Sunday, March 19, 2006
Coaches: The Hardest Working Men in the Teaching Biz?
When I was teaching, coaches were often my best resource--or the bane of my existence. Not until a few years later, when my brother started teaching and coaching, did I ever stop to think how hard their jobs are.
Coaches were my best resource with boys whose motivation and grades slipped. A little word or two to a coach, a few sessions running the bleachers, and boy did that motivation improve! On the other hand, coaches could make things difficult for me--for instance, you couldn't give homework on Thursday nights because the (9th grade) boys were playing football all night--and likewise couldn't give tests on Fridays. I even worked in a Ninth grade center where that was a matter of procedure, not just practicality.
But, as I said, after my brother started coaching, I gained a newfound respect for coaches. They, in essence, work two full-time jobs, with the pay of only one. This is especially true in the smaller school districts where every coach is a coach-of-all-trades. For my brother, the school year starts weeks early with football, continues through basketball and track, and ends weeks late with baseball. My Mother and I always hope the football team doesn't do well, so that we get a chance to see him over the Thanksgiving "break!" He works late into the evening and he works holidays and Saturdays. He drives the bus. He's expected to produce a winning team and at the same time to produce in the classroom.
The "winning team" bit is hard--whether you do it or not! The parents.... Well, recently my brother sent me a letter to the editor that touched him in its impassioned defense of coaches in general, and one coach in particular. I was unable to find much on the background of the story, and linked to the one story that I did find in the headline above. The story seems to be that after taking the football team to State and winning one year, he didn't repeat the following year. Parents complained. The school board did not extend his contract.
When I asked my brother what he knew about the story, he said that he didn't, really.He wrote me that,
"I know from personal experience that when a community is ready for you to go, they will do just about anything to get rid of you. Same goes for an administration. If you are not liked by the administrators, they will find a way to get rid of you. Coaches are easy targets, because we are in the public eye a lot more than classroom teachers. The community/admin. like to fix things quickly when something goes wrong, and I am sure something must have happened for Coach Murphy that someone did not like. Anyway, it is a shame that good teachers get the boot for one mistake, regardless of how big or small."
The following is the letter to the editor, which was prompted by the local news coverage of the non-renewal of the coach's contract. (Yes, the hiring and firing of high school head football coaches is big news in Texas.)
February 26, 2006
This letter is in response to the news broadcast on Channel 25 on February 24, 2006 about Coach Robert Murphy’s coaching contract and allegations against him.
After watching that broadcast, I personally felt that Channel 25 was very unfair and represented a view of a couple of people that made it seem as if Coach Murphy had been verbally and emotionally abusing kids at Crawford ISD for many years. Aside from a short statement that Coach Murphy disputed the allegations, there was no other effort made to represent a different opinion. I would speculate that you could go to ANY school in the state of Texas and find some parents of kids that do not like the current coach. You could interview them and make it sound as bad as you would want. If I’m a coach and watching your story about Coach Murphy, I would be worried that now that type of coverage will encourage other upset parents to start trying to get rid of any coach with whom they have had a problem by calling the local television station and requesting an interview.
In today’s society with the increased divorce rates and breakdown of the family unit, many kids do not respect authority, are not willing to work hard, resent being pushed out of their comfort zone, and are discipline problems. Add to that situation a society that puts so much importance on sports and the display every day on television by professional sports stars who illustrate Individualism over Teamwork, Me over We, Hot-Head Response over Emotional Control, Money over Joy of the Sport, and Individual Demonstrations over Discipline. Mix with that parents who become so absorbed with the idea of their kid becoming a local sports star, earning a college scholarship, and playing professional sports that many pretty decent parents lose sight of what is really important in the development of their children’s character. They put too much pressure on their kids and expect them to excel by playing the sport year-round to the point that the attainment of that goal becomes paramount to anything else in the child’s life.
A coach of the youth in our society is faced with the insurmountable task of taking those pressures, attitudes, and unrealistic expectations and still having to try to push the student athlete to excel, teach him discipline, respect for authority, and develop his character, all while trying to win enough games to keep a job. When a coach is placed in a position that involves coaching kids and determining what position the individual child will be playing, who will be a starter, and how much playing time athletes get…look out! A coach is never going to please all parents and their unrealistic expectations for their own children. And if their child doesn’t excel in the manner that the parents think they should or the child comes home after a coach has had a tough practice and complains to their parents that coach is unfair or said something they didn’t like, then the parents complain about the coach, typically in front of their children, which further promotes disrespect for authority. You get the idea, and the situation deteriorates from that point. Ask any coach in high school today and get his or her opinion. Interview a coach and find out what kind of life he lives with those type of situations to deal with on a daily basis while trying to protect his job and raise his own family. Ask a coach how many hours he works when coaching an in-season sport.
