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Are Athletics Negatively Affecting Academics?

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Athletics are a major part of many students’ lives while in school and out of school; however, are athletics negatively affecting a student’s academics? Since sports were introduced to public schools in 1910, there have been numerous conflicts between athletics and academics. Athletics have and will continue to harm academics because sports can lead to mental disabilities and students are unable to attend class, which increases the students’ chances of falling behind in their studies. According to the LA Times, 12% of all student basketball and football players have experienced mental or physical problems due to sports-related injuries. A humans’ brain is not completely developed until the age of twenty-five; therefore the chances of a student competitor becoming injured due to contact sports …show more content…

According to headcasecompany.com, 1,900,000 people were diagnosed with sports-related concussions in 2002. Due to an increase in sports’ popularity in school, the number of sports-related concussions doubled in just over one decade. However, athletics are also said to help academics. Athletes must work hard to overcome obstacles, a necessary learning skill that may be beneficial for their learning both in and out of the classroom. This is incorrect because athletes spend time overcoming obstacles in the wrong form. It might be complicated to understand, but athletes spend so much time focusing on the mentality and form of their sport, while students need to focus on learning the material and the effort put into comprehending each topic learned. Another point that one may make is that student athletes have an incentive to do well in school. Due to an eligibility policy, athletes are more inclined to study and maintain their grades. However, if a student misses many classes due to a sporting event, they will be more likely to focus only on remaining eligible and less on learning the missed

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