April 2007
New English Learn to Ride Level 1-10 Program
Effective April 01, 2007, the New English Learn to Ride Level 1-10 Program has replaced the current Level I to III Program. As a reminder, equivalencies were established between the old and new programs. Please note that these equivalencies are set only as guidelines to assist riders and coaches for placement in the new Rider Level 1-10 program. It is at the discretion of a candidate’s current coach to determine their competency level within the new program. The equivalencies are as follows:
Old Rider I = New Rider 2
Old Rider II = New Rider 6
Old Rider III = New Rider 8
At present, levels 9 and 10 are still in development. It is anticipated that Rider 9 will be similar to the riding and stable management requirements presently in place for Coach 1, and Rider 10 will be similar to what is presently in place for Coach 2.
This new program allows riders more attainable levels with smaller progression. It also allows for riders wishing to further develop their skills on the flat only without having to continue working over fences. An option is available starting at Level 3 for riders to take either the full riding phase or the flat sections of the riding component. This option continues through Rider Levels 4 to 8. Riders who want to pursue their Instructor certification must have successfully attained their Rider 6 certificate, having completed either the full riding or the flat only sections of the riding component. Riders wishing to advance to a Coach certification must have successfully completed their Rider 8 with the full riding sections, both flat and over fences, of the riding component.
At the time of the National English Coaching meeting held in February 2007, it was determined that eligible examiners for the different levels are as follows:
New Rider 1 & 2 – certified, active English Instructor or higher
New Rider 3 & 4 – certified, active English Coach 1 or higher
Levels 1 to 4 can be examined by the candidate’s own Instructor/Coach
New Rider 5 & 6 – certified, active English Coach 1 or higher
New Rider 7 & 8 – certified, active English Coach 2 or higher, as approved by the provincial Master Course Conductor
Levels 5 to 8 cannot be examined by the candidate’s own Coach.
Instructors and Coaches wishing to continue testing under the new program must first attend a clinic outlining the new program. Look for upcoming clinic dates on our website at www.horse.on.ca
At present, the manuals available for the Learn to Ride program are excellent resources for both the old and new programs, as well as for the Instructor and Coaching programs. They have been slightly modified to reflect the new program levels. The old Rider I manual is now the Rider 1 & 2 manual, the old Rider II manual is now the Rider 3 - 6 manual and the old Rider III manual is now the Rider 7 & 8 manual. A new Learn to Ride program resource manual is expected to be available as of October 2007.
For more information on the Learn to Ride program, visit our website at www.horse.on.ca or contact Catherine Barker at the OEF Office.
Coach Development Workshop
The OEF held a Coach Development Workshop on February 17 and 18 at the OEF Office. This was essentially the NCCP Introduction to Competition Module B course and participants completing the full 2-day workshop earned their certificate of completion for Module B. The session was broken down into three modules: Teaching & Learning, Basic Mental Skills and Designing a Sport Program. The majority of the participants were eventers so this was used as the “focus” discipline for designing a sport program. Using the OHTA Omnibus, eventing rules and the prerequisites for training level eventing, participants worked through designing a program. Many coaches already had good plans already in place.
The Basic Mental Skills module worked on helping riders stay focused, manage negative anxiety and goal setting. A lot of good ideas were brought up with strategies and interesting discussions building on the knowledge of the coaches present. Overall, it was a well-received workshop. Visit our website for future workshops.
Equine Canada and the NCCP Coaching Transition
As many of you may be aware, coaching across Canada is in transition to a competency-based approach, in which a coach is trained and achieves certification to coach a specific type of participant in a particular coaching environment. The new coaching program has more of an emphasis on what a coach does as opposed to what they know. Equine Canada has been working closely with the Coaching Association of Canada (CAC) to transition the current national coaching program to the competency-based approach. As part of this transition, the current program has to undergo major redevelopment including the way the programs are delivered, the teaching methods, and the assessment tools currently in place.
The development of the Instruction of Beginner context was the initial stage in the transition to competency-based evaluation for the sport of equestrian. Candidates will begin to be trained and evaluated under the new Instruction of Beginner context in Ontario likely by late summer of 2007. The content of the new program is the same, but mentors, candidates and evaluators will find the use of newly developed rubrics will help to clearly identify the standard required to be a certified instructor of beginners. A rubric is a scoring tool used to rate a candidate’s performance in an assessment. It is strongly recommended that candidates and mentoring coaches attend an Instructor Workshop to become familiar with the new program. Visit the OEF website for upcoming workshop dates.
Another component developed as part of the transition is the new NCCP/Equine Canada Equestrian Specific Training Modules Workshop. This 2-day workshop will be replacing the current NCCP Introduction to Competition Module A and the Equine Canada Learn to Teach course as prerequisites for the Instructor and Coach 1 certification programs effective January 01, 2008, at which time the Learn to Teach course will no longer be offered. Candidates wishing to pursue their certification who have already completed either their NCCP Module A or Learn to Teach will need to obtain the other prerequisite course prior to December 31, 2007.
This new training workshop will include Making Ethical Decisions (MED), Planning a Practice, Analyze Performance, and Teaching & Learning modules. This course will only be available through the Ontario Equestrian Federation with recognized certified equestrian coaches as trained Learning Facilitators. Courses have already been scheduled as early as spring 2007. For future dates visit our website at www.horse.on.ca
Make Ethical Decisions (MED)
In 2006, the Coaching Association of Canada (CAC) created and implemented the Make Ethical Decisions (MED) on-line evaluation for all Canadian coaches in all sports. All certified and soon to be certified instructors and coaches are required to participate in this online evaluation. Every instructor and coach has access to the on-line evaluation twice for free, as well there is an on-line pre-test which provides an excellent practice session prior to taking the evaluation. It is strongly recommended that instructors and coaches do the pre-test first before attempting the evaluation. It is also recommended that instructors and coaches attend the 3½ hour Making Ethical Decision course prior to attempting the evaluation. The OEF will be offering the MED course commencing this spring. Coaches should be aware that this evaluation is a time-consuming process and can take at least an hour to complete, so please be sure to allow yourself sufficient time to complete the whole process.
The MED module introduces a process and provides coaches with tools to make thoughtful and responsible decisions in situations that present ethical or moral dilemmas. By participating in the MED on-line evaluation you will (1) have solid arguments to make decisions on sensitive issues, and (2) feel confident to fully assume the consequences of your decisions, knowing that “it was the right thing to do under the circumstances”. In addition, by completing the on-line MED evaluation this will assist in ensuring that you’re coaching profile and certification is activated and transferred into the new coaching certification structure.
For more information on accessing the evaluation, contact Catherine Barker at the OEF, or go directly to the CAC website at www.coach.ca and click on the Make Ethical Decision icon on the main page.
Congratulations to the following newly certified Instructors and Coaches:
English Instructors:
Sol Fried, Toronto
Krystle Dahmer, Mississauga
Coach 2 Eventing Discipline:
Liz Sutton, Newfoundland