Dodgeball is a tool of ‘oppression’ used to ‘dehumanize’ others, researchers argue

Parent Cafe
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“Every PE activity is designed to be safe, the insurance companies mandate it.”

@iaparent —Now maybe. Rules changed because too many were hurt
Gymnastics got banned from our school as a PE class as lawsuits were filed.
A girl was paralyzed by diving in the shallow end of the pool at the urging of an incompetent PE teacher who just kept egging her on rather than listen to her protests that she was afraid and couldn’t swim very well (or at all perhaps). I witnessed that one.

I loved archery and competed. Then the PE teacher spent 30 minutes teaching the class to string the bow—-backwards. The result could be the string and bow snapping in someone’s face. I could not NOT mention that little fact. I tried to keep it low key—and got lambasted by the teacher (to her credit she did pause long enough to later on change her direction).

@sushiritto — I’m all for classes to learn skills and stretch beyond current abilities. I have no doubt that training would go a long way for me. That is great. Maybe you could teach me to climb that rope (I could climb a fire pole).
But that is not the PE of my youth. There was no training. Sink or swim.

My question to you—is that training in your area public schools beyond just joining a specialized team sport?

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@gouf78 The summer class that I’m referring to is conducted a local private gym by the gym’s owner and I’m assisting. Training back in the old days was limited at best. Today, we teach.

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PE, in my opinion, was designed to bully boys into being ready for conscription, a few injuries and even deaths no problem in the big picture. Now, PE should be designed as a pleasant and safe adjunct to improving lifetime fitness and health habits.

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@gouf78, I hope that incompetent PE teacher who caused that girl to become paralyzed was fired! He/she should have been held personally liable, also (although I’m sure he/she wasn’t). Or did tenure protect him/her? I hope the girl got a huge settlement from the school district.

PE teachers weren’t the sharpest tools in the shed, back in my day. Are they now? We did archery in middle school PE (school backed up to woods). At least our PE teacher knew how to teach stringing the bow.

I was one who hated dodgeball. I don’t remember if we did it in middle school or high school. Maybe we did it in both, although at least the later years in high school there was more of a focus on lifelong sports. Gymnastics (floor routine done in front of the entire class) was definitely in high school, though.

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The main point of the thread, which seems to be lost on a lot of people, is that dodgeball isn’t something students did, it was something that was done to them. It doesn’t matter that bullies can find 100 ways to bully. When we find an activity that makes it easy for them, we should eliminate the opportunity.

There’s no reason dodgeball shouldn’t be optional. Posters keep comparing it to math but dodgeball isn’t anything like math. You can function as an adult without dodgeball. One of the schools I attended did make it optional. The kids who didn’t want to play were allowed to do other things. Our school had a bunch of equipment. There were scooters, jump ropes, floor mats, gymnastic equipment, a rope to climb, and probably more that I’m forgetting. As long as we were doing something the PE teacher was satisfied.

Bullying in the classroom shouldn’t be allowed either. When I was in high school test grades were posted by the classroom door with student initials. I was glad to see that policy end.

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^Don’t forget the President’s Physical Fitness Test. All your scores called out for a gymful of kids to hear.

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I don’t really have any memories of playing dodge ball. Either we didn’t, or because it wasn’t a traumatic experience for me, I just don’t remember it. But clearly a lot of children have been battered by it. I don’t see why it’s such a sacred cow for some people. Will the school experience really be lacking if one particularly brutal game (or less brutal apparently now in some places) is eliminated from the curriculum? I mean, why does anyone really care if dodge ball goes the way of the Dodo bird?

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Article is an example of what we see all too often in terms of over dramatizing. Oppression and dehumanize? Really?

Ultimately, I think gym class would make more sense of kids were taught strength training and cardio exercises. Something they can take with them the rest of their lives. For the vast majority of kids, playing dodgeball, basketball, rope climbing, gymnastics, etc. won’t have much use beyond high school (or at least college/mid/late 20s).

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All those activities (badminton, field hockey, volleyball, etc.) are strength training and cardio, but typically more fun than using a weight machine or running around a track. There’s tremendous use for these activities beyond high school, but the vast majority won’t exercise much at all.

Gymnastics is more than just what you see on your TV during the Olympics. Pull-ups, push-ups, wall walks, handstands, dips, Supermans, V-ups, etc. are all gymnastic movements that are teachable to the vast majority of kids and adults too. Most are unable and/or aren’t motivated.

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Badminton, field hockey, volleyball, etc require equipment and other people. And you typical must travel to get to both. Given time crunch most people are under now, I think it would make a lot of sense to teach people what they can do in 15-30 mins on their own with little/no equipment. And that is particularly true at many high schools where athletes (and even marching band members) are not required to take gym. What are left are kids who will have next to no interest in anything resembling athletics.

If the idea of sports is they are strength and cardio training that is more fun, seems odd to talk about pull-ups, push-ups, etc with gymnastics.

Bottom line is given our obesity rates, increasing instances of type-2 diabetes, etc. we should try something else.

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Yes and that’s why adults, young and old, join leagues at the local recreation center. There are badminton clubs with open courts during the day, which are occupied by nearby employees of nearby businesses. You can play singles, doubles or just see someone else who wants to play and sign up for a court. There are local soccer and basketball leagues as well.

Addtionally, there are rock climbing gyms and gymnastic-oriented gyms available to join too. And then there are the packs of cyclists constantly running around the area as well.

Nothing odd about cardio AND strength training. And who doesn’t find pull-ups and push-ups fun? I do. I do them multiple times per week.

You don’t find climbing a rope fun? :smiley: In order to be a healthy human being, we need both cardio and strength training. Strength training is essential to maintaining and building muscle, especially as we age and lose it.

