Teachers and coaches are invited to apply to become part of the ASA team of qualified tutors by taking part in a national training programme run by the Institute of Swimming (IoS), commencing early next year.
After successful completion of the training, candidates will benefit from increased career opportunities and an additional income stream by becoming a licensed ASA tutor, eligible to deliver UKCC courses and continuing professional development seminars in the relevant discipline.
Qualified tutors will effectively become part of the ASA’s new development framework to provide a world class coaching environment for England’s teachers and coaches. The framework, launched by the ASA last month, will create a new coaching system that delivers the right number coaching hours, by the right coach, in the appropriate environment to achieve success. It will create teachers and coaches who can promote learning through ownership, awareness and responsibility.
This means that tutors will also get the satisfaction of knowing they are contributing to the advancement of the sport, which trainee Sarah Slowgrove, who hopes to complete the training programme early next year, is particularly looking forward to.
She said: “There is definitely a feel good factor in knowing that you are part of the revolution to professionalise the industry and the fact that I will be part of the build up to 2012 by educating a new generation of teachers is a massive thing for me. As a sports person, I feel that it’s so important to promote the sport by getting more young people involved and then providing them with professional and well trained teachers.”
An experienced swimming teacher herself, Sarah began her career by helping at her local club in Colchester and then taught in leisure centres and a private swim school. Now a Sports Lecturer at Colchester Institute, Sarah plans to run courses for students at the Institute as well as externally for the IoS.
“Swimming is my passion and I view this training programme as a way of taking my swimming career a step further,” she said.
“Personally I have enjoyed my swimming so much, I want to give something back and although I have done this by teaching swimming myself, I really like the thought of improving the quality of future swimming teachers by developing them and helping them learn.”
Sarah has almost completed the training programme which comprises three distinct stages: firstly, the pre-programme application and an assessment day; then the programme itself with induction, registration, courses and seminars and finally formal assessments and course attachments.
Following completion of the assessment, induction and registration processes, candidates attend a three day ‘Certificate for Tutoring in Sport’ course followed by ‘Introduction to Assessment Practices in Sport’, a two day course which will allow candidates to assess ASA courses. There will then be a final assessment day for each of these courses. The IoS then provide a further two day seminar covering IoS and ASA Awarding Body processes and procedures.
Trainees then take part in three course attachments where firstly, they observe an experienced ASA tutor in the delivery of an ASA/UKCC course, then work with another tutor to deliver part of the course content for the second attachment. The trainee is responsible for the planning and delivery of a full course for the third and final attachment, with an experienced tutor acting both as support and assessor.
“The attachments were my favourite part of the training programme,” said Sarah.
“My placement tutors were all absolutely fantastic – their expert support and guidance has been invaluable. Just watching them gives you huge amounts of direction on what is required. Being a teacher has helped me massively as I already have the delivery skills, but someone who doesn’t have that background will rely heavily on the placements to get that support. I particularly enjoyed the final placement which confirmed that becoming a tutor is absolutely the right thing for me.”
Ray Lau has been an ASA tutor for fifteen years and ran Sarah’s first course attachment. “Sarah was an excellent attachment and I am sure she will do well,” he said.
“My tip for those who may be interested in tutor training is that you should really know your stuff and be keen to make a difference in tutoring the next generation of teachers. It’s really important to ensure that learning is fun and remember to keep the teachers active!”
Once Sarah has completed all elements of the training programme, she will need to submit her portfolio of evidence to the ASA Awarding Body to prove her competence in all areas. This will include certificates, qualifications and attachment evidence. She should also have had a recent Criminal Records Bureau check and attended an accredited Safeguarding and Protecting Children Seminar. Once all the evidence has been confirmed as sufficient and valid, the ASA Awarding Body will issue a Tutor Licence and Sarah will be ready to begin her new career as an ASA Tutor!
If you are an ASA qualified swimming teacher or coach with recent experience of teaching and/or coaching in the UK and think you may be interested in becoming an ASA accredited tutor, please submit your CV together with a covering letter to the IoS for consideration to tutortraining@swimming.org by 31st December 2009. For further information including full candidate advice and guidance and a flowchart of the full process please click here.
-ENDS-
For more information contact the ASA PR Officer Claire Freeman on 01509 632265 or email claire.freeman@swimming.org
About the ASA
The ASA is the English National Governing Body for Swimming, Diving, Water Polo, Open Water and Synchronised Swimming. It organises competition throughout England, establishes the Laws of the Sport and operates comprehensive certification and education programmes for Teachers, Coaches and Officials as well as its renowned Learn to Swim Awards scheme. The ASA supports 1,220 affiliated swimming clubs through a National/Regional/County structure. The ASA aims to ensure everybody has an opportunity to learn to swim.
In order to comply with national education and training standards it has developed two separate and independent arms – the ASA Awarding Body and the Institute of Swimming (IoS) - which represent the awarding and delivery channels for all ASA qualifications.
ASA Awarding Body
The ASA Awarding Body develops, assesses, awards and quality assures all ASA qualifications. It is the equivalent of other awarding bodies such as City & Guilds and OCR (Oxford, Cambridge and RSA Examinations). The ASA Awarding Body is licensed by British Swimming to award qualifications in England and Wales. It also has the remit for quality assurance of all areas of UKCC standards.
Institute of Swimming (IoS)
The IoS is a licensed training provider, like a school or college. It is one of many ASA Awarding Body Approved Centres. The IoS is also a membership body for qualified swimming teachers and coaches, providing insurance, advice and learning opportunities to its members.
About British Gas
British Gas is Britain's favourite domestic energy supplier. As well as providing gas and electricity, it also installs and maintains central heating and gas appliances in millions of homes throughout the country. British Gas is very proud to be the principal partner of British Swimming and home countries: The ASA, Scottish Swimming and Swim Wales. British Gas is supporting the team's quest for medals on the world and Olympic stage - and giving as many people as possible the opportunity to learn to swim and use swimming as part of a healthy lifestyle. British Gas wants to ensure local pools remain at the heart of our communities. By using its expertise, it can help them reduce costs by being more energy efficient and safeguard the facilities for this and future generations. For more information visit www.britishgas.co.uk/swimming
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