Buechner Inspired Calling

In the spring, seniors in high school and college are thinking about calling, with the former selecting a college and a major and the latter applying for jobs. We often talk about students finding their calling or vocation, as individuals ... but finding the calling for an institution is equally important. Each organization likely has a mission statement, core values, and a strategic plan, but have they truly sought their calling?

What should be the calling of a school?

American philosopher and theologian Frederick Buechner is known for his quote on calling:

"The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet."

We interpret this quote (as likely intended) to be about an individual person identifying his/her gifts, interests, and passions (what he/she is created to do) and then trying to find how to use that "deep gladness" to make a positive difference addressing an identified need ("deep hunger") in this world. This is an important wondering as we individually strive to be reformational and restorative in this broken world. However, shouldn't we also consider this quote for an institution?

What if each institution (for-profit, non-profit, religious, or secular) considered this quote?  What a powerful exercise to consider calling, as Buechner defined it!

• As an institution, what is our deep gladness? What is our passion, what are we created to do, and what do we do really well?
• As an institution, how can that deep gladness meet the world's deep hunger? Is there a way to use our institution to help to restore brokenness in this world?

Sometimes those two naturally align. 

To be too literal, a farmer, passionate about growing and harvesting crops to the best of his/her ability is directly meeting the world's deep hunger of food. As the bumper sticker says, "No Farms, No Food." A farmer is living a Buechner inspired calling.

The founder of TOMS shoes, Blake Mycoskie's deep gladness was in making shoes, but he also recognized the "hunger" in the lack of shoes in impoverished communities, so he developed the One for One model to meet that "deep hunger." For each shoe purchased, the company donated a shoe. TOMS' mission statement is simply "use business to improve lives." That is a Buechner inspired calling.  

• Read the TOMS story HERE!

Can schools have a similar Buechner inspired calling? Absolutely.

It does take three steps ... 

1. Identifying the educational institution's deep gladness.
2. Remembering the educational institution's mission statement. 
3. Evaluating the deep hunger in our society.

Often schools have this process backwards. Educators see the needs (deep hunger) in our society, but forget their school's mission statement and deep gladness (i.e. what schools are created to do). Schools turn into churches (because the 'hunger" of evangelism), soup kitchens (because the "hunger" of homelessness), families (because the "hunger" of broken homes) and social clubs (because the "hunger" of community). Although each of those areas are important hungers that need to be met, they are likely not found in a school's mission statement and arguably are not what schools are created to do.

So what do schools do better than any other institution? Educate students!

General Knowledge

General knowledge is one of the deep hungers in our society today ... and we are getting hungrier! The good news is that knowledge acquisition aligns well with both a school's "deep gladness" and mission statement. Unfortunately, schools are under-performing. I am appalled by the level of ignorance in our culture today. I have stopped laughing at the "man on the street" interviews; there is nothing funny about ignorance. Mark Bauerlein calls this the "dumbest generation" due to the digital age, and I agree. Schools must address this hunger with a passion ... tackle ignorance head on, build overall literacy and competency, and reclaim the purpose of education. That is one example of a Buechner inspired calling.

Wisdom

Once our culture becomes smart again, we can "get wisdom." While not able to be fully realized without a knowledge base, wisdom is also a deep hunger in our culture today. One way to address this deep hunger is to start teaching philosophy again ("philosophy" is literally translated "the love of wisdom"); students must learn to philosophize ... to love wisdom! Unfortunately, we have too many examples of smart people who are not wise; again, schools are positioned well to address this hunger, and teaching wisdom should be our deep gladness!

Christian schools have a head start on teaching wisdom, as the Bible states in Proverbs 9:10, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." Educators must start by teaching students to fear the Lord if we want to improve wisdom. Modern usage of the word "fear" connotes being afraid (as "I fear walking down the street alone at night"); however, the biblical definition of fear is to have reverence and respect. Fearing God and His word, which includes obeying His commands, has waned in today's culture. It is no wonder that wisdom has also been on a decline. Christian schools must begin where God commands us to begin ... the fear of the Lord. Unfortunately, we have too many examples of Christian schools (and Christian colleges) that do not fear God or His word. In fact, in Christian colleges today, some professors think that they are smarter than God, questioning His word, or even mocking it, rather than fearing it. They clearly are not wise.

