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    One question out there is whether we should maintain our present athletic budgets in public schools if the educational mission of the school is no longer being served by high school sports.  If schools require athletic participation, it can be argued that the school's mission can best be fulfilled.  However, how many public schools require this kind of participation?  My observations of the youth sports landscape is that it is elite in nature so only a handful of kids are left after they have been weeded out by youth sports boards and coaches.  By definition, the public high school athletic landscape is elite.

Most American youth playing sports these days are lucky enough to play on well-maintained fields and with the best and latest sports gear.  Children in the southeast African nation of Malawi, among the world's least developed and most densely populated countries, aren't so fortunate.  Malawan children face many adversities, including poverty, disease, and low life expectancies.  Opportunities to play sports, much less with the right equipment, are few and far between.

 

The district playoffs are starting soon and for most teams the final periods are about to be played. The headline comments above were actually said by a son to his father/coach. It is interesting that a fifteen year old player is able to succinctly articulate his feelings and his anguish. In twelve words he expressed what so many have written in these pages and in youth sports publications for years.

I have done years of research in the field of youth sports. Probably as much as some researchers have. I have also coached football for many years with great success. What I mean by success is that I have winning teams with happy parents for what I accomplished with their kids and every kid gets to play the entire game.

From MINOR LEAGUE MOM:  A MOTHER’S JOURNEY THROUGH THE RED SOX FARM TEAMS by Pamela Carey (Barking Cat Books, 2009)

Excerpted and edited by the author

www.minorleaguemom.com