Whenever I mention EduSports to people I meet - and talk about how we get 300,000 children to play in schools, the 1st question I get invariably is:
"So, how do you spot and develop exceptional talent?"
Initially, I was disturbed at this obsession with peak performance that I covered in an earlier blog...thinking:
"Why isn't sports considered a part of education? Why isn't play for the sake of play good enough?"
But I think a more fundamental question needs to be answered:
Are schools the right places for talent spotting and development?
Let's start with the primary conditions required for talent spotting. Development of talent makes sense once you have spotted some.
School team trials. Usually during the school day - so, many kids do not even come to know of the trials. Whoever is interested shows up - and the PE teacher selects a team based on some races/matches. Assumption is that the talented person is also interested - and also, therefore shows up.
In addition, the PE teacher "knows" who is good in which sport - and calls out their names anyway.
The current talent spotting system is essentially designed for the really outstanding kid - Not really for those who might take some time to blossom.
Or talent gets spotted when the right kid with the right fitness/skill meets the right coach in the right school at the right age.
Not really talent spotting, is it? And it is not the PE teachers fault. The space and time constraints just do not lend themselves to an effective talent spotting setup.
However, if the fitness and skill data of all children is tracked over time, the analysis can throw up some possible "diamonds in the rough". And that should be one important goal of the school sports system....in the same manner as maths and science scores are tracked for each child, fitness and skills improvement should be tracked, improvement demanded by parents - and delivered by the school sports program.
For talent development, you need personalised attention.
And personalised attention has to be given across things like:
Again, the school system is just not designed to deliver on these parameters....especially personalisation.
Most schools will, at best, offer their premises and flexibility on the child's attendance/exam schedule.
Therefore, just because there are lots of kids who go to schools, it does not mean that the school is the right context for talent spotting and development.
So, how should talent spotting and development happen?
I believe it can only happen in dedicated academies that run after-school weekend programs - and with dedicated kids with dedicated parents.
This combination can provide the personalisation required for talent to develop.
These places have the coach-child ratio, the parent attention, the infrastructure etc to provide the level of attention required for talent spotting and development.
The dream of the hidden "diamond in the rough" talent coming out of the school system if you cover enough kids is a great dream - but I am afraid it is just that - a dream.
If the system is not designed for talent spotting, it will only spot talent by serendipity. Not by design.
If the system does not have the personalisation required for developing talent, it cannot really develop talent.
But the school sports system can support talent spotting by:
The school sports system cannot be the talent spotting and development system.
It can - and should - support it by making more kids experience the joy and magic of play, give them as many opportunities to play as possible.
Let's not kill the joy of play by imposing a goal of talent spotting and development. And in the process, ensuring that 99% of the children in school do not really enjoy the sports experience.
Let the school sports program do its job by making sports an integral part of the education, by getting children to love play, get healthier and fitter through play etc.
And let the academies do their job by spotting talent and developing them into champions.
"So, how do you spot and develop exceptional talent?"
Initially, I was disturbed at this obsession with peak performance that I covered in an earlier blog...thinking:
"Why isn't sports considered a part of education? Why isn't play for the sake of play good enough?"
But I think a more fundamental question needs to be answered:
Are schools the right places for talent spotting and development?
Let's start with the primary conditions required for talent spotting. Development of talent makes sense once you have spotted some.
- Foundation level skills and fitness in all children. - Not present in schools. Most programs are not inclusive and do not focus on all children. If all children are not taught the right fitness and skill, how will we know of potential talent? Only naturally gifted children will play - as is the status in most schools today.
- Adequate opportunities to play. - Not present in schools. 2-3 classes per week.
- Adequate opportunities to compete. - Not present in schools. 35 min session. 35-40 kids with a range of fitness & skill. The talented kids don't really get challenged. They can, however, show off their skills to the rest of the class.
- Patient and trained coach who can spot talent. - Not usually present in schools. 1 PE teacher for 1000 kids.
School team trials. Usually during the school day - so, many kids do not even come to know of the trials. Whoever is interested shows up - and the PE teacher selects a team based on some races/matches. Assumption is that the talented person is also interested - and also, therefore shows up.
In addition, the PE teacher "knows" who is good in which sport - and calls out their names anyway.
The current talent spotting system is essentially designed for the really outstanding kid - Not really for those who might take some time to blossom.
Or talent gets spotted when the right kid with the right fitness/skill meets the right coach in the right school at the right age.
Not really talent spotting, is it? And it is not the PE teachers fault. The space and time constraints just do not lend themselves to an effective talent spotting setup.
However, if the fitness and skill data of all children is tracked over time, the analysis can throw up some possible "diamonds in the rough". And that should be one important goal of the school sports system....in the same manner as maths and science scores are tracked for each child, fitness and skills improvement should be tracked, improvement demanded by parents - and delivered by the school sports program.
For talent development, you need personalised attention.
And personalised attention has to be given across things like:
- An ongoing, year-round training program - that focuses on sports-specific, child-specific and age-specific fitness and skill.
- Ongoing year-round competitive matches - that gives the child real-match exposure to varied opponents.
- Diet and nutrition.
- Physical conditioning.
- Mental conditioning.
- Appropriate equipment
- and many many other things...
Again, the school system is just not designed to deliver on these parameters....especially personalisation.
Most schools will, at best, offer their premises and flexibility on the child's attendance/exam schedule.
Therefore, just because there are lots of kids who go to schools, it does not mean that the school is the right context for talent spotting and development.
So, how should talent spotting and development happen?
I believe it can only happen in dedicated academies that run after-school weekend programs - and with dedicated kids with dedicated parents.
This combination can provide the personalisation required for talent to develop.
These places have the coach-child ratio, the parent attention, the infrastructure etc to provide the level of attention required for talent spotting and development.
The dream of the hidden "diamond in the rough" talent coming out of the school system if you cover enough kids is a great dream - but I am afraid it is just that - a dream.
If the system is not designed for talent spotting, it will only spot talent by serendipity. Not by design.
If the system does not have the personalisation required for developing talent, it cannot really develop talent.
But the school sports system can support talent spotting by:
- Increasing the pool of children with the correct age-appropriate skills and fitness - so that the coaches and academies have a higher talent level to work with.
- Increasing the pool of children who love sports and want to play more - so the coaches and academies have a larger talent pool to work with.
- Tracking children's fitness and skill parameters so that coaches, academies and parents can figure out which child might be best suited for which sport at the appropriate age - and spot potential talent in kids who might not be playing that sport today but have the fitness and skills for the sport.
- Having partnerships with academies who can develop the talent.
The school sports system cannot be the talent spotting and development system.
It can - and should - support it by making more kids experience the joy and magic of play, give them as many opportunities to play as possible.
Let's not kill the joy of play by imposing a goal of talent spotting and development. And in the process, ensuring that 99% of the children in school do not really enjoy the sports experience.
Let the school sports program do its job by making sports an integral part of the education, by getting children to love play, get healthier and fitter through play etc.
And let the academies do their job by spotting talent and developing them into champions.
