In this month when we focus on The Country School value fairness, a recent National Public Radio story on an initiative in Maine called “Sports Done Right” caught my attention. A project spearheaded by the University of Maine, “Sports Done Right” is trying to get people across the state to realize that the current, perhaps unconscious, trend of modeling middle and high-school sports programs on those of high-powered colleges is detrimental to students and can lead to negative behavior, unreasonable parental expectations, inappropriate stress, steroid use, eating disorders, and parent-coach conflict. After significant research and interviews, a report was issued which suggests that “parents need to work closely with schools to ensure ethical behavior” and that schools need “to adopt official policies about what's developmentally appropriate for young athletes” so as to avoid unhealthy expectations and modeling for children and out-of-bounds behavior like “raucous spectators and parents who disrespect coaches, officials, and opposing teams.”
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠHere are some of the Do's for parents, according to “Sports Done Right”:
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ - give consistent encouragement and support to your children regardless of their success, skill level, or time on the field;
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ - stress the importance of respect for coaches and teamwork;
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ - learn first-hand about your school's expectations for participation in sports and support and abide by them (At The Country School, for instance, before each sports season, we send a detailed letter home outlining our athletics philosophy, policies, and procedures. We require each parent to sign the letter, indicating their understanding of how we will proceed.)
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ - serve as role models who see the big picture, supporting all athletes and programs;
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ - ensure a balance in student athletes' lives, encouraging participation in multiple sports and activities, with academics placed first;
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ - leave coaching to the coaches.
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠHere are some of the Don'ts:
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ - pressure student athletes to perform at unreasonable levels;
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ - display disrespect toward coaches, officials, or opposing teams;
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ - encourage early specialization in a single sport;
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ - stress playing time or position played by your child over the success of the team;
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠ - be a sideline coach, intervening and talking to your child during games or practice.
ﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠﾠBy following these “Sports Done Right” guidelines, we can help ensure a fair and healthy experience for our children as they compete in athletics at these early levels. All of this complements what we state in our athletics letter each season: Adherence to the guidelines will allow us to meet the prime goals of our athletic program: promoting physical fitness and skill learning while providing students the opportunity to develop positive attitudes through a supportive, well-balanced team experience. We will also continue to emphasize goal setting and achievement, responsibility, strong sportsmanship, participation, commitment, and fun.”