Grades and The Team
or, should athletes have to pass their classes to play?
So, to begin...
Should people who are on a school team have to be passing all their classes so that they'll be allowed to participate in sports? well, yeah actually.
Now, i might get a lot of flack for this, especially by the school athletes and whatnot, but I actually think that school athletes should be passing their classes if they want to participate in sports. now let me explain why.
why are good grades necessary?
For the most part, sports don't get a person into college, it's good grades that do that. Sure, there might be the occasional person with a scholarship for this or that, but generally speaking, people get into college with their grades in school, not their skills in sports. which is one small reason having good grades is necessary (and should be mandatory).
Now, people who think athletes' grades shouldn't affect their "right to play sports" would give many reasons as to why they think so. From things like "they'll get obese if they don't play" to "it can limit their ability to succeed". I personally think these are invalid points. And so, I plan to disprove them, one by one.
Oh no! WEIGHT!!!!
So the first argument that i want to tackle is that if student athletes have to get good grades, they'll become obese. The idea is that if a student has to focus more on their school work rather than spending their time practicing, they won't get enough exercise and thus, they become too fat. Let me tell you why that's bull.
People should not just start assuming homework causes obesity simply because it takes time out of a person's day. See, the problem with this kind of reasoning is that if we think this way, then we'll assume there will never be enough time in the day. After all, by this logic, if homework makes us lose time for exercise, then so do other things. after all, why should i be eating and sleeping when i could be out there, on the field, getting better and better?
Exactly. Because it's impossible. See, if students spend all their time practicing, sure, they might not be fat, but they might get really sick from too much exertion, might get too skinny, and in the case of academics, may acquire an approximate IQ of a bag of dirt, if they're lucky.
Beware of setbacks?
the next point that i wish to disprove is that by making it necessary for athletes to pass their classes, we might be actually be holding them back! yeah. ridiculous isn't it? well, the idea behind this doozy is that, assuming that a student athlete might be struggling in schools for whatever reason from just not getting it to, let's say having a mental disorder. whatever the reason is, people argue that if someone is good at sports, but not at schoolwork, then they shouldn't be left behind for it.
First of all, no. Look, homework does a lot of things, good and bad- it causes stress, anxiety, anger; and it helps us, too! it's a way for us to remember what we learned in class, to see how we do and where we stand, academically- but one thing it does not do- and i cannot stress this enough- is LIMIT SUCCESS!!!
Look, if you're struggling, it does not mean you are behind! it means you need to try harder! And, surprise surprise! that's not hard either! there are just so many tutoring companies and organizations out there who are ready and willing to help literally anyone who wants to do better. if a student athlete is of great body, but struggles with using their mind, we can do a lot to help them succeed both physically and academically.
"I got your back" -yours truly, Grades
For my conclusion, i won't be restating my main points, but rather, making a last-minute point to think about.
One point that i would like to make that has been repeated over and over and over, but is still very, very true is that even people who obtain and maintain scholarships for sports (which is already pretty dang difficult), and end up going so far, becoming major pros, developing clothing lines, being sponsored, etc etc. Those people? yeah, chances are that if you make it there without a proper education, well, to put it mildly... you'd be screwed.
And it's not hard to know why. Athletes can only go so far, can only do so much with their "perfect bodies" until time catches up with them. Or, even worse, until they get fired. then what happens? nothing. they certainly don't go to accomplish great breakthroughs in science, or find a cure for cancer and AIDS, that's for sure. Heck, those same people- the Messi's, the Jordan's, the Romo's- without basic education, they'd be hard-pressed to even find a job at McDonalds, no matter how famous they USED to be.
LET'S FINISH THIS!!!
Alright! four photos and a BUNCH of paragraphs later, we've finally made it to the end. whoo! but i still want to make something clear: first, while i believe that all student athletes- from middle school to high school- should be required to pass their classes if they want to stay on the team, I am not saying that they should pass all their classes. No, i believe that if people want to play on their schools' teams, they should at least be passing their core classes so that they at least have basic knowledge. And as for college students, i think the current requirements are enough.
And so it is, that I must end here, for i have no further claims to make on this topic. farewell!