Here is what she had to say at MSNBC:
"... Debbie recalls Bowman coming to speak with her and Michael’s father about their son’s swimming future. Bowman laid out a plan for Michael’s swimming career all the way up to 2012, and Debbie started to laugh...
Bowman asked what was the matter and Debbie was blunt. “I told him, ‘If [Michael] doesn’t enjoy it, this isn’t going to happen!...”
[Link]
Yes, I am impressed with their parenting skills and it is a very endearing article. She is a "pro-parent" and deserves supreme acknowledgement ... HOWEVER...
Kids who have or who are prone to borderline or extreme low self esteem, narcissism, laziness, lust, gluttony, shyness, criminality or psychopathic tendencies, should be FORCED into a sport or discipline. If sports are not an option then dance, music. Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts nust be an option so as to develop a sense of discipline and the ability to see the cause and effect of their hard work. Man is a social animal and accomplishment breeds self esteem.
In fact, there goes one now flying past the SCAQ Blog masthead above and it's not me.
In a society filled with video games, Facebook, iPods, iPads, iPhones, Warcraft, Mine Craft, Cartoon Network, YouTube, Vimeo, Live Leak, and darker places on ad ad infinitum... Well... I think I made my point.
6 comments:
Hear hear !
Hear hear. Physical exercise is a must, and sports is a great way to get that done.
Rhetoric seems a bit strong here. I agree in part - "troubled" kids should be strongly encouraged to try plenty of things, sports included. But to FORCE and chain kids to sports...eh? What if the kid hates the sport, so much so that his/her problems are exacerbated? They're bullied because they're not very good? Joining the sport/activity in the first place was a good idea, done with good intentions - but ya gotta let them quit if it's not working out, right?
And a couple of those risk factors you listed seem a bit iffy. Lust? Sounds kinda like all teenagers. Narcissists and shy kids? Not exactly what I'd think of when I think "at risk" kids, especially those that should be FORCED into doing something.
Read LORD OF THE FLIES by Nobel Prize-winning author William Golding.
Children are not capable of making mature decisions. It's my experience that kids with difficult problems or social issues have to be taken out of their comfort zone and made to practice to act like adults.
Kids who are socially adjusted and make good choices and friends are a different subject.
Of course you give a kid options but when the answer is that they want none of the above even with compromises, I have no problem with a parent pushing music, sports or dance.
Kids should never be forced into sports, or else they will just hate it forever. They should be taught discipline. For example they shouldn't miss training, just because they don't feel like going.
Kids should be allowed to practice a variety of sports, so they can improve their coordination.
The most important thing with kids is having fun, and that is what sports is all about.
One mans fun is another's hell.
I hate the "F" word. I always loved to swim, but not because it was fun or because there was lots fun crap happening at practice or meets. In fact I loved it for the opposite reasons ...it was tough, impossibly.
Many of today's parents are tools to their children ...sad.
Post a Comment