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CASE
The Unsupportive Parent
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hristy Robinson is about to be a ninth-grader at Washington Jr. High. She
just moved to Laughlin, Nevada, over the summer and is ready to take on
the challenges that lie ahead of her at her new school. Christy has always
been a very good athlete and is looking forward to competing as a gymnast for
the Washington Wildcats. She practiced throughout the summer and worked out
regularly at a local gym. She dreams of one day competing in college. She understands that in order to achieve her dream she is going to have to work very hard
and devote the majority of her time to gymnastics. She is a pretty good student,
and in her elementary and middle school days she was always able to make at
least Bs, even without studying.
Christy transferred to her new school because of her father’s job in the military. Michael Robinson is a very strict father who expects a lot out of his daughter.
He doesn’t necessarily care for sports, but he’s somewhat supportive of Christy’s
gymnastics. Michael places higher emphasis on getting an education, being respectful, and doing what is right. Christy hasn’t seen her father much over the last
few years due to several deployments overseas and is glad he is back.
The first week of school, Christy tries to get her bearings. Finding her classes
in an unfamiliar setting is a challenge in itself. She begins to meet other students but it’s hard to fit in not only because she’s a freshman, but because she’s
a member of an ethnic minority. Washington Jr. High is a primarily Caucasian
school without much diversity, and its students are of a high socioeconomic
status. Christy’s family is middle class, but her father is African American and
Parish, A. (2010). Case studies in coaching : Dilemmas and ethics in competitive school sports. Taylor & Francis Group.
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her mother is Caucasian. She resembles her father more than her mother and is
a lean and toned five feet six inches. She is a noticeable addition to Washington’s
hallways. Gradually, she settles in and feels comfortable at her new school. She
can’t wait to start competing for the Wildcats.
Christy met Coach Becky Anderson before the school year started. She is
the head gymnastics coach for the female Wildcats, but she has also been coaching swimming at the junior high. Gymnastics is always put on the back burner
at Washington until the fall sports are over, so there are no coaches to run the
squads until the fall season is over. This is the case for all the schools throughout
the conference in which Washington competes. Christy is enrolled in athletics for
seventh period; however, as a gymnast, she goes to study hall for that hour until
the competitive season starts.
The first semester is going well for Christy. Her classmates are all nice to
her and she has made several new friends. She met two other girls in study hall,
Vicky and Shannon, who are also on the gym squad, and they quickly became
friends. They found out that Christy moved into the neighborhood where they
live, and they all hang out after school and on weekends. Christy has walked
into what she believes to be the perfect fit for her ninth-grade year.
October arrives and although the fall sports program is still in full swing, the
gymnastics season is quickly approaching. At this point, Coach Anderson meets
with the girls who are hoping to join the team. They discuss what is expected
of them the coming season. One of Coach Anderson’s rules is that if you don’t
come to practice, you don’t compete. Before every season, she always has a team
rules sheet that all the girls take home to their parents. She has each player and
the player’s parents sign the sheet so that if anyone breaks a rule during the
season, she has in writing what the consequences will be. She talks to the team
members about the importance of following the rules and how they will be enforced. She has also created a code of conduct that is prominently displayed in
both her office and the gym.
Christy spends most of her time in the gym practicing gymnastics hoping to
be a starter when season time comes. However, because she’s spending so much
time on gymnastics, she’s not spending very much time on her studies. This is not
uncommon for her, but this year is a little different. She’s in ninth grade now, and
the academic standards are higher at her new school. Even though Washington
isn’t actually part of the high school campus, ninth grade is still considered high
school as far as academics are concerned. The curriculum is more complex and
requires more time to study and prepare. As a result, Christy’s grades aren’t as
high as usual: she has two Cs, three Bs, and one A. When her father finds out
about the Cs he gets very upset. He gives Christy a stern talk about how academics need to be a higher priority than gymnastics and makes Christy come directly
home after school to study.
The fall sports season finally ends and gymnastics and the other spring sports
quickly become the topic of conversation around school. Christy is extremely
excited to start practice and show her new coach what she’s capable of. When
the Wildcats start practice, Coach Anderson immediately knows that Christy
is going to make a huge impact on the team. Without question she is the best
Parish, A. (2010). Case studies in coaching : Dilemmas and ethics in competitive school sports. Taylor & Francis Group.
Created from fsu on 2023-11-09 12:33:50.
Copyright © 2010. Taylor & Francis Group. All rights reserved.
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gymnast on the team and will help turn last year’s average team into a conference contender.
The first meet is a spectacular start. Christy is the overall high scorer and
is already starting to take leadership of the team. Her teammates like her and
don’t mind that a new kid has come into the spotlight. They win the meet and
Christy wins all-around. Everything is going great and it looks like the Washington Wildcats are on their way to a winning season. Coach Anderson loves the
way things are going and is delighted to have such a star.
The following week, while the team is practicing for its conference meet,
Christy’s father walks into the gym. He immediately heads over to Coach Anderson and waits for her to finish talking to one of her gymnasts.
“Coach, Christy is going to have to leave practice early today,” Mr. Robinson says.
