatest teaching coach he'd ever worked with.

One of my favorite passages from Lazenby's book gives us a great insight into Tex Winter's #coachteach approach: "Winter believed that he had been hired to teach, so he taught whenever possible, with the sort of frank, direct feedback that most players hadn't heard since middle school. 'When we step out on that floor at a practice session, I'm going to coach whoever shows up,' Winter once said of his approach." Furthermore, Assistant Coach Johnny Bach said of Winter in the book, "He brought an enthusiasm that went beyond the normal."

As the new school year is upon us, Tex Winter's example serves as a great model for teachers. Winter declared he would teach "whoever showed up." In other words, he didn't care if he was coaching the greatest basketball player of all time or the practice squad's reserves. Winter was going to teach, and he was going to do so with "enthusiasm that beyond the normal."

Imagine the impact teachers can have with Winter's attitude - teach whoever shows up. We all know that we're going to get all kinds of kids in classrooms this year: super smart, academically average, academically behind the curve, distracted, hungry, hurting, perfectionist, defeated, highly motivated, hardly motivated, likable, hard to love, rich, poor, and more. The challenge is this: teach whoever shows up and do so with enthusiasm beyond the normal. Admittedly this is a ridiculous challenge. Thank God we have teachers in classrooms and not anyone else.

Interested in more parallels between coaching and teaching? Check out the #coachteach hashtag on Twitter, or check out What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches.

School Leaders' Perspectives on What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches - Part II

In my research for What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches, I had the opportunity to interview numerous high-profile, highly successful coaches at the high school, NCAA and Olympic levels. As I began getting feedback on the book from educators, I realized there were plenty of school leaders with wisdom to contribute on this topic. Inspired to seek more expert advice on the topic, I asked a number of former coaches who now serve in school leadership positions to weigh in on the following question: What lesson or principle about teaching that you learned while coaching do you most frequently emphasize with your teachers? 

If the wisdom below strikes a chord with you, be sure to reach out to the individuals and let them know. I'd also to encourage you to build your PLN by following them on Twitter.

What lesson or principle about teaching that you learned while coaching do you most frequently emphasize with your teachers?

Brett Howard @brethoward33

If you are average, you are as close to the bottom as you are to the top. Who wants to be average?

Mike Zavada @mikezavada

You have to be persistent and positive in your language.  Best teachers and coaches will have students who are able to repeat back language used to describe certain skills 20 years later. These catch phrases repeated over and over ingrain a mental picture of the outcome expected.  This is an essential teaching/coaching skill.  Also, the more consistent you are, the better teacher or coach you will be.

Jon Bosworth @bosworth.jb

Organization and communication need to happen first.

Lucas Leavitt @Lucas_Leavitt

The importance of explicit instruction and repeated practice is vital. As a tennis coach, initial explicit instruction is mandatory to be able to help players learn the correct mechanics of each stroke. Without repeated practice, the muscle memory will not be able to take place and these strokes will not become second nature to the players. This is exactly the same in teaching. Teachers must be taught explicitly how to use specific strategies or methodologies and then need to be provided opportunities for repeated practice where corrective feedback can be given.

Michael McDonough @msquaredbhs

I learned that fair doesn't mean equal. John Wooden wrote about that. If you are working with a student or having to discipline then you should have a fair reaction. It doesn't mean that it's equal to another person who may have done the same (or similar) action. A coach handles different players differently, motivates differently, yet is fair.

School Leaders' Perspectives on What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches - Part I

In my research for What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches, I had the opportunity to interview numerous high-profile, highly successful coaches at the high school, NCAA and Olympic levels. As I began getting feedback on the book from educators, I realized there were plenty of school leaders with wisdom to contribute on this topic. Inspired to seek more expert advice on the topic, I asked a number of former coaches who now serve in school leadership positions to weigh in on the following question: What lesson or principle about teaching that you learned while coaching do you most frequently emphasize with your teachers? I've listed the first of their answers below (more to follow soon).

If the wisdom below resonates with you - and I believe it will - be sure to reach out to the individuals and let them know. I'd also to encourage you to build your PLN by following them on Twitter.

What lesson or principle about teaching that you learned while coaching do you most frequently emphasize with your teachers?

