Case Studies

Name of the student:

Maciej Ptaszyński

Country:

Poland

Sport:

Volleyball

Name of the School:

Ogólnokształcące Szkoły Sportowe, Szkoła Mistrzostwa Sportowego Nr 2 w Gdańsku

School Typology:

sport secondary schools

Address:

77 Kołobrzeska Street, 80-396 Gdańsk

Tel:

+48 58 5571741

Fax:

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Web site:

E-mail:

The Context:

As a child I was interested in sport. It started by playing beach volleyball with my father. I knew then it was the sport I wanted to practise. My parents gave me a huge support, they took me to every tournament and kept fingers crossed for me. I think that sport infrastructure of my school should be improved. In my opinion we should have a bigger gym. The young people should be encouraged to do sport even by the government because Physical Education can give you only profits

Balancing Sport and Education:

My schedule is very tight. During the week I spend at least 10 hours practising volleyball and 4 hours working out. Additionally, at the weekends I often travel all over Poland as a part of the league. It’s really tough to combine schoolwork with sports practice. However, after I come back from the gym even if it’s really late I study for tests and do my homework for at least 2 hours. Fortunately, I have a good relationship with my teachers, who understand my situation really well. We have managed to develop an effective cooperation method, thanks to which I am able to follow my dreams without harming my education. Nevertheless, I must admit that balancing sport and education is a really difficult task for a person of my age. I would definitely have better grades if I did not practise sport but I make every endeavor to meet the challenge. Sport has made me more concentrated and organised so I manage to find time for both volleyball and schoolwork. To balance school and sport I try to study on the bus, I read set books and do required reading tasks and even my homework during journeys to the places where volleyball tournaments are held. As a result of my efforts I was awarded the best student of year 2015 in my school. What is more I took the second place in the Junior Polish Cup in 2015, which I consider the biggest success in my sport career so far. To my mind the key element in succeeding to balance school with sport is to get on well with your coaches and teachers. In my case, they are willing to understand my situation, so I suppose that communication might be the thing that gives me balance.

Future Perspectives:

My future depends on my final exam. I really want to go to college but on the other hand I want to continue my work with volleyball. In my opinion my future depends on me and the time will determine which path I will follow