All-Star Would You Send Your Child To A Gym Where The Head Coach Had No Personal Cheer Experience?

[Michael White]

CP left a gym where one of the owners had very little experience in cheer , yet coached of one of the older teams. The gym also had other coaches who were brand new to the sport , who headed teams and/or tumbling. In contrast, at the gym that CP switched to, almost all the head coaches have won Worlds, as either a coach or an athlete. The difference of the level of instruction and compassion is immense. Knowing what I know now, I would not allow my CP to be coached by someone who did not cheer (unless they had several years of coaching experience or are certified gymnastics instructors.) The knowledge that comes with a BTDT experience is too valuable to ignore, imo.

I definitely think that a non-athlete can own and run a gym successfully (especially if they have a strong business background) but now I would be very hesitant for CP to be coached solely by a novice, especially one who seems eager to title themselves as a director/head coach.

As for certification, Micheal, I think you are playing a risky game. Please listen to the others.It is amazing how quickly medical bills add up and how fast people are to try to blame others. Sadly, you would be an easy target without certification. It is kind of amazing that you have seen so few injuries. In my five years of being an all star mom, I have seen countless ones.

I personally think I will have to get certified, just somewhere down the road. I also think it will teach me very little that I don't already know. That's just my opinion on it. :) I get where all of you are coming from, really I do. I have an engineering degree, I'm not making unintelligent decisions, but for me up until this point certification is something I could not accomplish.

 

[Michael White]

If you are making $60 a week coaching, then you need to find another place to do it. I don't see how it's even worth your time at that point.


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Well $60 a week coaching, ~~ $200 a week spotting lessons. Partly the reason I'm moving on with my life and will revisit coaching/ tumbling instruction on the side at a later date.

 

[Beans100]

I personally think I will have to get certified, just somewhere down the road. I also think it will teach me very little that I don't already know. That's just my opinion on it. :) I get where all of you are coming from, really I do. I have an engineering degree, I'm not making unintelligent decisions, but for me up until this point certification is something I could not accomplish.

That's a very sad point of view.

Certification is like going to college. You don't need it to be successful, but many top companies won't even look at you if you haven't graduated. I'm not going to college to learn basics. I'm going to fine tune and expand my skills so that I can apply my knowledge and capabilities to many fields.

I work with a personal trainer and he has a ton of certification. And yet, he is always looking to get more, especially certification in specific areas like kettle bells or TRX. It's expensive for him to obtain the certification but he says it's worth it because he's passionate about training and he never wants to disappoint a client by not having the right exercise or not being able to demonstrate the correct technique.

 

[Eyes On The Prize]

That's a very sad point of view.

Certification is like going to college. You don't need it to be successful, but many top companies won't even look at you if you haven't graduated. I'm not going to college to learn basics. I'm going to fine tune and expand my skills so that I can apply my knowledge and capabilities to many fields.

I work with a personal trainer and he has a ton of certification. And yet, he is always looking to get more, especially certification in specific areas like kettle bells or TRX. It's expensive for him to obtain the certification but he says it's worth it because he's passionate about training and he never wants to disappoint a client by not having the right exercise or not being able to demonstrate the correct technique.

It's not a sad point of view. The difference is your personal instructor may not be well versed in kettle ball or know the correct techniques, so he goes and learns and gets certified. If the poster says he has years of experience, then the certification class will be more of a test rather than a learning experience.

Also, you don't go to college to fine tune and expand your skills. You go to learn the basics. You fine tune and expand your skills through on the job experience. College classes and degree programs are crash courses - they provide you with enough skills to enter the bottom level of your industry. It saves your employer needing to waste their time to train you from nothing.

 

[cheer25mom]

It's not a sad point of view. The difference is your personal instructor may not be well versed in kettle ball or know the correct techniques, so he goes and learns and gets certified. If the poster says he has years of experience, then the certification class will be more of a test rather than a learning experience.

Also, you don't go to college to fine tune and expand your skills. You go to learn the basics. You fine tune and expand your skills through on the job experience. College classes and degree programs are crash courses - they get you to a level where you are skilled enough to enter the bottom level of your industry without your employer needing to waste their time to train you from nothing. Certification programs are the same if you start out with no prior knowledge. If you have experience, then you most likely won't be learning anything mind-blowing or new.

