ction ............................. 17
Data Collection .............................. 18
Data Analysis ................................ 18
4 FINDINGS: ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION ............ 19
5 SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS .... 21
BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................. 23
Because of the decentralized approach to the establishment of policy, and supervision, certification requirements vary widely in American education. In no branch of education is this fact more true than in physical education and athletic coaching (Sisley, & Wiese, 1987). This study examined certifi cation requirements for physical education teaching and coach ing at the interscholastic level in the United States.
In 1990, certification requirements for physical education teaching and coaching in the United States vary according to both level of activity national, interscholastic, and commun ity, and jurisdiction state level certification requirements with respect to the interscholastic level (Massengale, 1984). The problem is particularly acute with respect to the athletic coaching side of the equation, where certification is all but non existent in some jurisdictions at the interscholastic level (Sabock, & Chandler Garvin, 1986). The increasingly signifi cant role played by physical education and athletic coaching in education appears to demand both certification and consistency in certification requirements across jurisdictions.
A major segment of any certification program for athletic coaches at the interscholastic level will be the prerequisite education in coaching required of candidates (Joint Committee on Coaching Certification, 1990). The purpose of this study was to examine two alternative programs for coaching education the United States Sports Academy National Coaching Certifica tion Program (United States Sports Academy, 1989), and the American Coaching...