Brian Knight @principal_SMS
Work Ethic/Perseverance - I often ask my staff: Is your work ethic on par with your classroom goals? We all want to be successful, but are we really willing to commit to what it takes to be successful. Success is not an accident; it is a choice. You must be willing to put in the needed time if you want true success in your classroom. You must be willing to try, even if you might not find immediate success. Failure is not the opposite of success; it is a vital part of it. As teachers we must model this for our students. We must learn from mistakes, and become better because of them. If your players are scared to make mistakes they will never push themselves as hard as they could. Similarly, in learning if we are not willing to take some risks we will never learn as much as we could. You must be willing to try; we must be willing to do; we must be willing to put in the time and effort it takes to be successful.

Robert Sain @saintroop
1. We can only control our attitude and our effort.
2. Do the next right thing right.
We cannot control others whether it be an opposing team, students in a class, or faculty members. We can only control us. Our attitude and effort must set the pace and keep a high bar for all around us. Each person giving their best attitude and effort combined with a continual focus on doing the next right thing right can provide any school with a large amount of horsepower. 

Art Sathoff @sathofar
Putting the time in, motivating others, doing what you say you'll do, cause greater than yourself

Valarie Farrow @valariefarrow
Looking back, I would say differentiation. I remember even in my early years telling players during practice if they didn't understand something to ask a teammate. I was/am not an auditory learner and a coach giving verbal directions paled in comparison to visual and kinesthetic learning.

Justin Smith @TXJustinSmith
Leading faculty is similar to coaching in that a team-first approach is necessary in order to approach the highest collective potential. Great coaches focus on team chemistry (work environment), togetherness (culture), and inspiring great individual work ethic (professional development). As it is in all group settings, a leader effectively empowers those in his or her charge by personalizing the work, supporting the individuals by meeting them at their readiness levels, and setting high standards of excellence that are equitable for all. A strong leader has a high level of competency in his or her role, yet understands that high levels of emotional and social intelligence are imperative when leading people. Not all athletes respond well to the same critiques, nor do teachers when provided feedback. Therefore, to effectively lead a group of individuals, a coach or principal must really understand how to motivate each and every member of the team the way in which they will respond and move towards their greatest self.

This is the first of a series of posts in which I will share what other educators shared with me, Check back soon for the next post.

Excerpt from What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches - The Game Has Changed

Below is an excerpt from my newest book, What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches, to give readers an idea of what the book really is about. I hope you enjoy the excerpt and I hope you'll consider picking up or downloading a copy of the book.

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What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches
by Nathan Barber
Copyright 2014, Routledge/Eye on Education
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“Athletes and people are happiest when they are improving… You are either getting better or you are getting worse… I find it really tough at any level, but especially with an Olympian that’s no longer getting any better and not improving… we have to deal with some tough stuff. We do whatever we can – with technology, with feedback, with multiple coaches coming from different angles – to keep them improving, because that’s when they are performing at their best.” Marv Dunphy, member of the Volleyball Hall of Fame, Five-Time NCAA National Champion as Head Coach of Pepperdine University Men’s Volleyball, and Gold Medal Winner as Head Coach of the 1988 Olympic Team

The Game Has Changed…

            The game has changed. What game, you ask? Well, virtually every game in the modern sports world has changed since its inception. For some sports, rules have changed, gameplay has changed, equipment has changed, scoring has changed and even the length of the season has changed. The three point line in basketball, the designated hitter in baseball, and the forward pass in football each have irreversibly changed their respective sports. For other sports, the players today are bigger, stronger, and faster than ever before, and the very nature of those particular sports have been forever altered because of the changes in the athletes. Usain Bolt in track and field, Lionel Messi in soccer, Tiger Woods in golf, Michael Phelps in swimming, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Brittney Griner in basketball have elevated the level of “excellence” to new heights in their respective sports. Additionally, many nuances of the major sports have changed.

            To be a successful in the sports world today, a good coach must understand change. He not only must acknowledge that his sport changes but also must take measures to keep up with the changes. He must be willing to change his practice approach and his game plan. He must be willing to approach players differently. He must be willing to approach every aspect of the game differently. If there is a coach today using the same approach, same game plan and same practice plan he did twenty years ago, chances are that his program ranks somewhere other than at the top. Because rules, equipment, scoring and even players have changed through the years, no good coach would stubbornly resist change and refuse to stay current. Imagine a basketball coach running the same plays he used before the introduction of the three-point line.

