Angel Eduardo Pena Gamez
Salt Lake City, Utah
Physical Education Teaching and Coaching
Leadership Track
Track and Field Coaching
For my EDGE Project I decided to volunteer as an assistant coach for Canyon View High School's track and field team. I loved doing track, and I wanted to see what it was like to coach a high school track team. I contacted one of the head coaches to see if this will be a possible, and what I needed to get done. She told me they would love having me, they always need all the help they can get. She also mentioned that I needed to get my fingerprints taken as well as a background check before I was able to start. Once I got my fingerprints done and finished EDGE 3040, I was ready to start.
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The season was split into two parts; the pre-season in February, and the official season starting in March. The pre-season mainly focused on general conditioning with weightlifting. They also had their own meet replica, in which over a few days they did different events for time, distance, and etc. The kids loved this part. Once the season began in March, then their workouts became more structured. My duties mainly consisted of setting up for drills, running them, writing down notes if any, and giving advice to those I could.
I wanted to do this as my EDGE project because I wanted to see if I would really like being a youth coach. My major focuses on breeding excellent coaches and PE teachers. I wanted to apply some of the things I learned in class to real world scenarios. Also at the same time seeing if being a PE teacher, or a coach, was right for me. In a way as well, I wanted to go back to my old track days, but without doing all the physical activity that comes with it.
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Some of the challenges I encountered had to do with difference of opinions. I mainly stuck with the distance runners, since that's what I know how to do. It was difficult trying to help the students since I was the new coach. The parent volunteer coaches had all been there for a while, and already had a set training schedule. So it was a little difficult to give any input.
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I also had difficulty at times when talking to the kids. They are teenagers who love to talk, and think anyone older that them is boring at times. So it was difficult when I was trying to teach a drill or a skill, and they would all rather talk and play around. Also being younger than the average coach there, it took some time for the students to take me seriously; and not as some random college kid who is there just for a grade. Eventually we built rapport, and that's when we all improved.
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This project not only benefited me, but also the students and fellow coaches. It helped the students because its always good to have other points of views when trying to improve. I would recommend something, and the other coaches would build on that; and vice versa. It also helped that I was on average 3 years older than the kids, so it was more relatable at times. It benefited the other coaches because they had an extra set of hands. It made setting up for drills and events a lot easier with the more help. Also more students were able to get advice with more of us to go around.
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This project benefited me in many ways. It showed me what kind of leader I am, and how to become a better one. It taught me better interpersonal skills; and how to work with other with very differing opinions. It showed me that no matter the disagreement, we all had a common purpose, to help the kids. Most importantly, it showed me that I do want to become a coach one day. Volunteering for that team was one of the best parts of my day, and my sophomore year. Track may be an individual sport, but it takes an entire team for it to happen.
“In the end, it’s about the teaching, and what I always loved about coaching was the practices. Not the games, not the tournaments, not the alumni stuff. But teaching the players during practice was what coaching was all about to me.” – John Wooden