If Christian schools want to embrace a Buechner inspired calling, they must fear the Lord, build general knowledge, and get wisdom. 

• What is your deep gladness as an educator?
• Does it fit your educational mission statement?
• Is there a deep hunger that you/your students can help restore?

How exciting it would be if every school (as well as every educator) had a Buechner inspired calling!

Hygge Time (over Screen Time)

When is the last time you had a "cozy conversation in pleasant company"?

This past Christmas we purchased a new game ... The Hygge Game. "Hygge" (according to Miriam-Webster) is a Danish word meaning "comfort and coziness" but its etymology comes from Scandinavian, old English, Saxon and Frisian terms that incorporate thinking, considering, recalling, and understanding. Hygge is a rich word aptly described in the game's sub-title, "Cozy conversation in pleasant company."

It is a game of conversation starting questions ... that is all. No pieces to move, no roles to play, no empires to build, no opponents to conquer. It is quite simple but really needed today. We all need more hygge time in our lives.

The concept of hygge is similar to "hearth time," a term I have used in talking with parents about healthy interactions with their teenagers. Hearth time, as the name suggests, comes from a pre-technological era (think Little House on the Prairie) where the family would sit around the fireplace after dinner talking about their day. While modern "hearth time" happens in different locations (our was around our kitchen island), it is important to have cozy conversations with your teenager. Of course this involves putting your phones away ... and that, I know, can be most of the battle.

As we spend increasingly more time on screens, we spend less time interacting with each other in cozy conversations. It is easy to pick on teenagers in criticizing screen time ... and they lead the way with 11-18 year olds spending about half of their waking hours on screens (CDC) ... but, globally, humans spend about six hours a day on screens (Screen Time Stats 2024). The long-term effects of screen time are still to be determined, but we have seen excessive screen time linked to cognitive, social-emotional, and language delays in children (Effects of Excessive Screen Time on Child Development, 2023) and mental health problems (especially "depression, anxiety, social anxiety, and somatic complaints") in teens (Excessive Screen Media Activity and Mental Health Problems in Youth, 2023). 

Tying this back to education ... students are spending too much time on screens. However, "phones away" or classrooms that are "no phone zones" is not the answer (or not the whole answer); rather, we need to provide a positive alternative, teaching students about hygge. "Cozy conversations in pleasant company" where people think, consider, recall, and understand is a great description of a positive learning environment. What are we doing to foster hygge at school?

Play Games! 

The Hygge Game would be a good one to introduce into the classroom (not necessarily literally, but in concept). Many teachers ask an attendance question, a bell ringer, or a brain break question ... be intentional about these times to encourage conversations. Teachers often have a minute or two at the end of class, and it is so tempting to allow students to jump on a screen to fill that time. Instead of screen time, add a question to the end of the lesson that students need to discuss with a neighbor.

Board and card games, of any kind, engage our brains, encourage social interactions, and reduce screen time. Homes at "hearth time" used to be filled with games, but that has been replaced by television and phone time. I used to assume that everyone knew how to play the classic games, but children today are not playing games at home. Schools can reclaim that space, teach the classic games, and encourage the healthy brain work of strategizing and socializing. 

Board gaming and card playing has become more popular in recent years; as educators, let's lean into this movement. It is my deep hope that our culture will begin to self-regulate and reduce screen time by shifting back to more meaningful activities, like reading, gaming, and cozy conversations. 

Ring That Bell!

Bells are rung for many reasons ... to announce an arrival at a door, to call for dinner, to celebrate a wedding, or to signal an emergency on a ship. Some cancer treatment centers have patients ring a bell after a final treatment; some restaurants have a bell mounted by the door for customers to ring for good service; some colleges have their graduates ring a bell after receiving their diploma. Most importantly, churches have rung bells from steeples calling the faithful to worship.