A good coach works hard to stay on top of how his particular sport continues to change or he simply gets passed by. An NCAA or National Football League defensive coordinator better put in extra time to understand how the New Orleans Saints and the Baylor Bears, engineered by Sean Payton and Art Briles, respectively, have changed the game of football offensively. A National Hockey League coach better work hard to find a way to approach Ken Hitchcock’s frustrating, defense-first style of hockey. Coaches who do not keep up with other programs’ innovations will become obsolete very quickly.

            As with the world of sports, the world of education has changed. Historically, education has changed very little until very recently. The stand-and-deliver model of teaching by lecture dominated education for centuries, dating back to the advent of universities hundreds of years ago. Even late into the 20^th century and beyond, such obsolete pedagogy has managed to hang on for dear life in some schools even though the world outside the classroom walls has been changing at an incredible rate. In recent years however, the rules of education have changed, the art of teaching has changed, scoring and assessment have changed, the length of the days and years have changed, and even the students have changed. Imagine a teacher teaching science the way she taught it in the 1970s, or history, or art. Inconceivable! For a good teacher, these changes present opportunities to change with the times and explore new and exciting best practices.

            A good teacher understands that both teaching and learning have changed. Whereas classrooms once were cutting edge with one Apple IIe for students to share, many classrooms today have tablets or laptops in every student’s hands. Classrooms of days gone by used sticks of chalk with chalk boards or black boards, while today’s classrooms often boast interactive whiteboards. Blended classes, digital textbooks, state standardized testing, increasingly competitive college admissions, scores of proprietary curriculum choices, Advanced Placement courses and more have changed not only what teachers teach but how they teach. Similarly, what students learn and how they learn have changed. Research has shown repeatedly that the one-size-fits-all assembly-line method of educating students used so much throughout the 20^th century leads to disinterest and disengagement with 21^st century kids.

A good teacher recognizes that today’s students differ even from students ten years ago. Today’s students are more plugged in than ever. Today’s students have different life goals than students a generation ago. Today’s students face a future that is more uncertain than ever before and employment statistics that are far from encouraging. As a result, what students need in the classroom varies greatly from what students needed in past generations. A good teacher changes her game plan, or lesson plans, to accommodate these changing needs. Because students’ needs have changed and because the ways students’ learn best have changed, a good teacher stays current on changes in teaching and learning by reading, researching, observing others and experimenting with new approaches.

            A good teacher, unafraid to change with the times, rewrites his game plan as often as necessary in order to stay current with best practices. In terms of teaching quality, experience can be priceless. As recent research shows, however, there exists no direct correlation between teacher experience and teacher effectiveness. This largely results from career educators’ inability or desire not to change and update their game plans to give todays’ students what they need. The best teacher in any given building may or may not be the most experienced teacher. The best teacher in the building, though, will not be the one using the same yellowed notes he used three decades ago. The best teacher in the building will not be the one using the same exams he used back when mimeograph machines with purple toner were all the rage. The best teacher in the building will not be the one who has memorized all the lectures and can deliver them with no notes or outlines in front of him. As with coaches who hold on too long to the old ways of doing things, quite possibly, the game of teaching has passed some of these teachers by, thus rendering them obsolete in the 21^st century classroom. The best teacher in the building, regardless of years of experience, does what all good teachers do: he evaluates his game plan often and rewrites his game plan as often as necessary to accommodate the changing needs of the students and the changing landscape of the real world and does not cling to obsolete pedagogies.

            Perhaps baseball coach John Cohen of Mississippi State University sums this up best. Having led his Bulldogs to not only the College World Series finals in 2013 but also to the most wins in program history in a season, Cohen understands that change and evolution are crucial to continued success. He says of his own coaching and teaching journey, “… the six most dangerous words in the English language: We’ve always done it this way. That’s dangerous because the world is changing. If we were doing it the same way that I was doing it as a young coach 20 years ago, we’d be doing the program a huge disservice. It’s a challenge to make sure you’re constantly evolving.” As Cohen will testify, the challenge certainly is worth it, for you and for those you teach.

Keeping mind that the game has changed, and will continue to change, the obvious question is, “Will you?”

Excerpt from What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches - Introduction

Below is an excerpt from my newest book, What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches. I'm going to post a few short excerpts over the next few weeks, but I thought I'd begin with the Introduction to give readers an idea of what the book really is about. I hope you enjoy the excerpt and I hope you'll consider picking up or downloading a copy of the book.

