I say turn on CBS and watch and tourney game announced by Jim Nantz and Billy Packer, because none of us know nearly as much as does Mr Packer about officiating....

I know it will never happen, but wouldn't it be awesome to have Wichita State meet Bradley for the NCAA championship? " Would you like that crow boiled, broiled or fried, Mr. Packer?"

Duane

I just read your profile and only then did I realize that you're a teacher and didn't need my pedagogical lesson. My aplogoies...I have should have been more careful. I'm still interested in how the class turns out.

What history do you teach? Need any U.S. history teachers down under who can also call b-ball and misses rugby? Is this a job application? Okay... :)

The first game I ever reffed, I did it informally without any training. It was for an alumni league game at my old high school. The thing I remember is that I kept on second guessing myself. I kept asking myself, "Did I really see that contact?" I ended up not blowing the whistle for the whole first half and heard an earful from players, and I deserved it. Not deserving because I didn't have former experience, but because I wasn't prepared for the job and wasn't doing it efficiently. My partner told me at halftime he understood that it was hard to make that first call, to hear that whistle blow and your own voice telling everyone what you saw. He told me that foul calls had everything to do with one player gaining an advantage over another through contact. I think even the first call I made, I wasn't sure if I actually saw the contact but blew my whistle anyway. It got much easier after the first whistle was blown.

I would start off with mechanics, primary coverage area and basic ternminology.

This should give them something to think about before lunch and after lunch, do a check on learning to see what they have retained.

Don't click on Lobo's link. It's spam.

Hey no probs Corndog - thanks for the tips anyway!

I specialise in Modern European History (focusing on Germany). Unfortunately Australian schools don't teach much US History, except for WW1, WW2 and Vietnam. But we sure do need Basketball refs - so come on down!! :D

Well the course went pretty well. We focused on four main areas:
- Game Administration
- Communication
- Violations
- Fouls

It was a small class (10 people) and thankfully all had played basketball for several years. So at least they had a rough knowledge of the rules and concepts of refereeing.

I'll keep you posted as to how they go. Next week they will all be refereeing between 1/2 and a whole game with me to get some practical experience and tips. Will be interesting to see how it goes.

Thanks heaps for everyone's advice - it was greatly appreciated and really game in handy.

I'd make a few introductions, and then get them out of their seats onto the court. That's where they will learn, either by going through the various signals, or learning about court positioning.

If you can tell them to bring whistles, even better. You can fold rules talks into the court by having some walk throughs with several people acting as "players." Set them up for free throws, jump balls, etc. and have folks rotate around as officials -- 2 and 3 man.

Thanks, Oz. Glad the course went well. If I could figure out a way to get down under to teach and call some hoops I'd be there.

C-Dog

Hey if you want to come and visit I'm sure I could put you up for a night or two :) Bit far to come for the weekend though!

Duane - That's most generous, but you're right, that is a long weekend jaunt. :)

It is - but some people seem to have little or no idea of where Australia is and how big it is. I had friends from Enlgand come to visit on their way to Fiji. They had a 2 night stop-over in Sydney and planned on hiring a car to drive and visit relatives in Perth. Sydney is on the east coast, Perth is on the west coast - approximately 5000kms away! Driving no-stop it takes between 4 and 6 days to make the journey! Needless to say they decided not to make the trip :D

At least they figured it out and made a good decision. A friend of mine from Ireland and I were driving across north Texas one time and he just couldn't get over how big and wide open it was. He said just the sheer size of America was the most difficult part of living in the states. And when you go to Europe and everything seems so close and accessible, that's easy to understand.

one thing I like with europe is that we don't have any deserts, tundras or other strange stuff we don't use :p look at africa, deserts, uninhabited, Australia, how many people live in the middle of it, desert, shall I go on? :p