Fostering Whole Person Development through High School Football: A Case Study
The purpose of this study was to describe how Coach Clark (pseudonym) addressed the development of the whole person during adolescence through high school football at County High School (pseudonym) Whole person development (WPD) during adolescence was generally defined as human development that was meant to involve all the parts (i.e. cognitive, social, spiritual, emotional, and physical) of a person. This study answered the following central research question: How does Coach Clark address the development of the whole person during adolescence through high school football at County High School? The results of this study showed that Coach Clark addressed the cognitive, social, spiritual, emotional, and physical development of his players by loving them, taking a player by player approach, preparing them for life after high school, creating a family oriented environment, helping them develop a sense of purpose beyond themselves, building resilience in them, and developing a year round strength and conditioning program. Through data triangulation, validity and credibility was added to the findings by using (a) interviews, (b) documentation, and (c) observations. Using categorical aggregation, direct interpretation, pattern identification, and naturalistic generalizations, data from within the case were analyzed for similarities and differences for each piece of data collected. The theory guiding this study was the five Cs (competence, confidence, connection, character, and caring) of positive youth development (PYD) theory developed by Lerner, Lerner, and their colleagues.