Tennis as Part of Children Sports Activity - Case Study Example

After school tennis activity in Private sector Tennis as part of children sport activity in relation to culture capital and differences Introduction 2. Background of the visited sport community 3. about the Interview 4. Tennis as a Sport activity 5. Brief background about tennis 6. Why tennis is known as a middle class game 7. Culture Capital in relation to sports 8. Tennis in relation to Class 9. Recommendation 10. conclusion 11. Introduction Though many people have shown a keen interest, Sport in the private sector has very few takers, in the sense that it is not taken seriously. Therefore efforts are on, right across the globe in trying to bring sport to the community and giving it a rightful and dignified place in the society. The government has not shown much interest towards sport in the local working community and hence little effort is directed by the government towards this. This observational study is going to center around the topic ‘tennis in the Private Sector. This report is going to discuss my visit to a popular sports community that belonged to the private sector. I would be discussing salient points of the interview I had conducted regarding tennis in the private sector as part of children sport activity in relation to culture capital and class differences. Moreover, this report discusses the important of tennis and the history behind this game. Background of the sport community My chief aim was centered around visiting the local sports community and conducting an interview about sport in relation to the private sector. The name of the sport community I had visited was called will to win; Hyde Park Tennis Centre and it is located in South Carriage Drive, Hyde Park, London W2 2UH. Recently I had visited this sport community to find out more about what is taking place there. The flowing is table of general information about this sport community Opening Times ‘Summer 7.00am-21.00pm, Winter 9.00am-16.00pm’ Facilities include ‘6 Macadam Hard courts, 2 Mini Tennis ‘Courts, 1 Bowling Green, 1x9-Hole-Putting Green, Sports Shop, Shower and Changing Area, Café’ Available sports kinds football, tennis, golf and other games The salient features of the community were – This Sport Community belonged to the private sector but is open to the public and all government servants alike. The community targeted different schools and colleges in the vicinity in addition to extending the facility for business and company events. The community catered to students and adults on a regular basis. The facility is self funded and run on a profit basis and around their locality. The extra funds in the community are used to upgrade and equip the Sports Community center with modern and state – of – the – art equipment. About the Interview I interviewed Alex who is director and tennis coach. “My position at the center is director and it is my responsibility to see that it runs on well – oiled wheels”. Besides this, “I am also a tennis coach and train all those who come to learn the sport”. Some of the primary aspects of the sports center were elicited from an interview that I had conducted and they are as follows – ‘The participants are 30 to 50 in number and are mostly students between the ages of 5 to 15 years’. And it is this age group that shows a keen interest and a lot of enthusiasm. During the Summer holidays a half term camp is conducted, but otherwise normally classes are conducted after school. The training for tennis takes place on a one on one basis that involves private lessons. The training sessions for this game are carried on throughout the day, after school and also during weekends for those who are not able to attend the weekly sessions. . Every sport is chargeable by the hour which is 42 pounds. The payment is not made to the club but directly to the coach who in turn pays a court fee to the center. It is a 20% court fee as everyone is self employed and they pay their own taxes. When interviewed about the safety measures the interviewee answered that “all the coaches are self employed and have their own insurance. However if the client was playing with a mate without a coach then the centre has insurance.” Tennis as a Sport activity Tennis is one of the best loved sports because it is so interesting and quite easy to organize. Tennis is a much softer sport when compared to Football and here both boys as well as girls take part. Tennis is a fun game in addition to being a part of children’s sport activities, that involve just two or four people and it is a game that needs very little organization and so people are keener to play this game. Tennis is a very important sport for children as an after school sport which has become very popular as time passed. Tennis is a seasonal game and played mostly during the summer season. Brief background about Tennis According to Tennis historians, Tennis had its origins in France