At some point every teen has had trouble at school or at home and needs an escape. Unfortunately, many teens turn to the wrong source to get their remiss. Youths seek comfort from those who welcome them, but sometimes they end up turning to street gangs or even just bad company just to feel accepted. Criminal involvement usually starts around the age of fifteen, and people who become criminally involved before the age of fourteen most likely end up having the longest criminal records and most persistent crime rate (Carmichael). In the last fifteen years, the rate of violent crimes among youth has increased by 30% (Carmichael). The most effective way to reduce youth crime is to steer adolescents away from criminal activities before they become too heavily involved. There is strong evidence that organized sports programs can reduce the likelihood of teen’s committing crimes (Travis). Organized sports help to keep teens out of trouble by taking up time that could otherwise be used to cause mischief, give teen’s higher self-esteem, and give them an opportunity to meet new people with a positive influence.
Today, teens are exposed to many powerful things. Negative messages from the media and the Internet show teens the attractive party life of people who do whatever they want, when they want, without any major consequences. Also, teens can easily obtain harmful substances such as drugs, alcohol or tobacco from almost anyone. Many teens look at these things and think that they are “cool” or “exciting” and want to try them; but if they are busy with something else, such as sports, they will not be able to be so easily influenced. Participation in an active sport takes up a lot of time, which means less time to get into trouble. Every minute that a teen is playing a sport is a minute they could be doing something less productive or possibly even dangerous (Eshoff).
Two sports that are good at keeping kids busy are gymnastics and swimming. Both of these sports require a lot of time and effort to perfect; teens will be too heavily involved to cause trouble.
As teens learn to perform better in their perspective sport or activity, the success and feeling of accomplishment leads to more activity and a desire to continue practicing. As they excel teens have a tendency to stay out of trouble. This can lead them to make a larger effort toward beating the competition (Wright). Showing talent or interest in a sport will also assist to motivate them to practice more and become better. Baseball teams from inner city schools gave teens something to do and reduced the crime rate dramatically (Wright). In Alexandria, Virginia, there was a reduction in crime among young women who participated a running program. Many crimes or illegal acts especially among teens are usually committed because of boredom or teenage curiosity, however being involved in a sport has been shown to help keep teens active and out trouble.
Many teens are tempted to participate in risky behavior because of poor self-esteem but why is their self-esteem low? Negative images by the media with beautiful skinny people having what looks like as fun can be very depressing to a teen going through hormonal changes. Participation in sports can counter these negative feelings. Research published from the archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine showed that teens involved in a sport have higher self-esteem and are more likely to stand up to peer pressure (Logan). Many youth offenders that get involved in sports have shown significant increases in ratings of increased self-esteem. Displaying talent in a sport raises confidence and gives youth a purpose or reason to improve their life.
Physical activity seems to increase the chances of a better life through academic and intellectual benefits (Travis). To participate in school sports students must have a certain GPA, not fail any classes and be a good student citizen in their school and community. According to the Caroline High School Student Handbook the requirements needed to tryout and stay on a sports team are, “earned five credits with a passing grade for the previous school year, currently taking three credits, a GPA of 2.0. Although this doesn’t seem like a lot, if a teen starts getting into trouble it is very easy to fall behind and miss those requirements. That is why playing sports is a good way to keep up grades as well. Sports use up time so students have to study in order to stay eligible to participate. Playing sports is a key factor of whether a teen goes to college and may encourage them to get out of small towns or poor neighborhoods to see the world. Doing well in school and successful in sports are both significant ways to help raise the self-esteem of a teenager.
Participation in organized sports provides multiple benefits that will contribute to a team’s life. Socially, teens are held to a higher standard when on a sports team. No one wants to be remembered as the juvenile delinquent or drug addict on the football team. Some sports that help build social self-esteem are hockey and even horseback riding. Although hockey involves fighting the aggression is controlled and stays in the hockey rink, players tend to be very humble. With horseback riding the commitment or caring, training, and practicing with a horse will build a lifelong friendship that will be extremely valuable. Physically, team athletes pay more attention to nutrition than kids who do not partake in sports. Who does not feel good when they are in fantastic shape? Swimming is a great sport that helps take good care of their bodies. Combat sports such as judo or kickboxing provide aggressive youths an outlet for their emotions and can leave teens with a better understanding of their body and aggression.
