CAPIZ STATE UNIVERSITY

PED 114 (Sports and Exercise Psychology)

Second Semester 2020-2021 BPEd 2A 1:00-2:30 (T, Th)

Name: Franz Simeon Vincent E. Cheng Course & Section: BPEd-2A

Reflection Paper on Coach Carter (2005)

Coach Carter is a 2005 American biographical teen sports

drama film directed by Thomas Carter and starring Samuel L.
Jackson. The film is based on the true story of Richmond High
School basketball coach Ken Carter (played by Jackson), who
made headlines in 1999 when he suspended his undefeated high
school basketball team due to poor academic performance. The
story was inspired by a script co-written by John Gatins and Mark
Schwahn, creators of the television show One Tree Hill. A few
plot devices from another television series, The White Shadow, in
which director Carter also co-starred, were also reused in the
film. Rob Brown, Channing Tatum, Debbi Morgan, Robert
Ri'chard, and singer Ashanti are among the ensemble cast
members.

“Sow a thought and you reap an act; sow an act and you reap a habit; sow a habit and you
reap a character; sow a character and you reap a destiny.” – Charles Reade. This quote came to
my mind while watching the film "Coach Carter." It all starts with one's thought and ends with
one's destiny. It only depends on the kind of thought that is captured or implanted in a person's
mind. Students at Richmond High School, specifically student-athletes, were led to believe that
since they are good at basketball, it does not matter whether they fail in their academic subjects.
They were not even encouraged to attend college, which may have opened many doors to a
better future. It all changed when Coach Carter entered the picture and questioned the school's
prevailing mindset, making a difference in the lives of the students. They were inspired to
explore bigger and better dreams that they never imagined were possible.

On Leadership

Leadership is an essential component of any organization, especially in providing vision

and motivation for people to follow. However, in order to secure the trust of the leader's people,
he must have influence within the group or organization. Coach Carter had to establish leverage
over his players before he can effectively push them to do what he asked them to do. Initially, he
used scare tactics or coercion to make them follow him by requiring them to sign a contract
outlining his terms if they wished to continue playing for the team. Failure to meet the conditions
results in a corresponding penalty. This was even recognized by Principal Garrison as a scare
tactic to coerce the students. But later on, as the players proved the authenticity of Coach Carter's
concern for them, not only as players but also as students, they gladly agreed. That is the power
of influence. A person with influence does not need to mention or stress their position in the
organization or group for people to follow them. They will willingly do what is asked simply
because of that influence. It goes without saying that, “a leader may have the authority to direct
and guide the work of others, nevertheless, the exercise of influence is another matter. It implies
persuasion rather than the use of force, coercion, threats, fear, or command. The concept of
influence connotes the ability to accomplish much more in association with others than the
strictly formal components of organizational action would appear to permit.”

Aside from influence, another aspect of leadership is the type of leadership an individual
possesses. Throughout history, we have seen different kinds of leaders who demonstrated
different leadership styles and achieved a certain degree of success. Transformational leadership,
in my opinion, is the most effective type of leadership. Leadership is not about ordering people
around, but rather directing people towards the desired goals while teaching and modeling the
kind of life one must live. This kind of transformational leadership was exemplified by Coach
Carter when he transformed the unruly and rebellious Richmond Oilers into a championship-
winning team. The Oilers only had four wins from last season before Ken Carter took over as
coach. They even lost to St. Francis because they refused to listen and did as they pleased when
fighting among themselves. It all changed after Coach Carter implemented new values and raised
the standard of expectations, which proved to be a success against many challenges and
oppositions. They were transformed not only as players but also as students, after winning
various games and receiving scholarships to different colleges.

On Motivation

It takes a great deal to motivate and encourage people. One must be the kind of person
who continually hopes and perseveres even in the face of adversity. It is said that “motivation
represents the forces within a person that affect his or her direction, intensity, and persistence of
voluntary behavior.” Hence, if one is a person who oversees people, they must have this quality
in order to motivate others to do things not because they have to, but because they want to. In a
way, a leader or manager must be motivated himself, otherwise, he will only succumb to failure
or resign as things get tough. Coach Carter, for example, believed that he could improve his
players' academic and basketball performance. Because of Carter's motivation, a number of
players were able to acquire college scholarships by the end of the film.

However, the willingness of people to change for the better is the issue of motivation in
order to work. Other than in the presence of a great leader or manager, nothing will happen until
people are willing to change their behavior, perspective, and actions. That is why the leader or
manager must understand what kind of motivation to use for each person. But it depends on the
kind of organization. It is pointed out that, “executives and employees are motivated by a
number of things such as money, achievement, rewards, recognition, and others” in the field of
business. When Coach Carter used the contract to impose discipline on the players, many of
them responded negatively, and two of the team's top players, including Timo Cruz, immediately
left. However, Carter later used the opportunity to obtain a college degree as motivation to the
likes of Kenyon Stone and Jason Lyle, which proved effective. In Timo Cruz's case, genuine
concern from Coach Carter was the driving force that changed him after his cousin was shot
dead.