Some leaders have instituted bell ringing in the office for meeting goals, celebrating accomplishments, and amplifying core values. Bell ringing is an effective way to keep the workplace positive and raise the overall morale of the staff. When the bell is rung, something good has just happened. Schools need to ring bells, too.

The School Bell

When one thinks of a "school bell," the one room school house on Little House on the Prairie is what usually comes to mind. When the bell was rung by the teacher, kids from all over Walnut Grove came running to school -- what a positive image! Today, schools still use bells to start/end the school day and to start/end class. Those are not the bells that I am talking about.

Every educator should "ring a bell" every single day to celebrate an accomplishment or one good thing that happened that day. Focusing on the positive will help to keep the school ethos positive for staff and students alike. Unfortunately, the opposite is often the case ...

Because we have a deficit mindset in education, teachers and administrators tend to focus on the negative. We want to help the one student who failed the test, correct the one lesson that flopped, or work with the one student who made a poor choice. It is so easy to leave school with the challenging activity from the day on our mind, and because we care deeply about our students, that stays with us, even causing us to lose sleep. While it is vital to help every student flourish, focusing on the negatives of the day can have a deleterious effect on individual teachers and staff morale as a whole.  

Positive Self-Efficacy

Self-efficacy (Bandura, 1997) is an internal feeling that you can accomplish the next challenge. Positive self-efficacy is built when we focus on small accomplishments and positive actions in the past; this leads to the confidence that we can take greater risks and return the next day with a positive attitude to take on whatever challenges we will face. The opposite is also true, repeated failures and struggles lead to negative self-efficacy, which can turn into a cycle of defeat, resulting in a student (or a teacher) giving up.

We know about the power of positive self-efficacy from educational psychology about student learning, but we often forget how powerful that is for us, as educators, too. It is essential for teachers to take one minute at the end of each day to celebrate "one good thing" that happened that day, and then focus on that as they head home. Pause before rushing out the door; remember the "I got this" look of a student, an impactful moment in a lesson, or a student who said "thank you" before leaving the class. Remember that positive event and end the day with that. 

You Need a Bell

If you have a bell in your classroom or office (I gave all my staff a bell to remind them of this), ring that bell before leaving for the day. This is an auditory reminder that you are making a positive impact in the lives of your students. It will make a difference, and you will show up the next day ready to take on whatever challenge arises.

Use it to Worship

Let me briefly return to one of the reasons for bell ringing listed above. For Christian educators, bells should be used to call us to worship. When you ring that bell at the end of the day, praise God for the work He is doing in you and through you; it will turn into a doxology of sorts as you leave school each day.  Praise God from Whom all blessings flow ... and Ring that bell!

Win the Conversation

Education is the new competitive market. Whether you agree or disagree with the "school choice" movement, in most communities, due to open enrollment public, charter, and private schools, parents today have choices for their child's education. Due to school budgets tied so closely to enrollment, schools have become hyper-competitive as they fight for every student.

Parents are passionate marketers of schools. Logically, people talk about what they love, and there is nothing that parents love more than their children. Because children spend most of their time in school, their school experience is often the topic of parental conversations. People talk to (and listen to) those they trust before making a big decision. Parents trust other parents and deciding on a school is a big decision. The conversation is happening, and in today's competitive educational market, schools need to be talked about ... in the right way!

Oscar Wilde quipped in The Picture of Dorian Gray, "There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about." 

So how do you make sure you are talked about positively? How can schools win the conversation? With stories!

Stories -- If you tell the stories, you rule the world.

Stories are the most powerful marketing tool for schools ... both for good and ill. When parents share about a teacher who went above and beyond to know/love/care for their child, the message will be powerfully positive. The opposite is true ... if a parent is treated rudely by an administrator, the message spread can be damaging to the reputation of the school.

