Some argue against making sport mandatory in schools because it takes up a lot of time that could be better spent on subjects like maths and science.
In my opinion, I feel that students should have the choice to participate in sport/PE. Just like we can decide which subjects are more important, it is fair to choose whether or not we engage in sport. In PE, we often repeat the same sports and drills every year, which becomes boring after year 7 when we are just redoing previous activities. Instead of having two periods per cycle for PE, those periods could be used for subjects like foreign languages (which only have four periods per cycle) or for English or Science (both of which have five periods per cycle). These subjects hold a greater level of importance than PE and it would be more beneficial to allocate the two PE periods towards them. Additionally, apart from our regular PE classes, we also spend up to three hours a week in training and an additional three hours on Saturdays for competitions.
Imagine the impact on students’ academic performances if we were to dedicate 6 hours a week to homework or study. The time spent on training is not the sole factor that affects academic results. Often, after training, students are fatigued and unwilling to do homework or study, further impeding their academic progress. If participating in sports was optional, only those who truly desired to be there, play, and triumph would join the teams. Unfortunately, there are individuals within the teams who lack interest in the sport or winning and are solely present out of obligation. These individuals diminish the team’s performance and detract from the overall experience for those genuinely wanting to participate.
Do you believe sport should be mandatory? In my opinion, if sport were made optional, the school would witness improved academic and sports performance. I see no benefit in compulsory sport, as it only forms teams with individuals who have no desire to participate and are indifferent to the outcome of the game. I believe that if sport became optional, the school would experience overall improvement in results.