It is a sad point of view, and one of the reasons I feel like you need certification. Some posts you have made before on here tell me you don't "know it all" and would definitely benefit from certification, but only if you go in acknowledging that you you DONT know it all and can learn something from it.
You can argue till you are blue on the face that you know it all and don't need to get certified, but as you can see from the response here, pretty much everyone else feels differently,


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[Eyes On The Prize]

It is a sad point of view, and one of the reasons I feel like you need certification. Some posts you have made before on here tell me you don't "know it all" and would definitely benefit from certification, but only if you go in acknowledging that you you DONT know it all and can learn something from it.
You can argue till you are blue on the face that you know it all and don't need to get certified, but as you can see from the response here, pretty much everyone else feels differently,


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..... Are you confusing me with someone else? What do I need to get certified in?

ETA: Poster also said a couple times he will probably get certified in the future.

 

[cheer25mom]

..... Are you confusing me with someone else? What do I need to get certified in?

ETA: Poster also said a couple times he will probably get certified in the future.

Sorry, I quoted the wrong post!


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[Cheer Dad]

I personally think I will have to get certified, just somewhere down the road. I also think it will teach me very little that I don't already know. That's just my opinion on it. :) I get where all of you are coming from, really I do. I have an engineering degree, I'm not making unintelligent decisions, but for me up until this point certification is something I could not accomplish.

As an engineering student you should know you will never stop learning and the minute you think you know it all or almost know it all is the day you become obsolete to your peers who attempt to keep learning and up to date on changes in the industry.






**Maybe I should try a new hobby**

 

[Beans100]

It's not a sad point of view. The difference is your personal instructor may not be well versed in kettle ball or know the correct techniques, so he goes and learns and gets certified. If the poster says he has years of experience, then the certification class will be more of a test rather than a learning experience.

Also, you don't go to college to fine tune and expand your skills. You go to learn the basics. You fine tune and expand your skills through on the job experience. College classes and degree programs are crash courses - they provide you with enough skills to enter the bottom level of your industry. It saves your employer needing to waste their time to train you from nothing.

It's okay, we can have different views on it. :)

I think that you never stop learning, and even going back to get tested on what you think you already know is important for learning. In my opinion, it is foolish to think that one has already learned all they need to know, especially in a sport/field that is rapidly growing.

 

[Eyes On The Prize]

It's okay, we can have different views on it. :)

I think that you never stop learning, and even going back to get tested on what you think you already know is important for learning. In my opinion, it is foolish to think that one has already learned all they need to know, especially in a sport/field that is rapidly growing.

I agree that you should always be learning, I strive to learn new things everyday. But i didn't interpret his post as "I won't be learning anything", more along the lines of "I probably won't be learning a lot that's new to me" as he already has experience coaching and probably already knows the basics and has a solid foundation in coaching.

He's posted countless times that this isn't his career, it's not his livelihood, and it was never meant to be. He's also not required to be certified to do what he's doing, its only suggested. Because of those reasons it's not worth it to him, at the moment, to have or pursue the certification. You all have suggested he be certified, leave it at that and move on. :deadhorse:

 

[njallday]

I agree that you should always be learning, I strive to learn new things everyday. But i didn't interpret his post as "I won't be learning anything", more along the lines of "I probably won't be learning a lot that's new to me" as he already has experience coaching and probably already knows the basics and has a solid foundation in coaching.

He's posted countless times that this isn't his career, it's not his livelihood, and it was never meant to be. He's also not required to be certified to do what he's doing, its only suggested. Because of those reasons it's not worth it to him, at the moment, to have or pursue the certification. You all have suggested he be certified, leave it at that and move on. :deadhorse:

Guessing it's not just left alone and moved on from because this is probably the fifth time credentialing has been mentioned (with no mention of the poster in question) and he appears to the thread to tell us he's wonderful at coaching and doesn't see a need in credentialing because his athletes don't get hurt and asks why it's so important.

It's just as much :deadhorse:on that end. This is why even though my post was quoted I opted to bow out of that conversation. I don't want to be a discouraging biotch. He could be the next coming of Victor Rosario for all I know. But I won't be spending my hard earned money on coaches who aren't credentialed, and that's that.

