Jordan Hobbs

Prof. Hellmers

English Composition 1201

12 March 2020

Literature Review

The topic that will be discussed in this literature review is the benefits of youth

participating in physical activity and sports. The research question is, how do sports

benefit the youth? There are so many benefits that come from team and individual

sports that will serve as life long skills. Kids can benefit from the mental and physical

aspect of sports. For example, kids learn how to persevere through losing and hard

times, they learn resilience, how to develop mental toughness and many more. Sports

are a great way for kids to develop skills that they will use for the rest of their lives, and

it is also very good for kids to be active.

There weren’t really any disagreements between my sources as they all thought

that young children participating in sports was a good idea. The only disagreement was

between adults and professionals. Some adults think that contact sports have a greater

risk than benefit because there are many things that could go wrong such as

concussions and many other physical injuries. However, Joseph Maroon and Julian

Bailes believe that the benefits of team sports actually outweigh the risks. It is also a lot

less common for athletes to get concussions now as the equipment is a lot more

protective and the rules are changing to make sure that there is less of a chance for

kids to get hurt.

 Throughout these articles, I learned a variety of different things. First, according

to the CDC,” lack of physical activity can lead to energy imbalance, it can increase the

risk of becoming obese, increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, increase the risk of

type 2 diabetes, developing cancers, and lead to low bone density (CDC).” These

account for most of the physical drawbacks if a child does not participate in sports or

physical activity. These kids are also more likely to continue to workout throughout their

life if they start young. There are also benefits that link academics with physical activity.

The CDC states,” Higher physical activity and physical fitness levels are associated with

improved cognitive performance among students.”

Many parents are scared to allow their kids to play sports because of the risk of

injury that comes with playing contact sports. However, the benefits greatly outweigh

the risks. In fact, “The medical literature on Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy reveals

that in the past 10 years, a total of 63 football players were diagnosed with CTE, almost

all professional athletes, out of approximately 44 million players (Maroon).” This shows

that there are actually not as many concussion injuries as people think there are. Also

leagues are coming up with many different ways to combat contact related injuries.

They are creating new rules to make sure that the athletes are as safe as possible and

they are making new equipment that is very safe. Maroon and Bailes believe that there

are numerous benefits to organized sports. These benefits include, a lesser risk of

acquiring diabetes, and cardiac disease and sports teach invaluable lessons such as

teamwork, discipline, self-control and triumph over adversity.

Many lifelong skills can be learned through team sports. For example, kids learn

discipline as they are given responsibilities and tasked to carry them out. Every kid will
experience coaches yelling at them and giving them directions for the next play or next

drill. Kids learn to follow directions and be disciplined. According to David Brooks,”The

best coaches still live by a code, and they make no apology for demanding kids to live

up to it (Brooks).” This shows that coaches can instill discipline in kids and make sure

that they are acting right. Likewise, another source writes,” In sports, your child would

need to follow a set of rules, take orders and accept decisions made by the coach...By

listening to coaches and peers, your child would learn an important skill which would

help them throughout their career and life (Jessica).”

Another skill that can be learned through sports is failure. In any sport, failure is

in every corner that an athlete turns. Each athlete can fail at learning a new skill, they

can fail to perform well in an important game, and they can lose. Many adults still have

not learned how to cope with failure and it is a very important skill to have. Through

sports, kids learn that failure is never permanent and they can always get back on their

feet and try again. The biggest lesson that kids would learn is to keep trying and keep

pushing forward. One source writes,” They can learn how to accept and cope with

losses rather than feel completely defeated (Jessica).” This is an important skill to have

throughout one’s life because there will be many instances in careers where adults fail,

and the next step is the most important, whether they get back up or give up.

Works Cited

Brooks, David. "Organized Sports Can Benefit Children." Sports and Athletes,
edited by James D. Torr, Greenhaven Press, 2005. Opposing Viewpoints. Gale In
Context: Opposing Viewpoints, https://link-gale-
 com.sinclair.ohionet.org/apps/doc/EJ3010233242/OVIC?
u=dayt30401&sid=OVIC&xid=c9702b41. Accessed 22 Mar. 2020. Originally
published as "Where Pride Still Matters: Want to Raise a Kid Who's Polite,
Respectful, Even Neat? Forget School or Church. Send Him to a Good Coach,"
Men's Health, vol. 17, June 2002, p. 80.

“CDC.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention, 20 Feb. 2020,

www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/physicalactivity/facts.htm.

Jessica, et al. “5 Benefits of Sports for Kids.” Novak Djokovic Foundation, 4 Oct. 2016,

novakdjokovicfoundation.org/5-benefits-sports-kids/.

Maroon, Joseph, and Julian Bailes. "The Health Benefits of Youth Contact Sports
Outweigh the Risks." Gale Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection, Gale, 2020.
Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints, https://link-gale-
com.sinclair.ohionet.org/apps/doc/EEAYEC052799645/OVIC?
u=dayt30401&sid=OVIC&xid=7aef31a3. Accessed 22 Mar. 2020. Originally
published as "Weighing the childhood risks of contact sports," Washington Times,
29 Jan. 2015.

"Youth Sports." Gale Opposing Viewpoints Online Collection, Gale, 2019. Gale In
Context: Opposing Viewpoints, https://link-gale-
com.sinclair.ohionet.org/apps/doc/RELZFS780278640/OVIC?
u=dayt30401&sid=OVIC&xid=bf43cde6. Accessed 22 Mar. 2020.