What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches, by Nathan Barber
Copyright 2014, Routledge/Eye on Education
 Introduction
 

     What is a coach? The word coach seems to have originated in Hungary at some point in the 16^th century and described a large carriage used for transportation. In the early 19^th century, coach became an Oxford University slang term for a tutor who “carried” a student, as in preparation for university exams. Later in the 19^th century, coach at last appeared in the vocabulary of sports as one who leads a team. An interesting thread runs through these three examples of coach. Do you see it yet?

     We can deduce that coach morphed into the verb coaching at some point during the 19^th century once the associations with tutoring and leading sports teams became commonplace. Now, in the 21^st century, what lies at the heart of coaching actually can be traced back to its three original, unique, yet related uses. The all-time winningest high school boys soccer coach in the United States, Terry Michler, makes an astute observation about coaching in the modern world. Michler, who coaches at Christian Brothers College High School in St. Louis, Missouri, says, “[coaching] involves taking someone where they could not get on their own.” With one short phrase, Michler sums up and ties together the three original applications of the word coach. All three of the original meanings of coach involved taking someone – a passenger, a student, an athlete – somewhere he couldn’t go on his own – a distant geographic destination, the Dean’s List, the league championship. A good coach does the same today.

     Coaching is teaching. Who knows who first said this, but this phrase has been quoted and requoted countless times, and with good reason. A great coach also is a great teacher, even if the subject matter is zone defense, the pick and roll, the bunt or the art of putting. Don’t take my word for it, though. Consider what these great coaches have to say on the subject:

“The coach is first of all a teacher.” John Wooden     

“They are about as parallel as anything can be.” Terry Michler

“At the end of the day, coaching is teaching.” Brian Boland

“Coaching is teaching.  Great coaches/teachers are good communicators; start with the end in mind; stress the fundamental (little things) concepts; practice and build on those fundamental concepts daily; reteach until the concept is mastered; motivate their students; and establish positive relationships with their students.” Dale Monsey

“Coaching and teaching are one in the same in that the educator has one purpose in mind: to share knowledge with the student/athlete in the hopes of making them smarter both mentally and physically.” Patti Gerckens

“Coaching obviously is synonymous with teaching because I think great coaching is effective teaching. What you’re trying to do is to accelerate someone’s growth in the game that you’re an expert in, and you’re trying to give them the benefit of your experience by sharing with them what they can do to get to their potential.” Anson Dorrance

     Even when the subject matter differs, great coaches and great teachers have a great deal in common. Great coaches and teachers communicate effectively, harness the power of teamwork, make work meaningful, embrace technology, build a winning tradition, teach life lessons and seek continuous improvement. Drawing on the wisdom of some of the best and most successful coaches in the business today, this book draws parallels between great coaches and great teachers, between great coaching and great teaching. Using examples from the lives and experiences of these great coaches, this book illustrates the correlation between teaching in the sports world and teaching in the classroom. As you read through the book, note that coaches whose names are italicized have provided direct input for this book. Without their wisdom, this book would not have come together as such a practical yet meaningful guide to great teaching.

     Although this book could be read cover to cover in a few sittings, each section has been divided into short, easily digestible pieces to be read and pondered and then applied. Additionally, because of the way the book has been structured, reading through the sections in order is not necessary. Browse the sections, find what interests you or what you need, then read, consider and repeat. Regardless of how you read through the book, my hope is that you are challenged by the ideas presented here and that you find many of these ideas relevant and useful in your own teaching journey.

Nathan Barber

The above information is Copyright 2014 Routledge/Eye on Education and Nathan Barber

A Few Thoughts from "What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches"

Here are a few thoughts taken from What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches. If you like what you see here, please check out the book. Please feel free to share not only this link, but also these images.

John Wooden's Wisdom Applied to Self-Improvement for Coaches, Teachers and School Leaders

In You Haven't Taught Until They've Learned, John Wooden talks quite a bit about how much he learned early in his career and about how important it is for a coach to continue to learn. The quote below provides a glimpse into Wooden's mind. The quote holds a great deal of relevance for educators today. In particular, the quote holds great significance for educational leaders. The best way to improve a faculty is for each teacher to improve himself or herself. A great educational leader, putting Wooden's wisdom into practice, does not lose sight of the fact that the same principle applies to school leadership. Simple but brilliant.

