Community Sport Archives - Page 5 of 11 - The Sport Information Resource Centre

Gamification is the use of game techniques, such as the allocation of points and rewards, to provide incentive and fuel the competitive spirit in aspects of life outside of sport (Bunchball, 2020). Examples are abundant, and include Points Days at Shoppers Drug Mart, using an Aeroplan credit card to earn travel miles, or opening a SCENE debit account to earn free movies. Fundamentally, gamification is about stimulating engagement and offering incentive for decisions. This can be used to drive areas of existing interest, as with the everyday runner or walker starting to use a FitBit and then going that extra kilometre to earn their Kilimanjaro badge; or the mix of product, service and technology can also add a little more fun and excitement to behaviours that are often ignored or not given much thought, such as completion of program evaluation surveys among children and youth participating in Sport For Development programs.

Challenges in a youth Sport for Development setting

In 2017, MLSE LaunchPad set out to gamify how youth engage in a community sport setting. This was not about the actual sports being coached at the facility – it was about how youth interact with and experience a community-based sport organization. Our approach to gamification considered registration, relationships, attendance, program evaluation and whether incentives earned through a gamified experience could influence motivation – one key component that contributes to physical literacy and other outcomes of interest to sport programmers (Chen, 2015).

In applying this approach in practice, MLSE LaunchPad initially piloted a values-based currency of points and digital rewards to intentionally stimulate engagement related to priority challenges at the facility. Implementation of two tactical approaches formed the foundation of an early strategy:

Providing youth with the ability to earn points for attendance, with bonus rewards for attendance streaks or perfect attendance, as a means to increase consistency in attendance and reduce ghosting (youth not showing up to a program for which they had registered).
Providing youth with the ability to earn points and bonus rewards for the completion of a program evaluation activity before or after their program, to address challenges with low survey completion rates.

An innovative platform for youth engagement

Recognizing the potential of an effective gamification strategy to drive essential youth behaviours, MLSE Scoreboard™ was born – a digital platform for youth engagement, program evaluation, and program and facility management. Part digital infrastructure, part loyalty rewards, and all engaging – anytime, from any device.

The system has two core components, which have advanced the implementation of the tactics described above:

All youth who register for programs receive access to a secure personal dashboard where they can see their schedule of programs, a real-time points display, alerts and messages, and an interactive leaderboard.
Program staff set up customized challenges, surveys and rewards, and assign relative point values for each activity. Staff may also award bonus points relating to values, skills, attitudes and behaviours they are coaching or promoting.

Points as a key to success

During three years of testing, implementation and refinement with hundreds of programs and thousands of youth, one of the most critical insights has been that from the participant perspective, points are a currency. One key to success has been the intentional alignment of how points are earned with our values. For example, MLSE LaunchPad values the development of prosocial life skills and promotes the benefits of showing up, trying new things, and engaging positively with peers and staff. Consistent with these values, the life cycle of a typical program gives participants opportunities to earn points for living these values, including points for consistent attendance, multi-sport engagement, participating in evaluation activities, and engaging positively in program activities. Points are not earned for talent or sport performance. Youth reach the top of the leaderboard by actively embracing the diversity of sport programs on offer, showing up consistently, pushing themselves, and listening to their coaches and mentors. In essence, the points system is a currency of engagement. Over time, with the point system integrated into the fabric of the organization and its programs, the system can be adapted and refined by staff to address other priorities.

Refining the process

With the launch of MLSE Scoreboard and its points-based currency, youth response rates to program evaluation surveys jumped to 85%. However, some process issues persisted. Early in the MLSE Scoreboard journey, an evaluation station or “rotation” was integrated into a program’s first and last day where youth would go to a classroom or tablet station to complete the program evaluation survey. With MLSE Scoreboard available as a digital, mobile-friendly platform, evaluation staff began releasing pre-program surveys a full week in advance, with bonus points available for early completion. The results were swift – approximately two thirds of youth logged in from home to complete their baseline survey before the start of the program. This increased efficiencies in data collection, but perhaps more importantly, provided two sources of time savings for staff. First, fewer participants leaving program activities to complete a survey helps optimize the time they have for coaching and sport program experience. Second, 2/3 of youth completing surveys from home helps reduce demands on staff time, enabling them to focus on youth who need extra support to complete their survey onsite. For all the prospective benefits of a gamification strategy, none of it is useful if busy staff do not see value in terms of their most prized commodity: time (Ontario Nonprofit Network, 2018).

