Meeting Pattern

Huddle Discussions from 8:00 - 8:50 p.m.

• June 12, 2023
• June 19, 2023
• June 26, 2023
• July 3, 2023

Description

This course is intended to increase your awareness and understanding of important issues regarding youth sports.

"A close look at how big money and high stakes have transformed youth sports, turning once healthy, fun activities for kids into all-consuming endeavors—putting stress on children and families alike.

Some 75% of American families want their kids to play sports. Athletics are training grounds for character, friendship, and connection; at their best, sports insulate kids from hardship and prepare them for adult life. But youth sports have changed so dramatically over the last 25 years that they no longer deliver the healthy outcomes everyone wants. Instead, unbeknownst to most parents, kids who play competitive organized sports are more likely to burn out or suffer from overuse injuries than to develop their characters or build healthy habits. What happened to kids' sports? And how can we make them fun again?
 
In Take Back the Game, coach and journalist Linda Flanagan reveals how the youth sports industry capitalizes on parents’ worry about their kids’ futures, selling the idea that more competitive play is essential in the feeding frenzy over access to colleges and universities. Drawing on her experience as a coach and a parent, along with research and expert analysis, Flanagan delves into a national obsession that has: 

• Compelled kids to specialize year-round in one sport. 
• Increased the risk of both physical injury and mental health problems.
• Encouraged egregious behavior by coaches and parents.
• Reduced access to sports for low-income families. 

A provocative and timely entrant into a conversation thousands of parents are having on the sidelines, Take Back the Game uncovers how youth sports became a serious business, the consequences of raising the stakes for kids and parents alike--and the changes we need now."

Syllabus, Objectives, and Outcomes

Objectives:

Students will:

• identify and discuss the benefits and difficulties of defining youth sport as a modern social institution.
• demonstrate an understanding of current issues/problems/concerns related to youth sport in the United States.
• identify specific responses to the various ethical and moral dilemmas facing parents and athletes in youth sport settings.
• understand the positive and negative consequences of the way youth sport is organized and coached in American society.

Required Materials:

Flanagan, L. (2022). Take Back the Game: How money and mania are ruining kids’ sports – and why it matters. Penguin Random House.

https://www.amazon.com/Take-Back-Game-Ruining-Sports/dp/059332904X