Write a
Letter to the Editor that would appear in a local or national newspaper arguing
a specific point in sports that needs to be changed. Think of some current
events and issues about which you feel strongly. It could be a letter talking
about students transferring schools for athletic reasons, steroids, time away from
school, or sports taking on too big a role in schools. Parental roles,
sportsmanship, officiating, may also be possible topics. Don't let me limit
you, however. Limit your letter to 150 words, so get to the point and have some
fun.
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteRecently I have realized that student-athletes have been putting a little more emphasis on the athlete part rather then the student part. These children are not taking their schooling as serious as they should be. Many of them are barely getting by with what they need to be able to participate in their sports.
I believe that academics are more important then a sports team. There is very little percent of people that are able to earn a living off of plaing sports, so I don't believe that young children should be putting all of their effort into some of these things and barely putting anything into their academics. These students should be planning for their futures and thinking of maybe a career they may want to pursue in the future. Now I am not saying that sports are not important because I do also believe that they can teach people great things, like respect and competition, but I think they should be taking their academics more seriously.
I think that some things should be done to help assure that these students are doing their school work and not just getting by but, doing enough to where they are actually getting something's out of it.
Sincerely,
Katelyn LoRusso
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteI have noticed that young people that go to school pay more attention to sports more than anything else, the students rather play sports than having a good education. Many students are barely passing their classes with C's and D's, I beleive that the coaches should have the get A's and B's and omne C.
students are putting sports first than school academics second, well it should be the other way around, academiit should be academics first than sports second.
I believe that education will have a long time affect and impact on a childs life, without education there will be no college's looking for you, havig an education will get you a better job, you will get paid more than minimum wage there are company's that pay 35 to 40 dollars an hour as their minimum wage.
Kids that pay more attention are most likely to fail in life than the kids that have a very good education, the kids with good education will get better jobs and a better retirement fund because they made money and saved it ina bank and made compound interest on their own money, the kids with pour jobs will have less money because they are getting paid less because they abrely have an education to get threw life.
Some kids think that they will get scholorships from sports, some kids souldn't have that mentality because without education you will not get to far in life, because without a good academic study you will be nothing in life but just a pour person with no money and no carreer thats going to take you any where and be successful.
kids shouldn't rely on just sports to make them money and take them every where they want, not all kids are going to be succesful in sorts, the average kid that becomes successful in sports is like 1 and 12. Kids should make something out of their life do something thts going to make them successful.
Sincerely,
Andrew Medina
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteRecently in the NFL, the act of disciplining athletes has caused a plethora of controversy. In my opinion, the NFL does a bad job of handing proper discipline to those who need it. Nowadays, it seems like the NFL makes inconsistent decisions on what a players suspension should be.
An example of inconsistency in discipline is the case involving Ray Rice of the Baltimore Ravens and Josh Gordon of the Cleveland Browns. Ray Rice was charged for domestic violence after striking his fiancee unconscious. To many, the NFL should have disciplined much more than the two game suspension he originally received. Josh Gordon was charged for marijuana use and originally received a full year suspension. To many, these punishments are not fair and the NFL needs to set up a way to evaluate the situation and hand proper discipline to the players.
The NFL need to implement a way to make sure that they limit if not prevent controversy from occurring when they need to discipline a player. The NFL has an obligation to insure that the athletes are representing the league, their team, and themselves in a proper fashion. Discipline is something that needs to happen but should be done the right way.
Sincerely,
Amer Darshalabi
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteI have noticed that school sports are becoming more important to the lives of high school students. Education should be more important since many decent jobs need some sort of a college degree. It's also good to be realistic and take school serious because only a select handful each year play for a college or play pro after high school.
Sports are a positive thing though because it give students to meet more people and gives them competition but education should be the main priority. School is something that gives teens the choice to go after something that they want to pursue in the long run if they work for it but sports are something that comes and goes. Student athletes put a lot of effort into a sport that mostly leaves them with nothing afterward. But I think the schools and coaches have a part of these teens lives and how it can influence them.
Many high school coaches to me seem to not let teens have fun playing a sport but the importance of winning. It's not college or the pros but just high school. Why not let them have fun while they are a part of the team since it won't happen again.
Sincerely,
Kevin Marrero
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteOne thing that I think that should be changed in sports is the way that coaches act towards their players. Many of my friends in high school hate their coaches because they take the game way too seriously. It's always about winning to these coaches and never about having fun anymore. Many of them have such a huge influence in a student-athletes life. Student-athletes also take sports more seriously than academics. I believe that a student's success will be measured on how well they perform in school rather than sports.
Parents are very crazy about sports, too. I've seen many parents put too much pressure on their kids to have success in sports. I think that they should let their kids play how they want to play. Only the kid himself should push themselves to the best of their abilities, not their parents. They should also support their kids, too.
