Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy Sports vs. Academics

Ah, no. Not rambling. Thinking out loud, maybe. That's good.

I love the idea of getting a sportswriter to write the article. Great idea! Nice twist.

Shall I put on my old writing tutor's hat and ask you questions? That's my usual M.O. for this sort of project.

What is your goal here? What do you want to accomplish and why?

What's you're point? What do you want to say to the reader?

What connection/contrast are you trying to make between sports and academics? Why? How will that advance your argument?

I could go on, but maybe we should start there?

We can also move this to a PM if you'd prefer. Just let me know how I can help.

That is funny and so true what you said about a nerd at 40. My son and I recently had dinner with my husband and his new boss, a 36 year old woman, who I think has to be a former gifted kid or nerd. In addition to her job in management, she teaches violin and plays 4 or 5 other instruments, looks forward to attending the medieval fair every year, and loves to read and learn new things. She uses a higher level vocabulary in her speech than most people around here. I wanted to ask her about her school experiences because she is obviously very bright, if not gifted, but I didn't get the chance.

I want to be in on the conversation too! I'd like to hear what you have to say about it.

Okay, hopping over from the other thread... I think my comment is a bit tangential to your idea Questions, because I think your focus is on academic achievement, not necessary ability. I had alluded to perceived elitism as a barrier for special programs for gifted kids. I don't agree that it's not socially acceptable to be "smart". I think it's just the opposite. Perhaps there's a semantic difference here: I'm not talking nerdy, prodigious in an area, even high academic achievement - I'm talking overall raw intelligence. Smart as in: I'd like you to meet my friend Steve. He's really cute, considerate, and extremely *smart*. As in: My baby will watch this video and grow up to be a genius (smart). How do you get around the idea that some people see special programs for smart kids the same way as they might see special programs for good-looking kids? Of course I may be way off in my perception...

Like Mia, I'm really looking forward to this conversation; please don't hide it away in PMs if at all possible! With questions' intuitions and Kriston's questions, I think we could make some really good progress.

Let me take a crack at Kriston's first set of questions:


I can imagine two different types of goal. The first is to change the image of smart kids - or smartness in general. There is a long tradition of accusations of anti-intellectualism in American culture (Richard Hofstadter's book "Anti-Intellectualism in American Life" is a locus classicus), and whether these accusations are ultimately supportable or not there's certainly a reason they occur so regularly. What this anti-intellectualism is precisely, whether it takes a peculiar form in American culture, and what if anything should be done about it are all hard questions. But at any rate it seems clear that an analogous accusation of anti-athleticism in American culture would seem ludicrous on the face of it. Exploring this contrast might be interesting. The hope would be to begin a conversation that brings the stereotype of the smart kid under attack.

A second possible goal is more concrete. Get the Gates Foundation to lobby for federal legislative reforms that require public schools to treat gifted education on the model of special education. I assume that this is something that Davidson is already committed to, maybe even focused on, but the money and prestige of the Gates Foundation could bring a lot of attention to the issue. This goal is only tangential to the discussion of academics and sports, but if we are storming the Gates then it seems like a reasonable issue to focus on.

I'm just throwing ideas around here, in the spirit of brainstorming. But I think this is a truly exciting area to be thinking about.

BB

I don't have time at the moment to respond more than to say, I'm so happy to hear from someone named BaseballDad!

I'll figure out what I'm looking for as we go along.

BTW, my contacts are in the sports world, not Bill Gates, LOL! (which is not to say I'd be afraid to approach him...)

It's a big playing field. Plenty of room for all the heavy hitters!

(Could I come up with more lame sports metaphors? No, I'll stop for now...)

Thanks, Q. I really do think this is a terrific issue - thanks for bringing it up. As it happens I was a competitive athlete through college too, and I continue to have a pretty close personal connection with both college and professional athletics. But the baseball in BaseballDad belongs to my DS4!

BB

BB -- That's *exactly* what I was thinking, in regards to Bill Gates. I wonder if that's worth pursuing? Hmm ... interesting.

I'm honestly not sure what can be done about the anti-intellectualism -- but I'm happy to discuss and see what others think.