Sports Involving Children Should Not Be Patterned on Adult Standards

In “Children Need to play, Not Compete,” Jessica Statsky notes that there has been an increase in organized sports for children in the past years in the United States. The increase in organization in the children‘s sports has led to less satisfaction in the sporting activities due to introduction of adult standards on children‘s sports, This essay summarizes the effects of organization of adult standards in the children’s sports as well as the concerns in the sporting activities for children In the article, Jessica Statsky is concerned about the damage that children are exposed to due to both contact and non»c0ntact sports.

It is noted in the article that competitive sports for children also poses psychological dangers for children who ought to be smiling as they are engaged in the sports. Jessica Stasky is opposing competitive sports for children because the sports are very selective Only a few children get to participate in the sporting activity.

According to Jessica, not all parents will support the idea of children being involved in competitive sports. Lastly> the authorities have noted the dangers that competitive sports pose for children who ought to benefit from the programs.

Response It is very realistic that children need to play without having to be involved in a competition. Jessica Statsky bases her opinion on solid arguments about the negative effects of children being involved in competitive games. My reaction on the issue is in support of the author’s view on the reasons why children should be involved in games with the purpose of play and not competition.

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Firstly, competitive sports may harm children both physically and psychologically. As the author argues, it is true that competitive sports persuade children into doing physical actions that are not recommended for the young people. She takes a twelve, year» old as an example of a child being harmed when trying to throw a curve ball. Even though children may not be physically hurt, they may be hurt in their mind, For instance, children who have been hit by the curve ball get so scared of being hurt againi Any slight threat of injury to such children negatively affects their performance due to fear of being hurt Apart from physical injury, children get to suffer from mental problems In a journal article about competitive sports, children are switched to winning no matter what they go through.

They at times do not grow morally since their primary goal tends to be winning every situation in life (Bredemeir, et all 212). Such experiences make children be scared of strict environments for winning. Secondly, Jessica Statsky mentions that competitive sports deprive of future players and fans. During competitive games amongst children, emphasis is laid on winning since no child wants to be embraced by losing the games. Such exposure makes the children highly selective in choosing the teams that they would support either as fans or players. Competitive sports introduce the children to the idea that they must always win in any game The games, therefore deprive the children of the opportunity to enjoy games in the future without necessarily having to win. They do not teach children the virtue of humility and perseverance in games The games make the children lack the feeling of self-confidence and instead have the fear of failure. Children who engage in such games generally do not participate in future sports even if they are physically fit to be part of the games Competitive sports are, therefore counterproductive for developing future sportsmen and women.

Thirdly, it is mentioned by the author that children, unfortunately provide situations for some guardians and coaches to place their desires and wishes ahead of the children’s happiness. Due to too much hope in winning the games, the parents and coaches are too much absorbed in the idea that children must win instead of enriching the quality of experience for the children. The coaches do not take much of their time to train children on techniques of playing with a lot of experience and skills. Their primary aim is to see the children winning games‘ The author of the article takes two examples of worst cases that result due to competitive games. She illustrates how a parent from one team faces up to a player from the opponent squad and the group may consider seeking protection. She also uses the example of a little league manager setting up a fire to the opponent team’s jerseys, Such conditions make it so troublesome for parents who are absorbed in winning the game to find how to balance their instincts with educational theory. Personally, I had not played sports during my elementary school days. I began playing football when l enteredjunior high school. Our coach was so strict that those who had played the game in their elementary school days never enjoyed the game during any single moment.

The situation made the game very annoying to my friends since we were forced to train ourselves carefully. Apparently, it is the mindset that my fellow came with from high school that made the situation very hard for them. At thejunior school, we were forced to enhance our skills in playing football and notjust focus on winning. Unfortunately, my friends had to quite since they could not play only to enjoy the garnet Jessica Statsky concludes that we should not emphasize competition amongst children. We should emphasize cooperation and individual performance in team sports instead of winning. Practically, it is the individual performance that will result in winning. Winning a game, therefore comes on its own and should not be forced by the coaches and parents. In my opinion, Statsky’ 5 paper “Children Need to Play, Not Compete,” is a strong argument based on the state of children‘s sports The paper has several strengths since the ideas are well researched. The author collects a lot of data so that she can support her statement that is true.

The author takes some examples and statistics from the internet and real world She utilizes statistical data that records the answers children give when they are asked what kind of activity they would enjoy most in sports. Playing on a winning team or regularly playing on a losing team is the ground on which Jessica‘s research was based The later was the option for most children Such information collected by the author are enough to make readers believe in the article‘s thesis statement In conclusion, the whole idea of children’s sports ought to be on the basis of the constructive sport itself, how to support children, and improve the quality of the game that they play Competitive sports for children should, therefore be altered with the games that allow teamwork and cooperation among teammates.

Works Cited

1. Bredemeier, Brenda Jo, et 31. “Promoting moral growth in a summer sport camp: The implementation of theoretically grounded instructional strategies” Journal of Moral Education 153 (1986): 212-220
2. Gelfand, Donna M., and Donald P. Hartmann. “Some detrimental effects of competitive sports on children‘s behavior.” Children in sport: A contemporary anthology (1978): 165-174 Statsky, Jessica. “Children Need to Play, Not Compete.”