P.S. not attacking you, @Eyes On The Prize , you know I love you :p

 

[CheerTD]

You can never rule out the knowledge base and authenticity of a coach even if they have little or no cheer experience.
Consider the following questions:
Is you child progressing?
Is the coach honest about their limits?
Is the coach able to speak the language of cheer?

I hope this is helpful!
The CheerTD Family

 

[Michael White]

Guessing it's not just left alone and moved on from because this is probably the fifth time credentialing has been mentioned (with no mention of the poster in question) and he appears to the thread to tell us he's wonderful at coaching and doesn't see a need in credentialing because his athletes don't get hurt and asks why it's so important.

It's just as much :deadhorse:on that end. This is why even though my post was quoted I opted to bow out of that conversation. I don't want to be a discouraging biotch. He could be the next coming of Victor Rosario for all I know. But I won't be spending my hard earned money on coaches who aren't credentialed, and that's that.

P.S. not attacking you, @Eyes On The Prize , you know I love you :p

I was just becoming more knowledgeable and wanted to ask someone else because it seems the same 5 people on this board always chime in with their expertise and opinions and I wanted to know if someone on the other end would ever reply, and someone finally did.

1. I get paid a very small amount (relatively) to spot tumbling. Credentialing for me would cost over a months pay for something I enjoy doing as a passion type project.

2. I achieve success and am very sought after in my area. Dozens of athletes only want me, and the high schools who have had me spot their high school teams, approached me based on my high customer satisfaction.

3. Certification is not required, and I know of no other instructors in my area with it.

4. I have taken additional steps (I.E. insurance and fingerprint/background check) which is WAY above and beyond what I have to do anyway.

I am trying to be objective and "you should get credentialed, because everyone is credentialed" is circular logic that I don't see the benefit of, as is "it'll make you a safer spotter" really? How? What unique skills will certification help me with? Where does the money to certify go? Only the instructor? USASF? Towards the expenses of maintaining the certification program? No one is really providing me with the information I'm seeking, so you bet I'll bring it up if someone mentions that they'll only let their child be taught by someone who is credentialed. What benefits are there for a credentialed instructor vs. an uncredentialed instructor all other things being equal.

I'm also not doing this to be disrespectful. I just want a concrete, surefire reason that I should go get credentialed except "it will teach you to be a good instructor" because in my opinion I have already achieved that.

 

[Michael White]

As an engineering student you should know you will never stop learning and the minute you think you know it all or almost know it all is the day you become obsolete to your peers who attempt to keep learning and up to date on changes in the industry.






**Maybe I should try a new hobby**

I'm upgraded to an engineering graduate. I know all to well about staying ahead of the curve. Is it the same way in cheering? If I go get credentialed, is there new technology and equipment or spotting techniques that they'll teach us?

 

[TealShades]

I was just becoming more knowledgeable and wanted to ask someone else because it seems the same 5 people on this board always chime in with their expertise and opinions and I wanted to know if someone on the other end would ever reply, and someone finally did.

1. I get paid a very small amount (relatively) to spot tumbling. Credentialing for me would cost over a months pay for something I enjoy doing as a passion type project.

2. I achieve success and am very sought after in my area. Dozens of athletes only want me, and the high schools who have had me spot their high school teams, approached me based on my high customer satisfaction.

3. Certification is not required, and I know of no other instructors in my area with it.

4. I have taken additional steps (I.E. insurance and fingerprint/background check) which is WAY above and beyond what I have to do anyway.

I am trying to be objective and "you should get credentialed, because everyone is credentialed" is circular logic that I don't see the benefit of, as is "it'll make you a safer spotter" really? How? What unique skills will certification help me with? Where does the money to certify go? Only the instructor? USASF? Towards the expenses of maintaining the certification program? No one is really providing me with the information I'm seeking,so you bet I'll bring it up if someone mentions that they'll only let their child be taught by someone who is credentialed. What benefits are there for a credentialed instructor vs. an uncredentialed instructor all other things being equal.

I'm also not doing this to be disrespectful. I just want a concrete, surefire reason that I should go get credentialed except "it will teach you to be a good instructor" because in my opinion I have already achieved that.

No advice on if you should get credentialed. But this is the first time I've seen you post these specific questions regarding credentials. So hopefully you'll get a more clear answer.