Not long ago I was asked by a parent to help her child to improve his
study skills. He was in eight grade and his grades had been
inconsistent with a recent declining trend. Previous performance
showed he has good ability and intelligence. Since middle school
presented harder subjects and required the students to assume more
responsibility for their work it seemed it reasonable improvement area
was study skills. Helping him to be better organized and improve his
test taking abilities may be just what he needs.
After several sessions I became convinced an improvement in study
skills was not going to gain the desired improvement in school. James
(fictitious name) did show very good ability – much better than
demonstrated by his grades. He also was had great intentions to get
things done. However, he seemed to forget or find an excuse of why
he did not complete what I had asked of him. I also noticed something
or someone was always to blame. One time he even blamed his
parents for not reminding him. And to my surprise the parents
apologized and said they also forgot.
The parents were very interested in helping James. They showed great
concern and wanted to do what ever they could to help him. It became
apparent to me we needed to change approach and course of actions
with James. James was demonstrating the characteristics of an
Underachiever - more specifically a Coaster.
First I explained to the parents the characteristics of an underachiever,
why I thought James fit these characteristics and suggested a course
of action. It took several weeks but we finally started to see the first
signs of change by James which gave us optimism he was on his way
to overcome his problem.
There are several good books on Underachievers. One I highly
recommend is: (other resources are listed at the end of this article)
“Could Do Better”: Why Children Underachieve and What to Do
About It.
by Harvey P. Mandel, Sander I. Marcus
This book does a very good job describing the different types of
underachievers, characteristics, what to expect and some approaches.
It can be very difficult for a parent to develop and manage an
improvement plan alone. Too easy to become too emotionally involved
and also not recognize the changes you as a parent must make.
Below you will find some excerpts from this book which will give you
some of the concepts related to the study of underachievers. To learn
more I suggest you buy the book or check your local library. Also
consider enlisting the services of an experience person to help you and
your child with their improvement.
7 Principles of Achievement
What is achievement? What effects a child’s achievement in school?
Here are some basics principles.
1. School marks are determined by many factors
a. Physical
b. Poor Nutrition
c. Emotional
d. Family move
e. Mental Intelligence (basic ability, learning disabilities,
dyslexia, etc.)
f. School itself (structure and attitude)
2. Intelligence is one of several factors to determine school marks.
25% intelligence and 75% family, friends, personality, culture
3. It is normal not to do well in every subject
4. Can expect temporary drop in school performance during certain
transitions within a child’s school years.
a. Grades 4-6 [new activities, higher demands on time and
skills]
b. High School transition [new school, physical changes, new
circle of friends, change in structure]
c. College [on own, less supervision, better competition]
Many times students will improve and do much better in
college than high school once they make the adjustment.
5. Underachievers are not all alike. Why they underachieve and in
what manner can be significantly different.
6. With different types of underachievers need different approaches
to change achievement patterns.
7. Change takes time.
Basic rule: A marked decrease in academic performance that lasts
longer than a year is a signal to look closer.
Typical Underachiever Types
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Coasters [40% of the underachievers]
The ultimate procrastinators usually described as easy going and
unmotivated. Exhibit the best of intentions.
Anxious
They want to do better but are too tense and uptight to work
effectively.
Identity Searchers
Are so wrapped up in trying to figure out who they are, they
become distracted from their school work.
Wheeler Dealers
Impulsive, charming or intimidating manipulative, self-seeking
and so intent on instant gratification they see no percentage in
doing well at school.
Sad Underachievers
Their depressed mood, low self-esteem and difficulty in making
decisions rob them of the energy to concentrate on school work.
Defiant
Underachiever as an act of rebellion.
Since Coasters are the most prevalent type of underachiever, I will
include some key points from the book for this type.
Anatomy of a Coaster
1. They procrastinate at home and at school – without any visible
concern.
2. They give up, get low marks and lose interest quickly without great
concern. Especially evident if things get tougher or substantial
effort is needed.
3. Have selective memories.
4. Make sincere sounding statements of intention but without follow
through.
5. Easily distracted from school work and chores. But they do
concentrate intensely on personal interests.
6. Tend to overestimate their academic performance.
7. Offer vague explanations for poor academic performance.
8. Have a ready supply of plausible excuses.
9. Go through a predictable work cycle each school term.
– Season of good intentions
– Season of early promise
– Season of coasting on accomplishments of the past
– Season of escalating excuses
– Season of
– Season of shock and horror, soul searching
– Season of renewal effort
– Season of resignation
– Season of amnesia
10. Don’t respond to rewards or punishment – any benefits are short
lived. May work with other underachiever types.
