Around 45 million children aged 6-18 play organized sports in the United States; each dedicating their time to becoming the best in their league. This pressure to be the best comes from everyone that surrounds them; their parents, coaches, and even teammates push them to give their all. However, in recent years, there had been a heated debate about whether these sports are becoming too intense for young, developing athletes. Many argue that the competition of organized sports places way too much pressure on the shoulders of young athletes, and can be mentally and physically harmful to developing athletes. Others argue however, that sports help to teach young athletes the values of discipline and hardwork. Although youth sports place a large …show more content…
They argue that youth sports place too much pressure on the shoulders of young athletes. A main opponent of youth sports, author of Until it Hurts: America’s Obsession With Youth Sports, Mark Hyman argues that sports take a mental toll on players, decreasing attrition rates, as well as discouraging them. And although this statement may be true to some degree, it is preposterous to think that youth sports are too intense based simply on the fact that they are stressful. As Chicago Magic Soccer Club coach Nathan Pitcock argues, “Those who argue that youth sports are too intense point mostly to two factors: the amount of time they require and the pressure that they place on young athletes. These are the very qualities, however, that make youth sports so valuable to those who participate.” This is entirely true, as many of the values athletes learn from youth sports comes from their competitive nature. Claims that youth sports are too intense are completely false, as many of the social benefits and life skills that adolescents benefit from come from the intensity of their sport. Youth sports are beneficial to young athletes, as they have many benefits in all aspects of life. Youth sports help to promote an active lifestyle as well as teach young athletes important life skills and values they need to succeed in life. So, although youth sports are very demanding, and place large amounts of pressure on the shoulders of young athletes, they still have many benefits to children who participate in them. Youth sports are needed in today’s society, instilling age-old values many children miss out on
In “Do Sports Build Character or Damage it?” Mark Edmundson explains the pros and cons of children who grow up playing football. Firstly, he believes the perseverance it takes to show up for hard practices is useful later in life. Especially when they get frustrated with something and don’t notice the little bits of progress they are making.
Youth sports are an intricate part of our society. They teach kids from a young age how to work together as a team, which they can then build on and use in other facets of their lives. Concussions in youth football are at an all-time high, only because they weren’t (B3)kept track of until recent years.
Summary “Children Need to Play, Not Compete,” by Jessica Statsky is a thoughtful insight on the competitive sports for children. She is of the view that the competitive sports can ruin the enjoyment that games are supposed to provide. These methods of playing the games like adults can prove to be lethal for physical and psychological health. The author quotes from an authentic source that “Kids under the age of fourteen are not by nature physical.” (Tutko)
Have you ever wanted to live an active and healthy life, as well as an improvement in grades? I believe youth sports will help all of those problems and many more. Most sports are team sports that also teach your child teamwork. Playing youth sports is a terrific experience for you or your child. There are many reasons why I feel that children should play youth sports.
She also goes on to say, “Soon the stakes get higher because many parents and coaches play to win. Winning means recognition and that could lead to lucrative opportunities -– high school championships then college scholarships and perhaps a shot at the pros” (par 3). This evidence shows that there is so much pressure to be good and work hard that it is not even fun anymore. Kids have to deal with the pressure of winning, so they work harder which can make them burn out quickly from the
“With high school just around the corner, a new study is raising awareness of the risks associated with playing the game,” said the article High School, College Football Comes With Risk by Jeffrey Perkel. In the article by Jeffrey Perkel it states, “Researchers found that college football players get injured more often than their high school counterparts but high school athletes are more likely to end up injured.” Youth sports are harmful because they, make the kids so they are most likely to end up in the emergency room, they do not get enough sleep, and the college students get injured easier. Youth sports are helpful because, they help with educational purposes, they have positive effects on adolescents, and they helps associate kids with participation and sportsmanship. However, with all the information I have gathered they say things like, “But better coaching may help.”
Dr. Frank L. Smoll states, “All children and youth need vigorous physical activity as part of their daily lives, and sports provide the benefits of exercise and the potential for acquiring a sense of accomplishment.” (Smoll 1/2).
The overall youth sports climate has been brought up throughout this paper many times and it is clear that this league has some controversial issues regarding it. Everything boils down to deciding what is best for the kid, and if the risk of playing them in such severe circumstances is worth the reward. Some parents in the show believe that through this league and playing football at such a competitive level so young, the kids will learn how to deal with not only the physical pain but also the stress and anxiety that comes along with playing football. There is no doubt that this argument can be made, and yes it is true that every kid will deal with the adversity of coping with sports differently, but there can definitely be extremes. This can be a harmful mindset because throwing kids in to such adverse situations without them knowing how to react or deal with them can leave them not knowing what to do.
Children who participate in competitive sports at a young age experience more serious negative impacts than positives, including a risk of severe injury, losing
Summary In “Children Need to Play, Not Compete,” Jessica Statsky tries to demonstrate the negative effect of organized sports on the physical and psychological health of growing child. She claims that the games are not festive but they end up in the wrong development of a child’s brain. The coaches and parents have high hopes for their children that result in the pressure building. This changes the purpose of sports from teaching tolerance, teamwork and sportsmanship to merely winning by all means.
In today's society, sports has become a very popular leisure activity and a means of effective physical movement for many young children across the United States. The evidence, publications, and, data on youth sports, has shown and proved the positive effects of children's participation in sports: benefits that ranged from real world applications to personal characteristics. The structure of youth sports aid students in learning the importance of life skills such as teamwork; the development of` a strong sense of morality; and an understanding and appreciation of diversity. Parents are also given the blessing and comfort of their children being statistically least likely to engage in deviant behavior and becoming academically more proficient. Despite the various benefits that children experience through playing sports, there still remains a high amount of students mainly minority students who are unable to participate in sports.
The first reason that kids should participate in competitive sports is that sports teach kids valuable morals. By learning these morals and life lessons from an early age, they are more likely to start using them in the future
In this day and age with professional athletes being at the top of the social spectrum, youth sports have gotten very popular. “More than 26 million children ages 6 to 17 played team sports in 2014(Rosenwald).” Youth sports are very popular because it brings the great feeling of being on a team. When you are on a team you feel like you can do anything together, and nothing is stopping you. There are also many flaws in youth sports.
The first primary benefit of youth sports is that it promotes good habits. For example, kids who participate in after-school sports are less likely to get in
The second article is written by Erica Beachy in "Specialization in Youth Sport," from The Sport in Mind. The author stated that when a child excels in a certain sport, the parents or scouts would push that kid to play that sport and force his life to revolve around it considering the future that he will have when he pursue professional leagues. With this, kids are highly stressed and pressured. The effects are not only physically but there is also psychological strain. This highly impacts the child and his decision making abilities.