Where To Start?

Once skaters enter the Skate Canada Star Skate Program they will need to choose a coach to provide them with individual or semi-private instruction. To help you make this decision, consider the following points:

• Who does my child enjoy working with? Your child will be spending time one-on-one with this person at least a couple times per week. There may be an individual that you connect with well, but can the same be said for your skater? If your skater has participated in Canskate or Early Figure Skating programs with our club then they will have been exposed to most if not all of our coaching staff. Ask your child who they have enjoyed working with most. Ask them to give you their top two picks.
• Does this coach's teaching credentials meet the needs of my skater? All Skate Canada professional coaches are accredited through the 3M National Coaching Certification Program to at least Level I. This program trains coaches on proper technique, training regimes, and ethical issues related to coaching in general. All of our coaches have completed at least Level II and several are continuing their education to further upgrade their credentials. They are all more than qualified to teach skaters through all levels of the Skate Canada Star Skate Program and through many of the competitive levels as well. Please feel free to consult their coaching bios.
• What is my budget? Your budget will determine how many lessons per week you will purchase for your skater. Estimate how much you are willing to spend per week on lessons. These fees are paid directly to the coach, not to the club. The fees you pay to the club are for ice only.

Once you have selected one or more individuals, determine the following:

• Is the coach available during the sessions that my skater is choosing to skate? Some of our coaches may be fully booked on some sessions. Some flexibility on both sides may be required to fit lessons in.
• How many lessons per week can they provide to your skater? Discuss with them what your expectations are for your skater in terms of lessons and advancement. The coach will be able to guide you as to what is an appropriate number based on the level of your skater and your budget. Do their suggestions and rates meet with yours? What is their method and billing period?
• If the coach is quite full, are you willing to work with a couple of coaches? Team coaching is not uncommon at our club and has many benefits. Some skaters learn one aspect of their skating from one coach and another from the second coach. Each coach can often compliment the other well.

Once you have found an individual that your skater likes and meets your financial and goal requirements, book them!

Now That You Have a Coach

Communication is key. Make sure that the arrangement you have set up continues to work for your skater, your coach and you. If you have any questions about your skater's progress or your lessons then speak with your coach. Afterall, you are paying them to work with your child. This is a business arrangement and must be treated as such. If things aren't working as well as you believe they should, you need to talk. Often simple things can be ironed out and are the result of a misunderstanding.

What To Do When Things Don't Go As Planned

For the most part, coaching relationships are uneventful: your skater enjoys their lessons and there are no issues. But, not all relationships end up how they started. What do you do when a coaching relationship is not working?

First, ask yourself the following: Is this relationship not working because the parents and coach are not in agreement or because the skater is unhappy? If a skater has been with a particular coach for several years a fairly strong bond may have been established. If they are happy with the coach, then for the sake of the skater remaining happy (this is why we are in this sport, right?) then try to come to an understanding with the coach and do not involve your skater (see below for ethical obligations of coaches to skaters and parents).

If your skater is unhappy, this is a different situation. First, identify if the issue is solely related to the coach or with the skater. Every skater goes through "slumps" during their skating. Often this is related to growth spurts or may be injury related. Keeping motivation and enjoyment high can be really challenging. Speak with your skater to help them determine if they are definitely having issues with their coach or if it is primarily related to their own personal development. In either case, the parent should speak with the coach regarding the situation. If after several conversations or meetings, things are not working between the skater and coach, it may be time to consider switching coaches.

Switching coaches can be a big decision and should not be taken lightly. If there is a definite conflict in personalities or the coaching arrangement, then the decision to change may not be a difficult decision to make. However, especially in the competitive stream, sometimes skaters and parents are quick to look to other coaching options when the skater is not achieving the results they believe they should. It is in this situation that skater and parents need to take a step back and clearly analyze the situation. Are the expectations of the skater and parent realistic? Be honest here. When looking back over a skating season or a year, has the skater continued to improve and develop? Are you basing your decision on a single performance that lasted less than five minutes? Are you basing your decision on the progress of other skaters knowing that everyone develops and matures at different times and paces? Are you still on track towards your original goal? If the overall assessment indicates that progress is not being made, your skater is unhappy (and they want to continue skating, not you) then a coaching change could be in order.

Some advice from the parent of an elite competitive skater who had to make a coaching change:

"The first thing is making decisions with your head and not your heart. Rash, emotional decisions are never good ones.As parents, we tend to be very emotionallycharged whereour children are concerned and we tend to jump to conclusionsin order to fix things that might hurt our kids."

