Coaching and teaching are very similar concepts. As a kid, your coaches may have also played a second role is your teachers in school. This is no coincidence, coaching and teaching do not have many differences.

Teaching

Teachers in the classroom act as a role model and influencer to the students. It is the teacher’s job to guide students in their academic career to aim for success. Teachers can push students to understand better valuable skills that will be useful to them throughout their lives. Students spend an inordinate amount of time with their teachers during the school year. Teachers can have a profound effect on their students. Excluding the knowledge students learn from their teachers, students learn social and behavioral skills from them as well. Interacting with other students in the classroom through group projects is a large part of teaching. Students take a lot of information and experience from their teachers, and they play an integral part in a student’s life.

Coaching

Much like teachers, coaches have a significant impact on the lives of their players. While teachers influence the students in the classroom, coaches influence them out of the classroom and on the field. Practical skills are taught on the field during practice. Some skills taught in the classroom are reinforced on the playing field. Skills such as teamwork and critical thinking play an essential role in both the classroom and on the field. Coaches must act as teachers for their players. A coach should have expert knowledge and skills about that particular sport. Similar to how teachers teach specific subjects and have knowledge of that one subject coaches know one sport. That one sport encapsulates many different skills, tactics, maneuvers, and physical training.

Coaching and teaching cover a wide range of learning opportunities for students. Whether it is in the classroom or on the field, students learn valuable skills from their teachers and coaches. There are subtle differences in the two ways of teaching. Coaches teach in a very informal way. Coaches may even use different methods of teaching than teachers do. Instilling discipline on the field requires a different approach than instilling discipline in the classroom. Physical activity and training incorporate mental activity and training as well. Regardless of the difference in methods, students need both teachers and coaches to succeed in life. Invaluable skills are taught in both cases that all students can benefit from.