Learning in Sports Coaching

Abstract

Yrjo Engestrom completed his Ph.D. in education at the University of Helsinki in 1987. From 1989 to 2005 he was a Professor of Communication at the University of California, San Diego, holding the position of Director of the Laboratory of Comparative Human Cognition from 1990 to1995. From 1995 to 2000 he was also a Professor of the Academy of Finland. Engestrom is currently a Professor of Adult Education, and the Director of the Centre for Research on Activity Development and Learning (CRADLE), at the University of Helsinki, Finland, whilst remaining a Professor Emeritus at the University of California, and a Visiting Professor at the University of Oslo. In addition, he holds numerous other visiting academic positions worldwide. He is perhaps best known both for his theory of expansive learning, which can be considered a methodology aimed at social change, and for his progressive interpretation and development of activity theory (AT). The basic premise of his work involves the redesign and re-creation of activity systems by practitioners; in essence, the construction of new patterns of cultural activity. Although Engestrom’s work was initially applied to large-scale transformations often spanning several years, in recent years his ideas have been directed at much smaller phases and cycles implying an increased focus on radical change at the local level.