Best Practices Training and Recruiting Officials

1. Best PracticesTraining and Recruiting Officials Sports Officials Canada Conference ’13 Karen Butcher Skate Canada Official

2. Have the right official in the right place at the right time with appropriate skills, knowledge, and motivation to do the job.

3. Talent Management for officials Acquire Develop Retain Mobilize Monitor / Report Exit / Retirement

4. Acquiring Talent • How many officials are needed? • Different types of officials. • Different numbers for different levels. • Different needs depending on the city/province. • What competencies should officials have? • How do you make officiating inviting? • How are you going to recognize/reward?

5. Competencies • Technical • Deportment • Communication • Leadership • Event management

6. Using competencies TECHNICAL • Before the event • Gather all tools needed • Refresh memory • During the event • Notetaking • Duties • After the event • Making results official • Answering questions

7. Attracting Talent • Volunteers – no pay • Education – most athletes think of coaching • Scholarships • Advertise / Information • Skate Canada website / Section websites • Mentoring – encouragement • Policies • Officials Code of Ethics • Officials’ Child Care • Word of Mouth

8. So you want to be an official… Would I be a good official? • A sincere desire to be of service to the sport. • Ability to make an independent decision. • Ability to handle stress. • Knowledge of the sport. Are there any basic requirements before I get started? • Minimum age. • Sport Association membership. Do I have to be a really good athlete to be an official? • Ability as an athlete is not in itself the measure of officiating ability. Will I get paid? • Reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses such as travel, room and meals at test sessions and competitions.

9. Policies Code of Ethics • Links the officials role to the Skate Canada Mission • Officials are representatives of Skate Canada. • Conduct themselves in a manner befitting the privelege. • Responsible for seeing the rules/policies are observed. • Standards of Conduct • Maintain technical knowledge • Maintain objectivity and integrity • Share knowledge with skaters, coaches, parents, other officials • Declare a conflict of interest

10. Policies (continued) Child Care • No elderly, pets. • Under 15 years of age. • Only at national level events. • Must provide receipts. • Limits ($30 per day 1st child, $10 per additional child). • Many provincial/local events organize babysitting on-site.

11. Deportment • Expected standard of conduct • Dress Code • Professional • Cost

12. Information • Travel claims • Hotels • Double occupancy • Dress code • Hospitality

13. Skate Canada Officals Officials are a critical part of our organization and most have been former skaters and or coaches. They make test days and competitions happen and have spent years being trained to play their role within our sport. Like the coaches, they are passionate about skating and can be a great guide and support for skaters in the clubs. Becoming a Figure Skating Judge/Evaluator • Judges are former skaters. Individuals interested in being a judge must attend a seminar, trial judge and pass a written and video identification exam at each level. Each discipline of skating (singles, pair, dance and synchro) requires separate training.

14. Competitive Judging Section Judge (Provincial Level) • A judge begins at the Inter-club and advances to the Senior Sectional level. Progress from one level to the next is determined by the judge's activity, success at the previous level, attendance at training seminars, passing the appropriate written exam and technical knowledge. Canadian Judge (National Level) • To qualify as a Canadian Championship judge, judges must have been a Senior Sectional Championship Judge for at least one year and have judged successfully in at least two Sectional Championships and one Challenge Championship, attended training clinics and passed exams. International Judge • A judge may be nominated to become an International judge after being a Canadian Championship judge for at least two years, passed the appropriate Skate Canada examinations and attended an international seminar. International judges must be less than 50 years old when first appointed and retirement is mandatory at age 70.

15. Become a Skate Canada Judge • Seminars and Clinics for provide learning. The highly skilled facilitators are also active Skate Canada officials. • Candidates, who wish to become qualified to judge, must attend Skate Canada approved clinics, trial judge and pass both a written and video identification exam at each level. Each discipline of skating, singles, pair, dance and synchronized skating requires individualized training.

16. Selection • Publish • Eligibility • Criteria • Decision Making Authority • Announcement • Appeals

17. Committees National Level • Officials Learning and Development Committee • Officials Assignment and Promotion Committee Section Level • Judges Committee

18. Primary Judge Manual • What is a judge. • Who can judge. • What is judging all about. • Mechanics of judging. • Recording. • Exercises. • Scheduling.

19. Clinics/Seminars • Led by experienced facilitators. • Need a favourable report from the leader. • Often held at an event – opportunity to trial judge. • If not, videos can be used as simulation. • Opportunity to network, learn from each other, form friendships. • On-line pilots. • Reduce cost and travel time.

20. On-Line Training • “But don’t you miss the face-to-face contact with the judges? Do the judges learn as much as at a face-to-face clinic? How do you know if they are really learning/able to judge? • The learning model is similar to an adult learning course at a college or university than attending a 1 or 2 day seminar. • It is delivered entirely online and has both synchronous components (every one on-line at the same time) and asynchronous components (individual self-paced activities using written and visual materials). • The e-learning format allows for the on-going creation of materials targeted to the needs of the participants.

21. Advantages / Lessons Learned • E-learning can be a powerful and effective environment for training, especially when there are either very few or no athletes in a region. • Reduced spending on travel. • Access to online courses is possible from anywhere. • Possible to break into manageable sessions instead of packing everything into one or two days. • The moderators were critical in creating a community of learners. • Participants took responsibility for their own progress. • Some of the components of the course could be used as stand-alone modules for the continuing education of judges already qualified. • The multiple delivery platforms (Dropbox, Facebook, YouTube, WebEx, Skype, live-streaming) carry a very heavy administrative load. • Train additional moderators in online instructional methods.

22. Trial Judging • Opportunity to test your skills • Live • Video • Feedback

23. Mentoring • Assigned • Unofficial • Networking

24. Exam / Tests • Completed when ready. • Mailed in. • Skill identification • International

25. Recognition • Thank you • Token of appreciation • Tax implications

26. Questions?