I know you and I have pretty different views on this - partly due to the fact that I'm just not into sport, but I have to say that - speaking from personal experience -
Sport gives kids something we all bemoan the lack of in society today - discipline. -
I've not seen it. Almost ALL the boys in that crappy year 9 class I had last year were members of the school under-14 footie team, who I think did quite well in local competitions. Did being in the team instil any discipline into them? Did it bollocks. I agree with you - and with the Times columnist - that sport can help instil discipline into kids; but for the most part, I don't think it has that effect because the sports teachers are focused on just that one area and it doesn't matter to them what the kids are up to the rest of the time. If I'd gone to the footie coach and suggested that those boys who were causing the most problems were temporarily suspended from the team until their behaviour improved, I'd have been laughed at.
And sport in the curriculum is on the increase - again, from experience, the MFL department where I teach is losing lesson time to make room for the newly increased mandatory PE time.
So by all means, teach kids to throw a javelin if it will improve their behaviour overall. But I don't see it happening that way. They'll be allowed to get away with murder elsewhere because they're good at javelin throwing. At least in the US, kids who are at school/college on sports programmes have to keep a certain academic standard; maybe if we tried something similar here, it would improve behaviour and might also make those of us who teach subjects other than maths, english and PE feel that we weren't always losing out to sport.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2008-08-23 11:33 pm (UTC)Sport gives kids something we all bemoan the lack of in society today - discipline. -
I've not seen it. Almost ALL the boys in that crappy year 9 class I had last year were members of the school under-14 footie team, who I think did quite well in local competitions. Did being in the team instil any discipline into them? Did it bollocks.
I agree with you - and with the Times columnist - that sport can help instil discipline into kids; but for the most part, I don't think it has that effect because the sports teachers are focused on just that one area and it doesn't matter to them what the kids are up to the rest of the time. If I'd gone to the footie coach and suggested that those boys who were causing the most problems were temporarily suspended from the team until their behaviour improved, I'd have been laughed at.
And sport in the curriculum is on the increase - again, from experience, the MFL department where I teach is losing lesson time to make room for the newly increased mandatory PE time.
So by all means, teach kids to throw a javelin if it will improve their behaviour overall. But I don't see it happening that way. They'll be allowed to get away with murder elsewhere because they're good at javelin throwing. At least in the US, kids who are at school/college on sports programmes have to keep a certain academic standard; maybe if we tried something similar here, it would improve behaviour and might also make those of us who teach subjects other than maths, english and PE feel that we weren't always losing out to sport.