“Is everything all right?” Coach Anderson asks.
“Yes, we just have something we need to take care of at home.”
“Okay. We need her back as soon as possible, though. Christy is a huge part
of this squad.”
“She’ll be back whenever we get things straightened out at home.”
Coach Anderson is left speechless in the middle of her own practice. She
isn’t really sure what to say to Mr. Robinson, Christy, or any of the other squad
members. She continues on with practice without her star athlete but keeps wondering what is going on with Christy and her father. “Is everything going to be
all right? Am I going to have Christy at practice tomorrow?” she asks herself.
They have another important meet in two days and her best gymnast has just
been pulled out of practice by her father.
The next day at school, Coach Anderson goes to Christy’s first-period
English class and asks her teacher for permission to talk to Christy out in
the hall.
“Is everything okay, Christy? What was yesterday all about?” Coach Anderson asks.
“Well, Coach, my dad isn’t going to let me practice again today. He’s making
me come home right after school,” Christy answers.
“What’s the deal? Are you in trouble? Is there anything I can do to help? I
really need you on this squad, Christy.”
“My dad’s not very happy with my grades, for one thing. You saw my midquarter report, Coach. My grades aren’t that bad, but my dad has very high
expectations of me when it comes to my grades.”
“So that’s it? It’s just your grades? We can get help with your grades if that’s
the problem.”
“Well, with all the time I’ve been spending practicing, I haven’t been getting
most of my chores done either. My dad is pretty strict, and he thinks that because
I’m spending all of my time with gymnastics I don’t understand what’s really
important. I dunno.”
“Let’s see if we can get something worked out. I want to help you, Christy,
so I’ll give your dad a call today and see if there’s anything I can do. You’re a
very good gymnast, and I think you have a future in gymnastics. We don’t need
Parish, A. (2010). Case studies in coaching : Dilemmas and ethics in competitive school sports. Taylor & Francis Group.
Created from fsu on 2023-11-09 12:33:50.
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to let something as simple as chores keep you from participating. Get back to
class and work hard to get those grades up.”
“Thanks, Coach. I will.”
Coach Anderson walks down to her office and begins looking for the sheet
that contains the phone numbers of all her players’ parents. She finds Michael
Robinson’s number and dials it. The phone rings three times and then a deep
voice answers, “Hello.”
“Hi, Mr. Robinson. This is Christy’s gymnastics coach, Becky Anderson,”
Coach Anderson says.
“Hello, Coach Anderson. What can I do for you?” Mr. Robinson responds.
“I was just calling to check in with you on Christy’s situation. I spoke with
her this morning and she said you aren’t going to let her practice again today.”
“That’s right. Christy needs to get her priorities straight, and I think a little
time off from gymnastics might help her do that.”
“Christy, as I’m sure you already know, is a very talented gymnast, Mr. Robinson. We really need her on this team to be a—”
“Coach Anderson,” he interrupts, “with all due respect, gymnastics is not
something that I’m interested in my daughter excelling at. Ever since she started
gymnastics at your school she’s been slacking in the classroom, not spending
any time at home with her family, not getting simple household responsibilities
done, or, quite frankly, anything that she should be doing. I understand that you
want her to help make your gymnastics squad better, but in reality, I don’t really
care. There are more important things, and in my house that’s the way it’s going
to be.”
“Mr. Robinson, I—”
“Thanks, Coach Anderson, but this conversation is over.”
Mr. Robinson hangs up without letting Coach Anderson say anything else.
She is very confused. She isn’t sure if she has offended Mr. Robinson or not.
It wasn’t her intention, but this is a no-nonsense man she is dealing with. Furthermore, she can’t understand why Mr. Robinson can’t see the potential that
Christy has, and why he wouldn’t want to see it develop into something more.
She is very frustrated.
That afternoon at practice, Christy is nowhere to be found. Coach Anderson doesn’t really expect to see her but is hoping that through some miracle she
might show up. A couple of the gymnasts approach Coach Anderson to ask
what’s going on with Christy.
“Is she going to be able to compete, Coach?” one of the gymnasts asks.
“Girls, I’m not sure as of right now what’s going on,” Coach Anderson
replies. “We have to focus on the next meet for now. We’re going to continue
on with what we have and adjust to the situation. Now let’s get to work!” She
doesn’t want to let her team see how worried she is so she does her best to hide
it. Practice goes on without Christy as they prepare for their next meet.
The next day at practice, Christy still isn’t there. Coach Anderson had spoken with Christy at lunch and was told that she wouldn’t be at practice, so her
absence really isn’t a surprise. She wants to call Mr. Robinson again but is afraid
it will just make the situation worse. She stares at her phone trying to think of
Parish, A. (2010). Case studies in coaching : Dilemmas and ethics in competitive school sports. Taylor & Francis Group.
Created from fsu on 2023-11-09 12:33:50.
Copyright © 2010. Taylor & Francis Group. All rights reserved.
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something to say to him but just can’t pick it up and call. She assumes she isn’t
going to have Christy for the meet the next day since she hasn’t shown up for
practice.
