Sporting stars are fine but it’s parents who can best encourage kids with their actions
THE poster on the wall may be of a young boy wizard, a soccer star considered one of the best of all time or a local girl who conquered the world’s biggest waves but experts say it’s mums and dads who hold the key to inspiring our youth.
The Bulletin asked Gold Coast children who their heroes were and their responses ranged from Harry Potter to Cristiano Ronaldo and Stephanie Gilmore.
The influence of celebrity heroes on young fans has come into question in recent weeks with former Gold Coast Suns star Karmichael Hunt pleading guilty to drug charges, Essendon players left tainted from supplement allegations despite being found not guilty by the AFL anti-doping tribunal, and Shane Warne’s booze-focused interviews after the cricket World Cup final.
But social experts said while celebrity role models were branded as heroes it was parents who were usually most influential in their child’s life.
Southern Cross University psychology lecturer Dr Jim Donnelly said while it was normal for children to identify with a celebrity they aspire to be like – parents played a bigger role.
“Heroes should be the peo- ple who care about you everyday, who encourage you in moral values, behaviours and choices,” he said.
Dr Donnelly said kids needed role models who inspired them beyond the sporting field.
“Athletes do demonstrate admirable qualities such as discipline, training, conducting themselves well, and honing their skills and if that translates to kids then showing up to practice, being a good teammate and finding enjoyment out of staying fit then that is a positive thing,” he said.
Somerset College deputy headmaster and teacher Michael Brohier said positive role models were effective at encourag
ing kids to do their best. “But there’s a lot of sporting stars who don’t understand that – it’s not just about football or cricket but about being an ambassador,” he said.
“Cricketer Steve Smith is a good example of a young guy with his head on straight as we saw in his thoughtful and excellent response to Shane Warne’s questions about how the Australian team would celebrate its cricket World Cup win.”
Dr Brohier said watching a celebrity hero fall from grace was upsetting for students but an important life lesson.
“It can be a difficult thing for teachers to navigate, when kids invest in a hero, then that hero’s image is tarnished,” he said.
“We try not to target particular celebrities, but when students were discussing the drug scandal involving Karmichael Hunt for instance, we were able to use that as a launching pad to show that even the people they look up to as heroes are human beings and make mistakes.
Australian rowing Olympic medallist Duncan Free said about 90 per cent of the athletes enrolled in the Griffith Sports College, would have grown up with a hero in the sport they now compete in.
“But even elite athletes have to recognise there is more to life than their sport.”