Earning success on and off the field

by Kelly Bishop

                       
Sports season: something many high school students wait all year for and hold dear to their hearts. Students wait all day to go to practice and to shed away the stress and hard work that comes with school, even if it is just for forty-five minutes. Some say that being on a high school sports team or cheering on one of your school’s teams is a part of the whole experience, but some find that extracurricular can take away from a student athlete’s time for academics. This is not the case.

In a recent study conducted by the University of Kansas, high school athletes perform better in school and are more likely to graduate above non-student athletes. Athletes showed higher rates of attendance, graduation and higher test scores.

Some schools also have policies that require students to participate in their classes, so students become more motivated to try in school just to be able to compete. Although this is not the case everywhere, student athletes learn more than just competition on the field, according to Angela Lumpkin, professor of health at KU.

“What we are saying is participation is important. Whether it’s learning time management or handling expectations from someone in their life like coaches, teammates or family members, athletes are learning discipline,” Lumpkin said.

Athletes learn discipline, teamwork and how to push themselves during practice, and in most cases, like that of junior Laura Flagg, doing sports in high school taught her how to keep up with her work.
“I think that in sports, you learn discipline, like how to push yourself when it gets tough, and you can use these lessons and apply them to your schoolwork. I feel like I’m more disciplined to do my work and get it done,” Flagg stated.

Although many students find athletics to be beneficial and worth the commitment, not every athlete has the same experience. Some athletes may find themselves focusing too much on their passions, rather than letting schoolwork be their top priority.

A study conducted by Dr. Gregory Wilson of the University of Evansville shows that students who participate in athletics have higher levels of stress than those who don’t. Wilson saw an increase in all areas of stress revolving around the student athlete and lack of sleep, handling the work load and balancing a social life on top of that added to this greatly.

“While many freshmen must learn to successfully navigate the increased academic and social demands associated with college success, the freshmen student-athlete has the additional stress of athletic responsibilities. Hence, the matriculating student-athlete faces additional and unique sources of stress not encountered by the student non-athlete,” explained Wilson.

Even though there may be some added stress that comes with being a student athlete, the benefits far outweigh the sacrifice. Students are given many healthy opportunities when involved in athletics, such as taking care of their bodies, making new friends and smashing through their set goals. A little bit of stress is worth the pride and joy sports bring to everybody in high school.

       
 Works Cited:

"Study Shows High School Athletes Perform Better in School, Persist to Graduation More than Non
athletes." Study Shows High School Athletes Perform Better in School, Persist to Graduation More than Non-athletes. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.

 "Athletic Insight - Comparing Sources of Stress in College Student Athletes and Non-Athletes." Athletic Insight - Comparing Sources of Stress in College Student Athletes and Non-Athletes. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.