http://www.indystar.com/print/frontpage/fri/articles/dodge26.html Dodgeball no hit with those saying it teaches wrong things Supporters bemoan banning of game they see as helpful. By Bill McCleery Indianapolis Star October 26, 2001 Dodgeball, a gym class tradition defended by some as a metaphor for real life but decried by others as too aggressive, is falling from favor in many Indiana schools. Administrators and teachers link the attack-and-evade game to a multitude of sins, saying it promotes aggression, discriminates against small and uncoordinated youngsters and causes injuries. And by forcing students to take a seat as soon as they're hit by a ball, it fails to help students achieve physical education standards as effectively as other activities. Supporters say the game is harmless and helps children learn coordination and agility. They characterize opponents as politically correct meddlers who want a touchy-feely gym class that caters to the weak and meek. "Some of these educational things that come out of the East Coast, talking about how it's dangerous to teach kids to hit human targets and so on -- they must be written by the people who used to get hit and weren't very good at it," said Rod Dorsey, head of physical education at Custer Baker Middle School in Franklin. Although the Indiana Department of Education has taken no stand, some teachers and administrators have banned the game. And the department's top consultant on health and physical education is opposed to dodgeball. "I tell educators who ask my advice: The use of human targets is inappropriate in the school setting," said Suzanne Crouch, who advises schools statewide about health and physical education curriculum. "In every class, there always will be the picked-on students," Crouch said. "And when teachers say, 'OK, today we're going to play dodgeball,' they just cringe. And you also always have one or two bullies, who are big and strong, and they will just knock the legs out from under the other kids." At Greenwood Middle School, no such bullies were in evidence at a recent game. Students played with gusto, and most said they liked it. Courtney Wilson, 13, said the game is fun, and her teacher, Cindy Jones, makes sure it stays that way. Jones imposes penalties on players who use excessive force. "There is a danger in any activity that you do, but I don't believe that it's abusive to the kids," said Jones, who heads the school's physical education department. "A lot of it has to do with your classroom management -- how much you're in control." The game helps students develop skills, she added. "It requires the kids to be able to dodge the ball, which tests their agility. One of the state's P.E. standards is to be able to throw at an object. Obviously, it helps teach that objective," Jones said. Not all educators agree. In dodgeball, the first students out of the game are those who are slow, overweight or uncoordinated -- the ones who need exercise the most, said Anne Marie Walker, who teaches physical education at North Elementary in Danville. "I don't feel dodgeball is appropriate," she said. "It's really a way to fill the time. I don't see that it teaches anything. It reinforces the stereotype of old-style P.E. class. It's all about competition and elimination." Some national experts share these concerns. "Schools need to do activities where all the children can participate without any fear of physical violence," said Neil Williams, chairman of Eastern Connecticut State University's health and physical education department. "Dodgeball is a nasty game where the object is to hit somebody in the head as hard as you can." wtf???? Dorsey of Custer Baker Middle School takes exception to the argument that it's bad to separate the strong from the weak, characterizing such a stance as unrealistic. "If we teach kids that nobody loses, that there are no winners, we're not preparing them for life," he said. But Dorsey's students don't play dodgeball. Custer Baker Principal Pamela Millikan won't allow it. "I find it counterproductive to what we're trying to tell kids in school. Kids get really excited about it, and they aim to hit hard. To me, that runs counter to teaching respect, kindness and treating each other tolerantly," Millikan said. Williams disputes the notion that criticism of dodgeball amounts to mere political correctness. "It's a social sensibility movement. That is: Why should we send kids to school to learn anti-social and negative behaviors at a time when clearly the world around us is in turmoil?" Many parents see nothing wrong with a game that's been around for years. "We always had fun playing it as kids," said Kevin Porter, 37, of Greenwood. "I think as long as you keep an eye on it, it's OK." Porter's daughter Leah, 7, who has played at school, said she hasn't seen overly aggressive behavior from dodgeball. "People get mad when they get into arguments more than when they play dodgeball." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Staff writers Alisa Mabry, Lisa Renze-Rhodes and Maria Flora contributed to this story. Contact Bill McCleery at 1-317-865-4907 or via e-mail at bill.mccleery@indystar.com
Well...DUH!! If they weren't slow, overweight, or uncoordinated, then they would have more fun. The whole point of P.E. is to teach kids to stay active and physically fit. I'm sorry, but there are WAY too many fat and lazy kids these days. Blame it on genetics if you want, but I blame the fact that kids aren't as active as they used to be. Too much junk food and too much sitting around the house playing video games. If you want the students to learn kindness, respect, and political correctness, give 'em a friggin' business ethics class. If you want them to have fun, play dodgeball!
If it were not for Larry Bird playing a lot of Dodgeball as a kid, he would never have instinctively beamed an overhand throw straight at Bill Laimbeer's face from 10 feet away...that bully had no chance. And all the slow, overweight, uncoordinated kids would have no Dodgeball hero to live vicariously through for taking out a bully.
