Youth sports can be a valuable part of life lessons that children need to learn, as long as parents and coaches understand that baseball, basketball, soccer, etc are the last things they need to learn, not the first. Just the opinion of a parent of two boys who were involved in sports.
It’s an interesting point. I would argue that, at their best, youth sports are somewhat more important than that. I think, for example, of Albert Borgmann’s work on “focal practices” and how they prepare human beings for a deeper engagement with the world. Sports SHOULD do that. Of course--and here I totally agree with you--it doesn’t always work out that way!
We encountered coaches and parents who were more interested in winning than anything else to the extent that some children would sit on the bench the entire game. Winning is important, but when it comes to children, it takes a distant second to the other lessons that should be learned.
Youth sports can be a valuable part of life lessons that children need to learn, as long as parents and coaches understand that baseball, basketball, soccer, etc are the last things they need to learn, not the first. Just the opinion of a parent of two boys who were involved in sports.
It’s an interesting point. I would argue that, at their best, youth sports are somewhat more important than that. I think, for example, of Albert Borgmann’s work on “focal practices” and how they prepare human beings for a deeper engagement with the world. Sports SHOULD do that. Of course--and here I totally agree with you--it doesn’t always work out that way!
We encountered coaches and parents who were more interested in winning than anything else to the extent that some children would sit on the bench the entire game. Winning is important, but when it comes to children, it takes a distant second to the other lessons that should be learned.