Video Chat with NSCAA DOCE Ian Barker and US Youth Soccer DOC Sam Snow

We hosted a live video chat with NSCAA DOCE Ian Barker and US Youth Soccer DOC Sam Snow on Wednesday, Nov. 14. They discussed their sessions at the 2013 Convention and US Youth Soccer Workshop in January, as well as how educational programming is developed for each of the annual events.

The recording of the chat is available below, as are questions we weren't able to address during the broadcast answered by NSCAA and US Youth Soccer national office representatives.

Jeff Ginn (@coachjginn): Any chance we will ever see ussf/nscaa combine education?

The degree of communication between the Education Departments of USSF and NSCAA is very high. There is a good understanding of content and delivery. For the foreseeable future, the education programs will run independently rather than "combined." Certainly the range of educational opportunities from the USSF, NSCAA and a number of other agencies is, overall, a good thing for a very diverse US coaching community.

~Ian Barker, DOCE, NSCAA

John Mulholland (@coachmulholland): At past conventions, we received a book showing demos with space for notes. Can past books be made digitally available please?

The US Youth Soccer sessions will be posted on our web site after the conclusion of the 2013 Workshop.

Past session outlines for NSCAA Conventions can be found at nscaa.com/convention/past. We will again make these outlines available for the 2013 Convention.

Matt Folger (@mattfolger): [regarding the Next Generation Coach seminar] How is it different from/similar to NSCAA diploma courses?

The Next Generation Coach seminar was developed especially for new or aspiring coaches. The lesson plan was developed by convention clinicians and NSCAA Academy Staff members Gary Cook and Deb Raber and focuses on career advice, coaching techniques, resume building and other aspects that young coaches need to know to break into the profession. Next Generation Coach attendees will receive a Special Topics diploma, an NSCAA introductory membership, a professional coaching resume, an attendee t-shirt and an unprecedented network of new and seasoned coaches. You can read more about it here.

James Ballin (@coachjballin): What can be done to see more states and leagues institute smaller sided games for more age groups?

I am glad you see this as important. I will talk from personal experience in Minnesota. To win hearts and minds over took several approaches. One effort was to educate the public to trends toward smaller numbers in other countries and to show the data on how much more contact the kids have with the ball. Additional education included helping clubs manage resources of fields, goals and coaches and offering practical solutions to go to smaller sided. In Minnesota we had some imminent domain advantage and so when we had a large enough group on board to convert a league club programs shifted in mass. I think language which includes “enjoyment,” “development” and “retention” helps. You have to be ready for the “it is not real soccer” argument which is incorrectly applying young adult and adult models of play to much younger children.

~Ian Barker, DOCE, NSCAA

Education is of course the key. Education of parents on the topic of SSG must be chore number one for soccer clubs. Then tackle the education of the board of directors and other administrators in the club.  The final important pieces are the coaches and the referees. The Modified Rules for U6, U8, U12 and players were developed through cooperative work of the state association Directors of Coaching and the State Directors of Instruction. I have found that getting the adult stakeholders out on the field to actually play in small-sided games on a proper sized field helps them to understand that it is indeed “real” soccer.  Clubs and leagues need to focus their efforts for instituting SSG on the parents. State associations will need the assistance of the National Governing Body, U.S. Soccer, to implement SSG nationwide uniformly. All concerned parties should utilize the Small-Sided Games resource center on the US Youth Soccer website.

~Sam Snow, DOC, US Youth Soccer

Jeff Ginn via email: Question #1: Is it possible to host NSCAA High School Diploma coaching course as a club? Have you done something like this before and how do you go about getting the H.S. Coaches interested in coaching Education? Question #2: The NSCAA almost doesn't exist here it Utah. How can we make it more relevant here?

First, it’s definitely possible for a club to sponsor and host a HS Diploma course. Please feel free to call or write me, and we can begin the process of setting up a course. Many high school coaches are interested in coaching education, but their time is limited and they need to be assured that they will get something useful out of the course. We can provide you with information to contact the HS coaches in your area, and we can use NSCAA e-mail capabilities to help promote the course.

With regard to making the NSCAA more relevant in Utah, I think that it might be good to invite folks onto our website to view the breadth of educational opportunities that we have to offer. Offering short, targeted courses (such as a Level 1 or 2 for coaches of 5-8 year old players or a Level 3 for novice coaches of slightly older players) might be a way to get folks “hooked” on coaching education. Purchasing NSCAA books and DVDs to offer coaches might get them excited about taking a course in person.  Acquainting coaches with all of our member benefits might also help generate excitement.

~Doug Williamson, Assistant DOCE, NSCAA

You can find more information about the 2013 NSCAA Convention at NSCAA.com/convention. Join us in January and register for the Convention and housing here.