The Teesra

Another guru — chatting with Google’s Bard about direct instruction (and Direct Instruction). And a lesson in asking the right question.

I posted recently about my experience with ChatGPT, and how it had helped me to clarify my thinking about the use of the coaching tool “Instruction”.

So when I saw that Google had released their own Large Language Model generative AI chatbot, Bard, I went in search of my next guru.

Once again, the “conversation” helped me to crystallise my thinking around around coaching pedagogies, I found out more about (one version) of Direct Instruction, and I learnt a valuable lesson for coaching and the use of questioning — don’t automatically accept the first answer you are given!

Coaching neurodivergent players…and how it just might be a better way to coach, full stop.

A learning week!

Neurodiversity training from Headstuff ADHD Therapy, through one of my “zero hours contract” workplaces.

An online webinar in the always interesting Myths of Sport Coaching webinar series (hosted on YouTube by Sequoia Books), on the proactive role of sports psychology.

And more reading, away from the functional “what to coach” and towards the more productive, much more interesting “how to work with people”.

And out of this has emerged a series of ideas on how to better support players with ADHD and autism.

But as I re-read the list of accommodations and adjustments, it became very apparent that what I had written down could be profitably applied to most coaching activities.

Pairs cricket — with a CLA tweak.

I like to use the “pairs” format as a basic structure for SSGs — batters in pairs, facing a fixed number of deliveries, if you are “out” you lose runs, but carry on batting.

But the immediate penalty for getting out can make some batters overly cautious, and we do want them to still play their strokes.

So this week I tried out an alternative sanction – if you are out, you have to swap to using a thin/practice/technique bat!