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Yes, I liked this article and it's very accurate. One of the classes I teach over here (US military and civ kids) is Career Pathways for 8th graders. So many of these kids are headed to the NBA, MLB, and NFL that our little overseas American school is surely to have more pro athletes than any other school in history.......if you believe the kids. We don't squash dreams in the class, but this thinking is so rampant that we added a week-long section geared towards the athletes. We show 'Hoop Dreams', pass out the stats of 'making it', and really try to get the kids to start thinking more realistically.
Most of these kids have spent / will spend much of their lives moving around overseas and it's very, very difficult for them to go up against the competition and get the reps necessary for the next level. Baseball is somewhat of an exception where I am (Korea) because the Koreans turn out some of the best young ballplayers you'll find anywhere and my son has grown up pitching against them. But our HS football team has exactly TWO opponent teams, plays a four-game schedule....and yet you'll have guys who aren't even starting on this little team who are sure they'll get a scholly somewhere.
In the 12 years I've been following American Overseas school baseball, worldwide, there have been exactly five players who have played beyond high school......one went to a small school in Michigan and seems never to have played and dropped off the roster altogether after freshman year. Another kid tried to walk on at Hawaii and was never heard from again. One went to Pacific Lutheran and picthed maybe five innings total over his four years on the team. The best of the bunch has been Mike Goodman who is currently doing quite well at UNLV. And lastly, there's my son who will try his hand on the mound at Trinity.
I don't think that athletes are the only ones who are often unrealistic in their chances, though. I woudl guess there are millions of girls who will be America's Next Top Model....the next Hollywood star, the next American Idol. In fact there's a girl at our school who is very, very impressed with herself as a singer.....and yet she didn't even place in our tiny little Talent Show held a couple weeks ago. There are wake-up alarms ringing all over the place.
I just think that nowadays there's almost this sense of entitlement; that becoming a star is the only valid pursuit, be it in sports or entertainment, and that the world 'owes' one stardom.
That's my super-long-winded take on it, anyway -- here at 1:47am KST (awaiting the start of a ballgame webcast before throwing in a Seinfeld DVD and trying to get some more sleep!)
Most of these kids have spent / will spend much of their lives moving around overseas and it's very, very difficult for them to go up against the competition and get the reps necessary for the next level. Baseball is somewhat of an exception where I am (Korea) because the Koreans turn out some of the best young ballplayers you'll find anywhere and my son has grown up pitching against them. But our HS football team has exactly TWO opponent teams, plays a four-game schedule....and yet you'll have guys who aren't even starting on this little team who are sure they'll get a scholly somewhere.
In the 12 years I've been following American Overseas school baseball, worldwide, there have been exactly five players who have played beyond high school......one went to a small school in Michigan and seems never to have played and dropped off the roster altogether after freshman year. Another kid tried to walk on at Hawaii and was never heard from again. One went to Pacific Lutheran and picthed maybe five innings total over his four years on the team. The best of the bunch has been Mike Goodman who is currently doing quite well at UNLV. And lastly, there's my son who will try his hand on the mound at Trinity.
I don't think that athletes are the only ones who are often unrealistic in their chances, though. I woudl guess there are millions of girls who will be America's Next Top Model....the next Hollywood star, the next American Idol. In fact there's a girl at our school who is very, very impressed with herself as a singer.....and yet she didn't even place in our tiny little Talent Show held a couple weeks ago. There are wake-up alarms ringing all over the place.
I just think that nowadays there's almost this sense of entitlement; that becoming a star is the only valid pursuit, be it in sports or entertainment, and that the world 'owes' one stardom.
That's my super-long-winded take on it, anyway -- here at 1:47am KST (awaiting the start of a ballgame webcast before throwing in a Seinfeld DVD and trying to get some more sleep!)
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KST?
Is that anything like?
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KST?
Is that anything like?
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