Grammar Gazette- Issue 1, 2016

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GIRLS ON THE MOVE

AUTHOR Ms Sally Northcroft Director of Sport

less than eight per cent of women’s sport is covered in all televised sports news; print media lags further behind with less than five per cent of sports coverage dedicated to women’s sport and only two per cent of the sport news on radio is about women’s sport (Australian Government, Sports Commission). Girls need to know what is possible and be inspired to dream about what they can achieve. If they don’t see the women who are making history in many mainstream and alternative sports, it is no surprise that there is a decline in the participation of girls. Add to this dilemma the fact that many girls who play sport for a club are often faced with having access to poorer quality equipment, resources or facilities because the club does not have the financial resources to update change rooms or purchase more equipment in order to accommodate the additional female club members (Richards, 2016). This discrepancy between boys’ and girls’ sporting resources has been shown to quickly turn girls off wanting to participate in their sport of choice (Australian Government, Department of Health, 2016). Finally, there is an obvious absence of women in senior leadership positions in sporting associations or committees, reflected in the Sydney Scoreboard index. This is a global index that documents the number of women in leadership positions on national sporting organisations and international federations. The minimal increases seen mean greater interventions are required to improve equity for girls who want to be involved in organised sport both as a participant and as a leader. Brisbane Girls Grammar School has participation rates in stark contrast to the national average. More than 70 per cent of the student population participates in organised sport each year. The School is a founding member of one the oldest schoolgirl sporting associations in Queensland (Queensland Girls Secondary Schools Sporting Association or QGSSSA) and its participation in competitions such as the Brisbane Schoolgirls Rowing Association, Brisbane Water Polo Inc. and the Queensland Fencing Association means the School can deliberately offer a wide variety of sports (eighteen) to choose from. More than 1100 girls play sport for Girls Grammar throughout the year, with the School committed to continue increasing sporting opportunities. Girls have access to coaches, facilities and

THE AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS HAS COLLECTED DATA ON THE PARTICIPATION BY YOUNG PEOPLE IN ORGANISED SPORT FOR MORE THAN TWENTY YEARS. ONE CONTINUING MESSAGE HAS BEEN THE DECLINE IN PARTICIPATION RATES OF FEMALES AS THEY ENTER ADOLESCENCE (AUSTRALIAN BUREAU OF STATISTICS, 2012). What is also clear is the widening gap between male and female participation in the 15–17 year age group (85 per cent and 70 per cent respectively). Organisations such as Women in Sport (UK) and Womensport Foundation (USA) have both released reports which highlight that girls’ participation in organised sport has decreased and that it declines at a greater rate than that for boys during adolescence (Staurowsky et al., 2015). Each of these organisations has identified that there is a variety of physical, social and emotional barriers that negatively impact girls and their involvement in sport. These same organisations have launched campaigns to try to change this trend and in February this year, the Australian Government launched the ’Girls, Make Your Move’ campaign, designed to encourage girls to be more active and engage in 60 minutes of moderate to intense physical activity every day. Given the recent record-breaking success of the Australian women’s teams in cricket, netball, surfing and football, it is surprising that so many girls are dropping out of organised sport. It is reasonable to think that this success would encourage girls into sport however this does not seem to be the case. It appears that the women’s teams are successful despite the decreasing numbers of girls playing organised sport. Imagine if more girls heard/read/saw these successes in the media to the same degree that we see the reports on men’s sport! Unfortunately, the media still covers so little of women’s sport in the traditional formats. For example,

GRAMMAR GAZETTE