11. Exhibits general contentment with themselves and life.
12. Unconcerned about the future.
What Makes Coaster NOT Run
1. They are not lazy and unmotivated.
2. Actually they are highly motivated – but motivated to just get
by.
3. Motivated to achieve their goal.
4. Their goal is to avoid more responsibility or high expectations.
5. Don’t want to face the future. Their comfort of dependence can
continue; maintaining the status quo. They want to postpone the
future – do not like to make plans for the future.
6. They are not fully aware of their goal. They believe their excuses
because they are not completely aware of their real intentions.
7. When they abandon their excuses for their performance or lack
of action, change becomes possible.
8. You may be able to force them to abandon their excuses through
“crap detection” [defn: questioning of commonly held
assumptions]. They must recognize their false assumptions and
start to see things in a new way. The term “Crap Factor” comes
from Postman and Weingartner and their book “Teaching as a
Subversive Activity”.
9. Coasters who finally abandon their excuses take increasing
responsibility for their choices.
Constructive Confrontation
Secrets:
 Be constructive
 Focus on facts
 Have the child join in the problem solving process
 Confront when the problem occurs; don’t let tensions build or
expect it to “forget away”
 Confront strengths that can be more utilized – not on
weaknesses
 Be selective on when and how often you confront the child – big
your battles wisely
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Be prepared for confrontation to increase tension in the short
term.
Some Parental Characteristics
Parents tend to be uncomfortable with conflict and direct expression of
dissatisfaction toward the child. Believe confrontation could lead to a
break in their relationship. Tend to hover over the child and assume
day to day responsibilities for the child’s achievement.
Coasters – A New Course of Action
1. Abandon the Underachievement Myth. Stop thinking Coasters as
being lazy or unmotivated.
2. Start with the facts – stick with the facts.
3. Inform your coaster you will be getting the facts from the
school, teachers, etc. – including the coaster themselves.
4. Setup a structure to obtain the facts. Include your coaster in
this structure. Remember you want them to start eliminating
excuses and take responsibility.
5. Set up a regular time and procedures; go through the checks
with the coaster.
6. Be constructive in any confrontation with the coaster. Make sure
they understand – have them repeat. Seek commitments in
writing or in front of others.
7. Be clear who owns the problem.
8. Don’t accept “pat” answers at face value. Keep probing – ask
why 5 times.
9. Approach every school problem by asking a systematic list of
problem solving questions.
10. Use the Motivation Recipe.
Motivation Recipe
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Vision – need to create a sense of purpose and dream
Commitment – becomes their mission
Planning – create a concrete plan of action with deliverables and
dates.
Follow-Through on all commitments, promises, plans.
Vision Review – have periodic vision reviews. Am I getting closer
to my dream? Why not? What to I need to alter? Where am I
succeeding?
Results That Can Be Expected
1. Expect change to occur more slowly than all may like.
2. Changes in behavior will not produce higher marks immediately.
3. Expect some tension and resentment when you confront the
coaster.
4. Expect to feel anger and resentment at the coaster both for not
changing rapidly enough and requiring you to confront them.
5. Expect to feel as if the child’s poor marks are a reflection of failed
parenting efforts. Coasters come from normal families with loving
and good parents.
6. Expect to feel excuses will never end.
7. Expect to have neither enough time nor energy to confront every
excuse in every course.
8. Expect – just when you are about to give up hope – you will see
small changes in your coaster’s behavior.
9. Expect as your child assumes greater responsibility, you will not
agree with some of their choices but you will need to confront less
and let them work it through.
10. Expect dramatic change in your role as a parent. Redefine your
role.
Other Resources
http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/underachiever.htm
http://www.about-underachieving-teens.com/why-bright-kids-fail.html
Bright Minds, Poor Grades: Understanding and Motivating Your
Underachieving Child by Michael D., Ph.D. Whitley
Tipping the Balance for the Underachiever
By Karen M. Wicks, Ph.D., Learning Specialist
Children have a natural inborn inclination to succeed. When they first start to walk,
they learn from their missteps, getting up over and over again when they fall until
they gain balance and perspective. With each improvement, they increase confidence
to try again. As their minds develop, their perceptions and responses to failure are
key to the development of their self-confidence and ability to excel. Children
naturally become attuned to how others react to their mistakes. As they develop
each new skill set they are particularly sensitive to negative feedback and may not
recognize that mistakes are simply "failing forward" or gaining experience and
knowledge from failures. Some children put a lid on their abilities and potential, thus
programming their minds to accept mediocrity and avoid challenges. In effect, they
avoid the pain of making mistakes because of the fear of letting down themselves
and others.
