Coastal Kayak Instructor Manual
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Compiled by Sean Morley | 2020 Morley / Coastal Kayak / 1 INTRODUCTION This manual is primarily intended as a reference for coastal kayak instructors and aspiring instructors whether teaching professionally for a commercial business or academic institution or as a volunteer with a club or informal group. It is also likely to be very useful reading for all paddlesport instructors, and recreational paddlers seeking to develop their knowledge and skills since many of the concepts and tools discussed can be used to self-teach. The goal of the manual is to introduce and explain fundamental principles, educational concepts, methods and tools that have been proven to be effective in teaching coastal kayaking. The goal is not to produce a ‘How To’ guide for learning to paddle. Some basic knowledge is assumed and may not be discussed or covered in any detail. It is often said that there are as many opinions as there are instructors and whilst it is impossible to keep opinion entirely out of this text, I have strived to only include opinions that are widely held and supported by facts and science. Subjectivity is a fact of life within teaching and assessment, but the aim of this manual is to encourage a more objective approach, using assessment methods and tools to improve the quality of the process. The contents of this manual are relevant for instructors teaching using any paddlesports organization’s curricula; American Canoe Association (ACA), Paddle Canada or British Canoeing (formerly known as the BCU). Indeed, many instructors and coaches have trained with and are certified to teach through more than one paddlesports organization and this manual represents the shared knowledge of the coastal kayak community at large, not just one single organization. That said, this manual should be read in conjunction with the ACA’s Instructor’s Manual and the BCU’s Coaching Handbook. The principle of ‘Learning by Doing’ is the cornerstone of paddlesports instruction and whilst it is easy to get absorbed by the more technical aspects of coastal kayaking it should not be forgotten that teaching and learning to paddle should be fun too! This manual is not presented as an original work but more a compilation of publicly available information relevant to the coastal kayak instructor, as well as content that has been generously contributed by fellow coastal kayak instructors, coaches and educators. Much has been plagiarized or copied and I am grateful to all those that have contributed, either knowingly or unknowingly! This will remain a “live’ document and will be regularly updated. Contributions are always welcome! This manual in its present form will not be sold commercially but shared free of charge. Chapters 1 through 4 are largely theory. Chapters 5 through 7 provide some practical tools and advice. Morley / Coastal Kayak / 2 CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE 1. Learning Theory 4 1.1 Motor & Cognitive Skills 4 1.2 Learning Styles & Preferences 5 1.3 The Four Stages of Learning 13 1.4 Teaching the Brain (Cross-Patterning) 15 2. Teaching & Coaching Theory 17 2.1 How to Teach a Skill 20 2.2 How to Give an Effective Lesson 24 2.3 Differentiated Teaching 31 2.4 Observation, Analysis & Assessment 33 2.5 Feedback 44 2.6 Practice 47 2.7 Paddling Concepts 51 2.8 Teaching Rescues 66 2.9 The Flow Channel 69 3. Long Term Paddler Development 73 3.1 Goal Setting 74 4. Leadership 76 4.1 Group Management 80 4.2 Incident Management 81 4.3 Decision-Making 83 4.4 Risk Assessment & Mitigation 87 4.5 Emergency Medical Protocol 106 5. Coastal Environments 111 5.1 Teaching in Wind 111 Morley / Coastal Kayak / 3 5.2 Teaching in Surf 116 5.3 Teaching in Rock Gardens 130 5.4 Teaching in Current 142 6. Navigation 153 7. Coastal Kayak – Glossary of Terms 167 8. Open Water Instructor Equipment List 179 9. Book List 180 10. Acknowledgments 185 Morley / Coastal Kayak / 4 1. LEARNING THEORY What I hear, I forget. What I see, I remember. What I do, I understand. Old Chinese proverb, sometimes attributed to Confucius The goal here is to present some widely held concepts and to encourage you to test them out and discover what works best for you and your teaching style in the context that you will be using them. It is important to remember that most people learning to kayak are doing so for adventure, to be active and recreate. Not everyone is seeking to perform at a high level or become what might be considered by us to be an advanced paddler. Our role is to help them become the best paddler they want to be and to keep them safe and having fun during that process. The evolution of learning theory is far from over and there are many opinions on how we learn and the best methods for teaching the practical skills and related theory associated with coastal kayaking. 