On Support System

John Donne once said, “no man is an island.” This is true for everyone since everyone
needs the presence of other people in their lives. From the moment when we were born, we
already need others to survive and to provide what we need such as our parents, siblings, and
others. In life, we need a support system that will help us when we need encouragement,
direction, and guidance, or a shoulder to cry on. A support system may also be associated with a
mentoring system, in which the inexperienced may learn from others who are more mature or
wiser. It is stated that, “when a young person joins an organization he needs some senior person
for emotional and moral support and guidance.” This was the situation with Damien Carter, who
opted to leave the St. Francis team to join the Richmond Oilers because he wanted to play with
his dad. Damien received a piece of wise advice when he asked his father to sign the paper
authorizing him to play for the Oilers.
 Apart from mentoring, a support system can be compared to a team in which each
member can provide support to other team members when they need reinforcement or assistance.
A team is defined as “groups of people who interact and influence each other, are mutually
accountable for achieving common goals associated with organizational objectives, and perceive
themselves as a social entity within an organization.” Among Filipinos, “Bayanihan” is a symbol
of teamwork. It depicts how we support one another in achieving our goals. This kind of spirit
was shown by Jason Lyle and was followed by the rest of the team, as they offered their help by
doing push-ups and suicides so that Timo Cruz can return to the team. Without them realizing it,
it was the product of how Coach Carter had trained them to bear the weight of the mistake of one
team member. They were taught that for the mistake of one, the penalty is to be carried by
everyone. This kind of support system did not happen overnight but underwent a process. “Team
development is not random but evolves over definitive stages,” after all.

On Attitudes/Values

I read a quotation by Zig Ziglar saying “your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine
your altitude.” And maybe he was right. Attitude is defined as “a feeling or way of thinking that
affects a person’s behavior.” Therefore, our mental state will influence how we handle our life
and choices. It is not what we think but it is how we think about things that affects what we do in
life. Our attitudes come with joy and gratitude in life, as well as frustrations, hate, and fear.
Come to think of it, we are constantly confronted with forces that challenge our behavior and
how we react to such circumstances. We will be able to overcome those situations and emerge
victorious if we maintain a positive outlook. However, if we have a negative or pessimistic
attitude towards life, we will end up defeated and frustrated.

Coach Carter wanted not only for his players to win tournaments but also for them to
have better education by going to college. He was met with obstacles and threats not only from
the parents of the players but also from some school administrators. He was also asked to resign
and be suspended from his position as a coach via school board council meetings with parents
and teachers. Fortunately, he refused. He has that positive attitude that drives him to fight for the
players to be in college. Another instance was when he confronted Principal Garrison about the
poor percentage of passing among the players, to which he responded that the school's duty is to
educate the students and for them to do their jobs. He refused to resign and chose to defy the
common belief that there was little hope for the players to improve their academic performance.

Thus, a leader or manager must consider the attitudes displayed by his subordinates since
their behavior affects not only their performance, but also the performance of the other members.
If one recognizes a negative attitude among their people, they must do something to fix it and
reinforce a positive attitude. Coach Carter noticed this in his players, such as Timo Cruz and
Junior Battle, and took the necessary actions. He did not allow them to play until they were able
to change their attitudes. Junior Battle was even pressured to bring his mother to Coach Carter's
office to make a promise to do what is right. Timo Cruz, on the other hand, had to learn it the
hard way when his cousin was shot dead because of his involvement with drugs. However, after
changing their attitudes, they were able to go to college.

With everything that has been said so far, I can say that the same is true with my life.
With the kind of family and neighborhood that I had during my childhood years, I received a lot
of inspiration and motivation to pursue higher dreams. The environment presented to me was to
be somebody in the future. However, I did not really start with getting my priorities together
until my high school years. I was a trouble-maker, had low grades, was always called at the
principal’s office, and was a pain in my parent’s butts. Just like Timo Cruz who got involved
with the wrong crowd especially his cousin. But it all changed when a particular teacher in 7th
grade came into my life just as Coach Carter entered the Richmond Oiler’s. This teacher sowed
different thoughts of inspiration and encouragement that gave me a new perspective on life. A
kind of perspective that gave me a passion to make a difference in my life as she motivated me to
look beyond my present capacity. Today, my life is already comfortable and at ease. I have
become matured and responsible, and a good student to my teachers and a good son to my
parents. But deep down inside my heart, there is still a yearning and a passion to learn more. To
be challenged in order to improve; to get out of my comfort zone in order to gain new
experiences. Coach Carter already had his business and yet when the job of coaching an unruly
and hard to manage young players was offered, he accepted the job with all his heart. That is
what I want to do with my life.