Power of Sports

[Rams15]

I am writing a thesis paper on the power and influence of sports in the lives of high school students. I would most interested ( and appreciative ) to hear your comments on the above topic. How significant a role ( and in what ways ) do you believe that sports plays in the development and maturation of a student in their high school years ?? Critical ? Supportive ? Limited ? Non existent ? I'm very interested in including a cross section of responses in this paper from a fan, parent, or coaches point of view. Thanks

[Snowboarder32]

I am writing a thesis paper on the power and influence of sports in the lives of high school students. I would most interested ( and appreciative ) to hear your comments on the above topic. How significant a role ( and in what ways ) do you believe that sports plays in the development and maturation of a student in their high school years ?? Critical ? Supportive ? Limited ? Non existent ? I'm very interested in including a cross section of responses in this paper from a fan, parent, or coaches point of view. Thanks


I don't believe sports are critical for the development of high school students but it is very supportive. I mean you can take two students, one active in school sports and one not, and they can have the same grades but the kid on the team can learn lessons in teamwork, leadership, perserverence and other great traits to have through the sports. If I were on a college admissions board i would rather a kid who has done sports than one who hasn't (given they have the same or similar grades) because of these traits.

[Giles]

My favorite column by my favorite sports writer... I highlighted the best parts.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/inside_game/magazine/lifeofreilly/1999/0412/

Funny You Should Ask

By Rick Reilly

Posted: Tuesday April 13, 1999 10:13 AM

So we were lying on our backs on the grass in the park next to our hamburger wrappers, my 14-year-old son and I, watching the clouds loiter overhead, when he asked me, "Dad, why are we here?"

And this is what I said.

"I've thought a lot about it, son, and I don't think it's all that complicated. I think maybe we're here just to teach a kid how to bunt, turn two and eat sunflower seeds without using his hands.

"We're here to pound the steering wheel and scream as we listen to the game on the radio, 20 minutes after we pulled into the garage. We're here to look all over, give up and then find the ball in the hole.

"We're here to watch, at least once, as the pocket collapses around John Elway, and it's fourth-and-never. Or as the count goes to 3 and 1 on Mark McGwire with bases loaded, and the pitcher begins wishing he'd gone on to med school. Or as a little hole you couldn't get a skateboard through suddenly opens in front of Jeff Gordon with a lap to go.

"We're here to wear our favorite sweat-soaked Boston Red Sox cap, torn Slippery Rock sweatshirt and the Converses we lettered in, on a Saturday morning with nowhere we have to go and no one special we have to be.

"We're here to rake on a jack-high nothin' hand and have nobody know it but us. Or get in at least one really good brawl, get a nice shiner and end up throwing an arm around the guy who gave it to us.

"We're here to shoot a six-point elk and finally get the f-stop right, or to tie the perfect fly, make the perfect cast, catch absolutely nothing and still call it a perfect morning.

"We're here to nail a yield sign with an apple core from half a block away. We're here to make our dog bite on the same lame fake throw for the gazillionth time. We're here to win the stuffed bear or go broke trying.

"I don't think the meaning of life is gnashing our bicuspids over what comes after death but tasting all the tiny moments that come before it. We're here to be the coach when Wendell, the one whose glasses always fog up, finally makes the only perfect backdoor pass all season. We're here to be there when our kid has three goals and an assist. And especially when he doesn't.

"We're here to see the Great One setting up behind the net, tying some poor goaltender's neck into a Windsor knot. We're here to watch the Rocket peer in for the sign, two out, bases loaded, bottom of the career. We're here to witness Tiger's lining up the 22-foot double breaker to win and not need his autograph afterward to prove it.

"We're here to be able to do a one-and-a-half for our grandkids. Or to stand at the top of our favorite double-black on a double-blue morning and overhear those five wonderful words: 'Highway's closed. Too much snow.' We're here to get the Frisbee to do things that would have caused medieval clergymen to burn us at the stake.

"We're here to sprint the last 100 yards and soak our shirts and be so tired we have to sit down to pee.

"I don't think we're here to make SportsCenter. The really good stuff never does. Like leaving Wrigley at 4:15 on a perfect summer afternoon and walking straight into Murphy's with half of section 503. Or finding ourselves with a free afternoon, a little red 327 fuel-injected 1962 Corvette convertible and an unopened map of Vermont's backroads.

"We're here to get the triple-Dagwood sandwich made, the perfectly frosted malted-beverage mug filled and the football kicked off at the very second your sister begins tying up the phone until Tuesday.

"None of us are going to find ourselves on our deathbeds saying, 'Dang, I wish I'd spent more time on the Hibbings account.' We're going to say, 'That scar? I got that scar stealing a home run from Consolidated Plumbers!'

"See, grown-ups spend so much time doggedly slaving toward the better car, the perfect house, the big day that will finally make them happy when happy just walked by wearing a bicycle helmet two sizes too big for him. We're not here to find a way to heaven. The way is heaven. Does that answer your question, son?"

And he said, "Not really, Dad."

And I said, "No?"

And he said, "No, what I meant is, why are we here when Mom said to pick her up 40 minutes ago?

[Rams15]

Thanks

[coachstew]

In my case it was pretty important. My parents could use that as a way to keep me focused on school work. I knew if I let my grades drop, that they would not let me play. I look at sports as a way to influence kids, and in some cases it helps them stay interested in school. The lessons they learn can be incredibly valuable.

Interesting enough during my Master's work I did a correlation study between students who play sports, are active in band or other activities, and those who aren't and their grades. The results were pretty impressive.