Plato first noted the importance of stories when he said, "Those who tell the stories, rule society." Andrew Fletcher, a Scottish politician, expanded this notion to wrap in the power of the arts over legislation to impact society, saying, "Let me make the songs of a nation, and I care not who makes its laws." Stories (and songs) rule the world!

Storytellers - Word of Mouth (WOM)

The best advertising is always positive word of mouth marketing. In fact, it is said that advertising is for companies who don't have a positive word of mouth presence ... when is the last time you saw a Starbucks advertisement on television? This is true also of schools. Schools with strong WOM, spend very little on marketing ... and WOM marketing is free!

Again, WOM can be positive or negative. When parents select a school, it is most often due to positive word of mouth from other parents, and when families leave (especially multiple families in one year), it is often due to negative word of mouth. 

Of course, a quick WOM strategy is social media. Social media posts are fast and free. Parents notice social media posts, especially about schools. If the posts are positive, the positive reputation of the school grows. Imagine if every parent in your school would post one positive thing about your school each month ... what a positive, free marketing strategy. 

In the 21st Century, schools must have an active social media presence, posting something positive each day. Flourishing companies have "social media influencers" in their marketing department; schools should too. Someone on staff needs to wake up each day with the drive to post something each and every day. You have to "win the day" in your market (this means someone has to watch the social media presence of your competitors); does your social media "win the conversation"? When a school has an active social media presence, it is easy for your parents to like, share, or re-post to all their friends/followers ... in today's world, this is an endorsement.

The best WOM marketing is still face-to-face. Most prospective parents realize that social media will post the "wow" of the day, and they'll want to know the "real story" from a current parent. If a parent is an active promoter on social media, they will probably get a DM about the school ... encourage them to take a phone call or grab a cup of coffee to share about their experience. 

High School & College Note -- today, teenagers are more often making the decision about school, and they discount postings by adults or from the official school account. Consider "hiring" student social media influencers to create student-to-student content to reach this audience.

Raving Fans

Blanchard and Bowles in their book titled, Raving Fans (1993), share that "satisfied customers" is not good enough today, flourishing companies (and schools) need "raving fans." Parents (and sometimes grandparents) are the raving fans for schools. Identify who they are ... find them, thank them, equip them, mobilize them!

Every school administrator can list a handful (hopefully more) of raving fans at their school; they often are the Parent Association officers, the classroom volunteers, the ones who are in the front row of every concert or performance, and the ones who are re-posting on social media. They are not just the satisfied customers; they are the ones oozing with excitement about the great things happening at the school. Identify them and thank them for being positive promoters of the school. Words go a long way, so speak with these fans ... make a phone call, send a note, set up a personal visit, or just have a conversation at an event.

In addition to thanking them, equip them. Help them promote the school by giving them school merchandise (remember, they are saving you in the marketing budget!) and positive stories to share. They won't wear what they don't have; they won't share what they don't know ... but raving fans are eager to do both.

Every school has admissions events that are run primarily by school staff. These events are targeting prospective parents, and, of course, they want to meet the administrators, teachers, and staff that will be closely working with their children; however, prospective parents want to hear from other parents. If you infuse a couple raving fan parents into the event, you will "win the event," and hopefully gain a new family. Each school is different, but can a current raving fan parent be "on call" to join a tour, give a follow-up call, or participate in a parent panel. 

Give 'em something to talk about!

Marketers use the phrase "control the message" and say, "Whoever controls the message, controls the masses." That seems too Orwellian to me, but schools should guide the conversation that parents are having by flooding them with positive things happening at the school. The schools that are "winning" the conversation are the ones who are giving their families something to talk about. 

Here are some thoughts on the message (mostly thinking of social media) ...

