Footwork is a great thing to develop now! I was(is) more of a power skater than a finesse skater, and I never had the polish that other skaters my level had (have). Part of it was my coach at the time didn't emphasize it, part of it was that lower MITF were power based back in the day, the rest was lack of dedication on my part.
As an adult I find I'm way behind (twizzles will be the death of me). I think it's great she is working on footwork now! It will pay dividends in the long run, even if it's not scored that way immediately.