[Red_White_Catcher15]

point of a high school student


Me being a high school student, my main focus is my education but sports as a whole play a big part in my life. If the stress of school gets to me, i know that come the end of the day I can go out and leave it on the field/court. For student-athletes i believe that it is critical for growth throughout highschool. It is a way for that student to blow off steam and stress while staying out of trouble.
Also i have to agree with coachstew. It is a way to stay motivated, because i like sports, and my parents and even coaches, teachers, and administration can use my education as a reason to stop my from playing. This keeps me focused on school work. Overall I believe that sports play a major role in a developing high school student. It gives them a reason to get out of the house, and be active with other people, than their family. It keeps them out of trouble, and unless the school is corrupt it keeps their grades decent. So all in all sports play a major role in the life of a high school student..

Does this help at all?

[Rams15]

Each and every post helps me formulate some raw data on your opinions and beliefs. Predominantly and almost exclusively positive.You would be shocked at the degree of negative responses of stakeholders who are not involved in the integration of sports in our schools. This feedback generally comes from community folks who do not have kids and seniors over the age of 60. Suffice it to say that they are not nearly as supportive ( a huge understatement ) nor do they see the value of interscholastic sports at the high school level. Building character ( they don't get or see the correlation ) & costs of running the programs are the two major concerns. Thanks for taking the time to respond !

[BDevil09]

[QUOTE=Giles;72565]My favorite column by my favorite sports writer... I highlighted the best parts.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/inside_game/magazine/lifeofreilly/1999/0412/

Anything Rick Reilly writes is genius

[Snowboarder32]

Each and every post helps me formulate some raw data on your opinions and beliefs. Predominantly and almost exclusively positive.You would be shocked at the degree of negative responses of stakeholders who are not involved in the integration of sports in our schools. This feedback generally comes from community folks who do not have kids and seniors over the age of 60. Suffice it to say that they are not nearly as supportive ( a huge understatement ) nor do they see the value of interscholastic sports at the high school level. Building character ( they don't get or see the correlation ) & costs of running the programs are the two major concerns. Thanks for taking the time to respond !


not having school sports would be a horrible idea, like red white catcher said if kids didn't have sports they could be on the streets worsening our society instead of making it a better place, also if there wasn't sports there would be less motivation for the students to keep their grades up because the administration would have less to threaten them with. Aslo the community wouldn't be as close, i mean on a friday night a whole community will come out to watch their local high school football team play and support the student-athletes who dedicate themselves to the name of the school and community they play for

[boobiemiles]

I couldn't imagine what there would be without school sports.

The biggest thing that anybody can learn from sports is leadership and responsibility.

Over my 6 years of sports I realized how important it is to be a role model and to develop relationships not only with your teammates but also with your coaches and your opponents.

[Snowboarder32]

and your opponents.


i agree with that completely, this site is a huge contributor to that, without it i'd of never known that there were actually cool people in OA! haha but seriously there are really cool people but most of the time you don't get to know them because you're so caught up in competition and i think that if you know who you're going up against it make syou want it more beacuse who doesn't want bragging rights over their friend?

[boobiemiles]

And if you happen to lose, it's nice to know that you lost to a good opponent and not some cocky or arrogant opponent. When you get to know your opponents a lot of things change in the way that you compete.

[Snowboarder32]

And if you happen to lose, it's nice to know that you lost to a good opponent and not some cocky or arrogant opponent. When you get to know your opponents a lot of things change in the way that you compete.


exactly, you don't end with dirty looks or a bad taste in your mouth you end with a handshake with a friend


Sports aren't only a means to occupy time, keep grades up, keep kids off the street, learn lessons, true they are all of these things but one of the most important aspects of sports is the friendship you form with your team and your opponents that can last you more than anything else i believe

[soccerstud11]

I don't believe sports are critical for the development of high school students but it is very supportive. I mean you can take two students, one active in school sports and one not, and they can have the same grades but the kid on the team can learn lessons in teamwork, leadership, perserverence and other great traits to have through the sports. If I were on a college admissions board i would rather a kid who has done sports than one who hasn't (given they have the same or similar grades) because of these traits.

On top of all these traits it also teaches you a lot about time management which is an essential skill to have in college. After school you usually have about half an hour to 45 minutes before practice or a game. You might not get home until very late (if it was a game at an away location) and you must then do homework. It's all about time management and that is very important in college.

[boobiemiles]

hahahaha i never did homework between school and sports. That time was utilized playing football of basketball

[bigdogunlimited]

My son is a senior this year and we have seen and confirmed a couple of things in regards to his academics and sports. First time management, he is a high honors student and during his seasons (football, wrestling & lacrosse) he has to be more conscious of his free time and how he spends it. He enjoys his social life, family life and gaming with friends. Life with the time requirements of the team sports and the study time makes him more accountable for how he schedules his activities. Secondly he is visiting colleges and trying to decide where he will attend next year, with this he has to maintain his grades and as in the seasons past he is more focused during the season. The sports activities make him focus more on his academics and the time spent is time doing quality work not starting an assignment loose the train of thought, talk with fiends and play a game, then try to recover. In short in season he works harder and that short time between seasons the effort is still there but maybe not as focused believing he has more time to use and putting things off till a later time. The last thing is this the heavy schedule he keeps limits the time he has to get into mischief, he still has fun but he is so busy he has little time to get into trouble. I found nearly 30 years ago that sports were a major release for me and made me want to go to school, I wanted to be on that team win or loose and enjoyed the camaraderie of being with my classmates.