• Post Frequently and Regularly ... pick a time of day or day of the week that you consistently post to optimize traffic/views (e.g. general social media - 7:00pm, 3:15pm, and 8:41am daily 2024 Research). Try some different times, and find out what works for your school.
• Keep it Short ... think of a meme rather than a state of the school report. The average attention span of millennials (most k-12 parents today) is 12 seconds ... don't blink, Gen Z parents are coming, and their attention span is 8 seconds. 
• Align the Message to What Your Parents Want to Hear ... what is important to your parent community? Student engagement? Care for students? Active learning? Fun? Rigor? Safe environment?
• Make it Fun ... if you can make them smile, they will remember it, and repost. I still hear about the time that we called a snow day with the three principals making snow angels.
• Turn Heads ... while everyone loves cute pictures of students playing, look for the unique activity that is going to catch someone's eye. 
• Educate ... everyone likes to sound smart, so help your parents "be the expert." Equip your school community with current facts from external research or internal surveys. These are best presented in "Did you know?" or Infographics.

Competition in schools is here to stay. Flourishing schools will win the conversation! 

Who Owns the Child?

 All teachers and educational leaders have a philosophy of education. While many are unwritten, every teacher believes specific tenets about why we educate and how we educate children. A philosophy of education must begin with a view of the child.

If a teacher believes that a child begins in "tabula rasa" or with a blank slate, then he/she educates with that presupposition. If a teacher believes that every child is the compilation of random cells that only lives 79 years and then ceases to exist, then he/she educates with that presupposition. If a teacher believes that each child was wonderfully knit together in the womb by the creator of the universe and will live forever after this life is done, he/she educates with that presupposition.

Aligning the practice of educating to an educational philosophy is essential to provide a clear and flourishing learning environment for students. Unfortunately, that alignment is not very common.

Recently, I heard an interesting way to describe this educational challenge. An individual describing educational philosophy, asked the question ... who owns the child? While using the term "owns" to talk about a child (or any human) is unsettling to our modern minds, how you answer that question, leads you to a view of the child and ultimately a philosophy of education.

The State Owns the Child

Some countries, communities, or political systems elevate the power of the state and believe that every child (every human) belongs to the state. An education aligning with this framework would prepare students to be effective "cogs in the wheel" of the state and effective citizens. This system would identify gifts/talents early and prepare students for a specific job to serve the greatest benefit of the state. This seems like something out of an Orwellian world, but much of our educational system is focused on preparation for a specific job, and parents and educators are pushing children earlier and earlier to select a career path. Citizenship is also commonly found on the list of a school's Expected Student Outcomes. What a limited educational philosophy!

The Parents Own the Child

While Christians believe that children are gifts from God to parents, this perspective has been warped in recent years. Parents believe that they own the child, and it is their sole purpose to ensure that the child is successful. This perspective leads to "helicopter parents" who constantly hover over their child, making sure that every decision is made to benefit the child ... or the more aggressive, attack version, now referred to as "Blackhawk Parents." An educational system with this perspective caters to the parents (the owners of the child) and promotes the perspective that the customer is always right (and, in this case, knows what is best for the child). This has led to an explosion of homeschooling and overly involved parents at all levels (even at the college level). Helicopter parenting is not new ... remember James and John's mother and her request of Jesus in Matthew 20?

The Child Owns Him/Herself

Today, self-ownership is the most prevalent answer to the question, who owns the child? This fits with our individualistic and ego-centric society and is the by-product of the "pursuit of happiness" phrase found in the "Declaration of Independence." The most common question asked of children is, "what do you want to do when you grow up?" Innocent enough, but it insidiously promotes this perspective. Parents today are "gentle parenting," allowing the children to rule themselves. Children, at an earlier and earlier age, are making up their own rules and selecting their school, activities, or even religion ... whatever makes them happy. Student autonomy reigns supreme in this philosophy and produces ego-centric people. We definitely see the results today of decades of this educational (and parenting) philosophy.

God Owns the Child

Christians believe that God is the creator and sustainer and Lord of all things; essentially, God owns everything, including children. God gives children to parents, but he doesn't relinquish "ownership" of them; He doesn't "orphan" them. Parents are stewards of this precious gift, but each child is still a child of God. In fact, God, throughout scripture, promises that he is our father and that we are his children (I Cor 6:18; Jn 1:12-13; Gal 4:5; Rm 8:14-17, et. al.). This (and the previous section) remind me of the Heidelberg Catechism Q&A #1 ...