Many bright and gifted children in particular learn quickly how to perform for the
approval of adults and may become dependent on the applause. As they begin to
discover their own limitations, some children develop unproductive routines that
hinder their progress. Entrenched habits, like studying for a test or doing an
assignment at the last minute, begin to work against them when it becomes
increasingly difficult to handle the more complex demands of school. Pressure from
parents to meet academic expectations may further exacerbate feelings of
inadequacy and embarrassment. Such individuals complain that school is boring and
they often lack the motivation to perform reliably on mundane tasks. As a result,
academic underachievement becomes a pattern as school assignments involve a
more complex array of skills to consolidate information quickly, build on this
information, reproduce it and perform reliably.
Children and teens often suffer from persistent success deprivation, feeling they
have little to show for their efforts, so they make excuses, decide to reduce their
efforts, and seek immediate gratification through leisure activities with their friends.
Some kids become inattentive, without having Attention Deficit Disorder, and report
that they study even though they do not reproduce what they have learned on tests
or assignments. Further, an individual may fail to do homework because of poor
mental energy. And if a student is socially distractible and feels like an inadequate
performer, he or she may avoid schoolwork and gravitate toward activities with
friends or solitary games. The other side of the coin is the fear of success-how
relationships with peers might change as a result of becoming an excellent studentwhich is an equally important element in mediocre performance. Finally, a student
may lack organizational and study skills and feel overwhelmed by the amount of
knowledge to be broken down, sequentially ordered, digested, managed, prioritized,
remembered and orchestrated for the appropriate purpose-homework, projects,
tests, reports, etc. Fear of failure and accusations of laziness further decrease selfconfidence and produce rationalizations for procrastination.
Despite these challenges, recent studies and my experience reveal that there are a
number of environmental changes parents and students can make to reverse
underachievement. The minds of most kids today are programmed by a
disproportionate amount of passive activities such as TV and over stimulating ones
like fast-paced games. When school assignments are tedious or uninteresting, more
exciting activities offer a great temptation. Many attention inconsistencies are related
specifically to lifestyle, including irregular or limited exercise, unregulated sleep
patterns, and the immoderate consumption of simple sugars-found in sodas, most
cereals, white bread and many processed foods-and fatty "fast foods." Changes in
diet may have a significant impact on one's ability to focus on routine and "boring"
activities. Complex carbs, such as vegetables and multigrain breads, as well as lean
protein, provide energy over extended periods of time, while simple carbs-like
refined sugars-provide a quick rush of adrenaline followed by lethargy, thus robbing
the body of much-needed energy for sustained attention and focus. Furthermore,
continuous exposure to over-stimulating visual stimuli-excessive use of video games,
television, Net-surfing-works like a drug to fuel the attention centers in the brain and
results in withdrawal symptoms that make it extremely difficult to focus on chores
and schoolwork. Thus, the "tipping point" for achievement in many students is a
change in diet and restrictions on their exposure to visual stimulation.
The second "tipping point" to help underachievers succeed is to understand how their
mind works. Appreciating their strengths and minimizing their weaknesses will
promote the development of a positive attitude, which in turn improves focus and
attention. Underachievers need to retrain their minds to see success as a long-term
process, not an immediate result or single event. Both parents and students need
patience to move beyond judgment to acceptance of how each mind approaches the
learning process. Next, knowing their "why"-what they would like to be, do and/or
have-and deciding that the "price" is worth the "prize" are essential elements for
students to improve performance and move forward with purpose. Many teens do
not see the relevance of school; others lack a clear idea of who they want to become
and the kinds of interests they might pursue. Without a picture of their future, they
lack the mental energy needed to form the right attitudes and tackle the tedious
aspects of life-be it in school or elsewhere. In tandem with the dream, it is essential
that students believe in their ability to achieve. If they set goals and attempt to
persistently act upon them before developing a compelling "why" and the belief that
they can achieve it, they are starting backwards, which is an exercise in frustration
and futility. The ageless success pattern-dream-belief-commitment-goal-action-is a
critical "tip" that reverses the tide of underachievement.
____________________
Dr. Wicks holds a Ph.D. from New York University. She is a former professor and
administrator, director for curriculum and instructional development at the College
Board-the SAT people, and a leading expert in learning styles. She is co-founder of
EdVANTAGE™ Learning Center, Marlton, New Jersey. Readers may contact her at
856-988-6640 or usiedadv@quixnet.net.