Athletics is a globally recognized sporting activity where many people have made a career out of it. Many parents coerce their children into the sport because of the health benefits associated with physical exercise where some find a hobby and passion in life. However, the question of whether parents should encourage their parents to engage in sports is a controversial debate because there are divide sections of the society about the positivity versus the negativity of games especially in matters related to academics. As the popularity of athletics gains momentum, the relationship between academics and the sport raises issues, the most significant one being; does athletics affect student’s development and performance in academic work? This study will examine the impact of athletics in academics with the aim of showing that athletics have both positive and negative effects on the academic lives of learners, but the positivity outweighs the negativity.
Positive Impact
Many people firmly believe that the positivity of athletics participation outweighs the negatives. There exists a bulk of evidence to prove that athletics participation positively impact the academic lives of participating students. Extracurricular activities are a crucial element in student’s development. Athletics poses positive outcomes to student-athletes including but not limited to better school attendance, higher career targets, reduced delinquency and improved social relations among peers. In a study conducted by Mark Stegman in Westside High School confirms that athletic participation positively impacts academics (Stegman 36). In his research, Stegman divided the participants into four different groups upon collecting information related to names, gender, age and number of sporting activities engaged in by use of questionnaires. The groups included female athletes, male athletes, male non-athletes and female non-athletes. The students were divided further into two broad categories of low and high participants. The comparison of the different groups discovered that in all the four sub-groups, the high participant groups performed better than the low participant group in academic performance (Stegman 37). After his research, Stegman stated that "I feel confidence arguing that athletics participation does not hurt academic performance and it instills desirable qualities such as physical fitness, goal setting, teamwork, and self-discipline.”
Class Attendance
A study focusing on the impact of athletics on junior level learners indicated that, at teenage, athletics motivates students in classroom setup (Byrd and Ross 172). The researchers used 379 participants from a rural county in Tennessee. 70% of the participants agreed that athletics motivated them to attend classes regularly. Class attendance is associated with high performance in academics. According to (Tomlinson 3), regular class attendance improves academic grades as learners can interact with their instructors for first-hand access to information and motivation. Attending classes, therefore, exposes learners to an extensive source of information including the teachers and peers through groups and class discussions. Attending classes also allows learners to seek clarification in matters they find difficult to understand. And thus, athletics significantly contribute to academic performance.
Time Management
Byrd and Ross also discovered that participation in athletics leads to better time management. 71% of their study participants confirmed that considerable time is wasted during athletics compensation leading to missing of classes. However, when in school, the athletes strictly adhere to class attendance to stay eligible to participate in the sport they adore. In many learning institutions, the management institute policies to ensure that learners balance their academic work with games. As such, only a particular category of persons are allowed to represent the institutions in sports based on minimum grades. Athletes, therefore, manage their time by balancing academics and sports to avoid losing an opportunity to be selected in the school team. Over time, athletes develop the culture of time management that enable them to develop effective learning skills. When a person knows how to manage time well, they become adept at studying more efficiently and quickly allowing them time to do other things. Becoming an active learner, therefore, makes it easy to maintain or even improve grades.
Grimit studies 67 participants from South Dakota State University (SDSU) where he asked to respond to the question of whether they disagreed or agreed that athletics helped them in the development of time management abilities (44). The results were as illustrated in the pie chart below: (see figure 1).
Figure 1: percentages of SDSU athletes regarding the question; “Has participation in athletics improved your time management skills?”
Non-Cognitive Development
Learning is not only dependent on effective delivery by teachers but also the motivation levels of learners. Research has shown that there exists a direct correlation between athletics and satisfaction, persistence in school, overall school experience and the motivation to complete academic programs (Grimit 41). Being part of the athletics teams motivates student-athletes to continue their pursuit for high performance that would make them eligible for graduation. A satisfied learner easily adapts to classroom challenges and devices the ability to persevere during the tough times. It is worth noting that learning is a complex process and involves more than the mere mental retention. The attitude towards education plays a significant role in the retention ability making it vital for learners to possess non-cognitive skills.
Some studies have discovered that modern adolescents are less physically active which has resulted in undesirable characteristics like obesity. Sailis & Conway et al. observed that less than 2% and 6% of girls and boys respectively were physically engaged during school days (615). A majority of studies support the maintenance of physical activity in education institutions as it enhances the learner’s health. Good health ensures that learners do not miss lessons thereby improving academic performance. By contrast, physical inactivity among learners has been associated with worse educational programs, less healthy lifestyle, perceived poor health and other non-cognitive skills (Sollerhed & Ejlertsson et al., 341).
It can also be argued that a causal relationship between participation in athletics and academics because coaches act as additional academic counselors as the coaches monitor their student's attendance, grades and behavior. Athletes are expected to uphold high levels of discipline. The sport has a code of conduct that athletes must observe as minimum rules of eligibility. The learners are therefore disciplined reducing incidences of expulsion from schools that would otherwise negatively impact academic performance.in some cases; some teachers pray the role of coaching thereby creating good relations between the learners and teachers.
