Have you ever won a competition and there was no mention in the newspaper, radio or even on the morning announcements?  Research has shown that there are conflicting views towards whether sports are harmful or helpful to kids. I believe that we should not continue to fund sports programs in schools.  Due to the time spent on sports rather than school work, violating one extracurricular vs. another, and the emphasis on winning are evidence as to why sports are harmful.

Do you believe that time spent in your school might be more focused on sports than school work?  If so, your school’s athletic program might  just be given special privileges over other extracurricular and school work.  In the article, “What in the Name of High School Football” by Hank Hill, it states that Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School had made the students catch a 6:20 a.m. school bus so that the school day could start earlier. This was to ensure that athletes who travel off the Vineyard for away games limit their missed classes. However, this resulted in sleep deprived student, even those who didn’t play sports, since they had to wake up early just to catch a bus because some athletes have an away game. This shows that the sports time schedule was valued higher over the student's class time. Holding sports programs on a higher level than other extracurriculars creates a problem. 

During morning announcements, do you hear more about the sports stats of the previous night’s game or the award winning musical performed the night before?  Some schools acknowledge sports in general, win or lose, than an extracurricular activity that has won a significant achievement. In the article, “What in the Name of School Football,” a group of vocalists and instruments auditioned for the competitive All Cape & Island music festival.  All the judges selected a remarkable 16 out of 16 and yet there was no mention in the local newspaper, radio, or even in the morning announcements.  All you could hear buzzing around was about the decorative gym with streamers and banners for the next big football game.  The author was trying to convey that even though a group of musicians won an award they still were not recognized and were overshadowed by the near upcoming football team.  Highlighting when a team has an upcoming event overshadows the other important extracurricular achievement.

On the other hand, many people think that we should fund sports programs because of the increased educational aspirations.  A study has shown that sports have a positive effect on grades because they're able to manage their time better.  Regardless of the fact that sports have an educational benefit, there is an overemphasis on winning that is a cause for concern.  The overemphasis on winning significantly impacts these educational benefits as they are then often forgotten.  The parent’s emphasis on winning is pressuring not only athletic personnel but students to deviate from non-athletic related education. As you can see, the parents emphasis on the athletes winning is making it harder for students to manage their time. 

I am not implying that we should ban sports programs from schools, but we should limit our time time spent on sports activities, eliminate violating extracurricular activities and play sports for fun.  Sports should not be a democracy.  It should promote promote “participation and sportsmanship”.  student-education should come before School Sports.