Five Alternative Sports to Teach Gender Equality

These sports have specific rules for balancing the game and can be played based on a strategy of cooperation among all players, regardless of their gender.

Physical education (PE) is one of the few spaces in schools where integration among students of both genders has not been achieved. Among the main arguments against inclusion are the physiological differences between men and women, as well as the learned social behaviors that are associated with gender.

In theory, we tend to think that in sports, men are inherently more competitive and aggressive than women, and there is this reptilian reflection of potential danger when putting boys and girls in the same court or playing field.

While there are valid points that support why physiological and social differences could be good reasons to keep sports as gender-divided activities, there are also arguments that show how sports have built on a structure of severe gender imbalance. What would hinder us from rethinking the idea of sports as activities that can remain competitive, but also inclusive?

There are sports whose rules demand a flexible strategy that is based not only on physical superiority of strength or speed, for example, but on a joint effort that makes use of skills such as quick thinking, teamwork, and social interaction. These types of sports are especially useful for male and female students to exercise cooperation frequently within a competitive context with their peers regardless of gender, which is crucial to create times of playing together that lead to gender equity. Here are five examples.

Baseball5 

The President of the World Baseball and Softball Confederation (WBSC), Riccardo Fraccari, defines Baseball5 as a proposal that aims to take baseball out of large, local fields and play it anywhere, where everyone, regardless of gender, age or physical dimensions, can enjoy it.

Earlier versions of this game already existed on the streets of Cuba, Colombia, Venezuela, and several countries in the Caribbean and Southeast Asia. Seeing its popularity in these regions, the Confederation approved the rules of the sport and launched it as an international discipline.

Unlike baseball or softball, which needs a lot of equipment to play the game, the Baseball5 game only requires one ball, ten players, and a square field with three bases. The measurements of the area can be modified according to available space and the needs of the game players.

Ultimate frisbee

Also called Ultimate, this game emerged from college campuses in the United States that were looking for a highly competitive, fast-paced, non-contact sport. It arrived in Europe in the 80s and today is also played in Latin America.

This sport is practiced on a field with dimensions similar to that of a football field, approximately 120 x 53 yards. Instead of a goal, there is an end zone at both ends of the area. Players must get the disc to the opposing team’s end zone to score.

The teams are seven-on-seven. When they go on offense, the players cannot run with the disc; they can only advance to the opposing end zone by passing the disc to their teammates. If the pass is not completed or gets intercepted, the possession of the disc passes to the opposing team, who will have their turn trying to reach the opponent’s end zone. The game proceeds in that manner.

The game is self-arbitrated. The players are expected to be able to detect and admit their offenses and violations themselves. It is viewed as bad form and outside of game spirit when a participant is not proactive in avoiding unnecessarily aggressive behavior with their opponents. Therefore, this particular game is not only an excellent help in forming the concept of ethics in sports, but it also provides a competitive environment in which gender balance can be fostered.

Kin-Ball

The strength of Kin-Ball as a sport does not lie in competitiveness linked to a dynamic of confrontation; instead, it relies on strategy and cooperation. Canadian professor Mario Demers invented the game in 1986.

This sport is unique in its class, as it is not played with the traditional structure of one team against another. Instead, three teams compete against each other at the same time. The objective is to score more points than the other two teams to win the game. This is only achieved by working collaboratively against the other two factions in the game. It is a fast-paced and physically demanding discipline, but it is balanced to include people of different genders and physical dimensions.

The scoring system works like this: If one team fails to control the ball and it touches the ground, the other two teams earn a point. The team with the most points wins the game. Kin-ball is played on a 20 x 20 field. The team ball measures 48 inches in diameter.

Tchoukball

Created in Switzerland in the 1960s, Tchoukball is very serious in the intention to balance all the key values of sportsmanship, namely, skill, athleticism, concentration, respect for the rival, and teamwork. All this occurs in a sport fast and agile like handball, in a dynamic of non-contact and fair play.

With two teams of seven people each, the players must take the ball to the opposite goal, each placed at the ends of a 30 x 20-yard field. In the game, it is forbidden to touch the opposing player while he throws the ball or to block him directly. In this way, the sport is friendlier for people of different physical dimensions and skill levels, as well as more challenging for the defensive position.

Korfball

Korfball is the only mixed sport by regulation. The main reason it was created at the beginning of the last century was to offer a game that could combine the participation of men and women under conditions of equity. Unlike the other sports mentioned above, which can be played without a problem by participants of the same sex, Korfball must be performed with mixed teams.

The teams have four people, two men, and two women, who play on a field of 22 x 44 yards, trying to throw a ball into a basket without a backboard set at the height of 11.5 feet. The dynamics of the game are designed to avoid contact and rely on teamwork. For example, in a team of four, the defending players must be a man and a woman who remain stay close to their team basket, while the other two members of the team must be on the other side, near the area to score. The shots cannot be directly blocked or nor can there be contact to stop the opposing players.

Such rules are instrumental in making this sport highly social and cooperative, where everyone who plays has the same opportunity to possess the ball and have a shot at scoring.

Sports have been highly focused since their inception to highlight competitiveness, physical challenges, and rivalry as a means of winning. It is possible that in the future, this will keep being the principal driver of sports activities, and this is not necessarily negative. However, in the educational environment, it is also essential to teach the usefulness of sports as a tool for developing cooperative and empathetic skills.

What do you think of the sports mentioned above? Do you include in your PE class games or disciplines that promote gender equity, cooperation, and fair play? Share your experience in the comments.

Translation by Daniel Wetta.

Sofía García-Bullé

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This article from Observatory of the Institute for the Future of Education may be shared under the terms of the license CC BY-NC-SA 4.0