1.1 Motor & Cognitive Skills Motor skills refer to the ability to perform complex muscle-and-nerve acts that produce movement; fine motor skills are small movements like writing and tying shoes, gross motor skills are large movements like walking and kicking. Cognitive skills refer to mental processes using the brain that are born out of knowledge and experience. They include problem solving, judgment, decision making, evaluation and reasoning. Learning to paddle a sea kayak requires the acquisition of a vast array of fine and gross motor skills and the simultaneous development of cognitive skills. Our teaching should reflect this with Morley / Coastal Kayak / 5 sufficient time spent on developing a ‘feel’ for the water and for how the body, boat and paddle move (fine motor skills), and not just a focus on whole strokes (gross motor skills). The context for each skill is critical for developing cognition and understanding. The more experienced you become as a paddler, the easier it is to mistakenly assume knowledge in your students. They don’t know what they don’t know – it is your job to help them at least understand what they need to know and motivate them to learn more. 1.2 Learning Styles & Preferences It has long been suggested that we all have different ways that we learn, based on our genetics, personality type, life experiences, and the demands of our current environment. There is increasing skepticism about the validity of these concepts, but at the very least they encourage us to think about how we learn and how we could adapt our teaching style to benefit different types of learners. Psychologist David Kolb published his learning styles model in 1984 from which he developed his learning style inventory. Kolb's experiential learning theory works on two levels: a four-stage cycle of learning and four separate learning styles. Much of Kolb's theory is concerned with the learner's internal cognitive processes. Kolb’s learning theory suggests that when learning a new skill, we first experience the activity. We then reflect on the experience and develop an intellectual model Morley / Coastal Kayak / 6 about how to do the activity. Finally, we use the model to experiment with new techniques, leading to new experiences. The process then is repeated, creating an upward spiral of knowledge and ability. Although everyone has a preferred learning style, everyone also must move through each of these stages to fully understand and execute any new skill. KOLB’S LEARNING STYLE INVENTORY The Thinker Learns by: Analytical, intellectual approach; reads, wants information, technical explanation; mental process is primary. To recognize: Asks questions, repeats information, wants discussion; hesitates to do it. Needs: Clear explanations and mental images; but mainly needs encouragement to act and feel; get beyond the mental image. The Watcher Learns by: Watching others, observation, mental images. To recognize: Holds back, waits for others to go first, asks to see it again. Needs: Good model to imitate; must be encouraged to try the skill and experiment. The Doer Learns by: Doing it; hands-on approach. To recognize: Jumps right in; is fidgety and gets bored with explanations; non-attentive, doesn’t watch before trying the activity. Needs: Active participation, very brief explanation; to be encouraged to pay attention, and tune into kinesthetic (feeling) sense; good feedback. The Feeler Learns by: Feel, has good kinesthetic sense; experiments to get a feeling for the activity. To recognize: Wants to try it, but more tentative than the doer; gets bored with explanations; tries different approaches; good physical awareness. Needs: Active participation, good model; may need encouragement to keep trying. Morley / Coastal Kayak / 7 Whilst the principle that we should adapt our teaching to everyone’s ‘Learning Style’ has been a mainstay of education for decades, there is considerable debate on the validity of the learning styles theory. There is little research that supports the notion that learners are more successful when exposed to a teaching method that matches their personally perceived learning style. LEARNING PREFERENCES What do we mean by “Learning Preferences” and how do they differ from “Learning Styles”? We use the phrase "learning preferences" to refer to a person's characteristic patterns of strengths, weaknesses and preferences for taking in, processing, and retrieving information, acquiring skills and developing understanding. Verbal/Written Learners who prefer this learning style are most comfortable learning by reading. Often, in order to remember new information, they must see it written down before they can transfer it to long term memory. They might also be most comfortable expressing the information they know through writing about it. Aural/Auditory/Oral For these learners, information is most easily processed through hearing it.