Sincerely,
Anthony Mendoza
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteSports play an important role in todays society for kids and young adults. Whether its playing outside with friends to playing on their school team. Which is why it is understandable that some student-athletes side track away from school and focus more on sports. This should not be the case though. Student-athletes should recognize that education is more important than sports. The possibility of a student from high school or college becoming a professional athlete is very slim, they have extremely high rates at succeeding in graduating and becoming a major in something they love.
Sports are highly regraded throughout peoples lives. Especially young adults. As teenagers, a student-athlete dreams in becoming a professional athlete. They fantasize about it and look up to professional athletes. Because people highly value athletes, they should recognize that they are role models to people and for that reason should behave themselves inside and outside of the court. I do understand that they are humans and cannot be perfect, but they should make an effort to being respectable athletes with an inspiring character no matter where they are.
Sincerely,
Jasson Barrios
Dear Editor,
DeleteWhat I believe should change in sports is how some coaches give to much attention of winning then having the players enjoy themselves.
When I mean the players should enjoy themselves, I mean the coaches
shouldn't be on them all the time and the only thing we want is a winning attitude. I think that kind of coaches skills are way off my limits.
Coaches should let everyone play, not just the star players. The coaches should also not have favorites. I dislike knowing the fact that you're not going to play the next game because all coaches favorites are going to be playing. I think everyone should be played equally.
I also dislike hearing or reading athletes taking steroids. I have no respect once so ever If you take steroids. My thoughts on people that take steroids are using that as an excuse of how badly you're in a sport. I also find using steroids is another way of cheating and saying you're really weak because you need steroids to get you big and strong.
Sincerely,
Luis Mendoza
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteSports are becoming more important to students than education. Sports play a big role in your life but I think education should come first. You never know what could happens to you , like Boobie his entire life was all about football and when he got injured, he had no idea what's going to happen because he couldn't play football anymore. Education should be taken more serious when playing sports because without education nowadays your basically nothing , but sometimes it's the opposite way sports become bigger role in your life when you get scholarships for sports. It all depends on how good your in sports, and education at the same time.
Sincerely,
Kamil skubisz
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteI have noticed that many young students playing sports in High Schools do not play just for the fun of it but for the victory's they gain. Many of them think that they are the best one on the team so they don't listen and they don't communicate with one an other's. Many of the students do poorly in grade wise and many of the coaches punish them for it, just not fiscally. They would just ether end up getting kick off the team or just have the student not play for a meat or a game in the future.
Many of those students don't do good in school. Some think that just because there good at a sport and every one knows that he/she doesn't mean he/she can get good grades just by not doing any thing. For example, a grate quarterback is the most popular person the school. He thinks that just because he leads the football team to state he doesn't have to do any thing in class. The day of the state championship the quarterback cant play because of his low grade. So that's why students should stop acting like they own the place.
Sincerely,
Federico Mijarez Jr
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteRecently students have been transferring to other schools to play sports because coaches would recruit them. I believe this is wrong and that the IHSA should investigate into it and be more strict on this matter. For one it's not fair when one team is loaded with great players but are not supposed to be attending the school. Also it would make sports more competitive when the players are spread out and the teams are evenly good. This would also make sport events more exciting when games are a lot closer which would also be a good experience for these student athletes, especially for athletes looking to continue their career in the collegiate level. Lastly student athletes should not have to transfer just to play a sport which would help them to believe that sports is more important than education when it is not. Student athletes should worry about their education and then sports and if they can get into a college with a sports scholarship than good for them.
,Sincerely
Azmi Zomot
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteWhile observing student-athletes for the past couple of months, I have noticed that most of them are far more interested in sports, than in school. In my opinion, that is not right. School should not be a second choice in any situation. I feel that having a good education will get the athletes farther in their future.
It has also come to my attention that most student- athletes are barely passing their classes. In the athlete's mind, they feel that as long as they have a passing grade in a class, they do not have to work to make it better. To me this is a major problem that should be looked into. Students should be committed to not only doing well in the sport, but also doing well in school.
The way I feel this problem should be solved, is to have stricter punishments or even by just telling the student- athletes that a passing grade is not enough. I think that the coaches and teachers should both work together to help the students keep their grades up and play the sport of their choice.
Overall, I feel that sports should not come before an education. They should either be equally as important, or education should be the main priority of a student- athlete. This is a problem that should defiantly be solved as soon as possible, because with a good education, an athlete is more likely to go further in life.
Sincerely,
Natalia Staszel
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteSports have become so important to a student-athlete's life that they have started to neglect school priorities. Students are becoming satisfied with just passing classes instead of actually learning the subject and earning good grades. I understand that school becomes much more difficult when you are physically and mentally exhausted from intense practice but you must go to each class with a purpose to learn and exceed.
I also believe that the reason why student-athletes have been ignoring school priorities is because of the influence coaches and parents have on the student-athlete. Some parents motivate their children for the wrong reasons. Many parents push heir children to do well in high school sports in order to be recruited by a good college and hopefully make it to the pros. Coaches also push their athletes to exceed, but in the process they also destroy the fun that makes up the sport.
