Should Schools Get Rid Of Sports By Tim O'shei

In order for students to have the success they need in school, it is essential for them to on their education before sports. In Amanda Ripley’s article Should Your School Get Rid of Sports? she says, “More than 20 nations have better high school graduation rates” (10). Ripley continues by stating that, Jenny, an 18

Schools should get rid of sports. Although many people think that sports are relaxing and stress relieving; numerous studies say that for sport players in particular, the lack of time to do work and sleep is crushing them socially, physically, and academically. Therefore, districts should get rid of after school sports because the cost is extreme, this would aid students academically, and they are a

Also sports help kids with their grades.” According to a 2013 evaluation conducted by the Crime Lab at the University of Chicago, Becoming a Man--Sports Edition creates lasting improvements in the boys’ study habits and grade point averages. “ (“ Bowen & Hitt”). Sports are the number one reason for a kid who is thinking about dropping out to stay in school. Think about it if you need a 2.0 to stay in sports and you struggle in school but, you love sports and want to do it in college you will stay in school to achieve your dream. Also with sports that helps me is you don’t get time to procrastinate because if I know I have a game tomorrow and I have a big essay do the day after that I will do it tonight because I know I can’t do it after the game. Which is why most people who aren’t in sports struggle with procrastine. “Neish (1993) that found positive correlations between high, medium, or low levels of involvement in extracurricular activities and students’ GPAs and involved students attained higher GPAs than did students who were not involved.”(“ Lumpkin & Favor”). This proves again that sports truly do help are kids in school.

"Does Athletic Success Come at the Expense of Academic Success?" Education Next. N.p., 16 Dec. 2013. Web. 25 Jan. 2017.

Everyone knows academics are the main point of school, but athletics have begun to take over and draw away from that focus. Many individuals believe school sports are more important than ever; however, cost is excessive and players often think about upcoming games or matches, detracting attention from homework. Therefore, districts should eliminate after-school sports because they cost tremendous amounts of money, cause academic failure, and are a major distraction.

In this article, Amanda Ripley discusses how sports are becoming increasingly important in high school. She shares the view from exchange students and what they see when they come to the United States. She gives an example of Premont, Texas, where the superintendent wanted to eliminate sports. His main reason for doing this was budget problems. They tried this in one school, and that school’s enrollment numbers dropped.

What if you were told that two out of every ten high school football players will receive a concussion this football season?

Amanda Ripley argues in her essay “The Case Against High School Sports,” that high school sports should be removed in favor of a higher focus on education. Ripley presents her argument why removing high school sports would help “America’s mediocrity in education” (1). Ripley draws the comparison between the educational capabilities of South Korea and the United States. Ripley presents the story of one Texas high school, an area considered the heart and soul of American football from movies such as “Friday Night Lights.” While Ripley presents multiple arguments against high school sports, there are some other arguments that can still be made, such as the heavy financial burden on our schools and the potential injuries to our students.

Are schools the right place for sports? This is a question that educators and experts everywhere are asking themselves, as more and more schools are faced with budget cuts and low academic scores. No one is debating the health benefits of exercise one receives from sports, but does the exercise benefit outweigh the expense, risk, and impact on academic grades? Amanda Ripley, the author of The Smartest Kids in the World, thinks club organizations, not schools, should provide sports programming (“Should schools eliminate sports” 1). Earl Smith, author of “Race, Sport and the American Dream,” along with Ripley believes sports are given priority in some schools, drawing attention away from education (“Should schools eliminate sports” 1). During an interview with the New York Times, Smith stated “high schools should not have competitive sports teams. And especially not in the under-resourced intercity high schools where academic programs are often sacrificed to finance sports teams” (“Making Sports an After-School Activity” 1). He went on to say “even the student bodies in many high schools have developed cultures that glorify sports at the expense of the scholar.”

Parents and administrators have been wondering of sports are literally helping, or harming education. Schools have had after-school activities for decades, but this has made too difficult for many students to finish their work. Therefore, sports should be removed to increase the ability to save money, improve grades, and give kids the opportunity to pay more attention in class.

In America, sports are a big deal, but most schools do not have sports because it uses a large amount of their funds and the money can be used for the students education, and other supplies. Amanda Ripley states that “in the spring of 2012, Premont Independent school district in Texas was in trouble, the district had to move the middle school to a high school building and the elementary school hadn’t had a music teacher in years” (10). The author goes to say that, “new bleachers can cost half a million dollars, maintaining a grass field can cost more than $20,000 a year” (11). It shows that people care a lot about sports and those who do get decent grades but without sports students pass more classes, schools can save money, and students have more time to finish their assignments. Clearly, schools have sports but without these programs districts can save money and have extra money to buy school essentials.

Active children have more focus, are better problem solvers, and score higher on tests than the average child that does not play sports. According to Scope Magazine’s Tim O’Shei, a 2012 study by the Datalys Center found that young athletes have higher scores in math and reading than the average student who do not

Sports programs have been an integral part of all schools. They support the academics of the school and therefore foster success in life. These programs are educational and help produce productive citizenship. They help students experience and build skills that may help them in their future, like interpersonal and time management skills. Education may kindle the light of knowledge, but sports help to maintain the proper physique. Sports are also an important means of entertainment and a use for energy after long hours of study. Sports increase a student’s performance not only in the classroom but also in their life.

With sports, districts could struggle to get students to their highest level of education. It is easy to see that with no athletic activities, schools can save money, time, and students could focus on their academics. Therefore, it is essential that schools dispose of sports so they can thrive in the long run of

Sports and the general physical activities have been associated with a plethora of benefits. Not so much in correlation with education though. The debate on sports and academic performance relates as to whether sports affect academic performance positively or negatively. Mostly, academics, especially in high school and colleges, require an enormous time commitment. In the same way, sports demand time commitment. Apparently, academics and sports run linearly and either would consume the time of the other. Such would be the argument put forth by the claimants of the negative effects of sports on academic performance. The opponents to the positive correlation of sports and academic performance ground their arguments largely on the time commitment that the two require claiming that sports would consume a student’s time for study hence affecting their academic performance. Proponents of a positive correlation between sports and academic performance summon an extensive range of evidence showing that students who participate in sports perform well in academics. The proponents’ arguments are fetched from the proven benefits of exercise which improve a student’s overall well-being and motivate their academic performance. Opponents would, however, argue that the studies that find athletes and sports persons good at academics do not show how such correlations occur in that other factors could be the actual causes of the correlation and not sports in themselves. Regardless, opponents to the claim that sports affect academic performance positively cannot deny that sports affect the overall well being of any human being. As such, there is no denying that sports affect academic performance positively where a balance among the two is maintained.