Q.	What is your only comfort in life and death?
A.	That I am not my own, but belong with body and soul, both in life and in death,  to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ.

We are not our own, but we belong to God!

So, what does an educational philosophy look like with this view of the child?

First and foremost, it begins with the view that the child was fearfully and wonderfully made, knit together by God in the womb (Ps.139). Every child (every student) is preciously made by God and has rich and inherent value. Second, it means that every child (every student) is an eternal being who will live forever.  

Pause and re-read those two presuppositions. 

Teachers are working with God's precious handiwork, and the work of education has eternal impact. It is no wonder that James warned that "not many of you should be teachers" (3:1). Wow, what a high calling!

Christian educators ... Do you have this perspective of the children who enter your classroom? Do you understand how God views each of your students? Do you also understand the eternal impact you have?

Unfortunately, many teachers, even Christian ones who affirm Heidelberg Catechism #1, teach from a view of the student that aligns closer to the student being owned by the state, the parents, or self. This misalignment does not lead to flourishing students. 

In order for Christian education to lead to flourishing, it must begin with a Christian view of the child and a Christian philosophy of education.

Club Sports: A Cautionary Tale

Last month The Gospel Coalition published an article cautioning parents about club sports (Zylstra and Douma, 2024). If you haven't read that article (linked above), I strongly recommend it; two statements struck me, and they have been spinning around in my head ... leading to this blog.  

The first was the statement that club sports is a $20 billion industry, which is more revenue than the NFL or the NBA. Club sports is clearly becoming an idol of our time ... see Christ's words in Matthew 6:21: "Where your treasure is, there will be your heart also." The second comment that was left rattling around in my brain was when the author mentioned the "theology of club sports." Theology is the "study of God," so how can we have a "theology of club sports"? However, if you believe (as I do) that God created all things and is sovereign over "every square inch" of His creation, then you can have a theology of all things. 

While a lot of articles are cited in this blog, much of this comes from parenting and coaching my own children. I wouldn't call myself a "club sports parent," but a couple of my children participated in that world for a time, and my daughter went on to play college soccer. 

Let me start with the positives of club sports ...

• Skill Development from Professional Coaches -- Many club coaches are full-time coaches ... that is their job, and when they are not actively coaching a team, they are learning how to coach better. Many club coaches, also, have advanced coaching certifications and trainings to provide the expert coaching needed to develop young athletes. This is different than high school or recreational coaches who most often have full-time jobs elsewhere.
• Active Community -- In our digital age, young people are more isolated and sedentary than ever. Club sports provide an active and social community. Logically, young people want to hang out with others with like interests, and it is ideal if that interest also gets them physically moving ... club sports facilitates this.
• Opportunity to Play -- Many high school students who have enjoyed playing a sport growing up attend high schools where they are not athletically skilled enough to make the team, even though they love to play the sport. Clubs provide the opportunity to continue to play that sport through high school.

The Cautions

While club sports have some benefits, the concerns far outweigh (in both quantity and intensity) the benefits. Parents ... be cautious if you step into club sports.

Check the Time

Our value system is often aligned with where we spend our time. One of the greatest concerns of club sports is the amount of time that is required. Many clubs require a year-round commitment with tournaments happening on weekends. One family in Texas stated that their baseball club had tournaments on 45 weekends a year with 167 games per year, more than a MLB regular season (Smith), and another survey showed that families spend an average of 12 hours a week on club sports (Flanagan, 2022). Due to the fact that most club athletes are under the age of 16, parents take on the same hours as the club athlete as chauffeurs. 

Most clubs demand that they be the priority in a families' schedule. Families are captive to the club schedule or practicing when the court, field, or ice is available and when (and where) games are scheduled. If the club schedule conflicts with family meals, school athletics, or church activities, the club comes first.