in the 12th century, where French aristocrats played the game indoors. It was also known as ‘royal tennis’ because it was mostly played by royalty and the people of the upper classes. (www.news.bbc.co.uk) Alex said that besides hunting and horse riding, Tennis was quite popular among the kings. A good example of this is that the king of England used to play tennis with his friends on a regular basis. Actually ‘real tennis’ as it was known, was played with a heavy ball and heavy racket and was mostly played in- doors, but now tennis has come out into the open due to the government funding parks and playgrounds for the public to make use of. Lawn tennis was particularly liked a lot by women but now- a – days the game is played by male and female alike. Why Tennis is known as a middle class game? Tennis is known now as a middle- class game whereas football is taken to be a working class game. Moreover, in ancient times, Tennis was considered to be a rich man’s game because it was quite expensive and people who came from a middle- class or poor background such as the working class could not afford it because the equipment used was too expensive. But in my observation, most of the children who now took their training came from middle class backgrounds. Parents coming from posh families were exposed to the game of Tennis and hence want their children to be associated with this game and are very proud if they take it up as a profession. Culture Capital in relation to the game of Tennis What does Bourdieu say about Culture Capital? “Who’s Culture has Capital”? an article by Tara J. Yosso (2005) highlights the fact that cultural capital consists of cultural knowledge, abilities and skills that are inherent in any marginalized group of people. What is Bourdieu’s main argument regarding the class issue? In addressing issues on social inequality (Bourdieu & Passeron, 1977) argue that “the knowledges of the upper and middle classes are considered capital valuable to a hierarchical society.” What is Bourdieu’s theory and analysis based on? “Most of the previous tests of Bourdieu’s theory have been limited to general measures of sport participation, and have provided general support for the thesis, that sport operates as cultural capital. The analysis shows that many sports are highly class exclusive and that the principles of exclusion fit closely with Bourdieu’s theory …” (www.irs.sagepub.com) What is Bourdieu’s idea about people of color? Bourdieu theory gives us insight to prove how people of color have poor social and academic outcomes when compared to their white counterparts, which means that they are sidelined due to racial discrimination and segregation. Bourdieu’s ‘theory of field’s’ (théorie des champs) Bourdieu (1992) has helped to solve many ethno – national conflicts in the area of national demands. Tennis in relation to Class Tennis is not affordable to everyone because it is quite expensive. As explained by Alex, the number of playgrounds for the sport of Tennis is quite minimal when compared to other sports like Football and Basketball. For example in the Shepherd’s Bush area there were only three Tennis playgrounds which are in very poor condition and kept very dirty, whereas there are five football playgrounds. Even the area around the Tennis playground is also not a safe place for children as many drunk people create problems for people who visit the area. The tennis tools like the racket it costs between 150 (70) to 200 pounds when shopping on line. The cost of training for this game is expensive and it could reach more than 30 pounds an hour. Parents are quite reluctant to send their children to the few playgrounds that are available in the area because they are not safe and clean. Since the game was so expensive, it was affordable only to those people who earned high salaries and therefore people with low incomes could not afford to play this game. Therefore, even though they liked to play this game they could not afford it and so they had to make do with other sport activities. To prove this we find that in China, the number of people who played this game increased when China’s economy improved and people started to earn more income than before. And now China has more than 1000 play grounds just for tennis because of the increasing number of people playing this sport. (chinaradiointernational.com) But in this modern age, the Government is making all efforts to make this game affordable by making Tennis courts available to the middle and working class too and because of this a greater number of people are initiated into the game. The media plays a major role in promoting the sport of Tennis by displaying all the great matches and tournaments around the world all through out the year and relaying very interesting commentary that makes it very attractive to its viewer-ship and gets them interested and involved with the game. Recommendations: Make more playgrounds freely