Lockdown 3.0 and Virtual PE Provision
As we dive back into another lockdown I've put together some thoughts on what we might have learned from our last experiences with 'remote' PE.
So what do we know?
Lockdown for many is horrible. Really rubbish. Key milestones and events have been removed and there is little to look forward to or anticipate with any certainty. It can feel a bit like an abyss. Even those who felt their lifestyles arguably improved last lockdown with the removal of QOL damaging factors such as troublesome commutes still struggled with the changes. It was no surprise to see pupils struggle with motivation and commitment to training . We are all human and we all do anyway to some extent, but lockdown makes things harder for many.
So we have to make our own progress, and without many of our usual metaphorical finish lines to aim for, process becomes King. Clear, simple goals and realistic routines are the order of the day.
So what can you do?
So when you're planning, upgrading and improving your Virtual PE provision, I encourage you to incorporate these 3 ideas into your provision.
Coaching your athletes is your highest point of contribution. Throughout uncertainty, when we doubt ourselves, we need more than blind enthusiasm. Our pupils need someone to walk with them through a pretty weird situation. Youth athletes need lots of help with training questions and planning a suitable, individualised, realistic schedule. Be a real coach before you become Joe Wicks and start dancing around your living room. Make time for everyone individually and help them choose what works best.
Be realistic - certainly for the older cohorts. If they didn't get it last time, this won't all just be over with and back to normal soon. There is no need to be overtly negative, or worse, fear-monger. But it's important to be honest with them. It's ok to not want to train, to be demotivated, feel rubbish and think 'stuff this!'. This can help validate these feelings for many and it gives a different dynamic for them. Last lockdown, we know for certain many struggled with sleep disturbance and their mental health. You don't solve these problems with a stiff upper-lip.
Lockdown rips away a big part of our social selves. Just like last time, and perhaps sooner, they will all soon just start to miss their mates. Any way that you culture a sense of social cohesion and plain fun is a good thing. This isn't about delivering a perfectly periodised model of athletic development, it's about getting out the other side!
Every environment is of course different, and the above may or may not ring true to a greater or lesser degree. What is important is putting the pupil at the centre of the picture and offering something that is right for them, right now. Big parts of that are nothing to do with schemes of work, virtual curricula or fancy social media accounts. Every programme would be well served by reminding themselves of that key question:
What is the most important thing for these pupils, right now?