Multiteaching style and active reflection for swimming.

Area of Science:

• Sports Pedagogy
• Aquatic Education
• Motor Skill Development

Background:

• Student-centered approaches are common in team sports but underutilized in swimming instruction.
• Effective pedagogy in swimming requires appropriate stimuli and methods linking understanding with motor competence.
• Investigating swimming instructors' competencies and their impact on children's aquatic skills is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the didactic, methodological, and personal competencies of swimming instructors (SI).
• To explore the relationship between SI competencies and children's actual and perceived aquatic competencies.
• To compare instructors' self-reported teaching styles with observed practices and assess their impact on student outcomes.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Teaching Styles Questionnaire (TSQ) for self-reported teaching styles and observational tools (IESPES, Instrument for Identifying Teaching Styles) for comparison.
• Assessed instructors' empathy and self-control.
• Employed pictorial scales to measure children's actual and perceived aquatic competence.

Main Results:

• Instructors predominantly used monoteaching, characterized by linear (command and practice) styles.
• A significant discrepancy was found between children's actual and perceived aquatic competence, with overestimation of actual skills.
• A multiteaching approach correlated positively with didactic effectiveness, instructor empathy, and both actual and perceived aquatic competence in children.

Conclusions:

• The predominant monoteaching style in swimming instruction may not optimize learning outcomes.
• A multiteaching approach is associated with improved didactic effectiveness and better aquatic skill development in children.
• Recommendations include adopting a multiteaching pedagogy in swimming to enhance both instructor effectiveness and student aquatic competence.