As in years past, the opening of this school year will likely include a call for teachers to step forward and volunteer as coaches for our varsity sports teams.

And, as in years past, my answer will again be "no thanks, I do not wish to coach."

Why do I choose not to take part in such an admired and respected part of Canadian high school culture?

It's not because I am physically out of shape. I work out regularly and am in better condition than many of my students.

And it certainly isn't because I think teachers shouldn't be contributing as much as they reasonably can to activities outside of the normal classroom routine.

Rather, what turns me right off varsity sports is the profound and largely unwarranted level of respect they enjoy in our North American high school culture.

Varsity sports stand as a costly and pervasively elitist throwback in a school system that, in every other area, is increasingly stressing co-operation and inclusion.

What's more, they create a false sense of accomplishment that does not stand most student athletes well for what lies ahead.

The real champions

Who will be this year's high school "champions," the students most likely to be written about in the local newspaper, bragged about by the principal and idolized in the school community with pictures, pennants and trophies?

A campaigning Ontario Liberal Leader Dalton McGuinty wears a school jersey as he greets students at St. Ignacius Loyola High School in Oakville, in 2003. Do we make too much of elite sports at our high schools, the writer asks? (Ryan Remiorz/Canadian Press)

More than likely, it will not be the gifted science student who might one day design the next generation of social networking websites or find a cure for cancer.

Nor is it likely to be the hard-working special needs student, finally learning to overcome the painful academic and social challenges that have held her back for so many years.

These are my high school champions. Yet they are also ones whose social achievements in high school seldom receive more than the occasional, personal kudos from their teachers.

Yes, playing on a varsity sports team can promote confidence and pride in the individual — something many teens desperately need.

But it has been my observation, especially in regard to male students, that this team-inspired pride can also lapse into arrogance and a dangerously false sense of achievement.

Basking in the school hype over their team's accomplishments, seeing their name in the community newspaper, I have seen too many high school athletes become personally convinced that, when it comes to sports, they are destined for great things, maybe even the pros.

Too often this attitude inspires some to question why they really need to make the grade in class.

A social breed

Thinking that they are now part of a new social breed, above the mainstream, I have also seen varsity athletes take on the attitude that their accomplishments on the sports field should somehow make them immune to school rules and regulations.

Yet, as I gently try to point out to them, "you are truly a top athlete in a community of less than 1,500 individuals. But better keep up with your studies just in case the scouts fail to call."

There are those who argue that involvement in elite sports can give student athletes that extra boost, a goal, that can help them stay focused on the academic side.

But while that may be true for some students, the already well-focused ones, I have also seen too many varsity players fall dangerously behind in class, as they are often absent or fail to make the time for assignments because of competitions or practice.

There is also the issue, frequently raised in and out of the education community, that boys' varsity sports — football and hockey in particular — always seem to get the lion's share of funding.

It is an issue that the education community is rightfully and honestly concerned with. But it is hard to see much change when society as a whole puts so much emphasis on male sports.

Trickle down

In no way does my criticism here include the recent and, in my opinion, long overdue, initiatives aimed at promoting individualized, non-competitive physical fitness in schools.

The argument has been made that promoting and funding varsity sports — those few elite teams — the way we have been in so many schools will encourage physical fitness among the general student population, as a kind of trickle-down benefit.

The fact is, though, a select few will win big, but most will be left out.

Yes, a dream to one day play on the varsity football team might inspire a high school freshman to work out in the gym regularly and to keep up a rigorous jogging program.

But what respectable alternative exists in the school community to inspire him to stay fit should he fail to make any of the varsity teams?

In my experience, not much.

And what about accommodations for the vast majority of students who might occasionally enjoy playing certain team sports but, at the same time, know they can't — or do not wish to — play on any varsity teams?

Clearly, we need to develop a more inclusive sports and fitness culture in our high schools that cater to the great majority of students and helps them stay active for the rest of their lives.

What that means is we must further institutionalize what I already see many non-varsity students doing on their own initiative outside of the school's official purview: That is to run, cycle, kick the ball, jump, skate and slide, strictly for the fun of it.

Until such a sports and fitness culture emerges my extracurricular volunteering will continue to remain outside of the varsity arenas.