Assistant teacher program/Developing countries/Team sports and sports mentoring

Team sports
Team sports allow to train mediation, teamwork, collective intelligence, higher-order volitions, democracy, mentoring, understanding for the categorical imperative, observing rules and logical understanding for complicated rules, all of this in a context that is easily accessible and motivating for young children. These educational objectives must be made explicit aims, otherwise the learning effect may be marginal. In developing countries it may be especially interesting to make use of this context and its accessibility because accessibility in purely educational classroom situations may be more limited. The context can also help to motivate the necessary attitudes for future assistant teachers. A player who can be a good team captain may have some of the necessary skills and attitudes for an assistant teacher.



Sports mentoring
Sports mentoring is easy and very accessible, at first the pupils do not have to train any attitude other than willingness to help an assigned protégé to improve his personal skills. One could say every sport mentor is a team captain for the smallest possible team. In order to qualify as a sport mentor a pupil should have at least an average grade in the subject sport, he should have shown a degree of understanding for theory (e.g. first aid, physiology and game rules) and should be willing to make a serious attempt to be a good mentor. It is important that the mentor trainers or teachers understand the educational objectives outside the subject sport and direct the training and development of sport mentors towards these goals. Of course that should not lead towards rejecting sport as entertainment and as an end in itself.