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“Badminton, field hockey, volleyball, etc require equipment and other people.”

@sushiritto I think the point is that some people are more rural and do not have these clubs nearby, or can not afford the entrance fees or the personal equipment necessary in order to participate in the club sports.

My personal opinion is that even if team sports will not be utilized by a student after leaving school, the team work aspect can be transferred to any number of activities in work, family, or leisure time activities and is a valuable skill to have.

That said, I do think that PE classes should teach activities that a person can do alone. That may be running or bowling, bicycling or dancing or any number of things. There are any number o loner type activities where all a person needs is a proper pair of shoes and loose clothing. And maybe a few dollars to rent a bowling lane or a bicycle.

PE classes should teach all sorts of activities so that most students can find at least one or two that they like.

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@bajamm I don’t buy that excuse. You can do many “club sports” without a club. There are outdoor courts or you can buy a cheap badminton setup/net, a basketball and portable hoop, etc. from Amazon. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

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I appreciate team sports simply because it might be the only time of your life that you even get a chance to play given the number of people a team requires. But overall I think sports/activities geared to more individual play would be more beneficial for the future.
Just good ole exercise can be fun—Zumba, step classes, line dancing, tennis and golf basics. Maybe some schools do some of these now. I don’t know.

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There is an educational component to competing as part of a team that carries on far beyond middle school. Most of us learned some things not to do, and some things that worked well. Playing team sports beyond middle school can also be good experience.

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My kids learned teamwork without ever playing a team sport. Had zero interest in them (my wife doesn’t either). Very active family. Just not team sports. I think we overstate the value of sports for a variety of reasons.

My son had traditional gym freshman year of high school. Despised each and every second of it. Sophomore year he did gym self study. Worked out a cardio/strength training plan, had to document it and progress made over time and wrote a couple of short research papers on various health related topics. He turned in a binder full of info on which he was graded. That binder became (unbeknownst to us) a guide for other kids in the school. Several parents came up to us and thanked us for the template which their kids used for their own self study program.

On occasion he will still exercise (with what he learned in self study) though not as often as he should. But put a badminton, volleyball or basketball club in his very apartment and have the start and end times begin/end on his arrival and he won’t participate. Ever. My daughter skipped gym in high school because she was in the marching band. She is very active and gets exercise through other means. Don’t think they are unique at all.

Reality is ability to exercise will be easier for some people after high school/college than others. Certain parts of the country have various leagues, exercise groups, etc. But others do not. Same is true of finding places to put up equipment and find people to play.

Time is also an issue. Two young professionals working a ton of hours likely will not have time to go to leagues and play sports. More true of parents with young kids and a house. “Where there is a will, there’s a way?” Thats the exact opposite of what we want. We want to find ways to make it easier not to show how much you want to earn it.

And how about weather? Winters are tough in many parts of the country. People tend to hibernate more than anything. And this spring/summer, its been raining a ton. Pretty much every day.

And at some point from what I have seen, people drop out of the competitive sports clubs for fear of injuries. 35-40 seems to be what I see in terms of sports like basketball. Snow skiing seems to be 45-50. People don’t have the time to get there early enough to stretch/warm up. And fear they will blow out a knee or something else. To me, I know people who have messed up their knees walking down steps. My dad snow skied until he was 75+ so I have a while to go. And I have a basketball hoop in the driveway which for me. Son and wife never use it. Daughter will but only to play Horse will crazy rules (not only does shot count and need to be replicated but number of dribbles, time spent standing still, etc. needs to be duplicated as well. No real aerobic benefit at the end of the day but a lot of fun with my daughter.

No doubt there are people who keep playing sports for exercise. Last I heard my little league coach still played competitive baseball in his mid 70s. 50 year old league kicked him out and told him to play with the 40 year olds because no one could hit his pitching.

Guess my point is what works for some/many doesn’t work for all (particularly not at all times in their lives). More options is better.

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Too old, too busy, too rural, too rainy, no equipment, can’t find anyone to play with, too scared to get hurt, etc. They’re all just excuses to sit around and do nothing to me. We lose muscle as we age. And you’re going to lose it a helluva lot faster if you find excuses to not get off the couch.

There’s a sign over the toilet at my gym:

Lace 'Em up and get out there.

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Being stronger than your excuses does not require that one find or create a club sport to play as part of a team.

I had a college PE teacher who constantly said that any able bodied person should be able to find 30 minutes 5 times a week to move, whether that movement was lifting weights, swimming, bandminton, basketball, running, walking, whatever.

And, I think that should be the point, is to get out and move, not that the movement has to be a part of a club or team sport. Individual movement can be just as valid and sometimes easier for a person, depending on that persons personality and locale.

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Play with someone or people or play by yourself, whatever floats your boat.

I do both. Playing sports with people allows you to get out and meet people, make some new friends. I haven’t played it, but I hear pickleball can be quite fun. I actually saw a pickleball tournament being played by “older” people on ESPN a couple weeks back.

If you have a school or YMCA nearby (there are 10,000 of them), then there are even more possibilities. Alternatively, there’s all sorts of things to do at home without anyone or any piece of equipment. Or buy a few pieces of gym equipment for your home, if you’re financially able.

If you’re healthy enough, then there shouldn’t be any excuses. And even if you’re not healthy enough, then often times you can make accommodations for your physical limitations. Obviously, not in every case though.

I’ll leave you with one more quote that I’ve always liked, from the film Legally Blonde:

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Lol. Maybe I’ve found my motivation. My daughter got me hooked on Pokémon Go a couple months ago. Maybe I’m just a gamer at heart and didn’t know it.
My H walks daily but I always found it boring. Now we go for long walks and he doesn’t have to cajole me. He doesn’t play but humors me all the way along our trek. Never walked this much in years. And I actually look forward to it!