Sadly (and sinfully), this has greatly impacted Sunday. Christians set aside one day a week (typically Sunday) for rest and worship, thus, keeping the fourth commandment (Exodus 20:8). With the rise of club sports, Christian families have selected club over church. If CS Lewis was still writing the Screwtape Letters, I can imagine him dedicating a chapter on club sports. I can almost hear Screwtape instructing Wormwood to encourage Christian families to join club sports ... just to stop them from attending church. Well, it is working. 

If you are a Christian, look for a club that won't penalize you for missing a soccer game because of church. There are clubs out there ... we found one. If more Christian parents held to that standard, maybe we'd have fewer club tournaments playing on Sunday.

We all have a limited amount of time each week, so be cautious about what is being sacrificed for club sports? Club sports can feel quite "urgent" but it rarely is the most "important" thing ... be careful to avoid the "tyranny of the urgent."

Take a Physical Exam

Physical health of the young athlete is another concern of club sports. Club sports leads to sport specialization (i.e. an athlete only plays 1 sport), and sport specialization leads to overuse injuries. Who do you think plays more games in a year ... a professional athlete in the best physical shape of his life, or a 13 year old boy playing club who is still physically developing? Yep, it's the 13 year old boy. In addition to the sheer number of games played; most club teams play multiple games per day. Again. elite, professional athletes don't even do that because they know it is not good for their physical health and for the added risk of injury. Multiple games a day is a staple in club sports.

According to a study in Sports Health (2013), early specialization is correlated to increased exposure, which is the most important risk factor for injury. The more an athlete trains in a specific sport, the greater risk of injury. The study concludes that specialization should be delayed until late adolescence.

The most famous overuse injury is the elbow in baseball pitching, resulting in Tommy John surgery. From 1974 (the year Tommy John had the surgery) to 2003, fewer than 10 pitchers under the age of 21 had the surgery; by 2017, over 80 of these surgeries were being performed on the same age group each year (Streeter, 2023), and in 2018, over 50% of the Tommy John surgeries were being performed on athletes between 15-19 years old. This is a frightening trend. In fact, Tommy John himself is speaking against specializing too early in baseball and in all sports (Lief, 2018).

Overuse injuries can manifest themselves in relatively minor stress fractures and in major injuries like ACL tears. When children (especially before late adolescence) specialize in one sport, they greatly increase the risk of these injuries. However, children who play multiple sports, utilize different muscle groups and thus reduce the risk of overuse injuries.

Examine the physical toll before jumping fully into club sports.

Count the Cost

Not only is club sports a $20 billion industry, parents also spend $30 billion on participation, including registration fees, equipment, and travel (2022). In a mostly unregulated industry, where revenue is directly correlated to player participation (i.e. the coach makes more if he/she has more players on the roster), the temptation exists to view every player as a commodity. Unfortunately, players (and their parents) are viewed as dollars to be chased rather than humans to be developed. Be cautious!

One of the lies being told to parents by club coaches is around college scholarships. "You need to play club sports to get a college scholarship," or more specifically, "You need to play for me (or my club team) to get a college scholarship." 

There are a number of problems with this statement. First, quite simply, it is not true. There are many college athletes who did not participate in club sports and were still recruited by college coaches. Second, there is not a direct and guaranteed path from club sports to college athletic scholarships. Being a part of a club does not correlate with playing college athletics. College athletics (and the scholarships that are used as the carrot) depend on many things, including natural skill level and remaining injury free. Third, the amount that athletes receive as a scholarship (if they receive anything at all) pales in comparison to the amount spent on club sports. However, parents believe the lie with over 40% of club parents hoping for a college scholarship that would cover over half of tuition (2017). The numbers just don't add up. In fact, if parents put the money that they would spend on club sports into a savings account (even at today's low interest rates), they would have more accumulated than what they would get for a college scholarship. Actually, the ROI of time/money spent on academics and getting an academic scholarship is a much stronger correlation. 

Let's look at the numbers ...

