SPORT - A perspective from our Head Prefects

ACTION | Act in accordance with my purpose for the glory of God and in the service of others even when I don't feel like it.

For the past ten years I have noted that most of our Head Students have played sport for the school. This year, all four Head Prefects play and/or coach a sport in the school. I asked them how playing sport has helped them in their role as a leader.

1) How has sport developed your leadership?

Playing sport gives me the opportunity to interact with others and lead in a small group context. Leadership on the court is not limited to just the captain’s role, even when I was the youngest in the team, I could still assist others on and off the field to better our connection as a unit. Being involved in sport has given me the confidence to explore leadership in a safe environment, enabling me to use the gifts God has blessed me with.

It helped develop my confidence to empower and support my teammates. I use this skill every day when meeting people. Being part of a team has helped extend my emotional intelligence, which I use when explaining plans to help others. I have learned to keep my vocal tone kind and be understanding, instead of being bossy and harsh.

2) What skills have you learnt in sport that are transferable to your role as Head Prefect in the school?

A big thing I have learned from sport that has helped me majorly in my roll as a Head student has been communication skills and empathy. Especially since being captain, I need to adhere to the different needs and personalities in my group and shape my connections with everyone in a way that will benefit the relationship on and off the court. High-pressure game situations have taught me to always consider how I speak to others. Whether I am uplifting them and enabling them to play better or giving them feedback from what I can see. All of this must be done with a loving attitude. These same ideas have helped me better consider the feelings of others, whether a fellow prefect, a teacher, or another student, making my interactions smoother through better communication.

3) Good communication skills are very important as a leader and on the sports field. With whom do you have to communicate with on a sport field and how has that helped you in your role as Head or Deputy Head?

Both as a captain and a senior on my team, I must constantly communicate with everyone on the pitch. I do this in the form of pre-and post-game talks, but also just talking in general to my teammates. I have found that it is especially important to communicate with the younger team members, as it helps them get more involved with the team and its culture. This relates to my leadership role because it is important to communicate with the younger students at school, making sure that they feel welcome and valued in that environment.

As a captain, I am also responsible for communicating with the referee. This is very important, as it’s my job to make sure that the referee hears all members of the team through me. This is especially relatable to my role as Head, as it is my job to communicate between students, prefects, and teachers. I am also regularly in communication with persons I have not met before in the form of the opposition and opposition management, this is very important, no matter how I feel after the game to do this in a way that shows respect and represents the values of KingsWay.

In summary, I think that sport is just an all-around great place to practice all life skills. For me personally, the most important thing that sport has taught me is hard work. Throughout my sporting career, there have been numerous times when I was tired of playing or felt like quitting. However, by always keeping my end goals in mind, I have been able to push through the hard times by working hard, and improving my game so that I can reach the next level. This is very applicable to life, as we all experience hard times when we want to quit something we know we shouldn’t. Sport has shown me that by staying dedicated and working hard, I can always work through these hard times, and push on to bigger and better things.

Responses written by JD Birdwell - Head Boy, Dan McCabe - Deputy Head Boy, Tricia Vassiliou - Head Girl and Grace Bridge - Deputy Head Girl.

Lynda Hay
Director of Sport