Sports can be a great way for high school students in America to make friends, keep fit, and learn valuable teamwork skills. High school sports aren’t always fun. Some student athletes might feel the pressure of parental pressures, scholarship opportunities, and an extremely competitive environment.
Pressurization
What should you spend on throwing the ball in the basket, hitting a home run, or running fast?
High school sports have become a high-stakes game that places student athletes under tremendous pressure. Although it may begin in a little league, with eager dads and coaches encouraging kids to dream big, it doesn’t end there. Students athletes aren’t afraid to disappoint their parents, teammates, school, and, in the case of high-profile sports, their hometown.
These pressures come at a time when confidence and self-image are under threat for most high school students. Teens and children want to reach the potential their www.mabetsika.com parents see in themselves. They want to reduce the cost of college tuition. Both of these goals can be fulfilled by an athletic scholarship.
The Sports Scholarship Handbook states that only one in fifty high school athletes are eligible for athletic scholarships. The pressure of being that one, along with the demands from school and other activities, can be overwhelming for teenagers. While the drive to win and to be the best can encourage greatness in children as well as adults, unrealistic expectations can be set by a winner-takes-all mentality. This mindset can take the joy out of sports. Instead of creating these pressure-filled pastimes in high school, why not use high school sports as a way to help foster healthy young adults?
Physical Dangers
Students are required to choose one sport to succeed in high school sports. They can also play on clubs throughout the year.
Athletes who play one sport every day for a year are at risk of breaking bones, stress fractures, and tearing muscles. Coaches warn students not to play multiple sports, despite the obvious dangers.
Recent research shows the alarming rise in repetitive stress injuries. The American Sports Medicine Institute, Andrews Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Center in Birmingham, Alabama, conducted the study and tracked the number “Tommy John” procedures, which were performed on pitchers to repair their damaged elbow ligaments.
E. Lyle Cain MD, coauthor, said that Tommy John surgery was only performed on 12 out of 97 patients (18%) before 1997.
Cain stated that 62 out of the 188 surgeries performed in 2005 were on high school athletes. This is a third of all the operations. “The truth is that this surgery works and that’s a good thing. However, a troubling trend is the increasing number of younger children who need surgery.
Multisport can actually help athletes be more fit, strengthen multiple muscle groups, and avoid burning out.
Detavius Mason concurs in his article, “Age of Specialization” for The Guilford Orthopedic and Sports Medical Center. Multiple Sports
Mason wrote, “Kobe Bryant Roger Federer, Tom Brady Lebron James, Alex Rodriguez.” When these names are mentioned, there are a few things that come to mind: excellence and transcendent talent, winning. But the idea of them specializing should not be. Kobe and Federer were both soccer players. Lebron played football, Brady played baseball and A-Rod played soccer, football, and basketball.
He concludes with advice for parents and coaches: “So let your child participate in multiple sports. They can also see if they have talent in another sport. This will allow them to improve their athleticism, social interaction and reduce stress.
Some sports can pose a risk to an athlete’s health, especially in extreme cases. Sports can lead to dangerous eating habits and unhealthy exercise habits, whether students are trying to lose weight for wrestling or dance, or get bigger for football.
The Out-Crowd
High school sports can also lead to an “in crowd” mentality, which excludes those who aren’t selected.
Let’s face the facts, not all children are athletic stars. Is that to say they don’t enjoy the game? Do they have to miss out on the physical and social benefits of organized sports? Although some children are involved in the management or fan side of organized sports, there are very few options for recreational activities.
These exclusions extend to all skill levels. Club sports are an unofficial requirement for many high school teams. This puts students from low income families at disadvantage as they can’t afford travel costs and membership fees. Coaches are more inclined to choose club players who have been playing for many years than those who have just practiced on the playground.
John Cochran, a Newton, Mass. parent, believes that every student should be able to participate in high school sports, regardless of their skill level.
Cochran’s editorial for Newton’s Wicked Local stated that studies have shown that high school athletes have higher grades, less discipline problems, and greater self-esteem.
“By cutting out all but the best players, only a very small percentage of students will ever be able to benefit from these [government-allocated] resources.” He wrote. “Public high schools should not offer inferior education opportunities to students who aren’t at the top of their class, if the current philosophy is followed to its logical conclusion.”
The Solution
My goal is to not ban high school sports but to restore sports to their original purpose, which is to have fun. We can change the way we view these sports by allowing kids to play multiple sports and focusing on recreation rather than cutthroat competition. This will allow high schoolers to really get out there and play.