Youth Sports
Youth Sports
According to the Center for Kids First, there are more than 40 million youth athletes that play sports in America today. These youth athletes have a plethora of organizations they can pursue. From super competitive programs like the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) which includes sports like baseball/softball, basketball, soccer and volleyball to the supposedly fun programs like PAL, POP Warner, and Little League Baseball/Softball there is a league for anyone regardless of their skill level or competitive fire. The big question is do playing youth sports affect the athlete in the long run? There are many factors involved in the competition of youth sports that in the long run may push the athlete away from sports all together. Not only is it the athlete that is involved in this process, the coaches, parents, and fellow competitors play a huge role in the affect youth athletics have on its athletes. As we go along we are going to talk about some of the problems associated with youth athletics, and try to find solutions to these problems.
The first thing that comes to mind when you think about problems in youth sport would be the overzealous parents. The parent that goes above and beyond to push their child to his/her limits. A study conducted by the Citizens Through Sports Alliance gave what they call a “report card” showing the results of how parents effect youth sports (Emmons). This panel of experts essentially based their results on youth sports programs with ages ranging from 6-14(Emmons). Parents received low grades in the areas of a win at all costs mentality and overall parent behavior. Executive director for the Positive Coaching Alliance, Jim Thompson said,” We really hope this is a wake-up call. This is such an important part of kid’s lives and if there is something wrong with youth sports, then we ought to start thinking about the ways we can change it.”(Emmons)
The parent’s role in a child’s youth sport experience could range
According to the Center for Kids First, there are more than 40 million youth athletes that play sports in America today. These youth athletes have a plethora of organizations they can pursue. From super competitive programs like the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) which includes sports like baseball/softball, basketball, soccer and volleyball to the supposedly fun programs like PAL, POP Warner, and Little League Baseball/Softball there is a league for anyone regardless of their skill level or competitive fire. The big question is do playing youth sports affect the athlete in the long run? There are many factors involved in the competition of youth sports that in the long run may push the athlete away from sports all together. Not only is it the athlete that is involved in this process, the coaches, parents, and fellow competitors play a huge role in the affect youth athletics have on its athletes. As we go along we are going to talk about some of the problems associated with youth athletics, and try to find solutions to these problems.
The first thing that comes to mind when you think about problems in youth sport would be the overzealous parents. The parent that goes above and beyond to push their child to his/her limits. A study conducted by the Citizens Through Sports Alliance gave what they call a “report card” showing the results of how parents effect youth sports (Emmons). This panel of experts essentially based their results on youth sports programs with ages ranging from 6-14(Emmons). Parents received low grades in the areas of a win at all costs mentality and overall parent behavior. Executive director for the Positive Coaching Alliance, Jim Thompson said,” We really hope this is a wake-up call. This is such an important part of kid’s lives and if there is something wrong with youth sports, then we ought to start thinking about the ways we can change it.”(Emmons)
The parent’s role in a child’s youth sport experience could range
Cited: Hill, Dr. Grant. "Sport Specialization: Causes and Concerns." Utah Sport For Life | Utah Athletic Foundation. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. <http://utahsportforlife.com>. Adkins, Michael. "Youth Sports Issues." EHow | How To Do Just About Everything! | How To Videos & Articles. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. <http://www.ehow.com>. Masterson Ph.D, Gerald. "Problems in Youth Sports." Family Resource. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. <http://www.familyresource.com>. Emmons/ Mercury News, Mark. "Adults Hurting Youth Sports." Ballistic United Soccer Club. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. <http://www.busc.org>. Hedstrom, and Gould. "The Role of Parents in Childrens Sports." College of Education - Michigan State University. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. <http://www.educ.msu.edu>.