YOU CAN'T TEACH WHAT YOU DON'T POSSESS

The following comes from the book "You Haven’t TaughtUntil They Have Learned: John Wooden’sTeaching Principles and Practices" which was written by one of Coach John Wooden's former players, Swen Nater.  Chapter 4 is titled "You Can’t Teach What You Don’t Possess" and this is an important lesson for all coaches, especially young coaches.  You have to be a student to teach!  You have to know your subject matter.  In fact, the better you know your subject matter, the more you can peel back the layers and present it in it's simplest form.  Here are some things Nater learned from Coach Wooden:

 

v  Student interest is directly proportional to the depth and breadth of teachers’ knowledge; and student interest is vital to effective teaching.

v  The close games are usually lost, rather than won. What I mean by that is, games are mostly won because of the opponent making mistakes during crucial moments.”

v  Here is the interesting and strange part- failing to fulfill a role is not limited to a lack of ability to perform. Failure can also come from a physically gifted player who tries to do more than his role requires.

v  How did Coach Wooden come to possess deep subject matter knowledge? He took it upon himself to create his own research and development system.