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The world needs more dodgeball, not less of it.

I say this even as my opinion directly contradicts the view of three learned university academics, the authors of the new university research study: “Dodgeball: Teaching Oppression in Physical and Health Education: A Feminist Perspective.”

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Dodgeball is an educational ill, argue the professors, led by lead author Joy Butler, professor of curriculum and pedagogy at the University of British Columbia.

It’s against the principles of democracy, they say. It’s even a tool of oppression, they say, arguing that those who lose at dodgeball experience marginalization, powerlessness and helplessness: “Dodgeball and its intent to use humans as targets is tantamount to legalized bullying.”

It’s my contention that the professors have it dangerously wrong. Far from harming kids, dodgeball has much to teach us about how to succeed in life and the workplace.