Jett Russell, Athletic Director, on the importance of inclusion in sport and his tips for keeping active during lockdown.
We’re in another lockdown and – yet again – our young people face the challenge of trying to remain active while staying home as much as possible.
Athletic Director, Jett Russell, reflects on what we've learned from lockdown and has some practical tips to inspire your children to keep moving.
There has been a lot of disruption to education, especially to physical activity since the Covid pandemic hit the world last spring.
In some cases teachers only needed to amend previous programmes, while others have needed a complete re-invention, and there has been a steep learning curve in providing online lessons and activities to get students engaged. However, the biggest victim has undoubtedly been the disruption to both PE and competitive sports. There has probably never been a period when so few sports fixtures have occurred any other time this century!
The absence of regular matches and competitions has, however, enabled us to reflect on a number of areas. These have included the very nature of competitive sports and how this can be great for some but is not conducive to all, with inclusion being a big part of future plans. But what is beyond dispute is that it has revealed how significant sports and physical education are to the wellbeing of students and the culture of our schools.
Regular team sports and competition provide a focus for learning and preparation, as well as teamwork and resilience. The atmosphere around matches and the excitement of competition have all been shown – through their absence – to be central to the culture of many schools, allowing for school spirit to shine.
There is, however, more to physical activity than tournaments. It is clear that competition will only ever engage a proportion of our students, and that high quality alternatives must also be part of every programme, alongside a vibrant culture of health and fitness.
ACS Hillingdon, along with its sister schools, has been working to put together a robust programme of activities to allow students to still participate in physical activity and receive feedback and encouragement. Thinking creatively has been essential to motivating students and getting them to participate.
Get active at home – top tips
Schools have had to interrupt their regular competitions, and will inevitably question whether all of its features should return. It wasn’t perfect, and they sometimes dominated attention and resources. What has been proven beyond reasonable doubt, however, is that sport is a vital part of education for many students. It is something that provides a focus for effort and improvement, excitement, a social bonding like no other and lifelong memories.