On Tuesday, February 3, 2015 in my American Sport in the 21st Century class we discussed sport and social values and we were faced with the question - how does sport contribute to norms, values, and behavior? Before we were able to answer that question we needed to know what those three words meant. Norms is expected behavior from the occupant of a social position. Values are anything that is desirable and important, it's how we choose our goals. Values are what guide our behavior, having values means making choices, which creates behavior.
There are four main values in sport. These values are:
Character Building
Competition / Winning
Health / Fitness Promotion
Nationalism / Patriotism
Competition / Winning
Health / Fitness Promotion
Nationalism / Patriotism
All four of these values have a positive side and a negative side to them. The Livestrong article "Does Participating in Team Sports Develop Good Character" focuses on the character building value of sport. Who says that sport builds character? For starters, former athletes say that it helped them build character. Coaches and those who make a living out of sport also believe that sport builds character.
According to Livestrong article participating in sport teaches kids the tools to understand relationships and teaches them positive behavior. Sport allows kids to connect the principles and expectations of society to their actions. This helps teach the kids decision making which is one of the many characteristics sport helps build. The other characteristics that sport helps build are:
Since there is such a big focus on winning within sport only the best players play, even in youth sports. On Tuesday, February 3, 2015 we were faced with the question - how does sitting on the bench build character or help a child's self confidence? This question brings the negative side of character building within sport to the surface. When kids first start participating in sport at a young age, many do not understand that the ultimate goal is to win. As they get older, they begin to understand that concept. If someone is on a team with all of their friends and their friends play and they sit on the bench how is that going to make that individual feel? It certainly is not going to help their self confidence but as they get older one may decide to stay on the team to be apart of the team. Teamwork is more than the individuals who play. It takes an entire team to win, the ones who do play need the support from the ones who don't play. That is a big part of teamwork, being there for each other no matter the circumstance, which then creates trust, which then teaches lifetime lessons. There is always going to be positives and negatives within the topic of character building within sport. The following youtube video highlights the positives: Rugby, Building Character
According to Livestrong article participating in sport teaches kids the tools to understand relationships and teaches them positive behavior. Sport allows kids to connect the principles and expectations of society to their actions. This helps teach the kids decision making which is one of the many characteristics sport helps build. The other characteristics that sport helps build are:
- Leadership
- Work Ethic
- Integrity
- Courage
- Sportsmanship
- Teamwork
- Self-Control
- Honesty
- Respect
- Responsibility
- Self Confidence
Since there is such a big focus on winning within sport only the best players play, even in youth sports. On Tuesday, February 3, 2015 we were faced with the question - how does sitting on the bench build character or help a child's self confidence? This question brings the negative side of character building within sport to the surface. When kids first start participating in sport at a young age, many do not understand that the ultimate goal is to win. As they get older, they begin to understand that concept. If someone is on a team with all of their friends and their friends play and they sit on the bench how is that going to make that individual feel? It certainly is not going to help their self confidence but as they get older one may decide to stay on the team to be apart of the team. Teamwork is more than the individuals who play. It takes an entire team to win, the ones who do play need the support from the ones who don't play. That is a big part of teamwork, being there for each other no matter the circumstance, which then creates trust, which then teaches lifetime lessons. There is always going to be positives and negatives within the topic of character building within sport. The following youtube video highlights the positives: Rugby, Building Character
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