Club parents pay (depending on the sport) an average of $100 - $500 per month with 20% stating that they spend $1000/month. In addition, the average amount spent on a weekend travel tournament (gas, food, hotels) is about $900. 

Annual expenses per sport ...

• Baseball -- $3700 per year
• Softball -- $3000
• Basketball -- $5000
• Soccer -- $3000

(2017)

Look at the expense of club sports and consider these facts. 

• 7% of high school athletes continue to play at the college level (less than 2% play at the NCAA D-1 level) (Varsity Odds). 
• Only 1.3% of high school athletes get a college scholarship for athletics (2021). 
• Most athletic scholarships are around $5,000 with NAIA averaging around $7,000 (2023).

Count the cost! Is it all worth it?

As I mentioned earlier, I had two children participate in club soccer. While we didn't always make the right decisions as parents, we tried to maintain a positive balance of time, money, and what is best for our faith, our child, and our family. We also participated in recreational (e.g. YMCA) sports that only played games on Saturday. Both club and rec sports provided opportunities to play, sport-specific training, and player development. My daughter quit club soccer when she was a sophomore to focus on her high school soccer team (where she won a state championship), and she went on to play college soccer. My son did not have as positive of a club experience and quit in middle school, but he went on to play four years of high school varsity soccer.  

I'm sure some parents will respond with many more positive reasons to play club sports, but my advice is to be cautious with club sports. 

Becoming Well-Lopsided

On the path to an educated populace, our educational system is structured to produce well-rounded students. Most states require every high school student to complete 4 years of English, 4 years of Math, 3 years of History, and 3 years of Science, so that all students are well-rounded with a base knowledge. Being properly round is important in balls (imagine playing a basketball game with a lopsided ball), but is being lopsided bad for humans?  

Becoming lopsided means that at some point, a student focuses on one or two areas to become an expert ... leaving behind the pursuit of well-roundedness to become lopsided. This is a natural and important progression in education ... students eventually select a major in college, become an apprentice in a trade, or enroll in vocational training to become an expert at something. This is important because the world needs experts.

Beginning Well-Rounded

Just like a lopsided ball begins round, lopsided students must begin well-rounded. It is vital to have a curriculum that is "broad as life itself" (Comenius) to expose students to a variety of subjects, stretch their brains in under-developed areas, and achieve a common knowledge base for all students. Having a solid core curriculum that encourages well-rounded students must be in place before encouraging students to become "lopsided."

Specialty schools (e.g. STEM or Arts schools) have failed students because they are trying to become lopsided without beginning well-rounded. A STEM-dominated curriculum may produce knowledgeable scientists without the soft skills, creativity, and emotional intelligence developed in the humanities and fine arts classes. An arts-dominated curriculum may produce creative artisans without the critical thinking and problem solving skills honed in STEM classes. Students need to begin well-rounded in order to be effective teammates, co-workers, and leaders, even in a specialized industry.

The Well-Lopsided Body of Christ

However, it is still vital to become well-lopsided. We want our well-rounded students to begin (probably in high school) to push out in certain areas in which they have gifts, talents, and interests, making them more lopsided. This involves identifying their gifts and working on those gifts until they become strengths ... this does take work. In order to be an expert at something, you need to spend 10,000 hours working on that skill (Gladwell, 1993). So, once students identify their talents, they need to be developing (not burying) them to become an expert.

This aligns with the body of Christ imagery in the Bible (I Cor. 12:27ff). God has given each of us specific gifts and talents, intending us to use those gifts to benefit the body (and ultimately to bring glory to Christ, the head). We are each uniquely gifted (each a different part of the body), and the whole body suffers if we do not develop and use those gifts. We should not try to act like another part of the body; God has gifted another person to fulfill that role. God wants us to be lopsided, fully developing our part of the body.

A well-rounded person can be tempted towards complete independence, self-reliant to a fault. In contrast, the body of Christ is interdependent ... you need to depend on fully developed (lopsided) others, and others need to depend on a fully developed (lopsided) you.

Keep encouraging your well-rounded students to become well-lopsided.