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Danny Jang

English 2016-17

Mrs.Elshoff

May 11, 2017

Sports: The Hidden Teacher

One of the greatest basketball players in the NBA, Kobe Bryant, once said Sports are

such a great teacher. I think of everything they've taught me: camaraderie, humility, how to

resolve differences. With this in mind, sports are also a great teacher in academics. There are

some parents who stop their children from engaging in the sports due to the assumption that

academic achievement and grades are negatively affected by sports. I joined my school

basketball team in the year of 2014, 2016, and 2017 and my father assumed the same; my grades

decreased because of basketball. However, there is no proven correlation between receiving

worse grades and participating in sports, so I strongly believe that parents should let their

children engage in sports. In fact, sports can increase the time of focus in daily life, improve

behavior in class, and reduce stress.

There are some specific sports that can increase the time of focus. For example,

badminton, tennis, and basketball; sports that have fast-paced and short downtime have proven to

increase the participants focus. According to Centre for Economic Policy Research, as reported

in the Wall Street Journal, people who participated in sports earned higher pay. Students who

participate in sports also tend to have higher grade point averages, better attendance and a higher

likelihood of going to college (Geier). My personal favorite sport, basketball, is considered a

mental game which requires focus and concentration due to its fast pace and quick change
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between offense and defense. Since basketball is a sensuous sports, the players have to react

quickly and be decisive, which means players have to stay focused to make the proper play.

Obviously, focus is a necessary factor in every sport which can carry over to how you stay

focused academically as well.

Since sports increase focus, it can consequently help the student behave better in the

class. According to Lucy Rector Filppu, from education.com, she mentioned the three Ps:

persistence, patience, and practice. According to Sarah Griffith, from believeperform.com, based

on Hazelwood and Burke research (2011), Athletes with a higher self-efficacy performed better

than those with lower self-efficacy. This portrays how self-efficacy determines effort,

persistence, and performance in sports. Persistence is a key point to overcome failure and keep

students striving towards their goal. Patience can be proven by scoring in sports; the player has

to be patient and calm to make the smart decision to score. By constantly playing sport, the

students will learn how to be patient in an urgent situation which can be used in your academic

life during testing. Lastly, there is practice. Everything needs practice in order to improve. Since

the only way to improve your skills in sports is practice, and this equates to how students study

for exams so they can improve their knowledge in given subjects. In addition to academic

performance, student behavior can be positively impacted. Many schools like Korea

International School have DRAGON, which is 10% of a students grade and is based on their

behavior in school. All in all, sports will increase students academic performance in many

different aspects.

In fact, sports can reduce stress. Everybody knows sports reduce stress and it has been

scientifically proven, however, most of people do not know how and why sports. The key factor
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that helps reduce stress is endorphins. According to US National Library of Medicine National

Institutes of Health, endorphin is a chemical that reduces the perception of pain and making

positive mood to the person. Endorphin often releases from our body through exercising. Sports,

such as basketball, is not an exception. Personally, endorphin reduces my stress when playing

basketball. According to stress.org, stress can cause: frequent headache, difficulty to concentrate,

trouble learning new information, forgetfulness, disorganization, confusion, and more. Not only

is reducing stress important for your overall health, but these are the factors that can negatively

affect students academic performance as well.

Despite the many benefits of exercise and sports, some are concerned about how sports

make our body tired. Instead of giving up sports all together, taking a 30 to 45 minute nap will

help the body recover and boost our memory. According to Scientists at the Saarland University

in Germanys experiment, they have found that taking 40 to 60 minutes of nap can boost our

memory. They divided the participants into two groups: one who took a nap and one who did

not. The scientists let both group to memorize words and the group who took a nap performed

better results, proving that short naps can improve cognitive function. Another alternative can be

studying first, resting, then participating in sports. According to researchers at the Donders

Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior at Radboud University in the Netherlands and the

University of Edinburgh, exercising after study can boost your memory. They made 72 healthy

adults have 40 minutes of standard testing of visual and spatial learning. After 40 minutes, they

let the same participants have 35 minutes of exercise. After two days, they took M.R.I and the

result showed that they memorized the pictures and locations accurately. When used correctly,
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sports and exercise can improve cognitive function, thus improving students academic

performance compared to those who do not participate in a healthier lifestyle.

The key is balance. Keep in mind: do not think of sports as work, do not over do whether

to exercise or study, manage your time, and lastly, stay motivated. The right amount of

participating in sports can benefit people in several different ways: academically, physically,

emotionally, and socially. I am writing this editorial for everybody who cannot engage and play

the sports because of the misconception that comes with sports and academics. Once again, one

of the greatest NBA player, Kobe Bryant, said, Life is too short to sit around and hold grudges;

it doesn't make any sense to do it. with the quote in mind, life is also too short to sit behind a

desk and study all the time. Get yourself to become active and reap the benefits of participating

in sports.
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Work Cited

Chen, Grace. "10 Reasons Why High School Sports Benefit

Students."PublicSchoolReview.com. N.p., 20 Mar. 2017. Web. 23 May 2017.

Hernandez, Caridad M. "The Link Between Sports and Academic Performance." Florida

National University. N.p., 07 July 2016. Web. 23 May 2017.

Members of AIS. "Stress Effects." The American Institute of Stress. Dr. Paul J. Rosch, 04

Jan. 2017. Web. 24 May 2017.

Vulcan, Nicole. "How Does Playing Sports Make You More

Healthy?"LIVESTRONG.COM. Leaf Group, 03 Feb. 2014. Web. 23 May 2017.

Watson, Kathryn. "The Top 7 Mental Benefits of Sports." Healthline. Healthline Media,

28 Nov. 2016. Web. 23 May 2017.

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