One of the “vexing” subjects that coaches and parents of
young people face is the “challenge” of coaching girls in youth sports.
Despite the complex pieces on coaching women out there, Play
Like a Champion Today®, advises coaches to not over-think this “issue.”
An important part of coaching is to always remind yourself
why you are coaching. Chances are that you are there to spend time with your
children, teach valuable character lessons, and to create meaningful memories
for yourself and for young people. Are any of those goals gender specific? Would
you approach any of them differently for a boy or a girl?
Doubtful. So don’t approach coaching differently. There are probably going to
be differences in experiences of coaching boys and girls, especially as they
get older, but none of the differences between them effect the way that kids
receive instructions , develop moral decision-making, and enhance their
physical abilities.
When coaching a single sex team, it’s important to avoid
traditional gender stereotypes and to get to know the individuals on your team. Getting to know them as Amanda, Shanti,
Claire, and Yvonne rather than just “girls” will allow you to see that each
person on your team has strengths, weaknesses, assets, and liabilities as young
athletes. Once you ignore what you expect
Linda be doing as a girl, you will see that she is good fielding shortstop, a confident leader that struggles with
her hitting abilities, and worries about her grades in school. Then you will
find the ways that you can influence her best as a coach, and she can best
impact the team as a player.
Gender-specific coaching can lead to coaching that ignores
the development of the whole athlete in favor of perpetuating stereotypes,
which can be dangerous for both boys and girls. As psychologist Dr. Nicole
Lavoi writes in a recent blog, “if a coach
believes or uncritically accepts that boys are inherently more aggressive and
competitive, the coach may have different expectations and ways of structuring
practices, interacting, communicating, motivating and leading girls. Similarly,
if coaches believe boys don’t value connections and friendships, this too
erases boys’ need for feeling a sense of belongingness.”
Title IX was a landmark in removing barriers against women
in sport with the support of the law, but so many of the barriers that girls
and women encounter are beyond the effect of the law. They are in deep-seeded
stereotypes of a woman’s ability, social tendencies, and emotional make-up. As
coaches and parents of young athletes, we have the ability to make a real
difference in the way our daughters, granddaughters, nieces, and friends choose
to (not) play into those stereotypes. As mentors of young women, let us
champion their abilities, coach them in their individual weaknesses, and avoid
the traps of traditional thinking.
Let’s simplify our approach. Learn her name. Coach to her
strengths and weaknesses. Realize that she
is an awesome individual. The rest
will take care of itself.