Joe Maddon of the Tampa Bay Rays on the Importance of Focusing on the Process

In my research for What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches, I heard from a number of incredible coaches a pretty clear message about the importance of the process in teaching and learning. Specifically, several of the coaches told me that a key element of their success over the years has been focusing more on the process and less on the results. By focusing on the process (individual and team growth and development) with their players, and by coaching the athletes and teams toward mastery rather than performance (stats, scores and wins), the coaches have been able to improve the quality of individual and team performances. Perhaps that sounds counter-intuitive, but the evidence lies in the national championships and Olympic medals these coaches have accumulated.

I recently discovered a great quote by Tampa Bay Rays manager Joe Maddon (I did not obtain this personally for my book)  that summarizes this approach to process-focused coaching and teaching: "What I'm trying to convince them is, you're not trying to beat the Yankees or the Red Sox or the Blue Jays, you're trying to beat the game of baseball through execution." Maddon nailed it. This approach works equally well for baseball, hockey and soccer, as it does for writing, calculus and second languages. Just as Maddon has led his team into the playoffs and into the World Series by focusing on mastering baseball rather than focusing on beating particular teams, teachers, too, can lead their classes to success by focusing on mastering writing, calculus and language, rather than focusing on test scores.

A Lesson for Educators: John Wooden on Why Joy and Frustration Should Not Come from Scores and Outcomes

"It is difficult for young players to learn - because of the great emphasis on records - but, ideally, the joy and frustration of sport should come from the performance itself, not the score. While he is playing, the worst thing a player can think about in terms of concentration - and therefore of success - is losing. The next worst is winning.”

Legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden sums up nicely a concept that has taken hold of me and won’t let go. In my research for What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches, I heard from a number of incredible coaches a theme similar to what Wooden emphasizes in this quote. (It is worth noting that Wooden uses the word performance in this quote to mean the game itself, not the final outcome of the game.) Indeed, in sports today, people have become obsessed with the scores, records and stats, and the joy involved in the performance, the process of mastering the game itself, often is forgotten. The message this sends to youth may be costly because it implies that the outcomes are more important than the processes involved in learning, improving and mastering the skills involved in a sport.

In my last post on this quote, I focused on the importance of the process. Here, I want to shift my focus to Wooden's idea that "the joy and frustration of sport should come from the performance itself, not the score." Wooden's wisdom shines here. The reason any young person should take up a sport is because he or she loves it, not to win games or accumulate stats. Winning is nice, an enjoyable by-product, but it should be neither the sole measure of success or joy nor the motivation for engaging in sports. For Wooden, true joy lies in mastery, or in progressing toward mastery. Through the process of learning and trying to master a given sport, a young person can learn myriad life lessons including but not limited to dedication, perseverance, grit, growth mindset, and how to deal with winning and losing with class. Of all these, I believe Wooden would have valued growth mindset the most, because it lines up so well with this quote. That the potential to grow and improve in an endeavor, i.e. mastery of the golf swing or the jump shot, lies within a player is a notion that lines up perfectly with Wooden's philosophy.

A great coach or coaching staff can instill in athletes a love of the process, or the "performance" as Wooden refers to it. When an athlete come to love and find joy in the performance, he or she will see the struggles involved in trying to master the sport as part of the growth process. USA Wrestling Coach Brandon Slay told me, "I have to get my guys to enjoy the process of going through the drills." He wants his athletes to be able to say, "At the end of practice when I’m totally drenched in sweat, and every muscle in my body is killing me, I love it. I’m a warrior and I got to do something I love to do." He went on to say, "The more that they love the process, the more meaningful those drills in practice are." Wooden would have loved this. This philosophy implies, then, that coaches should emphasize and praise growth and improvement and not just the score and winning. Otherwise, athletes receive mixed signals or the wrong message altogether.

Let's not forget the frustration Wooden mentions in this quote. For some this may be counter-intuitive, but Wooden means that the frustration of sport should come not from losing or from the score. Rather, frustration should come in the process, the growth and the development. For anyone who ever has attempted to master a golf swing, frustration abounds. This frustration, though, is both natural and healthy, especially in the context of a growth mindset. With a growth mindset, an athlete attempting to master a skill or sport can use the frustration as motivation to continue working toward mastery. After all, with a growth mindset, an athlete has control over his or her own growth and improvement. This philosophy implies that coaches should make sure, as much as possible, that an athlete's frustration centers not on the score and losing but rather on the growing pains of player development.

