One of the stupidest parts of the pro-Olympics propaganda was that it would create a "lasting legacy" of greater sporting activity in the country. I should have thought one look at many (though not all) of the spectators would suggest that maybe people who watch sport are not always the ones who do sport. As for the ones who care only about a medal count ... just don't get me onto that subject.
I am completely in favour of children and teenagers doing sport, preferably in some sort of organized fashion. Of course, many of the sports clubs for them had to close because they had been funded by the government and the money was diverted towards the Olympics. Still, there are schools or there used to be schools. Sadly they no longer do much organized sport in the state sector because teachers do not like to stay beyond their allotted "teaching hours", because teachers are afraid of being sued over possible injuries or hurt feelings when somebody's little darling fails to win something or other and because the bureaucracy around sporting activity is nightmarish.
The Cleggeron Coalition, specifically the Minister in charge, one Jeremy Hunt, last seen laughing his head off at the woes expressed by London's business community, have decided to deal with the problem. No, they are not going to ease the burden on the heads with regards to bureaucracy. Goodness me, no. That would mean shutting whole departments of civil servants down and maybe even the odd quango. Can't have that. What they have done is to say that heads, teachers and parents can now decide not to do any organized sport at school if they cannot be bothered with the bureaucracy and whatever else. That should sort it.
It's an awful shame. When I was at school many, many years ago, we had 4 hours of compulsory PE a week and a dedicated PE staff, who also produced a yearly school play.
ReplyDeleteWe were introduced to wonderful sports such as fencing, judo and dance drama. Of course, there was the obligatory netball and hockey too (it was a girls school).
I'm not particularly sporty but the PE lessons gave us a well deserved break from the classroom for some fun and exercise. We even had after school sporting clubs for things like archery.
Socialism brought about non-competitive sports in schools which pretty much killed my children's enthusiasm. They used to say, what's the point if there's no winner.
The "Fit for Life" campaign cost the taxpayer millions, pity they didn't sink it into school sports instead of nanny state lecturing.
This is not socialism. Socialism believes in competitiveness to a degree most capitalist schools would not even begin to imagine. The mushiness your children rightly object to is something quite different and far worse educationally speaking.
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