Adapting coaching methods to different learning styles.

Student-athletes are expected to process the information they gather via the most comfortable learning style available to them. The three different learning styles are referred to as the visual learner, the auditory learner, and the kinesthetic and tactic learner.

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Because our student-athletes learn by seeing and hearing, reflecting and acting, reasoning logically and intuitively, and by analyzing and visualizing, our teaching and coaching methods must also vary.

The classic practice consists of the on-court demonstrations and walkthroughs to learn the plays and strategies. Other applications are used to create a more effective learning environment that will reach all the athletes.

The visual learner needs to see what is going on in order to understand what you are trying to teach. The most common way to reach the visual learner is through the use of playbooks, a method that we have all taken advantage of. Diagrams will allow the visual learner to study the play and its movements before having to execute it on the court.

The current technology allows us to create plays and drills, put them in animation on computers, and then show them to our players. We can also break down old-game footage to get the same effect.

Schools that do not have access to such tools can utilize the chalkboard or personal coach-player time to diagram plays step-by-step for this type of learner.

The auditory learner prefers verbal instructions and dialog and will test your abilities to properly explain a play, drill, or idea.

Your level of understanding in what you are teaching is crucial in reaching your learners. You have to be able to explain the play, drill, or concept in its entirety.

The use of name or word associations will help, but you must be consistent. For example, if you are explaining a set play where the ball is passed from the wing to the corner, followed by a UCLA cut (post setting an up-screen for the wing), always refer to this cut as a UCLA cut, or, if you prefer, a shuffle cut.

The kinesthetic and tactile learners need the isolation of the gym or a small office or classroom to best learn what you are explaining to them. They are ambitious learners and want to jump right in and try whatever it is you are teaching them, but they are easily distracted.

These athletes need you to find a harmonious balance between the repetition needed to learn and the time limitation on each play, drill, and concept. Show them and explain the play, drill, or concept, and then give them a few repetitions, and move on before they become distracted. Return to the exercise later in the practice or in the following days to adequately get the repetition they need.

To overcome the problem of reaching everyone, coaches should strive for a balance of instructional methods (as opposed to trying to teach each athlete according to his or her preferences).

If the balance is achieved, all athletes will be taught partly in a manner they prefer, which will lead to an increased comfort level and willingness to learn.

By Jason R. Baribeau, Asst. Men's Basketball Coach, Cayuga Community College, Auburn, NY