Simply put, the lesson for educators is this: as education leaders, we must help our students shift their thinking so their joy and frustration lies not with scores and grades but rather with the growth, the process of learning and their journey toward mastery. In the classroom as in sport, according to Wooden's philosophy, the driving force behind instruction and learning should be growth, mastery and the process rather than the grades, scores and outcomes. Grades and other quantification of learning should not be the source of either students' joy or frustration. Good grades and high test scores, like wins in sport, should be merely a byproduct of mastery, growth and the process, not the motivation behind what happens in classrooms. With the current landscape in education focused so much on tests and testing, and therefore on grades and scores, Wooden's approach appropriately applied in classrooms runs opposite that mindset. Thankfully, there appears to be a shift beginning with educators at the grassroots level that would have made Wooden proud.

Helping Teachers Avoid (And Recover From) The Big Miss

Most days I wear two hats: principal and dad. I've been a dad a few years longer than I've been a principal, but some days I'm not sure which is more challenging. Today provides a great example.

When my son - an average golfer - plays in tournaments, I love nothing more than riding along in my cart and watching him for nine or eighteen holes. Because I know nothing about the mechanics of the golf swing, I couldn't offer him advice during the course of play even if I wanted to assist him. I do try to help him with some of the mental aspects of the game off the course, though. Specifically, I draw on my coaching background to help him understand mental toughness and dealing with adversity, among other things.

One of the things he and I have discussed numerous times, based largely on Hank Haney's book The Big Miss, is the importance of what Haney calls **"The Big Miss." Golf is a game of misses. Even pros miss fairways, greens in regulation, and putts, but Haney says the key lies in avoiding "The Big Miss." For example, missing a fairway by a few feet or yards may not necessarily spell disaster for a golfer. Missing a fairway by landing your ball on the fairway of a different hole... yes, that's a "Big Miss" and that's a problem. A "Big Miss" can be problematic in its own right, but a "Big Miss" often causes an undisciplined golfer to make a second mistake while trying to correct the "Big Miss," then another and so on, until an ugly 8, 9 or 10 lands on the scorecard.

As I watched my son make two "Big Misses" on separate holes this morning, I knew I could do absolutely nothing but sit and watch. Even if I had wanted to, even if I had known what to tell him, the rules of golf tournament play prohibit my strolling onto the course and calling a timeout to offer advice. Sure enough, after his each of his "Big Misses," he made costly mistake after costly mistake trying to compensate for the "Big Miss." Do I even need to tell you that those two holes inflated his score like a balloon?

Even when I have on my dad hat, I often have my principal hat on at the same time. The two "Big Misses" and the helpless feeling I had sitting on the cart path today reminded me of teachers and the possibility of teacher-style "Big Misses"  during the school year (i.e. poor choice of words with a student or class, an ill-advised email home, poor preparation and execution of a parent conference, poor judgment with grading, poor execution of a unit, failing to reteach when necessary, etc.). Thankfully, I know reasonably more about teaching, learning and school than I do about golf. As principals, we must. Like other principals, my job centers on making teachers better and helping them avoid not only the "Big Miss" but also costly mistakes that can follow in the wake of a "Big Miss." Principals do this through meaningful professional development, strategic and intentional conversations, suggesting reading(s), encouraging collaboration, providing meaningful feedback after observations, and more. Even with great coaching, though, teachers occasionally suffer the "Big Miss." Principals see "Big Misses" most often from new or inexperienced teachers but, like golfers, no one is immune to the "Big Miss" (principals included).

The major difference between my position this morning and the position of principals is this: while I had no way of calling a timeout to help after a "Big Miss" on the golf course, a principal has the opportunity and, in fact, the obligation to stroll calmly onto the proverbial golf course and do whatever is necessary to help. It goes without saying that if a principal is to coach the teacher out of the jam, he must first be able to identify not only the "Big Miss" but also the mistake that caused it. A principal may need to give a teacher a do-over with no penalty. A principal may need to talk the teacher through what the next step or steps need to be. A principal may need to carry the teacher's clubs for a while (figuratively, of course). A principal may need to spend time one-on-one with the teacher on the fundamentals, the approach, the mental game or some other issue. Truly, there's no limit to what a great principal will do to coach and support a teacher. The important thing is that a principal never sits in the comfort of the cart on the shaded cart path and mark penalty strokes on the scorecard.

