Easton Youth Magnum LK2 Baseball Bat (EA)

 Paint and clear coat finish 2-1/4 barrel diameter  8 oz. drop Rubber grip, 31/32 handle  Stock graphics will ship  

It's the league's winter orientation meeting and Jake Harris, coach of the Jaguars, comes over and says. "Congratulations, you got some good new players. The only problem that I can see you having is with Lester Seaton. He's a real hard-headed kid." Barb Armstrong, coach of the Golden Eagles, pipes up, "Yeah. Good luck! I had a run-in with him last year."

A tendency we have is to say, "Well, he won't get away with it while I'm coach!" and we have fallen in the trap of pre-judging one of our players. Instead, you may want to say, "O.K., people have had trouble with Lester in the past and we will work really hard to make this a great, profitable team experience for him."

Possible Actions: Both of these are Self-Fulfilling Prophecy statements -- the first is negative; the second is positive. We tend to see and get what we expect to see and to get. If you see Lester as a threat, he most certainly will be one because you will give him all the signals he needs to react negatively to you. On the other hand, if you see Lester as a potential asset to the team, he will perceive all of the positive signs and may come along as a real team member. (And, just maybe, Lester has matured a bit since last year.)

Your Plan of Action: You and your assistant coaches will always treat every one of your players in a positive, optimistic way. Lester will be treated as each of the other players are treated -- as a unique person with great potential. He will not be pre-judged.

There are many formal inquiries and informal stories of school kids who were pre-judged. For example, top students from a junior high school who were mistakenly placed in a "developmentally challenged" classroom in the high school and became discipline problems until the error was discovered and they were moved to appropriate sections. And the "developmentally challenged"children who were placed in a special class and did quite well because their locker numbers (in the 110-125 section) were mistakenly listed as their I.Q.s. and their teacher treated them accordingly.

The best example was a rather good experimental study reported in the book, Pygmalion in the Classroom. Some middle grade kids were randomly selected as "Spurters" and their teachers were told that these kids would have a very good year -- and they did.

Status: Lester needs a fair chance and he will be given one.

Peter S. Pierro, EdD http://www.parentscoachesasteam.com

Dr. Peter Pierro is a coach and parent who is concerned about how our young athletes are treated by their coaches and parents. He has degrees in Psychology, History, and Education from Northern Illinois University. He played professional softball, semi-pro baseball, college basketball, and with an all-star U.S. Navy basketball team. He coached jr./sr. high school basketball, a women's softball team, a 12 and under boys baseball team, and was commissioner of a boys baseball league. He has been a consultant/contributor to the Amateur Softball Association and the Oklahoma Soccer Association.Dr. Pierro has taught in elementary, junior and senior high schools and has been Professor of Education at Elmhurst College and Oklahoma University.

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