thoughts re: competitive sports

[anotheranon]

Hmmm...

I found this article about the use of Dance Dance Revolution in school physical education classes and IMHO it sounds sorta neat. Not that I know much about video games but dancing for exercise sounds a lot more fun than the rounds of team and competitive sports I was treated to oh so very long ago.

I NEVER liked team sports. Not because I sucked at them (I did) or because I felt particularly humiliated by my ineptitude (I didn't really), but because the "win or die" attitude from too many of my classmates leeched any joy that might be had from physical activity. I got yelled at not because I was bad but because I just didn't CARE that much, and there was little room for anyone who didn't have the killer instinct.

The cult of the superstar high school athlete also wedged it pretty firmly in my head that the only way to be athletic was the meatheaded competitive way, which is really sad given how much I've enjoyed my adult athletic endeavors.

I do think schools should offer some sort of physical education, particularly in light of 1) the problem with childhood obesity, and 2) I think it's valuable for kids (especially girls) to learn that their bodies can do things in addition to look good, but reframe it as overall physical fitness instead of the "winners vs. losers" binary. Hell, if it were up to me any sport involving a team and/or a ball would be elective only for kids who want to play for the school team :P

Don't get me wrong: I do understand the value of learning about teamwork - working with people you don't know well (and may not even particularly like) towards a common goal is a life skill that doesn't come naturally. I just question whether teaching it in an environment using projectiles is the best way to go :P

And as an afterthought, DDR might be great - for the schools that can afford it. At $500/system (from the article) it might be too much for public schools in poorer areas.

Comments

[skill-grl.livejournal.com]

The poor version of DDR: actual dance classes. One person can teach about 10 hours of lessons for $500. And, with actual ballroom dance classes, people learn to interact and cooperate.

Sigh.

Dance is awesome. Why did it take technology for pe teachers to remember that people like to dance?

[anotheranon.livejournal.com]

An excellent point!

[hrj.livejournal.com]

I never liked team sports in school because they ended up being an extension of the whole "this is a test and we're not going to tell you what the rules are" social system. (I've considered journaling about my childhood relationship to sports and physical activity, but there are some aspects that might make my parents feel like I was blaming them for things that weren't really their fault, so I haven't. It's reasonably safe to say them in comments on someone else's journal.)

PE was hell not because I got overtly picked on but because it was chock full of shibboleths and boobytraps. If you weren't part of the "sports culture" you never learned the things you needed to know to be part of the sports culture. And then I got a whole string of PE teachers who thought it was everyone's duty to like long-distance running and devil take the hindmost.

My family was into active outdoor activities like hiking and whatnot, but I had the misfortune to be a second child after an elder brother who took naturally to it all. As a result, I never got introduced to physical activity at a pace where I could learn to enjoy it. The "set point" was always just beyond my ability. Family hikes were always me struggling to catch up while everyone else rested, waiting for me (which means I never got a chance to catch my breath -- or if I did, everyone was glaring at me the whole time). Then later it was the cringingly guilt-dripping, "We all need to get more exericse -- let's all go for a jog together," that turned activity into a required virtue.

It wasn't until I was able to get away from the whole "we must exercise together" thing and work at my own speed on activities for which I had a practical purpose that I came to actively enjoy exercise. I honestly have no idea what they could have done in school PE classes to get me to that point earlier in my life.

[anotheranon.livejournal.com]

I never liked team sports in school because they ended up being an extension of the whole "this is a test and we're not going to tell you what the rules are" social system.

Yep, that resonates as well. I could never grasp why it was so damn important to win all the time, or why chasing balls of various shapes and sizes around a field was supposed to be fun (???)

I imagine being in a family that was into social exercise and far better at it didn't help matters :( I'm glad to hear you found your own way!