.
The following is a link to the article: http://www.stanforddaily.com/2011/03/09/1046687/The topic of education and athletics is discussed in Coakley's text on pages 481-490 and the same topic was covered during class throughout the first part of the semester. This article illustrates a perfect example of athletes getting special treatment that general students do not receive. As discussed in class this list of easier classes gives athletes easy grades and majors to help them stay eligible. One professor in the article says that she thinks the list is needed to help athletes meet the high demands they have on the field. This shows that even a school as prestigious as Stanford fails to put athletics first.
As stated in Coakley's text on page 483 athletes are pressured by the team culture to focus more on their sport than academics so they can meet their coaches expectations. Also, no one expects the athletes to be good students, and the only thing expected of them is to excel in his or her particular sport. As discussed in class the pressure to win and to make money puts the focus more on athletic performance and not academics. In Coakley's text on page 483 he states that athletes are not praised for doing good academically, but only for their on field performance. In page 487 in the text Coakley also says that athletes spend more time engaging in their sport than in the classroom. This article is disappointing especially coming from an institution who values education as much as Stanford. For years the school has struggled competing in sports due to their academic requirements. However with the latest news it looks like Stanford has caved in just like too many other schools. It looks like the temptation of millions is too much for any school to ignore, even if that means sacrificing the academic excellence the school once had.
The following is a link to a video related to the above topic: http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/video?id=8004606.
No comments:
Post a Comment