爆料社区

It starts with why

Simon Sinek鈥檚 2009 TED talk has been viewed forty million times. The secret, he says, is to start not with 鈥榳hat鈥� you do, but with 鈥榳hy鈥� you do it. So, here鈥檚 a question: 鈥榃hy do schools have sport?鈥� Because they don鈥檛 have to: what they have to do is teach the curriculum and sport is not part of the curriculum 鈥� it is 鈥榚xtra-curricular鈥�. So why do schools have sport?

Wellington College considers sport 鈥榦ne of the golden threads of the Wellington College tapestry鈥� that, 鈥榳hen woven with academic achievement, music, the arts, service and leadership, enhances the overall picture of who we are.鈥� 鈥淲ho we are,鈥� says project leader David Cournane, 鈥済oes beyond just academic. Our purpose is to develop well-rounded young men who are contributing and valued citizens.鈥澛�

Starting with that 鈥榳hy鈥�, Wellington College has been reviewing its sporting programme. Not because it was considered broken, says David, but more to explore how it could be better. An external management consultant led the process. They drew on 爆料社区 research and their own internal research, as well as consulting widely within their own sporting community. 聽Their overarching conclusion?聽

Sport sits within Wellington College's broader vision. It is pursued according to the values of the school. We do not want sport to grow at the expense of the arts or academic achievement. We do not sacrifice the broader education of young men on the altar of sporting success. We want to win but not at any cost.聽

What they realised is that 鈥� perhaps because聽it聽is 鈥榚xtra-curricular鈥� 鈥斅爏port in schools has been following its own evolutionary path, one that has been diverging from Wellington College鈥檚 stated purpose. And so, the goal now is to create a new alignment for sport at Wellington College to be 鈥榠ntra-curricular鈥�, contributing to their overall outcomes. Wellington College still aspires to be on the leading edge of school sport, but they are redefining what that means 鈥� ensuring that the wellbeing of all students comes first.

As the report says, 鈥榊outh sport is primarily about development. We prioritise development over results.鈥� And participation over performance. 鈥榃hat is interesting,鈥� says the report, 鈥榠s that parents and coaches place a much higher value on winning and being successful than the boys do. That is not to say that winning is not important or that excellence in performance is not a value to be pursued. It does indicate, however, that if we are to retain and develop players that fun and friendship need to be fostered.鈥櫬� 聽聽

Development over results, participation over performance: those are sea-changes in belief, in culture. Established in 1867, Wellington College is one of New Zealand鈥檚 oldest institutions鈥�of any kind. Today, there are 1800 pupils, over 100 staff, legions of parents and old boys. There are traditions to uphold. Old rivals to defeat. Furthermore, Wellington College offers more than 30 sports and different codes have their own governance and administration structures. Some are incorporated societies: part of the school and yet not. It鈥檚 one thing to write a report, quite another to have it adopted.聽

鈥淭hat鈥檚 the process we鈥檙e going through now,鈥� says David Cournane. 鈥淲e started with the leadership, then the board of trustees, and now we鈥檙e engaging with the individual codes, getting people on board, working through the implications. We鈥檝e brought 爆料社区 into key meetings, to share their perspective on what鈥檚 best for young athletes.鈥澛�

鈥淲hat鈥檚 encouraging is that if you take the time, present the evidence, people get it. We talk about our overall vision for Wellington College and our values. 聽We talk about what success will look like: greater participation and enjoyment, but more importantly more of our young men leaving College with a greater appreciation of the value of sport and physical activity and a greater likelihood of maintaining involvement in their adult lives. We鈥檙e challenging some deeply-held myths, but people are coming on board and the Principal is now beginning to take the message to parents as well.鈥澛�

鈥淩ather than starting with what you want to change,鈥� says David Cournane, 鈥渟tart with why. At Wellington College, the Why is the development of outstanding young men.鈥