Wanna bet this is a PUBLIC School?

Comments

# AndyV said on June 19, 2006 11:21 AM:

I basically agree that competition is a good thing, but I'll defend (some) everyone plays programs, too.  

I've coached in leagues where everyone plays and everyone gets awards.  In one case I believe it's done right and in another I think it's a waste of time.  Both programs are for younger kids with the majority of the participation from the under 10 crowd.  The focus is on introducing the game and building basic skills.  In both programs everyone plays roughly the same amount of time.  I say roughly because there's always a mismatch and "somehow" the good kids always end up with more time, so I guess the competitive nature kicks in.

The difference between the programs is in the awards.  Both give an award of some kind to all participants, and at an early age it's still signficant TO THE KIDS that they got an award (my son has everyone of them dislpayed on his bookshelf).  In the waste-of-time program conducted at a Christian Association for Young Men that I will not name everyone gets this generic award.  No one cares and it's hard for the coach (me) to get excited about handing them out.  I'd rather put them next to the goal and say "pick one up on your way to the car..."

The program that I've helped run recently for my church has been much better.  Again, everyone gets an award.  However, every award is UNIQUE.  The coaches' objective in the 8-week season is to identify three worthy character qualities to be encouraged.  The kids get a medallion with the three CQ's inscribed on it and a certificate detailing how they exhibited the CQs during the program.  It's a lot harder to administer, but the rewards for the kids and the parents is much greater, too.

In the latter case we realize that the more competitive kids will move on to competitive leagues.  The experience for most of the kids will just be a childhood memory.  So our goal is REALLY building up the kids character (discipleship) and soccer is just a means to that end.

I guess I've rambled on long enough about this just to say, competition is a good and necessary thing but it's importance grows relative to the mastery of the subject.  There should be more competition in HS than in junior high/middle school, more in college than HS, etc.

As a side note, I find it very ironic that many of the same people who insist that competition is a vital mechanism to natural selection are the very ones who mean to eliminate competition from schools (and from nature via the endangered species acts, etc).  But that's a rant for another day...

# William said on June 19, 2006 1:45 PM:

Well, I'm hoping for Jr to end up at MIT or Carnegie Mellon, but Cornell will work.  Since it's widely known that you are the smartest dude in SC and possibly the neighboring states, I'll defer to your opinion on this one.  I personally favor a rather brutal competition in many regards b/c I think a lot of the emotion that comes along with it drives us to excellence.  At least in my case, the more I coddled, the more I learned to manipulate my parents and teachers.  I guess I have this view b/c of my life experience, I was promoted 2 grades and I was already a year young.  I was making straight A's at the time, when my mom started worrying about socialization (with my wonderful people skills, you see where that got me ;-)  ) and then I had to sit back a grade. It was crushing.  I'd have rather been crushed by my peers than that.  I was always a weird kid and remain pretty weird today so I don't advocate it for everyone, but coddling produces big problems.

The only thing I really despise is using kids as objects/living vicariously through them. If you drive your kid constantly b/c you see potential and want him to maximize it - I'm all for it. If you want your kid to get A's so you can brag to all the other Hens "My Junior is in GIIFFFFFTTTEDDDD", then it sickens me.  In my ideal educational world, there is no gifted program, they have excellence factored into the equation up front.

And the socialization crap --- sheesh. Yes, a lot of whack jobs home school. But a lot of brilliant people who care about theri kids homeschool too.  What POSSIBLE forms of socialization would you WANT your kid to be exposed to that a public school can provide.  Anyway, I'm ranting.

Probably should open up a form for Education rants.  Since you have the best pedigree, you'll get the most deferrence ;-)