Discussion Reflection

One reason why we chose this issue was because it was something that was different and not commonly talked about in the discussion of sport and education. Carmen and I first wanted to explore the issues around academic fraud and student integrity however, after researching this topic we found that it was very commonly discussed and we wanted to find something that was a little different. We then decided to focus on the draft requirements for the BIG 3 and the issues it has within collegiate sport. I personally had some familiarization with draft rules mainly within MLB and knew that there were drafts for the NBA and Combines for football but never knew in detail what the requirements were. Which in this case the topic became very foreign to me. It was interesting to find out that the draft requirements strongly imply that getting a college education and or just going to college is the only way to get drafted. Which then in turn makes most BCS and elite basketball schools farm teams for professional sports organizations.

Prior to the experience of facilitation I thought that Carmen and I spent an abundant amount of time research and reading articles to make sure we were fully prepared for the discussion. Going into the discussion of course, I was nervous and worrying about if we covered everything prior to make sure we weren’t hit with any questions we couldn’t answer.  I think because this topic was very different and out of some student’s realms, it made it a bit difficult to start the conversation once we opened into our large circle.  But as the conversation started to flow and take off it was much easier to sit back and listen and take notes.  I think one element that was hard was making sure we were staying on track. At times I think we went a little off course and drifted away from our scenario topic. However at times it was ok because we understood that we did not have a lecture before this class some of the other topics that are around sport and education would arise and in which lead into some of our discussion questions. In the future, I would suggest making sure we are spending our time discussing on the topic at hand and being aware of our time. I think that it helped when Killick was there at the end of class to capture and summarize those main points that we have missed.

During the discussion I thought Carmen and I did a good job of planning small group activities at the beginning and end of the lesson. I think the small groups help the students feel more comfortable discussing what they researched and be able to share ideas and thoughts others may bring up more intimately. So when they join as an entire class students have support from their group and have received maybe a different side of thinking already. I think one thing that helped Carmen and I during the discussion process was how much we met and discussed our topic. We became very familiar with our topic and made sure we planned a quality lesson for our students. And because of that we were able to push the class more diligently and have them think more critically about the social problems that exist within the collegiate sport complex.

One thing I want to do is thank Carmen for pushing me to think more critically. It was very difficult for me just being a recently retired athlete to see and understand all the issues that arise with playing an elite sport. And to think critically about this certain issue as an former athlete was very mind blowing. As I was trying to take everything in from the discussion and digest all the information, I was glad Carmen was by my side to help facilitate the discussion.