Independent Education Today – Basketball & Biomechanics

November 15th, 2007 | Education, Quintic Video Software

The Rugby World Cup Final in Paris was harder for some of us to bear than for others, and under more joyous circumstances would have been an ideal topic for this month’s column. Next month, maybe…

Turning to basketball, then (and why not?) this game’s appeal is on many levels, not least of which is the fact that it can be played all year round. And that’s really why I thought it a good topic for this time of year.

But on a purely biomechanical level, its great appeal is that it’s fast-paced, exciting and can really stretch athletic potential in many directions. While enthusiastic kids who can’t wait to get onto the basketball court will relish the challenge of co-ordinating virtually every joint, limb and muscle group in the body, to see them really flourish you should let them absorb some of the theory, maths and physiological aspects through video comparison and Q&A.

Using interactive video and software systems, children can quickly absorb some quite complex techniques such as boxing-out, laying up and defence, as well as learning the biomechanical differences between pass-shooting, free-throwing, overhead and javelin-passing.

Crucially, though, it’s also very time-efficient for sports coaches, as it relieves them of the burden of devising modules themselves and delivering mechanicals such as video, questionnaire structuring and so forth – leaving more time for one-on-one coaching, perhaps, and fault-fixing.

Structured software packages with video capabilities are very successful at engaging the student’s mind in athletic process, but without filling up the head with too much clutter.

Where a digitization template is included, it’s possible to track digitally the kinetic energy of limbs and muscle groups, quickly quantify the movement in a visual index so that correct musculoskeletal actions can be identified and helped into the muscle memory, while incorrect actions can be rectified. It sounds very bothersome, and it would be if it had to be done manually in each instance, but as it’s been already set up as part of the biomechanical software capability, the coaches’ input is a fraction of what it would have been in the past.

I’ve long been a believer in the importance of bringing sport to life in the classroom, as well as on the sports field. While some of the biomechanical content can be obtuse – and particularly where formulae are used – it’s by using graphics and video that we can take principles out of the abstract and make them real. From a coaching viewpoint, it makes it so much easier (and quicker, we hope) to impart that knowledge. From the student’s viewpoint, the benefits are obvious, in that a deeper knowledge is effectively taught and so much more benefit is derived from the sport.

It’s important to reiterate at this stage, that biomechanics is not a substitute for coaching. It simply analyzes and quantifies what happens to the body and sports equipment during athletic activity.

And while the body’s performance is important, it can also help explain very effectively the finer points of athletic principles by comparing the bounce of different balls – golf, basket, table and cricket balls – to show different dimensions of that performance.

Otherwise, how would you explain to a child for whom physics is not his or her best subject, the all-important Coefficient of Restitution? Discuss…

Dr Paul Hurrion
Article in Independent Education Today Magazine (November 07)

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