Learning Manifesto

As teachers and coaches, we are fortunate to have a small part in preparing young men (and women) to find their passion and be successful in their professional and personal futures. I am passionate about the part I play in helping develop successful young college athletes and graduates. There are many ways I can do this, both in my daily interactions and through my use of technology. Merriam-Webster defines a manifesto as a written statement declaring publicly the intentions, motives, or views of its issuer. Here is mine, as it relates to my current position with the Lamar University football program:

Guiding my students toward a growth mindset - I think guiding any students towards a Growth Mindset is very key, and it is no different in my line of work. We are constantly preaching “Do More”, “Outwork the Opponent”, “Go above and beyond to get the goal you’re are trying to obtain” on a daily basis. The Growth Mindset is just another way and a facet to be able to get to the “Do More” attitude. Everyone wants to be first place, but in order to be in first place or be the best in anything you’re able to do, you cannot be content with just doing the bare minimum. The enemy of the Growth Mindset is the Fixed Mindset. The Fixed Mindset is average and content. Average and content cannot get you to be the best, it is average. Average comes with no challenge. As noted before, the enemy of the Fixed Mindset is the Growth Mindset. The Growth Mindset will challenge you to not only go above and beyond, but be able to accept the fact that failure may happen, but given another shot, you are able to fix it and have an opportunity to get to the goal again. One of the biggest fears in young men today is the fear of failure. It will be key for me to encourage and preach that failure may happen but if you go one hundred miles per hour all the time you have the opportunity to be able to get to that point. Growth Mindset will help me be able to get our kids to buy into not being afraid of failure.

Help my student athletes take ownership of their learning - We bring in student athletes from high schools all across our state and nation. Many of our athletes come from lower-performing high schools that may not have completely prepared them for expectations in a college setting. The objective in any kid we bring into our program is that they will have a better quality of life after they leave our program, because they were a part of our program. When we recruit young men to our program we preach to them that this is not 4 year decision of where to attend school, but it is a lifetime decision. As our younger kids come into the program, we set them up to build a foundation in their learning. This is more than just football, this goes into their educational life as well. We build a strong atmosphere in study hall that has task oriented base. Traditionally, the foundation has been built on hourly study hall, but we give our student athletes the ability in study hall to use more task oriented based ways to set an educational foundation. As well as setting this foundation, this leans the student athlete in the way to be able to grow on their own as students, and eventually make it to where they are responsible for their educational growth. We keep a constant eye on them in order to ensure that they do not stray off the path and that they are set up for success.

Help my student athletes realize the value of the education they have the opportunity to earn through their football ability - Our athletes are extremely fortunate, in that they have been given the opportunity to earn a degree that will benefit them for the rest of their lives, by taking advantage of a skill and ability that is in many cases short-lived. Many of our athletes will be the first in their families to earn a college degree. That will not only change their future, but may also serve as a motivator to others in their family and communities. This being the fact, it is key to be able to preach the value of a college education with the each individual. Athletics does not continue forever, and the ability to be a competitor in a sport eventually ends. It is vital to preach to each student athlete that is able to take advantage of this opportunity. We help them realize that in getting an education, the degree last forever, and helps guide that student athlete into a career path. The hope is that we are able to steer and guide them into a degree plan that not only interests them but also encourages them to be the go above and beyond to be the best in there chosen field.

Help my student athletes learn to embrace and utilize technology in their current education, and in their future professions - By modeling the use of technology in our meeting rooms, as well as the access our student athletes have to technology in their academic classes, I hope to send them out with the realization that embracing and utilizing technology can help them in all areas of their lives. The world is constantly morphing into a technology first way to accomplish things and tasks. It is our hope that in every area of their academic and athletic life that we are using technology to be able to help them accomplish things and be able to be with or stay ahead of the time. Whether it is using technology to plan their days and keep them constantly updated on what they need to be doing in order to move forward, in the classroom, or learning more for their craft in football, we want to fully use technology to further their learning, in a first class way.

Be a catalyst to work to improve education, enhancing it through embracing the incredible amounts of information our students have access to today - Our current student athletes walk around with a device that can quickly search for answers to almost any question they might have. If we can more effectively teach them to be able to be proactive in their use of iPad’s, Phones or Laptops to be able to reach answers, or be able to better help them find answers, we will help our student athletes reach their academic goals. Another way technology can be a catalyst for us is we are able to get scouting reports, schedules, and tips and reminders, in football and in education. Technology also helps us in our ability to monitor how well our students are doing in areas of education such as classes and academic progression.

Continue to search for new and innovative technology, always looking for ways to enhance our program - Just 5 years ago, I was waiting for video and breaking down film by writing down each play. Today, I use XOS Digital Thunder Cloud. This allows me to be able to type in all data and the computer saving data. This categorizes data, and builds scouting reports and tendencies on opponents easier than it ever has been. It also keeps everything clean, keeps it consistent and makes it easier for coaches and players to be able to find things out about our future opponents, and also able to see past events and teaching tapes to be able to learn even more. As technology in this area has improved, it has made life easier and made the ability to be more effective and be better equipped to teach our student athletes, instead of wasting more time by having to write things down by hand.

Here are a few examples of current technology in our profession, and how we use them to improve outcomes for our student athletes: