In the grand scheme of things, I guess I'm still on the younger side. As a teacher, I will begin my sixth year as a lead or co-lead this year; as a coach I am entering my 13th season. And I know that it is part of generational evolution, it's a right of passage, for "elders" to complain about "kids these days". But I have strategically...well ok, a series of events, fortunes, and universal nudges have...placed myself in a position to influence children and young adults with the hope of diluting the percentage of children and young adults about whom this term is used derogatorily.
In athletics, we are in the age of hyper-training and sport-specialization in children. The competition is incredible and the "arms race" to be able to perform at the high school and collegiate level begins at a very young age. This is giving rise to different classes of children-athletes. (This is something that I hope to develop more in the future, not the classes themselves but an understanding of how many and what they are at their foundations).
There are two extreme classes. Those "early-gifted" who are finding success and sometimes domination in a given sport and will both enjoy the success and feel pressure to maintain that aspect of their personality. These children-athletes may find an abundance of praise which, in most early cases, does not prepare them to succeed in other arenas nor accurately represent their future.
The opposite end of the spectrum holds those children who would have entered into sports for the friends and experience. They can be, in today's culture, discouraged at a very early age because they do not enjoy a competitive atmosphere. Now, they are also facing peers who may be spending hours a week working on their skills.
Now, I am a coach, and I am also a competitor, and I like nothing better than to foster this in children. However, without the proper understanding and coaching of how to address competition, children may fall trap to its pitfalls. Sport offers a peek into the real world: effort, advantage, variability, deviance, struggle, success, teamwork, etc. As in the world, one scenario is seen differently from many vantage points. Our elite athlete at 11 years-old will see the game differently than our "just trying it out" athlete at the same age. But, the one thing they can both take from this shared environment is personal growth.
This is where Competitive Wellness training comes into play. The opportunities to learn are endless: How do I become a better teammate? How do I survive in a game with better players? How do I find success in failure? How does my success fail me? Not only are these questions that can and should be addressed, even with the youngest of our children-athletes, but they are essential to the growth of the child.
The numbers prove that your child is not going to go pro in his/her sport of choice. HOWEVER, they CAN go pro in being a good human being and being happy and successful in whatever they choose to do. This is the power that MCCWT is aiming to give its students and athletes. From on-the-court or -field to in-the-classroom, a foundation of confidence in any situation and the willingness to self-compete can immediately improve a child's experience.
Let's use this understanding to encourage our youth to mold themselves into individuals that every generation can respect and appreciate.