Negative Impact
Time and Resources
Students who participate in athletics are short of time and resources vital for studying like non-athletes. They face hectic competition and practice schedules and also spend an extended period travelling to events prepared in other places. The time the students spend in their engagement in athletics is an “opportunity cost” to study time. Athletics, therefore, limits the time available for athletes to study. Due to the fatigue accrued in the overwhelming athletic schedules, the learners suffer an increased difficulty in focusing on academics due to lack of mental and physical strength. Athletes do not own updated class notes owing to the classes missed during an athletic event. Borrowing notes from peers may not necessarily help because some lessons missed could be practical. Participation in athletic activities, therefore, contribute to the deficiency in academic success.
Stress
Stress is a disturbing phenomenon for many students. All learners face the pressure of studies and tests. However, the athletes suffer an additional burden of time constraint owing to the demanding nature of the sport. As such, student-athletes are exposed to more stress in academic matters in the book, "stress in college athletes," 95% and 86% of male and female athletes respectively are stressed by factors including but not limited to making up for missed assignments, examinations, and tests and missing classes (Humphrey 41). Generally, stress negatively impact academic performance. Athletic events are also stress-inducing with the main stressor being the expectation to win. A combination of the mutually challenging demands of academics and athletics stresses learners, negatively impacting their academic performance.
Reduced Expectations
Athletes are subjected to high expectations for excellent performance in athletics and the academic expectations placed on them reduces. The student-athletes, therefore, develops a negative classroom connotation. Some student-athletes feel that their professors do not take their studies seriously. Often, the lecturers view the student-athletes as if their primary role is to represent the school in sport and are appreciated more for their performance in athletics than their success in academic work. The connotations promote the illusion that athletics is more important than academics alluding student-athletes to spend more time practicing than studying thereby negatively impacting their academic performance.
Cultural and Educational Opportunities
Non-athletes enjoy considerable freedom regarding cultural and educational opportunities in school. However, student-athletes must design their class attendance along with their playing and training schedules. They, therefore, do not have time to take technical majors. They, thus, end up majoring in simple courses where unfortunate consequences are developed when student-athletes end up choosing courses that do not interest them (Wolverton). In the context of cultural opportunities, student-athletes find it inconvenient to enroll for ‘study abroad’ programs that provide chances to increase social, educational and cultural awareness for students. Studying abroad entails taking classes in schools in another part of the world (Collins). Logically, student-athletes find it tough to engage in the program because it would force them to be absent from training or playing with their teams.
Reforms are possible, and solutions to the negative impacts on academic performance can be instituted to provide student-athletes with desirable educational experiences. For instance, the role of athletics should be moderated to ensure that education should be accorded the greatest importance. The negative connotations given to students athletes should also eradicate. Schools should also introduce programs that aide educational experiences of student-athletes. In the effort to compensate for time spent in athletics, students should be provided with access to special tutoring services that would place student-athletes at par with non-athletes. Opportunities and strategies to address stress among learners can be employed to limit the negative impacts of stress on academic performance.
Conclusion
Sporting activities like athletics play a significant role in personal and career development of the individual. People should be allowed the opportunity to develop their talents and schools provide a suitable platform for it. The proverb "all work without play made Jack a dull boy" supports the fact that learners should be allowed the opportunity to engage in sporting activities to maintain mental and physical abilities. Being a common sporting activity, many people participate in athletics raising the question of the impact of the sport on the academic performance of participants. Athletics positively impact the academic performance of learners by enhancing class attendance, and development of non-cognitive skills necessary for supporting academic success. However, participation in athletics also exposes the learners to risks that negatively impact academic performance. Some of the negative impacts of athletics in academics include lack of time and resource to devote to studies, stress, reduced expectations, and denial of cultural and educational opportunities to the student-athletes. Appropriate reforms can be applied to offset the negative consequences to academic performance and thus, the positivity of athletics outweigh the negativity making it an essential factor towards educational development of learners.
Works cited
Byrd, Charles E., and Steven M. Ross. "The influence of participation in junior high athletics on student’s attitudes and grades." Physical Educator 48.4 (1991): 170-176.
Collins, Brittany. “Notre Dame ranks fifth in percentage of undergraduates studying abroad.” Notre Dame News. University of Notre Dame, 13 Nov. 2013. Web. 17 Nov. 2013.
Grimit, Nicole. "Effects of student athletics on academic performance." The Journal of Undergraduate Research 12.1 (2014). 37-59
Humphrey, James H. Stress in College Athletics. Binghamton: The Haworth Half-court press, 2000. 41-42. Print.
Sallis, James F., et al. "The association of school environments with youth physical activity." American journal of public health 91.4 (2001): 618.
Sollerhed, Ann-Christin, Göran Ejlertsson, and Erwin Apitzsch. "Predictors of strong sense of coherence and positive attitudes to physical education in adolescents." Scandinavian Journal of Public Health 33.5 (2005): 334-342.
Stegman, M., & Stephens, L. J. Athletics and academics: are they compatible? High School Magazine, 7.6 (2000) 36-39.
Tomlinson, Carol Ann. The differentiated classroom: Responding to the needs of all learners. Ascd, 2014.
Wolverton, Brad. “Athletics Participation Prevents Many Players From Choosing Majors They Want.” Chronicle of Higher Education 53.20 (2007): A36-A37. Academic Search Premier. Web. 28 Oct. 2013.
