E-Sports as New Sport!

Electronic sports also know as e-Sports goes all the way back to late nineties.
E-Sports is now becoming accepted as a sport and competitive gamers are now being identified as athletes within society. E-Sports has been introduced in some school in the form of an interschool athletic sport.

“Benefits of E-Sports”

Gaming can be isolating pastime. When gamers can join a e-sport team, it becomes a social experience. Without online games, passionate gamers often feel left out of mainstream social life. Organized people bring people into the fold. It can help them become accepted and respected members of their community.

• Working with others. Call it teamwork, cooperation or collaboration. By whatever name, working well with others requires the development of countless additional skills. Like communication, assertiveness, and compromise. Conflict management, active listening, and respect.
• Social skills. Social skills are the building blocks of interpersonal relationships. And they’re integral to working well with teammates and coaches. In addition to those noted above, social skills include critical basics like maintaining eye contact and using appropriate body language. Refraining from interrupting. And knowing when and how to share ideas. For many kids, these skills don’t come naturally. Those with limited social experience are particularly prone to skill deficits. Participating in a school e-sports team provides an environment for these kids to learn and practice these skills.
• Strategic thinking and planning. Sports require students to set goals, assess the competition and consider their individual strengths and weaknesses. As a member of a team, students learn to establish tactics, put together game plans and adjust execution as needed. Thinking quickly and strategically is part and parcel of any sport.
• Managing success and failure. Team sports teach the tough lesson that life isn’t always fair. No matter how hard you prepare, you won’t always come out on top. Learning to manage the emotions of losing – and winning – helps kids become resilient.
• Time management. To qualify to participate in school teams, students need to maintain their academic standing. This requires learning and applying executive function skills like organization and time management.
• Travel skills. School e-sports teams typically travel to tournaments several times each season. This provides the opportunity to plan, pack, budget, schedule, and manage the many ins and outs of travel. It may present the need to use public transportation, adjust to different regional cultures and share space with a roommate. Travel builds critical thinking skills, adaptability, and fortitude.
• Pro-social values. Team sports of any kind provide an opportunity for coaches to instill positive values. Principles and standards of behavior like good sportsmanship, fairness, and respect. Persistence, honesty, fun and healthy competition. These values can buoy students throughout their lives.

Negative effect of E-Sports

Putting in the hours required to get good at anything takes a toll. E-sports carry risks for the body — and, possibly, the developing brain. The eight to 12 hours that many top e-sports players say they train per day has led to an increase in computer-related injuries including carpal tunnel syndrome, repetitive strain injury and back pain. And after several competitors suffered collapsed lungs, players are being warned not to hold their breath during intense moments. Though e-sports don’t have the same physical risks as contact sports such as football, pro players and ex-pros complain of burnout.

• Behavioral and mental changesChildren who spend hours on gaming may become violent, introvert, lose interest in the environment that surrounds them. This will lead to an underdeveloped personality because the person never likes to talk to other people and socialize.
• Lack of other hobbies and poor academic performanceWhile the video game is also a hobby, over spending time on them will deprive the person of learning new things and playing outdoor games. An addict will always think of gaming, sacrificing other things that are sometimes more important than gaming, like studying, sports, socializing, etc.
• Lethargic nature, which will also lead to weight gainToo much screen time translates into laziness and may cause weight gain. Addict gamers tend to forget to drink water, eat food on time, and laying in one place for hours staring at a screen. We all know how unhealthy is that.
• Gaming addiction can slow down the brain growthThere are a lot of games that help in brain development by imparting critical thinking skills, at the same time, playing video games for hours every day also results in a slowdown in brain development.
• Gaming addiction negatively affects eyesight and also results in InsomniaSmall children can be seen wearing spectacles these days, even I got a number when I was 4th grade. Not all persons will get a weak eyesight, but getting more screen time from a close distance definitely contributes towards myopia. Also, the screen time negatively affects your ability to sleep. It would be harder to fall asleep at night and get a good deep sleep.