Attitude of coaches and development of passing and receiving skills of students in Senior High Schools in Wassa Amenfi West Municipality in the Western Region

Abstract

Recent academic literature on sport coaching has recognized the value of domain specialization, highlighting the importance of player motivations and the coaching environment in selecting good coaching practice. Although children's reasons for participating in sports have been a popular research topic, no attempt has been made to assess the research literature that particularly addresses this subject. This study discovered that a number of factors influence children's participation in sports, which include: gaining new skills, feeling competent, having fun, making new friends and peers. These findings imply that, in addition to the well-known psychological variables, the social cultural setting in which children play increases their motivation to engage. If youngsters are to stay active in sports, coaches' behaviors and techniques must meet the demands of the young participants. Coaches are responsible for creating a developmentally appropriate learning environment in which children can continue to participate in sports. To accomplish this, coaches must carefully consider the attitudes they employ and how they structure their coaching sessions. Coaches should emphasize fun and enjoyment, teamwork and effort, and fun over winning and competition. The study covered all Senior High School Coaches, PE tutors and student’s athletes or players in Wasa Amenfi West Municipality. The accessible population consist of all the PE tutors and coaches and students of the two Senior High Schools in the Wasa Amenfi West Municipality whose population is estimated over three hundred and fifty (350). The main instrument for the data collection for the study was the Systematic Observation Instrument (SOI), which was used to record coaches’ attitude towards inappropriate actions by players or student athlete. The attitude of the coaches were tallied to ascertain whether their attitude affected the player positively or negatively. The validity of the instrument was certified and accepted by the researcher’s mentor who also guided the researcher in the proper use of the instrument. The raw data was tabulated at the end of each period with calculations made for each type of coach’s attitude and the total number of the coach’s attitudinal reactions. It was concluded that the coach’s attitude is directly related to the content taught, its application may affect the achievement of the set objectives either positively or negatively. It was recommended that in no circumstances should coaches or managers use negative or hash words on any player or athlete because these actions used sometimes demotivate and thereby makes players dull in training and leads to players committing a lot of errors during training or performing a skill.