**The Big Miss serves as a great analogy for life as well as for golf. The book chronicle's Haney's experiences with Tiger Woods, but Haney offers both golf lessons and life lessons in the book. I recommend it for golfers and non-golfers alike. Great read.

Anson Dorrance on the Importance of Reading for Professional Growth

In my research for What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches, I heard over and over from some incredible coaches how much they value reading as a means for personal and professional growth. Perhaps none of the coaches I interviewed talked about reading more than Anson Dorrance, Women's Soccer Coach at the University of North Carolina. His list of accolades truly is too long to list, so I will just mention that he has won the NCAA national championship in women's soccer 22 times (no typo, twenty-two). He attributes is own personal growth largely to his voracious reading. If he can grow through reading, how much can you and I grow?

Don Meyer Quotes That Have Meaning for Coaches and Teachers Alike

In my research for What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches, I discovered numerous quotes from successful coaches on the topics of teaching and learning. Below are a handful of thoughtful quotes from the late Don Meyer, who is widely known as a master teacher. Some of the quotes below appear to be about basketball only. However, each quote below holds significant meaning for the classroom and the classroom teacher, for teaching and for learning.

It is foolish to expect a young man to follow your advice and to ignore your example.

You have to learn things in every game... the games have to be the ultimate learning experience.

Your program must have an overriding purpose, which is clearly visible, which teaches lessons beyond winning.

Treat everyone with the utmost respect, and most of all have patience when you teach.

Every situation is an opportunity for growth.

Our example isn't the main thing in influencing others, it's the only thing.

It's not what you achieve, it's what you become.

Attitudes are contagious. Is yours worth catching?

Shout praise and whisper criticism.

A rock never shines because it absorbs light, but a mirror will because it reflects it. Are you a rock or a mirror?

Be who you are... everybody can spot a phony.

What you accept in victory, you must accept in defeat.

Focus not on the results but on the process, says Sean Fleming

In my research for What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches, I heard over and over from successful coaches that their greatest point of emphasis in teaching and instruction every season is the process not the results. This philosophy falls right in line with emphasizing mastery over performance. Furthermore, Carol Dweck's research on a growth mindset entirely supports this approach to teaching and coaching.

Pete Carril Quotes on Teaching and Learning

In my research for What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches, I discovered numerous quotes from successful coaches on the topics of teaching and learning. Below are a handful of great quotes from Pete Carril, former Princeton University basketball coach now with the Kings, who is recognized by many as a master teacher. Some of the quotes below appear to be about basketball only. However, each quote below can easily be translated into meaningful classroom practice.

The smart take from the strong.

In trying to learn to do a specific thing, the specific thing is what you must practice.

Teach a guy fundamentals and he can play anywhere.

Try not to talk too much about shooting. Spend the time instead taking a lot of shots.

Anybody can know the facts about something, but knowing how to do it is what's crucial.

The high school coach who does not make his players learn and practice should be arrested.

If they learn to do things right, or well, that gets to be the way they do things.

It is a mistake we all make as coaches to think that there is only one way of doing something.

When you teach basketball, it has its technical parts and its life parts.

Go slow so they can learn fast.

If you watch what your players are doing when they play, they will show you what to teach them.

In trying to learn to do a specific thing, the specific thing is what you must practice.

Anybody can know the facts about something, but knowing how to do it is what's crucial.

John Wooden Quotes on Teaching and Learning

In my research for What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches, I discovered numerous quotes from successful coaches on the topics of teaching and learning. Below are a handful of great quotes from John Wooden, legendary basketball coach at UCLA, who was recognized by many as a master teacher.

"I believe it's impossible to claim you have taught, when there are students who have not learned."

"If I am through learning, I am through."

"Pay attention to the details and the big things will take care of themselves."

"I deeply believed that the teacher and coach who has the ability to properly plan... from both the daily and the long-range point of view together with the ability to devise the necessary drills to meet his particular needs for maximum efficiency, has tremendously increased his possibility of success."

"They are all different ... There is no formula ... You can't work with them exactly the same way."

"Over-coaching can be more harmful than under-coaching. Keep it simple!"

"If we, as coaches, aren't teachers, we are nothing."

"When everyone has good players, #teaching will be a telling difference."

"When I was coaching I always considered myself a teacher. Teachers tend to follow the laws of learning better than coaches who do not have any teaching background. A coach is nothing more than a teacher. I used to encourage anyone who wanted to coach to get a degree in teaching so they could apply those principles to athletics."