Tips for applying these concepts in your setting

1. Know your values

There is no homogenous population and different groups behave differently. Being aware of the challenges your participants may be experiencing and the values your organization wants to promote will inform smart and practical goals in building your own points currency. MLSE LaunchPad developed our points system around accountability for showing up, trying new things, and the development of prosocial life skills. What behaviours does your organization value?

2. Start small

We recommend focusing on a small number of concrete objectives while your staff and participants get comfortable with the system. At MLSE LaunchPad, early iterations awarded points to build engagement around attendance and evaluation. While fun custom challenges and other nuances have been added, starting with a simple focus helped staff develop comfort with the points system while generating excitement among youth around clear, achievable goals.

3. Have fun with your challenges

Whatever your engagement goals, encourage staff creativity and learn from participants to build gamified challenges that are fun and fresh while also reinforcing program content and behavioural goals. Physical literacy and the development of functional movement skills have been an intentional programming focus for younger youth at MLSE LaunchPad. As youth advance in age, the development of life skills such as social competence becomes the programmatic focus. Staff are empowered to award points or create challenges for observed examples of youth demonstrating growth in these life skill areas. For example, an MLSE Scoreboard challenge was established where youth earned points for introducing themselves to new mental health counsellors and getting to know them as people, helping to facilitate a warm introduction and reducing barriers to accessing this new service for youth and families.

4. Incentives need not be costly

Yes, MLSE LaunchPad has access to team-branded merchandise for youth to redeem. However, in our journey we have learned that the points themselves provide more drive for engagement than any item or prize on offer. Most participants choose not to redeem in favour of building up their point totals to achieve goals or compete with their peers. Access to a leaderboard with peers is an essential enabler of the healthy competition that an engaging and values-driven points system can facilitate. Online rewards such as digital “badges” can be earned and accumulated, for example, related to a specific life skill, an act of positivity, or leveling up their sport participation. This type of reward is similar to the way points are used in favourite video games – except in this case, winning the game involves demonstrating the characteristics and attributes we work to promote through long-term quality sport engagement.

For those more extrinsically motivated, points redemption can take on many forms. We find smaller accessories such as wristbands and bracelets popular among 6-10 year-olds, and sport accessories such as water bottles and t-shirts popular among 11-14-year-olds. Experiential rewards are popular among older youth, such as a movie night donated by a sponsor, admission to a special event, or an earned privilege like choosing what the team eats at an end-of-season dinner.

5. Learn and adapt

This article provides a framework for how the gamification of youth sport engagement has worked in a youth Sport For Development setting. Every program, culture and population are different, and what works in one environment may not be perfectly adaptable to another. Conceptually, it is helpful to think about a system of gamification through points as a choose-your-own-adventure platform, where organizations have the flexibility to tailor and evolve their system over time against the most pressing engagement goals or challenges as defined by them. People are not static, and as they grow and what motivates them evolves, those of us working with them must keep our approaches fresh, relevant and engaging.

If you need a sounding board or would like to ideate about what a values-based points currency could look like for your organization, don’t hesitate to reach out to the MLSE LaunchPad Research and Evaluation team.

Recommended Resources

Warner, M & Heal, B. (2020). Engaging youth in evaluation processes. SIRCuit Article.

Warner, M & Heal, B. (2020). The gamification of evaluation for non profits and charities. Imagine Canada 360 Blog.

The Ottawa Sport Council’s (OSC) Concussion Education Initiative offers free education sessions for Ottawa-based sport organizations. Aligned with the SIRC Headstrong campaign, this initiative is just one way the OSC is increasing awareness about concussion management and prevention at the community sport level.

Many community sport clubs rely on volunteers for management and program delivery, including coaching. One way to support volunteer recruitment and retention is to understand volunteers’ expectations – both of themselves, and of the organization. In recognition of National Volunteer Week (April 19-25), learn how sport organizations can support strong “psychological contracts” amongst volunteer coaches.

In the latest SIRCTalks episode, Building Capacity Through Research, Amreen Kadwa discusses how she used research on inclusivity in sport to support the development of Hijabi Ballers – a community-based organization that celebrates Muslim women and girls in sport. Watch it here.

