The Hierarchy of Assessment: Diagnose Before You Teach
Four levels — Intent, Outcome, Technique, Tactics — that protect coaches from fixing the wrong thing.
The core idea
When a shot goes wrong, don't jump to the nearest visible symptom (usually the swing). Walk the hierarchy in order — Intent → Outcome → Technique → Tactics — and fix at the level that actually broke.
Most coaches see a missed shot and immediately fix the stroke. Great coaches diagnose first, then teach. That's what this framework protects against.
The four levels
1. INTENT What were they TRYING to do?
2. OUTCOME Did the shot DO what they wanted?
3. TECHNIQUE Is the physical execution off?
4. TACTICS Was it the right shot for the situation?
Walk them in order. Don't skip. Most coaching mistakes happen when we jump straight to Technique without confirming Intent and Outcome.
Level 1 — Intent
"What were you going for?"
If the player doesn't know their intent, no technical fix will stick. You'd be teaching them how to execute a shot they weren't even trying to hit.
In practice:
- A player hits a third shot into the net. Before saying "lift with your legs," ask: "What were you going for — a drop or a drive?"
- A player pops up a dink. Before saying "soft hands," ask: "Were you trying to attack it or keep the rally going?"
The fix at this level: teach them to have an intent before every shot. That's a skill on its own. Until they have it, technique work is noise.
Level 2 — Outcome
The scoreboard, not the aesthetics.
A mechanically ugly drop that lands in the kitchen is a success. A picture-perfect drive into the net is not.
In practice:
- A clunky-looking reset that still lands in the opponent's kitchen → good outcome. Don't rebuild the stroke. Reinforce: "Ugly, but that's a reset."
- A beautiful-looking drive that sails long → bad outcome. The stroke isn't the problem — the trajectory or pace is.
The fix at this level: if intent was clear and outcome didn't match intent, now you start diagnosing the how — which means you walk down to Technique.
Level 3 — Technique
Grip. Contact point. Paddle face. Swing path. Footwork.
This is where most coaches start. The hierarchy protects against that — we only get here once Intent and Outcome are clear.
In practice: only after you've confirmed intent was clear ("I was trying to drop") and outcome didn't match ("It went into the net") do you look at execution: "Your paddle face was closed. Let's open it and lift with the legs."
External cues beat internal cues
Research shows external cues (where the ball goes) produce faster learning than internal cues (how the body moves).
| Internal (slower) | External (faster) |
|---|---|
| "Bend your knees more" | "Get lower under the ball" |
| "Close your paddle face" | "Aim for their feet" |
| "Brush up on the ball" | "Make it curve down into their kitchen" |
Coach where the ball goes, not how the arm moves, whenever possible.
Level 4 — Tactics
The top of the hierarchy — because a perfectly executed wrong shot still loses the point.
In practice:
- A textbook drive from the kitchen line while the opponent is already at the net → technique is fine. Tactics are wrong. Should have been a dink.
- A gorgeous lob over an opponent already back at the baseline → technique is fine. Tactics are wrong. No shot to lob over.
The fix at this level: "Right shot, wrong shot — which was this?" Tactics are the last thing you teach, because Intent and Outcome have to be working before the player can meaningfully choose shots.
How to practice using the hierarchy
Exercise 1 — One player, one session. Pick one player. For the whole session, only diagnose using the hierarchy. After every missed shot, internally ask: did they have intent? Did outcome match? Was technique off? Was the shot choice right? You'll be shocked how often the answer is "they didn't even know what they were going for."
Exercise 2 — Pair observation. Watch a fellow coach and silently run the hierarchy on three of their diagnostic moments. Did they skip Intent? Did they jump to Technique? Discuss after.
Exercise 3 — The "before any correction" rule. For one full session, don't make a single technical correction without first asking intent. Hard. Humbling. Changes how you coach.
Phrases you'll actually say
| Level | Go-to phrase |
|---|---|
| Intent | "What were you going for?" |
| Outcome | "Did the shot do what you wanted?" |
| Technique | "We fix the how after the what and the why." |
| Tactics | "Right shot, wrong shot — which was this?" |
The big reminder
Before you fix the stroke, ask: did they do what they meant to?
If a new coach only internalizes one thing from this whole system — let it be this.
Attribution
This framework is adapted from the RacketPro Level 1 coach education library — specifically Collin Johns' Hierarchy of Assessment webinar (52 min). Worth watching in full.