If we're serious about helping all individuals build their passions and fulfill their human potential, then we need to help them not just with their academics, but also focus on their health and wellness and their habits of success. A big part of that can and should be built on a foundation of fitness, which means instilling lifelong habits of fitness when they're in K–12 schools. But that means some big changes in how we think about sports, PE and more in our society. To help unpack elements of this topic, Steve Mesler, an Olympic gold medalist and the co-founder and CEO of Classroom Champions joined me, alongside Andy Rotherham, a national leader in the world of education reform, the co-founder of Bellwether Education, and a member of the Virginia Board of Education among other roles. Steve and Andy’s passions for this topic really shone through in this conversation, in which we touched on everything from the reasons why sports are beneficial to students, how the high demands and desires to be great in one thing can be counterproductive, and why it’s necessary to make sure sports are fun and not just about the competition. The conversation rolled into a lot of important and controversial places, as it touched on everything changing the youth sports culture to the role of social-emotional learning (SEL) in schools.
Listened with interest to this podcast. Very interesting points made, but I wondered if the focus was appropriate. The role of NCAA/Professional sports has its place for elite athletes. However, sport/exercise has a role quite a bit larger for society. In general, the health benefits of recreational sports have a massive impact on happiness/stress relief. Also, in these days of increased virtualization, local recreational sports often form the basis of strong social interactions and community building.
Also, I am not sure the qualities of "grit" mentioned in the context of sports really translate into other realms of society. I know plenty of engineers who are extremely "gritty" in their profession, but do not display these qualities in physical activity.
Listened with interest to this podcast. Very interesting points made, but I wondered if the focus was appropriate. The role of NCAA/Professional sports has its place for elite athletes. However, sport/exercise has a role quite a bit larger for society. In general, the health benefits of recreational sports have a massive impact on happiness/stress relief. Also, in these days of increased virtualization, local recreational sports often form the basis of strong social interactions and community building.
Also, I am not sure the qualities of "grit" mentioned in the context of sports really translate into other realms of society. I know plenty of engineers who are extremely "gritty" in their profession, but do not display these qualities in physical activity.