Yesterday at the School of Sport in Reggio Calabria, I attended a lecture on psychopedagogy applied to sports. As I listened to the speaker, I was reminded of when we first introduced this subject, which concerns the methodology of teaching. It was a few years ago, in 1997, when the School of Sport published the first book titled “Methodology of Sports Teaching”, a 147-page work entirely dedicated to this subject for coaching courses. The book was the result of a year’s work by a few people: Alberto Madella, Mariella Londoni, Nadia Aquili, and myself.
The introduction of this subject in coaching courses was something entirely new because, up until that point, this aspect of training—how one teaches—had never been given sufficient recognition. For the world of sports, only the quality of the program mattered, not how it was delivered. Even before, there had been discussions about coach-athlete/team communication and the behavior of the coach in relation to their leadership style, but this was the first time that the methodology of sports teaching became a specific subject, independent of others.
I bring up this topic because I believe it is important to remember and to inform those who are unaware that behind every teaching lies the history of this subject. Understanding its evolution is essential, both to avoid ignorance and to recognize the origins of the topics we discuss today. These topics are the result of a change in mindset that allowed for the introduction of new teachings and knowledge that should not be forgotten.
Knowing the history of a subject also serves as an invitation to today’s experts to contribute new content, which builds upon the foundations of what was produced in the past, thus continuing an endless process of ongoing innovation.
