Sunday, September 29, 2013

Period 8: HAVE SPORTS TEAMS BROUGHT DOWN AMERICA’S SCHOOLS?

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/comment/2013/09/have-sports-teams-brought-down-americas-schools.html
1. Read the article.  Consider the author's tone, structure of the essay, and your personal reaction.
2. Please add an intelligent comment (minimum 3 sentences) in response to the linked article from the NY Times.  Be sure to reference specifics from the article.
3. Comment on a classmates post in a second post (minimum 3 sentences)
*Use only your first name, last initial and period of class to identify yourself.

17 comments:

  1. Sports create well rounded people because it provides the essential aspects of a well round human being. In the article, they describe Americans praising athletics more than academics, but they are generalizing and exaggerating the truth exponentially. Throughout my entire life my dad, teachers, and coaches, always put school first and that has stuck throughout my life. Taking one school and comparing to another, is completely ridiculous, there needs to be more trials to provide any feasible results. This comparison between the two schools is coming to a conclusion based on a single variable.
    Alec C per 8

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    1. Alec I agree with your comment. Even though we are taught school is more important I believe sports are equal as important because they shape you as a person into a well rounded human being. I also believe with a person who doesn't play sports they don't get the chance or experience to feel how certain things are earned in life and it may take them longer to figure that out.
      Owen K per 8

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    2. I agree with Alec. The author exaggerated the way Americans feel about sports. Many parents, coaches and teachers cause students to put school first. For example, students at Branford High School are not eligible to play a sport unless they have a certain grade or higher. This proves that the statements the author made vary from school to school.
      Harjot B. Period 8

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    3. I agree with you, Alec. It is evident that there are many student athletes that do very well in academic subjects regardless of what they do in their free time. I agree that parents, teachers, and coaches usually feel strongly about academics coming first because they are important in shaping your future and success in life.

      Casey R. Period 8

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  2. I disagree with this article strongly. Sports are what shape people into who they are today. Sports can make students dedicated, smart, and strong not only physically but mentally. Students participating in sports can also impact how well they do in school. Being dedicated on the field can lead to being dedicated in school also. Sports can also help certain students to achieve better grades because they need to maintain a steady average in order to participate in that sport. So, overall, sports in high school and childhood can benefit students greatly.
    Nick T. per 8

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  3. I really don't agree with this article because sports helps most kids and give them something to do. So its not like they are just sitting home every day sitting in front of tje computer on facebook or something like that. They don't have to worry about gaining a lot of weight because they are actually moving around and doing things and lossing weight. Or have to worry about them making bad choices and they can also do something that they enjoying doing as well. Sports can help kids do better in school and get good grades because they know that if they don't have good grades they can't do sports so that would make them want to do good and better.
    Destanee G. Per 8

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    1. I agree because sports are a huge part of a lot of kids lives and they cant live without it.

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  4. I do not agree with this article because sports teach a person more then any subject out there can teach. These are everyday goals that you need to fulfill in order to move on in life. One thing my coach always tells me is you will learn how to respect yourself or learn how you view yourself as a person from playing sports and not necessarily from school. Sports not only shape you as a person, but every athlete is a student athlete, and if they want to score well on tests they are plany capable of doing well on that test.
    Owen K Per. 8

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    1. i strongly agree with you because a sport can teach a person more then any subject out there can teach. I alao feel like your coach is right about what he said if kids really wanna do good on a test they really would because im pretty sure that they are not going to want to have to not participate in sports because of their grades.That will make kids want to try harder nd their best on their grades so they dont got to drop their sport
      Destanee G. Per 8

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    2. also*
      Destanee G. Per 8

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  5. I do not agree with this article for many reasons. School sports are a very important aspect of school. They can have many benefits for students and can allow them to learn many values they may not be able to learn in a classroom. For example, playing a sport in school can allow a student to improve on their social skills, while working together and encouraging teammates. While being involved in a school sport, a student can also build friendships and become more sociable. Other benefits of playing a sport include being able to help boost one's confidence and shape one's self esteem after winning games and feeling a sense of accomplishment. Sports also help students to be more fit and active while doing something they enjoy and can allow them to build better habits that will teach them the importance of exercise as time progresses and they get older. Lastly, participating in a sport can lower the risk of a student being affected by negative influences such as drugs,drinking and smoking because sports cause a student to have less free time,preventing boredom. Therefore, the author did not consider stating the advantages of playing a school sport and only used a single person's experience to back up what they thought.
    Harjot B. Period 8

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    1. I agree with you. The author didn't even address the advantages of this article, which makes their argument weak. Also i like how you brought up the point about keeping kids active. Knowing that our country suffers from obesity, it's important to think about keeping kids active.
      -Amy B. Period 8

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  6. Athletics can be very beneficial in teaching life lessons that cannot be learned by simply reading a textbook. Taking part in sports can teach about respect, responsibility, confidence, and consequences, among other things. In the article, they talk about schools without athletic programs having higher test scores than those with athletics. This may be true for this particular school, but it leads me to wonder if this is necessarily a bad thing in that the time and effort one may put into schoolwork may be put into athletics by another and if that is negative, because in the long run both approaches can create a better person in the end.

    Casey R. Period 8

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  7. I strongly disagree with this article for many reasons. Sports have taught me many valuable lessons that i would have never learned in school. Sports can teach a person how to manage their time, set goals and accomplish them, and how to stay determined.
    Julia k. Period 8

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  8. I also disagree with this article. Sports can teach people, especially kids, a lot about working with others to achieve a goal. In life, you're going to need to have essential communication skills and playing on a sports team can help with this. As for the grades that kids in earn in school, I don't believe sports has anything to do with it. Students have different interests. Some like sports and some are more academic. But sports are not a problem, they can even be beneficial. They can provide the school with publicity and students with scholarships. What we need is to get kids more motivated about school work.
    Amy B. period 8

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  9. I strongly disagree with this article. I feel that by having sports in our schools systems will motivate the student athletes to work harder in order to participate in the sport they are interested in. Knowing that their ability to play sports may be in jeopardy if they do not keep their grades up will affect the way they work in school. I personally feel that it does not matter if you consider yourself “smart” or “stupid,” if you apply yourself and work hard you will get good grades and be a good student. Sports are just another good reason as to why students would want to get good grades.
    Marissa G
    Period: 8

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  10. I disagree with this article because high school sports teach you a lot more than how to do an algebra equation or speak another language. It teaches you values that you'll need later in life like work ethic, respect, sportsmanship, and teamwork. All of these things will definitely help you in the long run.

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