Summary of Results and Implications

The study described in Chapter 3 addressed the first objective of the thesis. A two-part qualitative approach was employed in order to explore the constructs a sample of British sub-elite coaches from a variety of sports used to identify coaching quality in their own self-selected role model coaches. Interestingly, results in part one suggested that coaches’ perceptions were predominantly associated with the outward facing image aspects of their role model coach as opposed to coaching technique; a finding at odds with existing research, which has highlighted the more crucial importance of recognising how “successful” coaches work (e.g., Abraham et al., 2006; Jones et al., 2003). Building on these findings, the second part of the study attempted to delve deeper into the coaching qualities and characteristics that coaches might aspire to. Results again showed that, when identifying coaching prowess, coaches appeared to focus on the outward facing behaviours and personality characteristics of what their role model coaches did, as opposed to the ways in which s/he actually worked. Consequently, this study highlighted that the coaching qualities and characteristics which the social milieu might encourage coaches to aspire to and pursue, were not comprehensive across all areas. Similarly, it was concluded that the characteristics that coaches might “need” to develop, they might not necessarily be aware of or pick up during informal learning situations within the social milieu.

Chapter 4 addressed the thesis’ second objective. Whilst still maintaining a predominantly qualitative approach, in contrast to the smaller samples utilised in Chapter 3, a both broader and larger questionnaire methodology was adopted in an

attempt to provide some element of quantification of the collected data. In line with existing research (e.g., Culver & Trudel, 2006; Erickson et al., 2008), results revealed that coaches’ preferred and mostly acquired coaching knowledge from informal, self- directed learning sources, especially when these permitted social interaction with other coaches. Crucially, however, self-reported evidence for critical justification for, and application of, this knowledge was largely absent. These combined findings suggested that, before social learning activities such as mentoring and CoPs are placed at the centre of formalised provision, coach educators need to help coaches to better recognise and deal with the potentially mixed and unregulated influences of the social milieu on learning in order to ensure their informal development is sufficiently open-minded, reflective and critical. Thus, the need to explore how formal learning might better support the development of these skills, while still meeting coaches’ perceived learning needs and their preferences for informal, socially mediated learning activities, was established. Accordingly, the efficacy of online blogs, a tool purported to have a high potential to meet this need, became the focus of the investigation in the chapters that followed.

Chapter 5 addressed the thesis’ third objective. The individual online blogs of twenty-six undergraduate sports coaching students, who reflected on their ongoing coaching practice via blogs created specifically for reflection, were subjected to category and content analysis in order to determine both the emergent reflective quality of posts and the extent to which an online community of practice emerged. Findings revealed that descriptive reflection exceeded that of a critical nature, however, bloggers exhibited a positive trajectory toward higher order thinking and blogs were an effective platform for supporting tutor-student interaction. Nevertheless, and despite the peer discourse features of blogs, collaborative reflection was conspicuous by its absence and an online community of practice did not emerge. Therefore, whilst results indicated that

blogs held the potential to facilitate reflection in coaches, the need for further investigation into how blogs might better promote and/or facilitate the social discourse necessary for collaborative reflection was identified (Objective 4).

Accordingly, Chapter 6 examined the use of shared online blogs as a tool to promote reflection and CoP in a cohort of undergraduate sports coaching students.Four group blogs, purposely designed to support informal workplace learning, were subjected to content analysis in order to determine the emergent reflective quality of blog entries, and the extent to which functioning online CoPs emerged. Findings revealed that shared blogs, when supported by sufficient formal priming and ongoing scaffolds, were a useful tool to promote peer collaboration and fully functioning online CoPs. Similarly, this structured reflection as part of a community suggested participants were capable of achieving more in terms of their levels of reflective thinking than if they had reflected on an individual basis, as per the methodology utilised in Chapter 5 (Boulton & Hramiak, 2012). It was clear, therefore, that shared blogs held potential in coach education pedagogy, especially when considering many of the barriers to the uptake of face-to-face coach education solutions typically cited by coaches (e.g., cost, accessibility, timing, and travel, cf. Sports Coach UK, 2012b). Nevertheless, insight was required into coaches’ views and perceptions relating to their use and experiences of group blogs, especially with regards to the factors that made an individual participate or not participate in a blog community (Silva et al., 2008).

Finally, in addressing the thesis’ final objective, Chapter 7 offered insight into student coaches’ perceptions of their use and experiences of structured group blogging for reflection and learning. This was achieved by inductively analysing interview data from four semi-structured focus group interviews with student coaches purposely sampled from the study described in Chapter 6. Results revealed that the student coaches were generally very positive about their learning experiences and the

pedagogical approach employed. This was especially apparent in terms of perceived increases in levels of reflection, knowledge acquisition and improvements in coaching practice; changes corroborated by the data presented in Chapter 6. A range of reasons emerged for these outcomes, alongside several potential limiters of engagement in shared group blogging as a learning endeavour. Whilst these findings supported recent, and growing proposals to systematically incorporate Web 2.0 technologies such as blogs into coach education pedagogy (e.g., Dixon et al., 2013; Piggott, 2013), several key considerations for the process of using such tools in coach education pedagogy were outlined.