Sociological Issues of Sports - Essay Example

The players participating in high school football so strongly identify with the sport that they happen to define their individuality in terms of the sport. Not only this but it is football that endows these athletes with a social identity as people and acquaintances happen to recognize and identify them in terms of the sport they are strongly affiliated with. The one other big cultural lesson that high school football instills in the athletes is the importance and relevance that they extend to the concept of being a success. The sense of competitiveness that athletes pick up from sports continues to play a pivotal role in their lives for a very long time. The pressure placed on the players owing to the very fact that they happen to be a part of a high school football team goes a long way in shaping their attitudes and values. However, it is also a fact that many times some athletes respond to this pressure and the yearning for success instilled in them by football, by acting negatively like using performance-enhancing drugs and resorting to violence in sports.

To explain to my mother the fact that the graduation records of the varsity athletes do not happen to be so bad, I will request her to consider this issue in a specific context. Being a student-athlete place an individual under immense pressure since one is required to contend with a twin responsibility that is retaining and improving one’s performance in sports, while at the same time doing one’s best to retain the requisite academic eligibility. Thereby, being a varsity athlete is a scenario that could place an individual under a lot of stress. Besides the athletes desirous of being a part of the varsity team are required to meet specific academic criteria. It is only when they fulfill these criteria that they could have their name on the university sports roster. The other thing is that a varsity athlete is required to invest a certain level of time and effort in sports. Thereby varsity athletes can't engage in academic pursuits with the same level of single-minded dedication and commitment as regular students. It is pivotal for a varsity athlete to strike a pragmatic balance between personal academic achievement and excellence in sports. Hence varsity athletes are required to achieve academic success in the backdrop of a life that is primarily committed to sports. Therefore, practically speaking the graduation record of the varsity athletes is not so poor because they spend a big chunk of their time and energy exclusively on sports.

The advancement of sports in a specific area is always to a large extent dependent on a range of factors typical to that locale. In light of this fact, I believe that one big factor that will largely impact the future of sports in the town in which I grew up is the extent of importance and relevance that the people in my town extend to the idea of being physically healthy and fit. Thereby, the people in my town emphatically associate sports with good health and fitness and are very appreciative and supportive of sports. Hence, politically speaking there is a large voter pool in my town that is positive about and committed to sports. This will certainly move the policymakers in my town to promote and support such initiatives that facilitate sports activities in my town. The policymakers in my town do understand the fact that any step taken by them that encourages sports activities in the area is highly appreciated and supported by the town folks. Yet, I think that the future of sports in my area will remain confined to initiatives taken by the local enthusiasts because the town in which I grew up happens to be a small town with a limited population. Thereby the area is certainly not conducive for the staging of large sports events or hosting professional sports activities.