How times have changed. I was discussing the politics of Valentine's Day and the new socialist regime happening in Kindergarten classes. Everyone gets a Valentine, everyone is happy and nobody cries. Why is it OK for this behavior with kids, but conservatives think this is the devil's work when it applies to adults. Why should kids be coddled, but adults let to suffer? Well this discussion made me think of the differences between dodge ball then and now. I loved dodge ball as a kid and I teach (run) a class now. So I decided to break down the game from beginning to end.
Picking sides
1982: The two best kids picked teams. Friend loyalty was a sign of weakness.
2012: The teacher picks teams as evenly as possible, while trying to make the kids happy.
The Balls
1982: A hard rubber playground ball
2012: Squishy foam balls about half the size
The Rules:
1982: Get hit with a ball - you're out
2012: Get hit with a ball - you're out
1982: Throw a ball and it's caught, you're out and the first person on the other team's out line is in
2012: Throw a ball and it's caught, you're out and everyone on the other team's out line is in.
1982: Step over the middle line - you're out
2012: Step over the middle line - you get a warning (tons of them)
1982: Get hit and don't admit it - your team throws you under the bus
2012: Get hit and don't admit it - your team calls time out and argues that the other team is cheating.
1982: Close calls - work it out...odd/evens or rock, paper scissors
2012: Close calls- ask teacher and put him on the spot
1982: Games going slow and a lot of people are sitting out - too bad
2012: Games going slow and a lot of people are sitting out - jailbreak everyone on back in
The End
1982: Switch sides and start over
2012: Chase kid who got you out and complain they cheated or the teams were unfair.
1982: Go back to class all sweaty
2012; Get picked up by mom or dad....since they don't allow it in a lot of schools.
It makes me laugh that while the game is still a great deal of fun, the fear of actually getting hit with a ball is gone. The ferocity levels might feel like they are there, but ore kids cry in one week about getting hit with the foam ball than I remember in all the years playing in school. There were lessons learned back then too. You got hit, you waited your turn, came back with a vengeance and proved your worth for the next game. You were picked last? You played your heart out and hoped to prove yourself to the other kids. If you were the last one, you did everything in your power to catch a ball and get a teammate in. Today, you get hit, you sulk and wait for a jailbreak, not even paying attention to your teammates to see if they catch it. Picked last? The teacher rotates, so you aren't always going to be last. You're the last one? You try and make the game last as long as possible by holding a ball which you never throw, all the while trying to hide somewhere.
It's a different mindset and it's a microcosm of the world we live in. Everyone back then played as a team. You counted on everyone for the good of the group. Now, it's every man for themselves and you hope you'll be bailed out by the instructor. When I was a kid and you got out, you ran to the side and waited, cheering on your team. Today's kids, don't care about the team if they aren't playing. Back then you protected the weaker players. Now you stand away from them, because they have a target on their backs. Back then we never picked on the scrubs. Now it's 90% of the game/
The point is, back then we were taught to do our best or we'd lose, but we never lost sight of the team. Now we are taught to do our best or we'll switch teams to make it more even, because we don't want you complaining to mom you didn't get on the same team as your boy. We as a society, tell kids they will be successes, but they never earn it. Every once in a while. A game will come down to one player on each side. In 1982: The team with the final player would exclaim "we won!" The other team would exclaim "we lost." In 2012, the player that was left standing would say "I won." The last player out would be heckled "you suck" or "why didn't you call jailbreak? It wasn't fair."
And this is dodge ball. Imagine what would happen if five billion people were playing?
Picking sides
1982: The two best kids picked teams. Friend loyalty was a sign of weakness.
2012: The teacher picks teams as evenly as possible, while trying to make the kids happy.
The Balls
1982: A hard rubber playground ball
2012: Squishy foam balls about half the size
The Rules:
1982: Get hit with a ball - you're out
2012: Get hit with a ball - you're out
1982: Throw a ball and it's caught, you're out and the first person on the other team's out line is in
2012: Throw a ball and it's caught, you're out and everyone on the other team's out line is in.
1982: Step over the middle line - you're out
2012: Step over the middle line - you get a warning (tons of them)
1982: Get hit and don't admit it - your team throws you under the bus
2012: Get hit and don't admit it - your team calls time out and argues that the other team is cheating.
1982: Close calls - work it out...odd/evens or rock, paper scissors
2012: Close calls- ask teacher and put him on the spot
1982: Games going slow and a lot of people are sitting out - too bad
2012: Games going slow and a lot of people are sitting out - jailbreak everyone on back in
The End
1982: Switch sides and start over
2012: Chase kid who got you out and complain they cheated or the teams were unfair.
1982: Go back to class all sweaty
2012; Get picked up by mom or dad....since they don't allow it in a lot of schools.
It makes me laugh that while the game is still a great deal of fun, the fear of actually getting hit with a ball is gone. The ferocity levels might feel like they are there, but ore kids cry in one week about getting hit with the foam ball than I remember in all the years playing in school. There were lessons learned back then too. You got hit, you waited your turn, came back with a vengeance and proved your worth for the next game. You were picked last? You played your heart out and hoped to prove yourself to the other kids. If you were the last one, you did everything in your power to catch a ball and get a teammate in. Today, you get hit, you sulk and wait for a jailbreak, not even paying attention to your teammates to see if they catch it. Picked last? The teacher rotates, so you aren't always going to be last. You're the last one? You try and make the game last as long as possible by holding a ball which you never throw, all the while trying to hide somewhere.
It's a different mindset and it's a microcosm of the world we live in. Everyone back then played as a team. You counted on everyone for the good of the group. Now, it's every man for themselves and you hope you'll be bailed out by the instructor. When I was a kid and you got out, you ran to the side and waited, cheering on your team. Today's kids, don't care about the team if they aren't playing. Back then you protected the weaker players. Now you stand away from them, because they have a target on their backs. Back then we never picked on the scrubs. Now it's 90% of the game/
The point is, back then we were taught to do our best or we'd lose, but we never lost sight of the team. Now we are taught to do our best or we'll switch teams to make it more even, because we don't want you complaining to mom you didn't get on the same team as your boy. We as a society, tell kids they will be successes, but they never earn it. Every once in a while. A game will come down to one player on each side. In 1982: The team with the final player would exclaim "we won!" The other team would exclaim "we lost." In 2012, the player that was left standing would say "I won." The last player out would be heckled "you suck" or "why didn't you call jailbreak? It wasn't fair."
And this is dodge ball. Imagine what would happen if five billion people were playing?
Comments
Post a Comment