Coach Murphy’s teams are noted for being well-prepared, having strict discipline, being extremely tough, and for playing with heart. If you are a kid with an attitude and not much respect for authority then you won’t do well in that system. There is a reason why Coach Robert Murphy has the highest winning percentage of any active coach in Central Texas today. He doesn’t put up with bad attitudes and disrespect. He is intense, structured and disciplined. Just the kind of experience that is hard to find anymore. As a parent of five kids that went through the Crawford school system, of which two were boys who played for Coach Murphy, I feel that my boys are better men today for the experience. My wife and I feel blessed that our kids know the meaning of respect for authority, discipline, and pushing yourself out of your comfort zone in whatever endeavor you are pursuing.
If you have never witnessed a football game with Crawford’s team led by Coach Murphy, then you have missed something unique. You would see a team that never has excessive demonstration after a touchdown or big play, always wears their helmets on the sidelines, always hustles on and off the field, always plays with heart, and always exhibits good sportsmanship. I’ve seen on many occasions a Crawford football player deferentially hand the ball back to the referee after a big play and even pick-up the ball and give it to the referee after their opponent spiked the ball. How do you think you win a state championship in Class 2A football when you are the third smallest school in that classification, don’t have any outstanding individual athletes, don’t have a player that can run under a 4.6 forty yard dash, only have 30 players on the roster, of which many have to play offense and defense and special teams, and have a small athletic budget. That means you may have some great assistant coaches, but with such few coaches everyone has to work very long hours and wear many hats. You win that state championship by having a group of kids and coaches who are willing to work extra hard, have a good attitude, sacrifice individual recognition for the team, that have learned how to play hard through pain and adversity, and know that they can depend on each other when times get tough. They learn the value of dedication and how much you can achieve together as a team rather than as a group of individuals. These are lessons those kids will carry with them the rest of their lives. Coach Murphy and his assistant coaches deserve much better than what you showed the other night with your unfair broadcast. Do you realize that Crawford’s participation rate for varsity football is one of the highest in Texas? Do you think that would be true if Coach Murphy was guilty of the allegations you aired on television the other night? I just hope Coach Murphy doesn’t decide to retire because he is tired of all the hassles and publicity he has not sought. There are a group of young men out there today in our society that have a common bond from having played for Coach Murphy and they know what they learned from those experiences. They were led by a man who had no time for whiners and complainers, but who always tried to improve the character of those that he led.
Ed N. Jones
Served on Crawford School Board 15 years, president for 7 of those years. Had five kids heavily involved in sports at Crawford ISD for 17 years.
What he said!
I only taught and all the crap wore me out in 9 years. I have to really give my brother all the respect in the world--he's in his tenth year of teaching Biology and coaching four sports and hasn't worn out yet!
Read or Post a Comment
I have no doubt that many coaches essentially work two jobs. I also feel badly that their tenures at a given school tend to be directly related to two things: their win/loss record and the tenure of the athletic director who hired them. However, there is a significant problem here.
Coaches are in education primarily because they want to coach. There is nothing inherently wrong in this. For most (we can quibble about percentages, of course), teaching is decidedly secondary, all too often, the students these folks "teach" are treated to absolutely second rate instruction, which can include such coaching staples as: frequent teacher absences (often requiring other teachers to take up the slack), mountains of worksheets, videos that have little or no relation to the curriculum, and so many disruptions in a connected classroom experience that it defies belief.
Coaches choose their fates, but for many, their teaching habits shortchange kids, and the way that schools deal with athletics does the same. No, all coaches are not bad and incompetent. But am I not speaking about reality, a reality that too many are not willing to bring to light?
Mike,
I appreciate your comment and agree to a certain degree. I'm not sure what that degree is....
Definitely, the coaches are gone more often and that has to be disruptive. (I remember what a pain it was to try to leave an actual lesson for a sub--you had no idea whether they could or would follow it!)
I have to say, though, that there are coaches who love what they teach and do a great job of it. Probably there are more who love what they teach and would love to have the time to do a great job of it.
The more I think about this, the more I think we are saying the same basic thing with the difference that I am saying it positively (Coaches can be good teachers) and you are saying it negatively (Coaches can be bad teachers). Both statements can be true at the same time and then, as you said, it becomes a quibble about percentages.
Coach Robert Murphy may be a winning football coach but that doesn't make him a good person to work with children. Demeaning name calling should be above ANY person teaching children. Students, especially teens and pre-teens doubt themselves enough without the added pressure of a teacher demeaning them in front of their peers. Something is just not right with a coach who feels he has to do this. Coach Robert Murphy is wrong to do this.
J,
Thank you for stopping by and for your comment. For me, this post was not about the specific coach mentioned, but about coaches in general.
Neither I nor my brother knew this coach, nor did either of us know what the allegations were. Perhaps what you say is true--I wouldn't know.
I will absolutely agree with your general statement that "Demeaning name calling should be above ANY person teaching children."