High School Sports Response

          High school sports are immensely important in a teenager's life. Sports throughout high school can help students in many ways. You can benefit hugely by the experience of high school sports, in a social aspect, by the motivation to stay on the field, and learning life lessons. If you play any sport in high school I can guarantee that your high school years will be way crazier and interesting.

          

          I personally believe that one of the things I have benefited most from in high school is the sports, and one thing that I got out of sports in high school is the social part of it. Playing on the soccer team has helped me make so many upperclassman friends, who then introduced me to their other friends, and now I am friends with so many people I never even new before this year. If high school sports were demolished by your district, how would you feel about it? I am sure your kids are looking forward to playing sports in high school or even you, but then your district deprives you of them, how does that make you feel? All the upperclassman you were hoping to meet will never even acknowledge you. I'm guessing you agree with the fact that socially students in high school need sports in their school. 

          I am sure you are all reading this thinking, "What about my grades? I will have no time for homework," but really your academics can benefit from the playing of sports. In Amanda Ripley's article, "The Case Against High-School Sports", she tries to explain why high school sports are bad, and she gives an example of a school who did take away sports and she says that, once the sports were gone the grades were increased. "That first semester, 80 percent of the students passed their classes, compared with 50 percent the previous fall." I don't really believe that this helps her argument too much, because in many schools this most likely wouldn't have ended up the same way. If your school took away sports wouldn't you revolt against it? I know my school would. High school sports can also motivate you to do better, because it is a rule that if you are failing you can't play. You may be thinking that the standards are too low, but if you're that kid with all F's and can't play, then you're motivated to bring your grades up, while someone who is failing and doesn't play a sport in most likely a lot less motivated to bring up your grades.

          Life lessons are something you obtain from sports. As my old soccer coach would always say, "play like men!" What he meant by this was that you need to play with the maturity of a grown man and have sportsmanship and always make the best decisions possible, or at least try to. In sports, you can learn how to deal with and learn from other people, besides your coach. I'm sure you know, that there are always people who you are involved with that you may not exactly "like", and high school sports can teach you how to cope with that. Coaches can coach you in a specific sport, but they can also coach you in life. I have learned many things from my coaches over the years, but one major thing I have remembered most, and always will, is loyalty. All of my coaches have conveyed the message that, "we win together, and we lose together." All of my teams and I, live by this saying and has worked so far and will continue to in the future. If your high school took away sports, would you be able to deal with real life situations as well as if sports were available?

          High school sports have become more and more popular over the years, and I truly believe that students benefit greatly by them. Without sports how would everyone learn how to work as a team? Would they? These are very important points to think about and I do believe that Amanda Ripley's article "The Case Against High-School Sports" is wrong, although I do respect her and her argument in every way possible. I hope that no one has to ever go without the choice to play sports.

Ripley, Amanda. "The Case Against High-School Sports." The Atlantic Oct. 2013. Print.