Concussions In Physical Education

One major issue in sports and society today is concussions; between 2009 and 2015, all 50 states and the District of Columbia passed laws to address traumatic brain injury. The issue of concussions is a never-ending controversy, there has been much done throughout the nation in state legislatures, and everyone ranging for the National Football League (NFL) to Pee Wee football is involved. The problem began in 2010 when lawsuits against the National Football League started to come about and the issue has yet to be solved. 40,000 former football players have filed lawsuits alleging that the National Football League failed to protect them from long term health consequences of concussions (Nordqvist, 2016). “The Silent Epidemic” is a phrase that …show more content…
In terms of participating in physical education, students that experience concussions are unable to take part in activity for a span of time. Since they are unable to participate in class activities they miss out on the motor skills that are being taught during that unit. When it comes to the teaching of physical education it becomes difficult to educate students if they are unable to participate in important activities in class. Without being able to participate the students miss out on important content and it makes it difficult for the teacher to inform the students of the vital …show more content…
I have been playing tackle football, in the running back position, for the last 12 years and have taken many hard hits and slaps to the head. The position that I play gets hit and tackled more than any other position on the field. Because of this, and all the trauma that I have had to my head, it could greatly affect me in the future and when I get older. Along with this, throughout my years of playing, the protocols and the process to allow athletes to return to play have become stricter due to all the research that has been done to prove the severity of the issue. In the beginning of the year we are required to take a baseline Impact test. In case of concussion this baseline test is compared to with a new test taken post-. concussion to conclude whether the athlete is ready to return to play or not. Because this topic is such a relevant part of my life it interests me to learn more about it, therefore I chose it. Since the possible effects have been brought to my attention, my opinion and thoughts on concussions have changed. I never really thought anything of being hit in the head before I heard what it could mean to me in the future. I believe that this is something that needs to be brought to people’s attention and people need to start being more careful when it comes to head trauma. Because of this knowledge, in the future, my teaching will be affected. I will use this information to inform the students of the possible