National Coaching Accreditation Scheme (NCAS)
Rowing Australia has recently completed a review of the structure, content and delivery of its coach education program with the ultimate aim of improving the National Coach Accreditation Scheme. As part of the review the previous coaching levels 1, 2, 3 and 4 have been renamed to provide guidelines for coaches to best decide which coaching level is most appropriate for them and their crews. The table below provides an overview of the coaching levels under the old NCAS program and the levels and course aims to which they relate under the revised NCAS.
| Old Level |
New Level |
Aim |
| Level 1 |
Learn to Row Coach |
The Learn to Row Coach is aimed at the novice coach. It is anticipated the Learn to Row coach will have minimal background in rowing and will coach predominantly up to junior high school level or those in their first season of rowing. Examples of this type of coach are teachers and parents with non-rowing backgrounds and current rowing club members helping at the grassroots level. This program trains coaches who will coach beginners of all ages, teaching fundamentals and introducing non-rowers to the sport. These coaches will be provided with the compliance training, interpersonal skills and low level technical development skills to deal with the groups they train. |
| Level 2 |
Club/School Coach |
The Club/ School Coach is aimed at senior school and club coaches. This program trains coaches who already have some experience in the sport and aims to provide the coach with the knowledge and skills to develop athletes to their potential. They will have enough knowledge to develop an annual program, rig boats appropriately and develop younger athletes. Club/School coaches will provide coaching to the majority of athletes and will be required to tutor rowers of all ages and physical capacities. These coaches will have a basic sports science knowledge. |
| Level 3 |
Performance Coach |
The Performance Coach is aimed at coaches intending to work with State level teams, junior National teams and School head coaches. This program aims to develop the coach’s concepts of applied sports science, program management skills and the ability to develop less experienced coaches within their network. These coaches also have potential to develop workshops and information sessions which are important for coach development of all levels. |
| Level 4 |
High Performance Coach |
The High Performance Coach is an advanced accreditation level. It is aimed at ‘professional’ head coaches working within high performance clubs and National Training Centre networks who are dealing with elite athletes. The High Performance Coach aims to train the coach to apply their coaching skills in a holistic manner, and work with a team of sports science experts to assist the athlete to achieve excellence. The High Performance Coach will focus on the role of the coach as a program manager, and will rely on expert coaches practising in the field to mentor High Performance Coach candidates. |
In addition to renaming the levels of the NCAS, Rowing Australia has refined the
pre requisites for each level to ensure that the most appropriate and informative rowing specific program is delivered during the face to face courses. The first Learn to Row course was delivered recently and will be followed by the Club/School Coach and Performance Coach courses early in the New Year. Pre-requisites for the Learn to Row course are outlined in the table below and will be followed by additional information for each of the other coaching course levels closer to their delivery.
| Accreditation level |
Pre-requisite |
| Learn to Row Coach (Level 1) |
- At least 16 years of age
- Beginning Coaching General Principles completed
- Terminology worksheet completed
|
Club/School Coach
(Level 2) |
- Learn to row Coach (Level 1) completed
- 1 year of coaching experience as a Learn to Row Coach (Level 1)
- Units (1,3,5,7,8,9,11,13 ) Intermediate Coaching General Principles completed
|
Performance Coach
(Level 3) |
- Club/School Coach (Level 2) completed
- State level Club crews/National Jnr Teams/ School Head Coach
- 1 year of coaching experience as a Club/School Coach
- Units (2,12 ) Intermediate Coaching General Principles Completed
|
High Performance Coach
(Level 3) |
- Performance Coach (Level 3) completed
- 1 year of coaching experience as a Performance Coach
- Note: Entry to the High Performance Coach course must be approved by the NRCE
|
| NB: It is recommended that all coaches undertake a first aid certificate either prior to, or during the Level 1 program. |
It is a pre-requisite that coaches wishing to enroll in a Learn to Row course complete the Australian Sports Commission Beginning Coaching General Principles modules which are available either online for free (https://learning.ausport.gov.au/)
or face to face via local State and Territory Sport and Recreation Departments. Please note that the Beginning Coaching General Principles course is free if accessed online but may incur a charge if obtained face-to-face.
Additional information is available via the Australian Sports Commission website.
Garry Davidson
National Education Coordinator
Rowing Australia
ph Direct (02) 6214 7524
fax (02) 6281 3910
gdavidson@rowingaustralia.com.au
Sports Accreditation Online
Attention all rowing coache: Rowing Australia is no longer sending certificates out at the end of a course. Instead, the Australian Sports Commission provides the capacity for coaches to print their own from the Sports Accreditation Online (SAO) website, a site to which all coaches are regularly uploaded.
Features of Sports Accreditation Online
A key feature for individuals and national sporting organisations is exclusive access to Sports Coach and Sports Official online magazines, with new articles being added quarterly.
Sports Coach online magazine contains articles on a range of coaching topics including athlete development, coaching processes, sport science, technology, and current issues in coaching. You can also read profiles on a number of former and current high performance coaches.
Sports Official online magazine contains information on a range of officiating topics including physical and mental preparation, people management, risk management, technology and profiles on high performance officials.
Other features include:
- Access to accreditation information and status and ability to print a certificate.
- Capacity to update personal details, or find contact details for your sport to update details with them.
- Ability to download codes of behaviour and updating requirements to maintain your accreditation.
- The latest coaching and officiating news and information.
How to access the site
More information can be obtained from ausport.gov.au/sao. From here you can click on the hyperlink to register in the site.
