NOTE: This is the latest in a series of question-and-answer stories featuring faculty members who are integrating the Niagara 2022 Canada Games into the courses they teach at Brock University or the research they’re leading. For more information on Brock’s academic activities around the Games, visit brocku.ca/canada-games

Michael Naraine is an Assistant Professor of Sport Management in Brock’s Faculty of Applied Health Sciences. His research is in the area of digital sport management and marketing, where he examines the strategy, fan engagement and analytics related to new developments in the sport business landscape. His teaching is closely aligned to these interests and centres around the subjects of Sport Marketing, Sport Sponsorship, and Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Sport.

What is your Canada Games-related course title, code and description?

For the Canada Summer Games Curricular Initiative, I’m focusing on SPMA 4P10 – Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Sport. The course examines the nature of innovation within sport organizations, emphasizing entrepreneurial processes and applications.

Describe how you’ve integrated Canada Games-related material into your course?

The Canada Summer Games has provided a unique opportunity to unpack the process of innovation and design-thinking, and has served as a useful, timely context for students to understand key theoretical concepts. To do so, my research assistant and I are formalizing examples and narratives into a centralized teaching case study.

Why do you think Canada Games presents such a good opportunity for students at Brock?

Major sport events are important anchors in the sport ecosystem. So, for the Canada Games to call Niagara region home presents a wonderful opportunity for Brock students to get an experiential glimpse of how sport is developed and managed, spanning various elements, such as event operations, marketing, sponsorship and, of course, innovation. This unique context also serves as a precursor to even larger, global events such as the Commonwealth Games and Olympic Games, instilling a sense of preparedness in students as they pursue future work opportunities post-graduation.

Do you have any suggestions for ways your colleagues can use the Games to enhance teaching and learning opportunities in their courses?

I would definitely encourage colleagues to consider the impact of the Games from a pedagogical perspective. Bringing course concepts “to life” is a great way to unpack key lessons and help students reach notable learning objectives, and the Canada Summer Games can assist in this way. I would say it’s important to consider the Games not just for its principal sporting endeavours, but the ancillary or knock-on effects and take student understanding of a major Games to the next level. This is not just a sport management opportunity, it’s a Brock-wide opportunity.

Once the Games are finished, how do you plan to continue using this new idea in your course?

The great thing about teaching case studies is that they can be reused to help new students reach the same learning outcomes. And, even better, they are not just for Brock students, but exist to help students in other universities. So, the plan is to have this case study used in SPMA 4P10 as well as shared with colleagues around the world.

For more information about SPMA 4P10, please contact Naraine at mnaraine@brocku.ca