available to the general public for this game right across the country. Government has to pay more attention to the tennis playgrounds and employ offices there to make it much safer for children. The Government could also employ Tennis trainers from the Council to train children who cannot afford normal training lessons. Rent out tennis tools or even lend it to the public as it is expensive to buy. In this way many people can take full advantage of this sport by making it accessible to a wider audience. For example, the Government of Amsterdam rents out bicycles to the public and makes it affordable to every one. It also solves the problem of traffic and parking space. This would prove that when the government does something for the public they immediately respond positively and show their appreciation. If UK government uses some of these suggestions more people will be benefited from this game. Spread the joy of playing tennis in schools, especially in primary schools to make them love this game from their childhood. Conclusion Therefore, we can say we have traveled a long way since the 12th century when Tennis was only meant for Royalty since only they could afford it. Now- a – days, Tennis is played equally by both women and men. Tennis has been brought out into the open and caters not only to those of the upper class or only those who could afford it, but it has been made available to the general public as well. The Government is making all efforts to promote this sport by making parks and playgrounds easily available and paying more attention in maintaining these playgrounds by keeping them clean, tidy and well equipped. In addition research in the field is a continuous process and in time to come Tennis is going to make even greater strides on the map of the Sport world. Appendix Interview questions About the community centre:  What are the sports and facilities that are provide in this sport community centre? What are their aims and how do they achieve them? How do they market and advertise their centre? What make their customers to come back to the centre? What are the safety regulations in this centre? About the interviewee Can you tell me more about your position and role in this community centre?  Which age group are you training? When are you training them? How many children are you training? About tennis Who play tennis? What make this sport important for children? How much do parents pay for each private lesson? Do you think that government support this game enough? The interest of this game   What are the reasons that make children like and choose this game (tennis)? Why do you think parents want their children to learn this sport? What makes you interested to train tennis game?     Class and gender Why do you think tennis known as middle and upper class game? What do you know about real tennis? Tell me more about it? Do you think this game should be for every one? If yeas, why? When I asked the interviewee as to why he was training in tennis and what made him so interested in the game, he stated that “I played tennis growing up, and wanted to be a professional tennis player, but broke my ankle when I was 18 and could no longer play...... So I teach it, because I love the sport and love passing my knowledge to younger and older people.....” References Book section Houlihan, B. (2003), Sport and Society: a student introduction; SAGE. Bourdieu, Pierre. (1992), The Rules of Art: Genesis and Structure of the Literary Field, Cambridge: Polity Press. CAPEL, S. (2004) Learning to teach physical education in the secondary school.  London: Routledge Falmer. CARRINGTON B and McDONALD I (2001) ‘Race’ Sport and British Society Routledge GRANT JARVIE, (2006) Sport. Culture and Society. Routledge, pgs. 432 HOULIHAN B & WHITE A. (2002) The politics of sports development. London: Routledge HOULIHAN B (2008) (ed) Sport and Society: A Student Introduction. London, Sage HYLTON K, BRAMHAM P, JACKSON D& NESTI M. (eds.) (2001) Sports Development: Policy, Process and Practice. London, Routledge SPRACKLEN K. (2003). Setting a standard? Measuring progress in tackling racism and promoting social inclusion in English sport. In A. Ibbetson, B. Watson, & M. Ferguson (Eds.), Sport, leisure and social inclusion (pp. 41-57). Eastbourne, UK: Leisure Studies Association Internet resources Carl Stempel. www.irs.sagepub.com. Adult Participation Sports as Cultural Capita., 2005. California State University, East Bay, USA Correspondent/Liana Measmer. images.google.co.uk. Getting fit in 2008. Wed Jan 02, 2008, 12:18 PM EST. Helen. www.news.bbc.co.ukhow. did it all start?. 04/05. Tara J. Yosso. www.centerx.gseis.ucla.edu. Whose culture has capital? A critical race theory discussion of community cultural wealth. March 2005. pp. 69 – 91. www.teachingexpertise.com. A New Curriculum for Girls’ PE GERALD GREGSG. 2003 www.sportengland.org/news. Sport England seeks 50m pounds- Private Sector Funding. 2002. Read More