On Sports and School

Last night I had the privilege of attending a brainstorming session on creating an ideal school.  The high school here is going to compete to become an XQ Superschool, a program sponsored by Steve Jobs' wife, Laurene Powell.  It was invigorating to meet with other parents, faculty, members of the school board and the community to talk about ideas in education.  And the focus was not on reinventing the wheel or incorporating more technology - it was more about identifying the challenges to learning that kids face and how to create a school that addresses and tries to eliminate these challenges.  There was a lot of consensus on the idea that kids need smaller classes and engaged and engaging teachers. They also need the ability to access classes that stir their curiosity as well as meet their interests, so there was a lot of discussion about changing the length of the school day, week, and year to allow internships or special interest classes.

One idea I really liked was the concept of having kids take one large lecture for a class in high demand like AP US History, and then meet in breakout sessions with smaller groups for discussion and review. So you could have the most dynamic teacher lecture and then let students learn critical thinking by leading discussion groups.  Another idea was changing the traditional language classes to become less about vocabulary and more culture classes where students learn about other cultures and then dialogue with students from that country via Skype or Facetime.

My suggestions were to make learning more expeditionary - go to the ocean front, go to the desert, go to the battlefield. These would require a "flex term" sessions - three or four weeks devoted to special interests classes or projects, which I've seen done at other schools.  Additionally, I'd like to see more fluidity between the community and the school. Invite experts in to teach or lecture.  Have career days or clubs. Get businesses to offer apprenticeships or internships in the community. We live in a place ideal for that because students could walk to a business. They would see how certain skills are necessary in the real world. [A real world skills class was also mentioned: Home ec for the modern day.]  Since this is a public school, involving religion or spirituality wasn't discussed, but several people brought up the idea of educating the whole person.  And the buzzwords resilience and mindset came up also. Grit wasn't mentioned but that's the other buzzword getting tossed around lately - how to teach kids grit.

One way is through sports, I would argue. Sports came up at the very end of the evening. The principal asked about actually doing away with sports. I drafted this note this morning. Kind of presumptuous of me, but in my defense I have had a couple conversations with her at various events that made me feel more comfortable with being long-winded:

Thanks for including parents in the brainstorming meeting for the xqsuperschools project last night. I really enjoyed listening to ideas and getting a chance to add some of my own ideas that have been percolating for years.  As we move around and see bits and pieces of what works and what doesn't at different schools, I always wish we could put together the ideal school where all of these things come together.  And hearing about other people's experiences about what works/what doesn't is also invaluable. Of course, the two biggest indicators of "learning potential" are great teachers and smaller classes where kids get mentored rather than managed, and both of these are hard to realize.  But finding creative solutions like reorganizing classes with "breakout sessions" or inviting "experts" in to inspire students, even if they don't have teaching credentials, were two of the ideas I really liked last night. 

I also wanted to revisit the topic of sports while I am thinking about it. I know I was quick to jump to the defensive when you mentioned doing away with sports last night, but after giving it some thought, I had a couple observations - no solutions, but some ideas to come back to.  First, I do agree that sports can be disruptive of learning and require an immense amount of money and time to manage.  Our last school was a football school, and there was some definite resentment on the part of a some faculty, students, and parents about the time and attention given to football, and for good reason.  On the other hand, the football team actually paid for itself and made the school money through tickets, concessions, and donations.   

I may be biased because  I come from a family of athletes.  I said last night that boys need the competitive outlet, but I was every bit as competitive in spirit as my brother, and my middle daughter isn't afraid to take on her brother's friends on the soccer field, so girls benefit from athletics just as much as, if not more than, boys, as studies have shown.  

I'm sure other studies exist that show how sports can help improve grades and lifelong learning and living habits just as much as the arts can.  As a huge fan of the arts in schools, I was excited about the idea of the school hosting an arts conservatory when we were researching schools. But I am sorry that some of the classes/programs are not more available to students outside of the program.  [Both of my boys would love to be able to take some music classes, but the one band class available didn't fit their schedules and they were told that the band was very competitive.  May be a rumor, but they were discouraged.]

What I think would be ideal is if both sports and the arts were more accessible to average students - students who want the enrichment of learning to play an instrument or golf but aren't going to make a career out of either.  Both sports and the arts teach students habits of mind AND body that are essential for healthy adult lives:  discipline, the value of effort in producing results, the value of creative thinking and problem solving, the value of using different kinds of thinking and moving to reach a goal, the values of teamwork and collaboration, the value of taking care of your health, and sports especially I think provide a social connection that promotes other-focused thinking - in an ideal program.  For instance, as much as I cringe at the violence in football, I think there is something valuable in learning to defend a teammate.  Some people might think it a stretch if I argued that sports teach compassion, but I'm willing to make that claim!  I also appreciate the importance of sports as a type of ambassador outreach to the local and other communities.  In my own experience and in that of my kids, I've seen that sports, perhaps more for individual sports like cross country, swimming, and track, provide an opportunity to interact with kids from other schools and other parts of the state (and other countries when we were in Guam and they participated in Far East competitions.)  Our kids have also experienced this doing things like Knowledge Bowl, Model UN, and Geography Bowl -  elevating the acceptability and the fun aspect of academic competitions is also important.  

So I defend sports as a part of a school program because they are essential to educating the whole person.  I do think that high school sports, especially here in California, have become much too competitive and time consuming. I know CIF has some rules about practice times and travel distances, but in some cases coaches find a way around these rules. Ideally, you'd find brilliant, charismatic coaches who valued balance for students.  The other key is accessibility (allowing kids time to do sports and drama, for instance, or offering more options, like another fall sport for boys besides football and cross country.) This requires both the drama instructors, or whoever, and the coaches agreeing to creative flexibility. 

My fear is that turning sports over to clubs would make them inaccessible because of cost, travel time, and selectivity, at least clubs in the sense of what they are right now.  As you know, sports are becoming elitist at the middle school level because of these highly competitive and expensive clubs, which is a challenge for kids who develop at different rates and may like to try something new.  But if by clubs, you mean something more on the level of an Ultimate Frisbee Club, for instance, that meets at the park on Friday afternoons, or a running or biking or paddleboard club that gets together on weekends, then I am more onboard.  Allowing students to organize and manage some club sports would provide even more opportunities.  The challenge would be finding other communities to play with or against, but without incurring great costs or travels.

In closing, I think returning to this topic could provide even more creative ideas. How to eliminate the time out of class requires the cooperation of coaches and athletic directors willing to postpone competition times or limit them to weekends. How to widen accessibility but also provide an opportunity for students who have the ability to excel are additional challenges. And finally, finding those great coaches who inspire athletes to give their all, without demanding that they make sports their reason for being, is probably the biggest challenge of all. 

A bit too much, probably, but it was cathartic to write - one of those "I write because I don't know what I think until I read what I say" moments Flannery O'Connor noted. 

I think the idea of trying to create an ideal school is a fascinating thought project, and as a former home schooler, one I tried to articulate and simplify. I never wrote it down, though.  I really don't think home schooling is the ideal situation - I'd rather send my kids to a small school with a Catholic identity, unlimited funds, and charismatic experts as teachers. Technology use would be limited to being a learning and access tool, rather than an entertainment factor. Learning would require the use of all the senses - field trips, experiments, projects.  There would be plenty of literature, art, music, and sports and community service. All the good things, and none of the peer pressure, college pressure, or competition that gave more emphasis to the athlete rather than the glory of God. We would have 32 hours in the day and 57 weeks in the year.  And parents could go to school, too.