The UBC Sport and
Society Series
Feb-Mar 2010
The Series
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Key contribution of UBC to the Olympic/Paralympics
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What Universities should be doing. Dialogue on key
issues related to the games
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Dialogues became the key educational program of the
2010 Olympics/Paralympics
The Objectives
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Dialogues on key issues associated with the Olympics/Paralympics
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Feature Olympians and Paralympians who have used their celebrity to
make a difference to the games
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To ask and answer the key questions associated with the Olympic Games
The Partnerships
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Globe and Mail
VANOC
UBC
Georgia Straight
Chan Centre for the Performing Arts
The Key Questions
Is High Performance Sport Inconsistent with Ideals and Ethics?
Richard Pound – former Olympian & former Pres. of World Anti-Doping Agency
Dr. Jim Rupert – Assoc. Prof., School of Human Kinetics, UBC
Beckie Scott – former Olympian and current member of IOC
The Key Questions
How Can Sport Contribute to Positive Social Change?
Stephen Lewis – Chair of the Board of Stephen Lewis Foundation
Johann Olav Koss – Pres. & CEO of Right to Play and Olympic Gold medalist
Benjamin Nzobonankira – former child refugee from Burundi and current
Coach Trainer with Right to Play
Wilfried Lemke – Special Advisor to the UN Secretary-General on
Sport for Development and Peace
The Key Questions
Are Major Sporting Events Inclusive of First Nations and Other Groups?
Waneek Horn Miller – former Olympian, activist, speaker and TV personality
Shirley and Sharon Firth – first aboriginal women to represent Canada at
the Olympic Games
Valerie Jerome – former Olympian & First black Canadian Olympic athlete
The Key Questions
Are Developments in Technology Equalizing the Playing Field Between
Olympians and Paralympians?
Rick Hansen – Pres. of the Rick Hansen Foundation
Dr. Bruce McManus – Researcher and Head of CIHR Cardiovascular Study Group
Pat Jarvis – former Paralympian, Head Can. Paralympic Assoc.
The Key Questions
Is it Worth It?
Bruce Kidd – former Olympian & Dean at University of Toronto
Derek Wyatt – MP, Chair, Parliamentary London 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Group
Dr. James Tansey – UBC sustainability expert tracking 2010 carbon
footprint of 2010 Winter Games
The Events: Web Material
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Podcasts
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Polling Questions
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On-line Dialogue
The Events: Educational Material
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High School Teaching Modules based on each Dialogue
Excerpt
Instructional Suggestions
Warm-up: “Vote with your feet” activities
Students move to one side of the room or the other (or in between) based on the extent to which they agree or disagree with statements read by the teacher.
Statements could include:
The Olympic and Paralympic Games create a valuable legacy for the host city and country.
Regular physical activity and play are essential for physical, mental, psychological, and social development.
First Nations peoples have been fully included in the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The Olympic and Paralympic Games are an appropriate use of public funds.
The Olympic and Paralympic Games are more about corporations and politics than they are about the athletes.
The organizers of the Vancouver 2010 Games have placed reasonable limits on protest and free speech during the Games.
Students discuss their reasons within the group of those who agree. A spokesperson for each group presents the salient arguments for the rest of the class.
These activities can be expanded to more formal debates — students select or are assigned a position, work in groups to conduct research on the issue,
then debate it.
Approach #1: Research Assignments
Individual or group research assignments, with expectations for presenting findings (length to be determined by teachers — e.g., 2 minute oral presentation,
10 minute multi-media report) for the rest of the class so that all students learn about as many issues as possible. Possible research topics could include any
of the “vote with your feet” activity topics how the Vancouver, BC, and Canadian governments are addressing issues of public concern (e.g., homelessness,
The Outcomes
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Key stories in the press-visuals of the headlines/stories
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Emotional discussions
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Generate interest in the topics
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Possible model for other Olympics/Paralympics