Developing Coach Developers in a Finnish Ice Hockey Context: The Case of the Coach Developer Academy

Abstract

Recognising the important role that coach developers (CDs) can play in supporting sport 28 coaches, national governing bodies are increasingly seeking to engage them in professional 29 development pathways and programmes. In this article, we introduce the Coach Developer 30 Academy (CDA), a season-long intervention that is situated in the Finnish cultural context. It 31 is an initiative between Finnish Ice Hockey Association and Haaga-Helia University of Applied 32 Sciences. CDA is designed for CDs who are employed by the junior ice hockey organisations 33 in Finland. Specifically, this article explores the three modules that are central to CDA: (a) 34 Communities of Practice in Sports, (b) Developing Coach Developer Skills, and (c) Planning 35 and Implementing Learning Process. As part of this, the learning tasks and assessment 36 methods that were a part of each of the modules are discussed. We offer reflections from 37 the CDA facilitators that highlight strengths, lessons learned, areas of improvement, and the 38 opportunities for CDA growth. Our intention with this Practical Advances article is to share a 39 case-based example that will contribute to the visibility and discussion of CD development 40 efforts in the peer-reviewed literature.