OTTAWA, ON - The partnership that delivers the National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP) — the Coaching Association of Canada (CAC), national sport organizations (NSOs), and Provincial/Territorial Coaching Representatives (PTCRs) — met in Ottawa on June 11 to discuss how to achieve the shared goal of one million athletes being coached by 100,000 NCCP-trained coaches annually by 2010. “The 2008 NCCP Partners Day demonstrated that cooperation and collaboration between CAC and its partners has reached a new high,” says John Bales of Ottawa, CAC's chief executive officer. “The level of commitment and the acceptance of responsibility demonstrated by the NSOs and PTCRs are particularly gratifying and give confidence that our NCCP goal will be reached.” In addition, Bales points out that the Partner Action Plans produced by the delegates could alleviate the worrisome findings of “Canada's Report Card on Physical Activity for Children & Youth 2008” (http://www.jeunesenforme.ca/programs_2008reportcard.cfm). “The fact that Canada, for the fourth year in a row, has been given an overall grade of D by the Report Card is compelling evidence of the need for the 'sustained and increased efforts' it recommends,” he says. As a result, the partnership, recognizing the essential role that coach education can play to remedy the situation, agreed to expand delivery of coach training by 30 per cent over the next three years. “NCCP-trained and certified coaches are better able to meet the needs of children and youth who participate in sports,” says Bales. “This in turn increases the likelihood of positive experiences and lifelong involvement. More and better trained coaches would lead to more physically active children and alleviation of health issues tied to inactivity and excessive time spent in front of screens.” The Partner Action Plans laid the foundation for consensus in key areas. Commitments were made to increasing communication and collaboration among the partners in order to share best practices and to recognizing and supporting coach education leaders. Agreement was reached on expanding the NCCP Network by enhancing the delivery of the program to Canada's schools, post-secondary institutions, community organizations, and to instructor and “Learn to …” programs for children and adults. CAC, the NSOs, and the PTCRs have each accepted responsibilities in specific areas, some ongoing and others in support of new initiatives. CAC will continue to develop tools and templates for use by all the partners, including mentoring resources, some of which will be available online. It will provide opportunities to share best practices in coach education. Professional development opportunities in the area of e-learning will be made available. Communications templates delivering consistent and targeted messages will be developed. New partner delivery will be initiated. The NSOs have agreed to implement mandatory certification for coaches to participate at specified competitions. Development programs to ensure that coaching standards are in place in Canada's clubs will be created. A pool of sport-specific and multi-sport Learning Facilitators (LFs), whom NSOs can access to deliver coach education modules, will be developed. Collaboration with the PTCRs will provide incentives to support provincial/territorial sport organizations in the delivery of coach education. Continuing education minimum requirements will be expanded to ensure ongoing training by coaches. Access to sports that deliver sport “Learn to ...” programs will be expanded. Partnerships will be formed with New Canadian and under-serviced cultural communities. “The NSOs recognize the importance of the NCCP to all of our members,” says Dean McIntosh of Calgary, Hockey Canada's senior manager, coaching. “Parents, administrators, and participants want to know that their coach has been trained in the NCCP. It is our responsibility as organizations to break down barriers and to train, support, certify, and nurture coaches in their education.” The PTCRs' commitments include promoting the importance of certified coaches to Games organizations, governments, and clubs and informing NSOs of relevant grants and bilateral agreements. They will ensure that information about the NCCP is communicated to schools. Delivery of Fundamental Movement Skills (FMS), the precursor movement patterns to the more specialized, complex skills used in sport, will be coordinated and best models identified. Efforts will be made to recruit LFs from universities and colleges and from the ranks of retired athletes and to fund LFs to attend relevant conferences and seminars. High school teachers in remote areas will be trained as LFs. A one-day, standardized training program for evaluators, linked to events such as annual general meetings and coach conferences, will be developed. “As the provincial and territorial governments work towards supporting coach education and the transition to the new NCCP, the role of the PTCRs has become increasingly critical to ensure that communication is maintained across all coach partners in each of their jurisdictions,” says Anita Comella of Toronto, acting director, Sport and Recreation Branch, Ministry of Health Promotion, Government of Ontario. “PTCRs serve as the delivery 'connective tissue' between the NCCP and coaches through the provincial/territorial sport organizations, educational institutions, clubs, communities, LFs, evaluators, and governments. As well as delivering courses, PTCRs are a one-stop window to guide coaches as they determine their appropriate certification pathway.” The National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP) is a coach training and certification program for 66 sports and is offered in both official languages across Canada. NCCP workshops are designed to meet the needs of all types of coaches, from the first-time coach to the head coach of a national team. The NCCP is the recognized national standard for coach training and certification in Canada. As part of the program, all coaches are trained in ethical decision-making and sport safety. The Coaching Association of Canada (CAC) is a not-for-profit amateur sport organization with the mission of enhancing the experiences of all Canadian athletes through quality coaching. CAC and its partners deliver a leading-edge coaching system whose goal is to have an impact on 1,000,000 athletes through the training of 100,000 coaches each year in the National Coaching Certification Program. Visit www.coach.ca for more information about coach education and training. For more information, contact:

Sandra Gage
Director, Marketing and Communications
Coaching Association of Canada
613-235-5000, ext. 9-2378
sgage@coach.ca
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