Lately I have been seeing many basketball stars go to college for one year and immediately go to the NBA. All college players should at least graduate college with a degree before going any where else. Student-athletes need to figure out that their education will take them further in life than a sport will. Student-athletes must also realize that they are students first and athletes second.
Sincerely,
Edgard Salgado
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteHockey is a beautiful sport filled with fast paced skill an hard hits. However, it is also one of the most dangerous sports on the planet. As a hockey fan, I've seen a plethora of gruesome injuries that have put many athletes' lives in jeopardy. I understand that injuries are inevitable in a hard contact sport such as hockey, but I think the league could limit them, especially conclusions.
I've watched players like Raffi Torres fly across the the entire rink to drill opposing players. I have nothing against a good, clean hit, but when it is clear that his goal is to completely knock out a blind sided player, that's just cruel. He did this to Chicago's Marian Hossa in the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The blatant his to the head sent the Blackhawk winger to the hospital on a stretcher, ending his season.
Sure, Torres was suspended for 25 games. That does seem like satisfying punishment. But it wasn't his first incident, and I don't think he leaned his lesson. A player like Raffi Torres is naturally too aggressive and desires to hurt opponents. It isn't right, and I believe players like that should serve severe suspensions and even get permanently taken out of the league.
Sincerely,
Krystian Pierwola
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteI recently noticed student athletes seem to care and put more effort in the sport they play rather than their academics. Playing a sport is great and being the best on your team is the greatest; but you have to put school as first priority.
I also noticed the NFL has caused a tremendous uproar due to the way they are disciplining some athletes. For example, Ray Rice, a very well athlete was caught on camera putting his fiancé (now married) to sleep with a punch but only faced 2 day game suspension. Derrick Shelby from the Miami Dolphins was found using steroids and couldn't play for just one week and then the punishment was lifted. Do you think these two got a fair punishment or what?
The NFL needs to create a better way to decide the punishment of a football player based on what they have done. Derrick Shelby only received one week suspension for steroid use, but Daryl Washington received at least a year for marijuana. The NFL is correct for disciplining the players, but they must do it the correct way.
Sincerely,
Joad Abed
Dear editor,
ReplyDeleteI have noticed that high schools take sports way to seriously and that its more important than learning and have a good education. For example, in the book "Friday night lights" the only tying that muttered was football and the kids would do anything to win, like play with a broken ankle or a serious injury. In school teachers would let the players cheat so that they would be able to play on Friday. The players were treated like Gods they did what ever they wanted with out getting in trouble. I don't think it's fair for other kIds who actually study's and gets good grades. Players should be able to play and get good grades by their own count.
Sincerely,
Antonio Garcia.
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteI believe that student-athletes are more focused on doing good in their sport instead of doing better in class. They are not learning but simply copying or doing the bare minimum to pass the class so they are eligible. Being not eligible and still playing can have a negative affect on your team. For example, Curie High School. They played an ineligible student and had to forfeit the rest of their season.Student-athletes should focus more in class because it will have a long lasting effect on their lives if they aren't able to have a career in sports. At least they would have a second option to fall back on.
I also believe that student-athletes shouldn't use steroids because you are only cheating yourself and it is unfair to your team. You are taking someone else's spot on the team that could have earned that spot legitimately.
Sincerely,
Jason Salamon
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteI believe that students who transfer schools for athletic reasons take the sport too seriousaly. I know that the students parents want the best for them but I believe that changing schools to play for a better team is taking it too far. Also,if your going to a school just to play a sport for a better team your chances of actually playing might be slim because great teams usually have all the players they need.
Also, I do not agree with the fact that some students choose sports over academics. Some, students take sports to seriousaly. I understand that sports are fun and espically if your really good then you can go far. But, if sports is the only thing you care about then when you do not make it far you will be very disappointed and not only that you will be disappointed but you will also not have the good schooling you were supposed to have.
Sincerely,
Jessica Ogiela
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteI believe that most athletes in highschool focus more on their sports than their education. They push their education to the side and ignore it. They fantasize about making it to the pros and being famous. But, not all the athletes can't make it that far. They will than realize that they should have been studying for tests and completing all homework assignments. All students should put education first and sports second.
I also think that kids in high school use steroids to be good. That is unfair and the school should try to enforce it more that they should not be allowed to use them. Those kids are doing harm to their bodies. It is also unfair to the kids that try to get better in their sports.
Sincerely,
Jose Rodriguez
Dear Editor,
ReplyDeleteI have noticed lately that student athletes have been more focused on what is going on the field, court and track than in the class room. A student- athletes number one priority should be getting a good grade in the classroom, education is the most important it is what these athlete have to fallback on. Students should be focused on what they want to do after high school, because most likely most of these students do not become professional athletes.In order to play a sport you should have a B average. Getting used to the real world is gonna be hard for these kids to adjust to because they spent all their time preparing for sports than for jobs in the real world. Schools should put more money towards education than towards sports, the main focus of school is to learn and thats what most of the money should be for is learning.
Sincerely,
Azizah Zayed