Coaches Jacie Lyon and Monica Gonyo Attend ECNL Coaching Symposium

Innovative Education Event with Focus on Cognitive Science and Teaching

Continuing the club's commitment to coaching education and development, FC Wisconsin coaches Jacie Lyon and Monica Gonyo were in San Diego, CA for a 3-day coaching education event hosted by the ECNL the last weekend in January.

The 2018 ECNL Coaching Symposium was one of the most innovative coaching education events in the country, with a focus on pedagogy, cognitive science, leadership and other topics not generally included in soccer education.  The presenters were just as unique:

  • Doug Lemov: New York times best-selling author of "Teach Like A Champion" and "Practice Perfect"
  • Todd Beane: Founder of the Cruyff Institute and TOVO International
  • Ian Barker: Director of Coaching Education for United Soccer Coaches

For more on the event, including detailed information on the presentations, click here.  FC Wisconsin Director of Coaching and ECNL President Christian Lavers was also in attendance and moderated a Q&A session with the panelists.

"The 2018 coaching symposium was a weekend full of learning and discussion," said Jacie Lyon.  "I really enjoyed hearing Doug Lemov speak about giving feedback in particular.  He spoke about how we as coaches can give better feedback to our players, when to give feedback and how to give feedback so that can be applied immediately, and to have the expectation that players will apply the feedback immediately."

"I also enjoyed Todd Beane's discussion on how important context is when running sessions," continued Lyon. "For example, how can you know if a pass is a "good" pass if you don't know the context it's played in - context is based on pressure, opposition, time of the game, etc. - not isolated training.  After the weekend, I left with a notebook full of changes I want to make to my own coaching style and how those changes tie into the environment and culture we strive to create at FC Wisconsin."

"The entire event promoted a child-centered learning environment where the players think for themselves and make their own decisions, instead of a coach or a parent telling a player what to do at every moment," said Monica Gonyo.  "Even though this is something we strive to do at FC Wisconsin, I learned ways to more efficiently use these ideas as a coach."

"When coaching, there are things you can do and say to make sure every child is zoned in on you and the session, rather than just a few players.  When you build a culture with clear expectations, high energy and mental focus, players will get better and have fun doing it."

Ongoing coaching education and development is a priority at FC Wisconsin, and our coaches learn from some of the best educators in the world.  Better coaches develop better players, and that is the mission at FC Wisconsin.

 

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