Objectives and activities of the Irish Canoe Union Training & Development Committee and Unit:
The Development of Recreational Canoeing:- As part of its association with the many different clubs, centres and organisations partaking in canoeing in Ireland the Training & Development Committee is involved in making policy decisions, setting operational standards, training and qualifying staff, developing resource material, research, training of coaches, consultation, provision of equipment, and promotion of all disciplines through non-certificate training courses. The Training & Development Committee achieve their objectives in relation to the improvement of canoeing standards by the following:
- by producing canoeing safety guidelines for clubs and general users
- by producing canoeing safety guidelines and operational standards for canoeing in outdoor centres
- through its network of instructors
- through its training courses
- through the production of resource material relating to canoeing safety
- through the Union’s Safety Officer
Administration of the Union's Training, Coaching & Accreditation Scheme:- Apart from the organisation of a comprehensive programme of training courses each year, Training & Development Unit around the country also achieve the objectives of the Committee through the promotion of the Training, Coaching & Accreditation Scheme. The Scheme, with its emphasis on safety, training, and development is based upon the achievement of successive levels of personal proficiency and/or instructional and leadership skills. The Scheme is broadly divided into three categories based on the type of craft being used. The categories are Kayaking, Canoeing and Sea Kayaking. There are personal proficiency awards and instructional qualification in each category. A system of training and registration exists for those instructors interested in running courses and assessments for higher personal proficiency levels whereby they must be part of a Panel the membership of which is revised on an annual basis. All trainees for instructional or leadership training courses must be registered with the Training and Development Unit.
The aim and goals of the Training & Development unit are set out in the following bullet points:
- To continue to promote the Awards Scheme
- To keep up with new developments and modern teaching practices
- To propose changes and develop new courses where needed To arbitrate in the event of disputes
- To continue to assist in the development of an integrated Coaching Scheme
- To promote the further training of club canoeists
- To develop a materials to help in the development of Clubs
- To provide a forum for members contributions e.g. Newsletter
- To ensure a consistency of courses and assessments
- To organise various workshops, e.g. Assessor & Instructor retraining, etc…
- To design and develop Course Provider Packs
- To actively promote and review safety issues
- To set up a means of communicating problems and possible solutions
- To promote further youth participation on training courses
- To develop a system of licensing Course Providers to ensure consistency and quality assurance
We hope this guide has and will be of use to you and your club. If you
have any further questions or even just idling thoughts please do not
hesitate to contact the ICU office.
