Daniel Coyle makes a convincing case for otherwise. He noted over and over again the so-called hot beds had two crucial elements: a) a person who provided inspiration, or in his words, "ignition,"; and then, b) opportunity for lots of deep practice. What was fairly unique to Brazil was that from the age of 5 to 10 or so the boys play an alternate version of soccer called futsal. It's indoors with a field have the size and so provides the players 6 times the opportunity to practice--i.e., far more intense and engaging. He also cites a study of 157 randomly chosen children who were planning on taking musical lessons and followed them from a few weeks before they started their lessons through high school. The factor that best predicted who would end up at the top were the answers they gave to the question, "How long do you plan to play this instrument?" The researcher then organized the answers into three groups: low/medium/high level of and it was the children who had the high level commitment that consistently came out on top. He also notes a number of times that teachers predictions of who will come out on top relative to their apparent gift or talent does not correlate well at all with who does end up at the top. His contention is that kids who are ignited by a role model (Anna Kournikova in Russia; Andruw Jones-correct spelling-from small island of Caracao who each ignited a passion for tennis and baseball, respectively. Jim, your point certainly sounds logical as, with all the competition, how could genetic potential not be part of the equation. But what Coyle does make a very convincing case for is that children's environmental experiences are the most important part of the formula. He does go further to make the case that genetic predisposition is not part of the equation at all, or if so, a very small part. Have you read the entire book? I was impressed with the role of the growth of the myelin tissue that occurs when a child practices intensely for that required 10,000 hours.
Joan [email protected] Jim Clark wrote: > Hi > > One of the "hot spots" mentioned is Brazil and soccer players. Here's a > passage from a site celebrating Brazilian soccer. > > "The majority of the people living in Brazil are in deep poverty. Soccer is > the one ticket out of that lifestyle if the talent is learned early enough. > Many of the popular soccer players on the Brazil soccer team came from very > poor backgrounds, learning soccer at a very young age." > > The emerging superstars, relatively numerous at the star level, would be a > very tiny proportion of all the poor kids playing soccer in Brazil. I would > be very surprised if genes did not play some part in the radical sorting > process that led some few to stardom and the rest to whatever miserable fate > awaits them once their dreams of glory are shattered by reality. > > Take care > Jim > > > James M. Clark > Professor of Psychology > 204-786-9757 > 204-774-4134 Fax > [email protected] > > >>>> "Joan Warmbold" <[email protected]> 05-Jan-11 1:12 PM >>> >>>> > Thanks for your book recommendation Carol--sounds very interesting if not > upsetting. Two books I would highly recommend (or have I already--yikes) > are: Talent Code by Coyle--incredible book on the hot spots around the > globe that have produced extraordinary numbers of very gifted and highly > motivated children in soccer, the arts, tennis, etc. And the source of > these high numbers of gifted children/young adults is not genetic folks. > > http://www.thesimplerlife.net/2010/05/22/book-review-the-talent-code/ > > The second book that's a must read is "Safe Patients, Smart Hospitals." > Peter Pronovost. A review is below--and I now will only go to a hospital > that uses the team and check-list system described in this book if I need > care for any type of serious health issue. > > http://us.penguingroup.com/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9781594630644,00.html > > Hmmm. . . this is ringing too many bells so sorry for the redundancy--but > they are really good! Would love to hear from others recommended good > reads! > > > Joan > Joan (Warmbold) Boggs > Professor of Psychology > Oakton Community College > [email protected] > > > >> In a tangentially related vein (or maybe completely unrelated), I just >> finished reading _The Warmth of Other Suns_ about the Great Migration of >> African Americans from the South during the first half of the 20th >> century. I think what shocked me most of all was how naive I had been >> growing up during a portion of that time period. I was and am dismayed >> about how strongly I believed in a just world as a young person. Now I'm >> just an older cynic. I wholly recommend the book. >> >> Carol >> >> >> > > > > --- > You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. > To unsubscribe click here: > http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13251.645f86b5cec4da0a56ffea7a891720c9&n=T&l=tips&o=7685 > > or send a blank email to > leave-7685-13251.645f86b5cec4da0a56ffea7a89172...@fsulist.frostburg.edu > > > --- > You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. > To unsubscribe click here: > http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=49240.d374d0c18780e492c3d2e63f91752d0d&n=T&l=tips&o=7687 > or send a blank email to > leave-7687-49240.d374d0c18780e492c3d2e63f91752...@fsulist.frostburg.edu > > --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. To unsubscribe click here: http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df5d5&n=T&l=tips&o=7689 or send a blank email to leave-7689-13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df...@fsulist.frostburg.edu
