This is the second presentation of a two part Plumbline series, Sports in Society and will be repeated Sunday, January 22nd at 11:15 a.m. Childcare available, call or email for details and to reserve space.
According to one estimate, over 40 million children and adolescents between the ages of five and eighteen are involved in organized sports each year, from Little League to club sports, recreational programs, and high school athletics. Some forms of participation are at an elite level and may involve regional, national, or even international competition. There are a number of factors that affect who plays which sports and how these sports influence the participants and their families. For a number of these young participants and their families, sport can become, at least for a while, an important focus of their lives. We often think that these kinds of activities are wholesome and beneficial for all involved. However, their consequences vary.
We know, for example, that most children involved in sports do not continue their participation into adolescence. It is important for organizers, coaches, and parents involved in these programs to know how their contexts and structures and way they are run can affect their participants. This knowledge can help these adults make these programs good experiences for the kids. The purpose of this session is to examine some important dimensions and possible effects of sports programs for kids and give parents and adults involved in them a perspective for assessing these programs and possibly, make them better experiences for the kids in them. Presented by Dr. Howard Nixon, Sport Sociologist and Professor of Sociology, Towson University.