Regular, meaningful physical activity provides many benefits for older adults (Bangsbo et al., 2019). However, older men can be a particularly hard-to-reach group when it comes to public health promotion and disease prevention initiatives (Bottorff et al., 2015; Carroll et al., 2014; Smith et al., 2007). In addition to general barriers older adults face (e.g., health-related limitations, fear of falling, and changes to the physical and social environment), there are barriers specific to older men that may limit their engagement in physical activity and healthy behaviours. For example, some challenges may be associated with male preferences for independence and solitude (Smith et al., 2007). Understanding how to design and deliver physical activity programs tailored to older men is important to counter distinct trends toward sedentary lifestyles as we age (Statistics Canada, 2015).

Emerging evidence suggests physical activity programs for men (of all ages) may be most effective when the approach caters to men’s interests and preferences (Bottorff et al., 2015). In particular, programs focused on engaging men through organized sport have been successful, which may be due to their generalized preference for structure, tangible outcomes, competitiveness, and demonstrating physical prowess (Bottorff et al., 2015). Do these findings also apply to older men specifically?

In a recent study (Deneau et al., 2019), we conducted in-depth interviews with 19 older men (aged 75-90 years) to determine what they desire in an ideal sport or physical activity program. Participants recommended seven common attributes that would enhance their engagement. We termed these the “7 A’s of Active Aging,” which are presented below.

Accompanied

Most participants desired to engage in sport and physical activity with peers, or to be supervised by a knowledgeable instructor or coach. This finding is important considering the contrast to social norms that expect men to be independent and self-reliant. Older men may participate in greater levels of physical activity, and benefit more from participation, if there is a strong social component to programs.

Adapted

Individually-tailored programs were of high importance to our participants. In order to capture the wide range of ability, interests, and circumstances among older men, it appears key to ask older men, “What will work for YOU?”

Alternative

Similarly, our study participants requested that a variety of physical activity options, from competitive sport to active leisure pursuits, be offered across programs. For example, some men preferred basketball, some Tai-Chi, and others walking.

Affordable

Affordability is a common barrier to physical activity among older adults (Franco et al., 2015). Many of our participants thought they needed a gym membership to achieve healthy aging. In reality, there are many forms of physical activity that, given the right circumstances, can contribute to health at minimal or no cost, such as walking. In addition to making physical activity programs more affordable, a strategy to spread the message that physical activity does not have to be expensive may be important.

Awareness

Despite many available sport and physical activity programs for older adults, our participants were largely unaware of the opportunities available to them. We need to better understand how to communicate about sport and physical activity through methods and mediums (e.g., https://www.activeagingcanada.ca/) in which older adults are likely to engage.

Available

Fundamentally, sport and physical activity programs tailored to older men (and older adults broadly) must be available. We recognize that there are limited resources for these purposes, especially in publically-funded health promotion systems. Efficient initiatives that aim to educate and empower older adults to engage in and maintain physical activity involvement on their own may be worth exploring in these circumstances.

Accessible

Finally, our participants emphasized that programs must be accessible to the older adult population. This meant different things to different individuals. For example, accessible meant education to one man, and ease of transportation to program facilities to another.

There are many complexities to aging and health. In an ideal world, sport and physical activity programs for older adults would be highly individualized and adhere to the seven attributes discussed. There are several evolving Canadian programs that appear to be exemplars of the 7 A’s. Men on the Move in British Columbia is an example of a choice-based physical activity program in which activity coaches work with older adults to tailor active leisure plans based on participant preferences and circumstances. Men’s Sheds Canada hosts a wide range of social activities for men (e.g., wood carving, fixing bicycles, building model airplanes) that appear to function as beneficial active leisure in disguise. These programs have demonstrated high adherence rates and positive health and well-being outcomes (Mackey et al., 2019; Golding et al., 2007). We advocate for the adoption and further development of such strategies.

Certain forms of active leisure will work for some older men, whereas others will not. Rather than overemphasizing any single healthy behaviour, we encourage the promotion of as many alternatives as possible. Some men in our study desired more adapted and competitive sport programs, whereas others felt competitive sport was inherently risky or simply had no interest. For older men who would benefit from and wish to participate in sport, programs may experience improved adherence and outcomes when the seven suggestions from our older male participants are incorporated. Most importantly, we want to emphasize that the 7 A’s discussed should be considered as one piece of a more comprehensive and gender-sensitized health promotion strategy.

