My turn...club dynamics

[edew]

Ok,

Here's the situation. Things are happening within my club where we have boys and girls and hormones and such are brewing. Alongside the human chemistry issue is some antagonism among the fencers. Jealousy, lack of tact, lack of fencing skills (and luck factor to get hits on occasion) are causing negative club dynamics.

Some kids hate each other, some hit hard (saber) out of spite or lack of control, some are intimidated by others. Others are pushy and overbearing.

Any suggestions to create a team cohesiveness out of them instead of letting this festering problem basically destroy my club from the inside?

[swordsen]

Odds are there are a few who are the primary causers of the chaos. YOU will have to speak to them and if necessary, remove them.

[Fencergrl]

I agree. I find with a lot of classes if you punish the few who are the real problem, the rest will fall in line. After a while, the ones you punished won't be too eager to start trouble either. For me... sometimes it's laps, sometimes they have to sit out, depends on the class.

[Rick Thompson]

Do you do anything as a group activity - e.g. warming up? Try introducing cooperative games/drills (as opposed to individual or small-group competitive). This doesn't have to be a glaring Dr. Phil-like change - just do it without telling them why. I can suggest some, if you need.

I've had to split groups off to separate dissimilar interests/levels sometimes. If your coaching staff permits, you might split off into bouting/drilling groups after some group-work. E.g. saber over here, epee over here... or beginner, intermediate, advanced.

Changing an established dynamic is not easy. You, as the coach, need to set the expectations. Them what don't conform need to be addressed. You have to consider constructive means to solve problems with individuals, including circumstances outside the club. At one point, I gave a particularly disruptive individual some responsibility helping to teach a beginners' class (not as the lead instructor). Not only did this keep him/her VERY busy, but it let him/her feel what it was like to deal with disruptive students. Problem solved.

On a more strict note, you need to determine if particular acts need to be disciplined. Fencers may need to sit out of practice for vindictive acts. I rarely raise my voice, so if I yell at someone for something, the entire club knows that it's a bad thing. I caught a couple of kids messing around without masks (several years ago) - provoking an immediate and loud reaction and about 40 laps for the offenders. It didn't happen again....

As a last resort, if someone is doing things that are too disruptive, and refuses to listen to your rules/admonitions, you have to discuss their leaving the club. This is the most painful, but sometimes necessary.