More than anyone else, females benefit from sports; participating in sports give teen girls higher self-esteem and helps them deemphasize beauty and to just be themselves (Logan). Young women report that playing sports help them expand their view on their future by breaking female stereotypes (Travis). Sports also give girls a wider range of role models, instead of movie stars and singers. Through the sport and martial art known as Judo, I have been fortunate to meet several famous and world-class Judo players and Mixed Martial Arts athletes. These Judo players have been World Champions and even Olympic Gold Medalists. One such person is Ronda Rousey; Olympic Bronze Medalist and current MMA superstar. Ronda visited my father’s judo school where she conducted a judo clinic after which she met privately with me and some of the other girls in attendance. She discussed with us the importance of being yourself, she told us her life story and how she had struggled with things like bulimia. She talked about dealing with problems at home, being a teenager and how judo had saved her. She encouraged us to always love who you are and never let anyone put you down. Since that day I have never felt prouder than when I am doing judo or any other sport. Personally, I can say that I never felt better about myself than when I am playing sports.
As most people know, supportive adults are important to the success of all teens, especially young athletes. At risk youth often lack a positive role model, but sports can help proved one usually in the form of a coach or teammate. Being in sports, it is easy to find additional positive models for teens to turn to and try to be like. Research indicates that teens benefit from the stability of a trustworthy coach, constant supportive teammates and focusing on something outside of themselves (Logan). Through judo, I have met many positive people who have influenced my life, from famous Olympians such as Ronda Rousey and Kosei Inoue (Japanese Olympic Gold Medalist and three time World Champion) to everyday people like Steve Matias, a father, firefighter and good friend to me. There have been many others at our dojo that have also been close and positive influences to me. I would never try to get into any kind of trouble because I know there would be consequences and I would not want to disappoint any of these people or my family.
Teens have friends and those friends have a large influence on what other teens say, do and how they act. Unfortunately, sometimes this influence turns into peer-pressure, but sports can help prevent that. Involvement in sports introduces teens to a new group of peers with at least on common interest. This new group of friends may have a positive influence on the teen. Team sports can help teens have healthy relations with their family and friends in a positive way by having fun and exercising instead of doing something dangerous or illegal. Hockey is a great activity that can provide teamwork more than most sports. Players have to work together in order to navigate the defenses of the other team and shoot the puck passed the goalie to score. For girls it is very important to have that sense of friendship with other girls on their team.
Parents and coaches are large benefactors of keeping a teens life on the right track. It is important for a parent to be a part of a teen athlete’s life. Going to games and encouraging them to do well is a positive way for parents to be supportive and involved. Even if a teen is not on a specific team, parents playing sport with their children is a good way to encourage physical activity and good behavior. Martial Arts like Judo a perfect example of this scenario, Martial Arts are usually not age specific so parents and children can actually practice together at the same time. Additionally, having an adult outside the of the family who is dedicated to helping a teen improve their life can reduce a youth’s chances of getting into trouble (Travis). Having a good relationship with a coach is very beneficial to the improvement of a teen’s skill and life. Many swimmers have a personal coach who is concerned with their athlete’s health.
In conclusion, organized sports help to keep teens out of trouble by occupying time that would otherwise be used to cause trouble, give teen’s higher self-esteem, and provide them with the opportunity to meet new people with a positive influence. Sports also help teens to learn lifelong skills such as leadership and personal discipline. Staying on the path of sports or other physical activities is a positive roadmap for teens to be on. Sports help teens to feel empowered and create opportunities that they may not get in other activities (Carmichael). Youth sports is one of the most dynamic mechanisms in society for transforming bad situations into good ones because sports engage youth of all ages, gender and social classes (Carmichael). Organized sports programs provide an antidote for antisocial behavior and open teens up to a new point of view on people. Finally, teens should be interested in the sport they enjoy participating in and try to always have fun.
Works Cited
Bass, Janece. “Does Participation in Sports Keep Teens out of Trouble?” modernmom.com. 4 January. 2011. 30 November. 2011 <www.modernmom.com>.
Carmichael, David. “Youth Sport vs Youth Crime.” fairplayforchildren.org. 2008. 30 November. 2011 <www.fairplayforchildren.org>.
Eshoff, Ryan . “Sports that keep kids out Trouble.” livestrong.com. 29 March. 2011. 01 December. 2011 <www.livestrong.com>.
Logan, Catalina. “Do Sports Keep Teens out Trouble?” livestrong.com. 14 June. 2011. 30 November. 2011 <www.livestrong.com>.
Travis, Eryn. “What are the benefits of organized sports for toubled youth?” ehow.com. 30 November. 2011 <www.ehow.com>.
Wright, Jacob. “Keeping Youth out of Trouble.” enzinarticles.com. 12 September. 2009. 30 November. 2011 <www.ezinarticles.com>.
