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Wilderness Times | Winter 2018
FACULTY IN FOCUS SPORT When you think of sport what comes to mind? Is it that junior premiership way back when, or maybe those chilly early starts on a Saturday morning in winter? In any case, sport represents many different things to all of us, but here at Wilderness it represents learning that matters. Sport shouldn’t be thought of purely as an accessory to girls’ education, but rather a must. We believe it is a place where the residuals of a Wilderness girl are not only challenged, but also developed over her journey. Our academic literacies are integral, but physical literacy and the lessons learnt through it, are often missed by many. It is crucial that our girls understand how their involvement in sport will impact on much of what they do. For high school girls, both physical activity and participating in sport correlate with higher academic performance (Barr-Anderson & Wall, 2010). This research is not necessarily groundbreaking but is a friendly reminder of how integral physical activity is. Academic performance is what our girls are striving for, but is it everything? What about those residuals we hope to equip them with as they leave our gates? Resilience, adaptability, and flexibility are examples of a few. These words are common language among teachers, but when we use these terms in context within the sports department, we talk about GRIT. Researcher Angela Duckworth (2018) explains that grit can be related to how much you can inspire yourself, access your passion, and sustain
your motivation. But, why does grit matter? One way to think about grit is to consider what grit isn’t. Duckworth (2018) describes that grit isn’t talent, it isn’t luck, it isn’t how intensely in the moment you want something, but rather it is about having a goal you care about so much that it organises and gives meaning to almost everything you do. So how do we develop grit? Part of it lies in failure. Girls need to truly extend themselves and branch out of their comfort zones to reach their full potential. However, the key for our girls is to understand that their ability to learn is not fixed and that they are not defined by their failures, but rather how they respond to them. Research Psychologist, Carol Dweck (2015), states that the ability to learn can change with effort and that the brain adapts and grows in response to challenges. Researchers identify this as neuroplasticity. Hotting & Roder (2013) suggest physical exercise may be one such trigger that facilitates the connections between new and existing neurons, enhancing a student’s ability to respond to new demands. In essence, exercise changes the brain’s anatomy, physiology and function when challenged. Our sports program is built on diversification and a belief that all girls have the right to participate in sport and are encouraged to play. Exercise is a powerful medium. Dr Wendy Suzuki, Professor of Neural Science, details the immediate response of exercise including: increased mood, energy, memory and