What Makes Youth Sports the Best Classroom for Teaching Character
Youth sports can be a classroom for teaching positive character traits, but it’s not always a classroom that teaches positive character traits. It’s no secret that I’m a huge advocate of youth sports. However, I’m not blind to the fact that every sport’s team is not equal when it comes to teaching character.
Unquestionably, youth sports have the potential to be the ideal classroom for teaching positive character traits. While coaches can’t teach math, science, and English on a field, court, or mat, they can teach accountability, resilience, and tenacity. What’s more, one could argue that an athlete’s ability to hold themselves accountable, show resilience, and attack obstacles with tenacity will tell you more about their future than their math, science, and English grades.
With that said, teaching character in youth sports is not a forgone conclusion. On any given day in the news, you can find a professional athlete who has severe character flaws. Most if not all of these athletes played youth sports from the time they were able to walk. There are far too many high-profile cases of athletes who display extreme character flaws such as cheating and violence. In addition, just as often we hear undertones of cases of athletes with the less extreme character flaws of laziness and selfishness.
Teaching Character in Youth Sports
A great classroom must have great teachers. Coaches who put their best athletes on a pedestal instead of holding them accountable are not great teachers. These coaches are a problem. So are coaches who teach kids that winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing. Also, you can’t forget about the problem parents who lie about their kid’s age or who dope their kids up with artificial stimulants to get an edge.
What these problem coaches and parents forget is that character transformation, both good and bad, is inevitable when a transformative process takes place. When a child goes from being bad to good at a sport or from being a participant to a champion, the transformation that gets them there will become part of who they are. This means both the good and bad will appear in other areas of their life.
If the transformation involves a heavy dose of accountability, resilience, and tenacity then those character strengths will be instilled in the athlete. On the other hand, if the transformation involves lying, cheating, and bending the rules, then those character flaws will also be instilled in the athlete.
For this reason, youth sports are a powerful tool that has the potential for teaching both good and bad character. Contrary to popular belief, winning is not one of those character traits. Instead, it’s what you do to transform into a winner that becomes part of your character. This is why youth sports is such a powerful classroom to teach both character strengths and character flaws. Furthermore, it’s up to parents and coaches to use the power of youth sports wisely.