The day of the meet Coach Anderson hasn’t seen or talked to Christy. She
has already made a contingency plan since it looks like her best gymnast isn’t
going to be at the meet. When seventh period comes and all of the gymnasts are
out on the mats getting loosened up, she notices Christy out laughing and joking
with the rest of the girls.
“Christy?” Coach Anderson calls out. “Come over here for a second.”
“Yeah, Coach, what’s up?” Christy says.
“Are you going to be here for the meet tonight?”
“Yeah, Coach.”
“So is everything cleared up with your dad?”
“Yeah, Coach, everything’s cool.”
“Okay, get out there and get warmed up.”
Christy runs off and begins warming up with her teammates. Coach Anderson is relieved in a way, but the team had agreed with the rule that if you don’t
come to practice you don’t get to play. She decides not to say anything about it
and start Christy anyway. “The other girls won’t say anything,” she thinks to
herself. “They want to win and they like Christy. They know we’re a much better squad with her. Anyway, it isn’t her fault she couldn’t practice.”
That night, Christy leads the team to a second victory. Afterward, Coach
Anderson gives her postmeet talk in the locker room, telling the girls how proud
she is of their improvement from last year and how she hopes that they will
continue to work hard and get better throughout the season. No one mentions
Christy missing practice, and it looks as if she’s going to have her star back.
But that all changes very quickly. As Coach Anderson makes sure everyone has
cleared the gym and starts to lock it up, she hears someone open the back door.
When she peeks around the corner to see who it is, she sees Mr. Robinson.
“Hey! Mr. Robinson!” Coach Anderson says excitedly. “Christy sure did
vault gre—”
“Coach Anderson,” he interrupts, “I don’t know who you think you are, but
Christy is my daughter and when I tell her to do something I expect her to do it
and I don’t care what her gymnastics coach thinks.”
“What are you talking about?” Coach Anderson asks, very confused.
“Christy said that everything was straightened out at home.”
“I told her this morning that she was not supposed to compete tonight, but
apparently her gymnastics coach talked her into sticking around for the meet. I
do not appreciate it. It is not your place to interfere with the way I want to handle my daughter. Christy will not be a part of your team anymore, and thanks
to you, I may never allow her to compete again because you broke your own
rule,” Mr. Robinson proclaims, then slams the door behind him, leaving Coach
Anderson frustrated, frightened, and completely confused.
She waits several minutes to make sure that Mr. Robinson has had time to
leave the parking lot before she walks to her car. Once she sees that the coast is
clear, she heads home with all sorts of thoughts racing through her head. She re-
Parish, A. (2010). Case studies in coaching : Dilemmas and ethics in competitive school sports. Taylor & Francis Group.
Created from fsu on 2023-11-09 12:33:50.
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plays the entire incident from the talk with Christy to the run-in with her father
over and over in her mind. She can’t figure out where she missed something, but
obviously there had to be something that she just wasn’t seeing. She goes to bed
that night not knowing what to expect on Monday morning.
FURTHER READING
Putnam, D. T. (1999). Controversies of the sports
world. Santa Barbara, CA: Greenwood Publishing Group.
Stankovich, C. E., & Kays, T. M. (2002). The parent’s playbook. Columbus, OH: Champion
Athletic Consulting.
Taras, H. (2005). Physical activity and student performance at school. Journal of School Health,
75, 214–218.
Copyright © 2010. Taylor & Francis Group. All rights reserved.
American Sport Education Program. (1994). Sportparent. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Brown, J. W. (1988). Should eligibility standards
go beyond minimum requirements? National
Association of Secondary School Principals, 72,
46–49.
Lazar, K., & Gardner, J. (2009). Police investigate
ball field violence: Father hurt after spat with
coach. Retrieved December 7, 2009, from http://
www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/
articles/2009/10/19/wilmington_parent_injured_
after_spat_with_pop_warner_coach/
Parish, A. (2010). Case studies in coaching : Dilemmas and ethics in competitive school sports. Taylor & Francis Group.
Created from fsu on 2023-11-09 12:33:50.
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uestions
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CASE
t h e
PREPARING FOR LEARNING & COACHING
1. Who are the stakeholders in this case?
2. What are the critical issues in this case?
3. Do you agree with Coach Anderson’s decision to let Christy compete in the
first meet? Why or why not?
4. At what point do you think Coach Anderson should have contacted Christy’s father? Or, should she even have tried to contact him?
5. How do you feel about the way Coach Anderson spoke with Christy’s
father over the phone?
6. What do you think Coach Anderson could have done differently to handle
the situation of Christy missing practice?
Copyright © 2010. Taylor & Francis Group. All rights reserved.
7. Is there anything you should do about players with grades that are below
average, or do you believe that as long as a player is eligible it doesn’t
matter?
8. What do you think Coach Anderson’s next step should be in handling the
situation with Christy’s father?
9. What do you think of codes of conduct created by coaches? What do you
think should or should not be included?
Parish, A. (2010). Case studies in coaching : Dilemmas and ethics in competitive school sports. Taylor & Francis Group.
Created from fsu on 2023-11-09 12:33:50.
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