Module manager: John Gray
Email: j.gray5@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2026/27
This module is not approved as a discovery module
Regardless of specialism, whether sports coaching, personal training, PE teaching, sports therapy, exercise physiology, or strength and conditioning, the effective delivery of sport and exercise science requires key coaching and instructing skills. This module focuses on these key skills, exploring the leadership behaviours required to safely and successfully coach and instruct athletes, clients, and participants in a wide range of contexts.
The module aims to provide students with an understanding of the coaching and instructing skills required for delivering effective sports and exercise experiences. It will draw on key pedagogical models to understand the nature of motivation, communication, and physical literacy factors which underpin all sport and exercise professional practices.
The topic areas to be covered include:
1. The concept of sports leadership.
2. The concept of physical literacy.
3. The psychology of coaching and instructing.
4. The concept of the coach/practitioner-client/athlete relationship.
5. Goalsetting, planning, risk assessing, and evaluation for practice.
By the end of the module, students should be able to:
1. Identify, describe and discuss the concept of physical literacy and its relationship to sport and exercise science practices.
2. Identify and describe to evidence-based knowledge in the development of effective sessions for sport and exercise experiences.
3. Analyse and evaluate the impact of the coach/practitioner – client/athlete relationship on motivation and participant experiences.
1. Physical literacy: the goal of sport and exercise science
2. Sports leadership: transforming the physical literacy of others
3. The communication process: what to say and how to say it.
4. Planning and delivery for sports coaching
5. Planning and delivering for personal training
6. Planning and delivering for physical education
7. Ethics and safeguarding
8. Developing observational skills
9. Perfect practice makes perfect performance
Additionally, throughout the module, students will be encouraged to recognise and introduce new issues of discussion and interest based on the dynamic nature of the field.
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supervision | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Seminar | 9 | 1.5 | 13.5 |
| Independent online learning hours | 24 | ||
| Private study hours | 60.5 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 15.5 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 100 | ||
Throughout seminars the session lead will plan activities and challenges that present formative feedback opportunities. These will include strategies such as:
- Group debate
- Group problem solving
- Presentation of observations and reflections
- Discussion of knowledge dissemination
- One to one and group support in supervisions for development of assessment skills.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Presentation | Group presentation - 10-minute pre-recorded group presentation of a group analysis of coaching practice, with 1000-word reflective piece | 100 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
The group presentation comprises of two elements that make up the following weightings of the final assessment: 30% - 10-minute group presentation 70% - individual reflective assessment
Check the module area in Minerva for your reading list
Last updated: 30/04/2026
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