Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and Coaching Athletes Learning English (ALES

DIVERSITY, EQUITY, and INCLUSION (DEI) and COACHING ATHLETES LEARNING ENGLISH (ALES) By Fritz I. Ettl Rodríguez & Brooke Kandel-Cisco

Sports provide significant potential for building language, creating community, and supporting identity development for language learners. In response, we have been collaborating to better understand how to help coaches adopt coaching practices that support language development and enhance communication with athletes who are learning English (ALEs). In this crossdisciplinary approach, we are exploring the application of English as a Second Language (ESL) classroom teaching considerations by sports coaches to support communication, athlete learning, and overall positive sport experiences.

We use ALE to describe any athlete, immigrant or not, who speaks a language other than

English as a first language and who is in the process of acquiring English. While scholars have begun to explore the opportunities sport offers for culturally responsive coaching practices, there is a dearth of research connected specifically to language, coaching, and ALEs. We gathered anecdotal evidence and insight from various coaches and sport psychology professionals who confirmed a need for additional research-informed practices for coaches working with ALEs. We learned that while the use of direct translation with ALEs has been part of the conversation in coach education and training circles, specific ESL and language teaching practices have not

Association for Applied Sport Psychology annual conference, 2019. “No English? No Problem!” reached coaching professionals.

Our hope is that we can raise awareness of linguistically responsive approaches, research the impact of those approaches, and create resources to support coaching professionals. We have begun to share our work at professional conferences and through webinars where we invite coaching professionals to attend to the language and pedagogy they use when coaching ALEs. Informed by our work as ESL teachers, we also share considerations for enhancing the comprehensible input coaches provide to ALEs. For example, at the United Soccer Coaches Convention, we modeled how coaches can intentionally rephrase and repeat when providing verbal instruction, and we shared examples of visuals and diagrams that further support comprehension for technical and tactical soccer concepts. At the annual conference of the Association for Applied Sports Psychology we led a panel

of sport psychology professionals currently working with

Association for Applied Sport Psychology annual conference, 2019. “No English? No Problem!” - Tweet from Oscar Gutierrez, Mental Performance Coach at Cleveland Indians

United Soccer Coaches Convention, 2020. Tweet from Vince Ganzberg, Education Content Coordinator, United Soccer Coaches

ALEs and in support of coaches who work with ALEs in various domains of sport--minor league baseball, sports based youth development, and elite youth soccer. We offered our audience ideas and approaches that support the processes of English acquisition and acculturation for ALEs.

We plan to use these experiences interacting with coaches at all levels of competition to better understand the ALE sport experience, including the impact of culturally and linguistically responsive coaching practices on individual athlete and team outcomes. Our emerging model United Soccer Coaches COVID webinar coach education series, May 2020. attends to language, culture, and athlete experiences, and we are initiating Coaching professionals play a significant role in the research with ALEs and coaches that will contribute lives of athletes and have the opportunity to positively to the evidence-base for effective coaching practices. influence ALE language development, acculturation Specifically, we seek to understand the impact of ALEprocesses, and sport experiences. We hope our work can responsive coaching practices on ALE acculturation as help coaches ensure ALEs have the support they need to it is connected to sport, team culture and relationship meet their full potential. Many coaches already have the building, as well as athlete and team performance. We underlying instructional tools and pedagogy that support will explore how those outcomes differ--for athletes and language responsive practices, and we are excited to help coaches--across cultural and linguistic backgrounds, age, build awareness and guidance to be more intentionally and competition levels. ALE-responsive.