As awareness of the management and prevention of concussions in sport increases, Canadians have more resources at their fingertips: tools to recognize signs and symptoms, medical assessment letters, sport-specific concussion protocols, and more.

Yet even with the proper tools in hand, a gap remains between understanding concussion safety and acting on it – especially at the grassroots level. To address this issue, new programs are beginning to emerge across the country.

Ottawa Sport Council Concussion Education Initiative

New in 2020, the Ottawa Sport Council (OSC) launched the Concussion Education Initiative, offering free education sessions for Ottawa-based sport organizations and associations.

“While resources have been developed nationally to increase concussion awareness and spur action, these resources are not being effectively delivered at the grassroots level,” said Marcia Morris, the OSC’s Executive Director.

The OSC’s initiative offers local community clubs the chance to learn and apply the 4 R’s of concussion management (Recognize, Remove, Refer, Return) in practice. They’ll also learn the requirements of Rowan’s Law, the provincial concussion regulations mandated for sport organizations in Ontario, and be equipped to help their respective organizations become compliant.

The free, one-hour sessions are delivered in person by local health care professionals, based on content originally created by Sport Manitoba, Dr. Michael Ellis, Parachute and SIRC, based on the Pre-Season Education recommendations from the Canadian Guideline on Concussion in Sport. The course outlines the facts of concussions, runs through various resources, and offers guidance on how to apply them in practice.

“With the vast majority of community sport organizations being operated by volunteers, capacity to implement new policies and practices is always a challenge. With something as important as concussion management and prevention, champions are needed to support implementation” said Morris. “It is easy to have parents and coaches sign a piece of paper; it is much harder to ensure concussion protocols are being applied in game and practice settings.”

Funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation, the initiative’s goal is to engage as many clubs and associations as possible. The program has seen strong uptake from local sport organizations to date, but the OSC encourages more groups to take advantage.

“Coaches, athletes, and volunteers who are properly trained are more likely to speak up, and become advocates for concussion safety,” said Kyle Skinner, the OSC’s program manager for the Concussion Education Initiative. “This initiative aims to instill confidence in every participant so they can spot the signs and symptoms of a possible concussion in a fast-paced sport environment.”

Manitoba Concussion Working Group

Another leader in grassroots engagement is the province of Manitoba. The Manitoba Concussion Working Group has led to the widespread adoption of harmonized concussion landing pages and protocols by different community partners.

“Our province has advanced harmonized concussion education across grassroots levels – in both school and community-based sport, and much of the success of this growth has been due to the exceptional leadership of Sport Manitoba,” said Dr. Michael Ellis, neurosurgeon and director of the Pan Am Concussion Program in Winnipeg.

Since 2019, Sport Manitoba and the Sport Medicine and Science Council of Manitoba have partnered to offer concussion workshops to educate athletes, coaches, parents, and all members of the sport community on concussion recognition. These courses are aligned with the standardized sport-specific concussion protocols approved by Sport Manitoba and Manitoba’s Provincial Sport Organizations.

Take Action

As concussion safety continues to advance across Canada, programs at the sport community level will need to play a key role. For information about what you can do in your province, or if you have a community story to share, please let SIRC know.

This blog is part of SIRC’s #HeadstrongCanada concussion awareness, prevention and management campaign. The campaign features tools, resources, and best practices in managing and preventing concussions in sport in Canada. Developed in partnership with Sport Canada, Public Health Agency of Canada and other organizations, the toolkit offers credible information and templates recognized by stakeholders throughout the sport system.

Check out the concussion website for concussion information and tools to help your sport be concussion smart. For concussion information directly to your inbox, sign up for SIRC’s concussion newsletter.

SIRC and the Aboriginal Sport Circle have teamed up to walk to Tuk . . . virtually! Walk to Tuk is an annual community walking challenge the distance of Big River, from Fort Providence to Tuktoyaktuk, in the Northwest Territories – a total of 1,658 kilometers. This initiative aims to help community members, schools, and workplaces to stay active during the cold, dark months of winter. Find out more and sign up as an individual or team!