If the decision is made to change coaches, as a parent you have the following obligations:

• Inform the coach that you will be making a change.
• Ensure that all outstanding debts are paid.
• Inform any new coach that all matters have been settled with the former coach.

Coaches Obligations to Skaters and Parents.

(courtesy of the Skate Canada Website)

Your coach is bound by a code of ethics that they must sign with Skate Canada:

Coach Ethical Conduct concerning Obligations to the Skater and Parent

To assist one's skating student to determine realistic goals and objectives in the sport.

To provide the skater and parent/s with the basic information necessary to enable them to choose a realistic and affordable course of action to achieve these goals and objectives.

To outline clearly one's coaching services available including cost and method of payment for such services.

To provide such coaching services as agreed or contracted to each student.

To provide the skater and parent/s with a current copy of the Skate Canada Coaches' Code of Ethics and review the code with the skater and parent/s.

To maintain the skater's best interests at heart when making decisions that will affect the skater's advancement through the sport.

To be ever mindful of the influence one can exercise over one's skating students and to never abuse this trust.

To avoid making promises or giving guarantees to the skater and/or parents of test or competitive achievement but rather endeavour to restrict dialogue to the skater's personal skating development.

To communicate as regularly and effectively as possible with the skater and parent/s as to the skater's progress, changes in Skate Canada rules or club regulations, or other important or relevant information affecting the skater's participation in the sport.

To respect the fact that a skater and/or parent/s have the right to contract the services of another coach to either replace or supplement the student's instruction.

Coach Ethical Conduct concerning Obligations to the Sport

To be familiar with and adhere to the standards of coaching as defined under Section 2400 of the Skate Canada Rulebook; and maintain a current working knowledge of ISU, Skate Canada, Section and club rule changes, policies, regulations and programs so as to be able to deliver the product of skating in a professional manner.

To maintain professional competence by continually pursuing educational and professional upgrading including knowledge in related fields beneficial to skating (e.g. the performing arts, sport science, sport psychology, officiating, etc.).

To exhibit the important character traits of honesty, reliability/dependability and cooperation when dealing with all participants in the sport so as to bring credit to the profession.

To share responsibility with coaching colleagues, judges/evaluators and club officials to initiate and support actions that are required to meet the needs of the skaters, the club and skating in general.

To actively participate in the development and/or maintenance of desirable standards of coaching practice, education, certification and working conditions in the sport.

To dress in a neat, clean and appropriate manner that is becoming a member of this profession.

To give back a certain portion of time, effort and knowledge to the sport as a volunteer.

To promote Skate Canada and its' programs and the sport of skating in general.

Coach Ethical Conduct concerning Obligations to the Club/Skating School

To accurately represent one's technical, educational and professional credentials and resume.

To accept personal responsibility for providing and delivering coaching services in a professional manner.

To help ensure that a positive learning environment is maintained in the club.

To negotiate coaching contracts in good faith and honour their terms.

To treat members of the club with respect and fairness.

Coach Ethical Conduct concerning Obligations to Professional Colleagues

To strive to create and maintain cooperative relationships with coaching colleagues for the purpose of ensuring a positive skating environment.

To avoid criticizing another coach's teaching methods, techniques and/or opinions unless done so with the coach's knowledge or permission.

To respect the fact that a coach becomes the base coach of a skating student from the moment that a skater contracts the services of that coach, whether individually or in a group situation, and that other coaches must initiate discussion about a skater's training only through the base coach.

To respect a coach/skater and/or parent/s' relationship and not solicit or cause to be solicited, directly or indirectly, or through a third party the skater/s of another coach.

To pursue the following course of conduct in the event that any of the following or similar situations occur:

(a) To communicate clear, precise guidelines or parameters to a coaching colleague whose services one wishes to retain on a temporary or permanent basis to assist, supplement or replace one's services currently being rendered and to communicate these parameters to the skater and/or parent/s.

(b) To obtain authorization and clear, precise instructions from a coaching colleague as to what the coach wishes to be done with the skater in the absence of the coach or agreed upon team coaching situation and do nothing to undermine the base coach/skater and/or parent/s' relationship.

(c) To immediately advise a coaching colleague and seek confirmation from that coach that all undisputed coaching and/or related skating bills are paid or arranged to be paid to the reasonable satisfaction of the coach and/or club upon being approached by a skater and/or parent/s who request to contract your services. This is to ensure that the proper procedure occurs when taking on a new skater as a student. The parent should have discussed the situation with the previous coach and informed him/her of the change to the new coach. All bills should have been paid to the former coach prior to coaching a new student.