They took dodge ball out of Middle school. That is a little bit more understanding, since our gym classes were mixed. The 8th graders could beat the 6th graders to a pulp (there is a consirable strenght/body difference) It reason was pretty funny. The typical overweight nerd was standing in the back corner talking with his nerdy friends. A powerhitter threw the ball across the gym, hit his head and slamed his face against the wall. Poor Tim. As for elementry, it made no difference. Ahhh that game was fun. America and its pussification ways.
What was that game were you throw the ball off the wall, , if someone doesn't catch it on the rebound, they have to touch the wall before someone throws the ball at the wall and hits it. If you don't make it to the wall before the ball then everyone gets to beam you in the ass with the ball. Now that was fun. What was that game? Also, Friday was flip up day. What the hell were the other four days of the week? I can't remember.
PSJ... I remember that game, too. I think it was called "Butts Up"... You'd throw a handball or tennis ball (instead of a dodgeball) against a brick wall. If someone caught it right from the wall, you had to go and stand face first against the wall. The person who caught it would throw (supposedly at your butt... often at your head *ouch*, back, or legs). If they fumbled it, they had to run to the wall and touch before someone else hit them. That game left lots of marks and, as I remember, was the source of many fistfights...
What is next are they going to get rid of football becasue Its too violent and does not teach children real life lessons. Here is a lesson I learned from dodge ball. Always stay on your toes, be on the lookout. you have to think to play dodge ball, especially if you are slow fat and lack cordination (me me me). Plus you never know when in a dark alley you may need to pelt a would be attacker with something like a dogeball that was just laying around. I tell you what if all the guns in the world were replaced with dodge balls the world would be a better place. And a lot more fun.
Yeah, Wallball. I remember it being played that if you touched the ball (or the ball touched you) but you did not catch it, you had to run to the wall. while you were running to the wall, people were allowed to bean you with the ball. That **** hurt!
...and there always some zealous idiot kid in the bunch whose goal was to blast everyone in the face, rather than anyplace else....
When I read the title, I thought EXACTLY what the gym teacher thought -- this was probably thought up by a bunch of pansies who sucked at dodgeball as children, and since they're now adult pansies, they want to get back at all the people who pegged them when they were little. These are the losers who want to remove competition from every event because it stifles those who lose. Why? BECAUSE THEY WERE (and still are) THE LOSERS!!
When I played this game we had a slight variation. Instead of beaning the dude after he didn't get to the wall in time once, he'd accumulate a strike. After 3 strikes, the dude had to stand back against the wall arms and legs spread out and the person that got the 3rd strike got a free throw at him. He could throw the ball at him anywhere, and as hard as he wanted to, I guess there was an unwritten law to stay away from the face and the package since I don't remember anyone getting seriously hurt...
Dodgeball ruled as a kid. In fifth grade we used to play a version called Greek Dodge which was played in a circle with the targets in the middle. Multiple balls coming from every side! We used those red rubbery playground balls though. In middle school we played the classic half-court game in the gym with volleyballs. Man how an hour could fly when doing that! The sound of those balls ricocheting off the bleachers was music.
I was good at dodgeball so I enjoyed it as a kid. But I have heard plenty of complaints, especially from women who look back at it as a cruel game. Given most people just standed around it probably wasn't much exercise for the masses. I have no problem with banning it in favor of soccer of basketball or ultimate, etc. I just hated it when we didn't play sports during PE.
What the hell is this? Dodge ball kicks ass. I remember being slow and overweight (although coordinated) and still loving that game (I"m not sure what version everyone else plays but we played Pin Dodge Ball where you had 3 bowling pins set up on each side and the game ended when all 3 pins had been knocked over). I don't think we ever played the game in middle school or beyond, but in elementary school that was easily everybody's favorite game. The 4th grade vs. 5th grade dodgeball game was practically the highlight of the entire year. I remember our 4th grade year we became one of the few 4th grade classes ever to win a game and in our 5th grade year we whooped 4th grade 8 games to 0. What can I say, we were awesome.
When I was a kid, we called had a different name for wallball: "spread-eagle" (for obvious reasons). As for dodgeball, I always liked it even though I was bad at it. The thing is, the people who didn't like dodgeball also didn't like kickball, softball, basketball, street hockey, or any other game you can conceive for a gaggle of children.
I played the 4 pin version of dodge ball in middle school and loved it, alot more than I enjoyed jogging around the field or square dancing. Obviously you're going to have those who are gonna suck, but it's not like there aren't ways to minimize people from getting hurt. For example, in the version we played, if the person caught the ball, the thrower was out. Also, if the thrower hit someone in the face, he was out. That kept the real competitors from aiming for someone's grill and the bullies (who were usually losers as well) were usually out pretty quickly. Of course there's not much you can do if the coach is out smoking in the teacher's lounge or hitting on the student teachers. Then again, when the coach used to leave my PE group unsupervised, I was more worried about getting hit in the face by an 8th grader's fist than by a dodge ball. Like any activity, dodge ball just needs proper supervision.
I have a lot of fond memories from playing dodgeball throughout my youth. I would hate to see those opportunities taken away from others. I especially loved the face offs that would arise during a game. When you'd have a ball, your opponent would have a ball, no one was around for 20 feet and somehow they would always end with both players going airborne. Good times.
