People argue that competitive sports should not be paired with academics. Because students can receive benefits for their engagement in health and mental discipline from competitive sports, I disagree with this argument.
People have a good association between exercise and health; thus, many of them spend money and time on exercise despite their busy schedules. Here is the fact: sports are exercise as well. But normal exercise is not enough to persuade students’ interest in health, so putting competitive sports in the school curriculum is a good way to encourage students to engage in a healthy lifestyle more than simple exercises. Running, for instance, helps students with their cardiovascular health and improves their stamina as well as their engagement in exercise since it is competitive.
Although sports and academics seem to be unrelated, their primary purposes are the same. School gives students lectures and homework in order to build discipline for the real world. Similarly, sports give students goals and training with the goal of building the same. Furthermore, the competitive nature of sports makes students put more work into their respective sports training. This allows students to grow in emotional maturity and discipline, which is extremely important in real life. Since discipline is a core purpose of school, helping students to build it is fulfilling that purpose.
In conclusion, competitive sports in the school curriculum are not only a good way to make students interested in a healthy lifestyle but also help with their personal growth, such as discipline.