"He can't do that"

If I had a ￡1 for every time I heard a coach say "He cant do that" I would be a wealthy man. I'm very fortunate that I work with some very special people with a high skill set but since working in this industry after a 20 year gap as a player, I am still surprised by the mentality of some coaches lower down the ladder in youth development compared to the teachers I have worked with in the past. Fortunately coaching is changing for the better with teaching and learning being at the forefront of coaching pedagogy. However critically this is still 20 years too late in my eyes.

The feedback I have received from peers has

been very complimentary about the FA youth awards as an example. They are highly focused on child development and educational psychology which is superb. This can only help in up-skilling coaches across the country to reflect on their own current practice and thus seek this knowledge further to inform their future practice. Therefore enhance performance with expertise and add value to the clarity of learning journey for their respective cohorts of players.

However cutting to the chase, the difference between schools and elite sporting academies is mainly schools do not get to choose the children they have through the door for the next five years. Elite academies get to choose and individually select these performers. Tennis, football, gymnastics..the list goes on. My point therefore is hugely significant! In schools the teachers can't afford to have "he cant do that mindset" and simply dismiss the child or performer as not good enough and then dismiss them at a later date. Because the pressure in schools is so great teachers have to make the kids learn. They have no choice! The government tells them so. So they have to have a mindset themselves that innovates and ensures the child makes progress at every level and subject. It is simply non-negotiable. "This kid will succeed over a 5 year period!"  So the words "he cant do that" simply are not in any teachers repertoire. Certainly not the ones I have worked closely with. I am not for one minute comparing schools and elite sports academies because one is naturally inclusive and the other exclusive. 

However in summary and in my vast experience as a senior educator, consultant and university lecturer the rigor of intervention is on another planet in a school compared to that I have seen elsewhere in coaching environments. As an example to make you reflect...I have seen expert Maths teachers inherit 30 pupils who were ALL expected to fail and not achieve a "C" grade after a 2 year GCSE course. These experts managed to get 25 through with "C's" and some even gain "B" grades. Their predicated grades were "E" and "F" grades. How they did this feel free to ask me. But I've seen it over and again. Even with Britain's most deprived and poorly behaved pupils. In contrast if performers are hand selected for their talents and then regress to not fulfill their potential in the respected sport what on earth has happened??? Who is at fault? Teenager or Qualified adult???....I have my ideas...

Any human (with the correct genetics in sporting terms) really can become more intelligent or enhance skill acquisition levels, to be good enough to become elite. You just have to find out how and why? But in a nut shell, practising for half an hour a week will never be enough. Relentless attention to detail married with assessment  for learning is the key. Then suddenly you will stop hearing "he cant do that"

Ps..You're thinking why the pink elephant?.....why not;)