Amanda Ripley The Case Against High School Sports Essay

The Response to the Case Against High School Sports

I remember, freshman year, I was scared, none of my middle school friends went to my new high school, and I didn’t know anyone. I was a shy girl and had been shoved out of my comfort zone. So as the weeks and months went on I made only "school friends", basically just acquaintances you meet and only talk to in school. Eventually soccer season came around, and of course my dad convinced me to continue playing as I definitely did not plan on putting myself out there like that. Not only did playing soccer on my high school's team introduce me to my best friend, but I've met some of the best people, made memories I'll never forget, and learned extraordinary lessons I couldn’t have learned any

Ripley argues that sports teams at high schools are a waste of the money that schools could use on improving academics. She claims that tax payers shouldn't be paying for something that’s harmful to students, can cause brain damage, or that distracts them, and that the large amount of money from schools shouldn’t be spent on the minority (population of students playing for sports), over the majority (the students who focus on academics). Ripley brings up the fact that America is lagging in international rankings and is falling too far behind the 30 countries in front of us. Ripley gives several examples, one being of a school who nearly got shut down due to insufficient funds and increased failings in academics, but who instead terminated all sports. Lastly, Ripley closes with the story of the same school and the great success they’ve had with repairing their academics and budget issues all by eliminating sports. Although Ripley made a few valid points, the fact that they are assumptions and they are avoidable prompt them to be

All schools require students to maintain a certain minimum GPA, attendance, and discipline standards in order to be permitted to continue practicing and playing with the team. Coaches push the point that school comes before the sport. Although it takes self-control to finish things on time during sports, a student who doesn’t do homework during their season most likely doesn’t do it the rest of the year either while they don’t have a sport. Whereas a student who cares about their grades and regularly does their homework and focuses in class will continue to do just that no matter their extracurricular activities during the season. One of the lessons I've learned from playing a sport is how to manage my time and keep an organized environment. In my opinion nothing could have given me the same motivation to figure this out besides wanting to do well while playing soccer. Making an assumption like this is not fair nor valid when there are different types of