"It is difficult for young players to learn - because of the great emphasis on records - but, ideally, the joy and frustration of sport should come from the performance itself, not the score. While he is playing, the worst thing a player can think about in terms of concentration - and therefore of success - is losing. The next worst is winning."

"The purpose of discipline is not to punish, but to correct."

"Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do."

"Never mistake activity for achievement."

"Decisions are more apt to be accepted when you've listened to suggestions first. I wanted them to see the reason behind what I asked of them, not to do things just because I said so."

"Learn as if you were to live forever. Live as if you were going to die tomorrow."

“The coach is first of all a teacher.”

Join the conversation about coaching and teaching on social media using #coachteach.

Educational Technology Must Make the Experience Better for the Student

A Lesson for Educators: John Wooden on Why Focus on the Process is More Important Than Focus on Results

"It is difficult for young players to learn - because of the great emphasis on records - but, ideally, the joy and frustration of sport should come from the performance itself, not the score. While he is playing, the worst thing a player can think about in terms of concentration - and therefore of success - is losing. The next worst is winning.”

Legendary UCLA basketball coach John Wooden sums up nicely a concept that has taken hold of me and won’t let go. In my research for What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches, I heard from a number of incredible coaches this same message: the worst thing a player can do is focus less on the process and more on the outcome, results or score.

Consider this analogy. A basketball player who steps to the free throw line and focuses on either making or missing the free throw has severely handicapped himself; his focus has shifted from shooting a free throw correctly to an outcome over which he has no control. In truth, even the greatest free throw shooter cannot control whether the basketball falls through the rim. What a player can control, however, is the process of shooting a free throw. Feet, knees, elbow, wrist, fingers, form, shot, follow-through, etc. A great coach teaches a player to remain focused on the process of shooting, not on makes and misses. A player can control the process, and in fact can trust in the process which he’s practiced, learned and perhaps mastered, but he cannot control the outcome.

The irony of focusing on the process rather than on the outcome or results is that the closer a player is to mastering the process, the greater the likelihood of the desired outcome becoming reality. There exists here a direct correlation to education. Because of the “great emphasis on records,” as Wooden says, or on scores, performances, grades and other quantitative so-called measures of learning, schools, teachers and students easily can lose sight of education’s true goal – mastery – and focus instead on outcomes and results.

Consider this analogy. An AP US History student spends the entire school year focused on earning a 4 or a 5, then on the day of the AP exam stresses about what her score will be. The student, focusing on an outcome over which she has no control, has handicapped herself heading into the exam. What the student could have controlled all year, however, is the process of mastering the AP US History content universe along with the reading, writing and critical thinking skills emphasized in the classroom by a great teacher. If this student focused and relied on the process, which she practiced, learned and perhaps mastered, she would put herself in the best possible position to achieve the desired outcome or results.

With the heavy emphasis on performance and scores in both athletics and in education, we have lost sight of the importance of mastery and the process. Wooden enjoyed more desirable outcomes – NCAA national championships – than any other NCAA basketball coach in history. He did so, though, by focusing on the process rather than on the outcomes or scores. Wooden's emphasis on the process played out on both a micro level (i.e. free throws) and a macro level (i.e. wins and championships) and his players reaped the benefits. Educators today should steal a page from Wooden’s playbook and consider the significance and potential benefits of focusing on the process and mastery rather than on results, performance and scores. Furthermore, to paraphrase Wooden, the "joy and frustration" of learning should come from the process, "not the score."

In my next post I will address Wooden's thought, "ideally, the joy and frustration of sport should come from the *performance itself, not the score."

*It is worth noting that Wooden uses the word performance in this quote to mean the game itself, not the final outcome of the game.

For all the teachers and coaches who serve as Father for so many kids...

Getting them to enjoy the process

On Seeking Continuous Self-Improvement Through Reading

Even the best in the business - athletics or academics - seek continuous self improvement. One of the most effective and cost-efficient ways to seek self-improvement is reading. Teachers and coaches certainly should read books written specifically about their respective crafts, but often these two groups of professionals can learn from reading about each other's craft, too. Furthermore, teachers and coaches alike can benefit from reading books on leadership, management, marketing, psychology and more. Read and read voraciously. The list of better and more effective paths to self-improvement is pretty short, so grab a stack of books and get started.