Game On: Girls and Leadership – Canadian Women & Sport (CWS)

Overview

Canadian Women & Sport (formerly known as the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity or CAAWS) worked with Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) LaunchPad to develop and test an innovative experiential learning program designed to develop leadership competencies in a girl-centred, quality sport program to enhance girls’ motivation to stay in sport.

Although women and girls account for more than 50 percent of the population and despite the known benefits of sport and physical activity, the participation and leadership of women and girls in sport and physical activity remains very low. The program infused non-sport themes into regular sport programing (e.g. supporting teammates, setting and achieving goals, being strong and confident, and having a coach who is a positive role model ).

The pilot took place at the MLSE Launchpad facility in Toronto, in the neighborhood of Moss Park. The target population was girls between the ages of 14 and 18 who currently participate in sport but who face barriers to sport participation and are at risk of leaving sport; 45 girls participated in this project.

Outcomes

The findings indicated positive and noteworthy impacts for the participants:

• Increased weekly physical activity level and interest in physical activity;
• Developed leadership skills and intentions for leadership in sport;
• Increased motivation for sports and physical activity (self-efficacy, value, belongingness);
• Decreased sport-related anxiety through the development of leadership skills and self-efficacy.

Quotes

“Game On made me appreciate what sports can do for me and it made me want to do it more.”

Post-Pilot

• Game On is a core program at MLSE Launchpad, as part of its commitment to girls-centered programming.
• Led to the creation of a 2nd pilot, to determine if the results of Game On could be replicated in a club-based community sport environment rather than the controlled, lab-like environment of MLSE Launchpad.

To learn more about this or other pilot projects to improve sport participation in Canada, contact Sport Canada at sportcanadainnovation@pch.gc.ca.