Department of Business Administration

ANALYSIS of the MOVIE

“STAND AND DELIVER”

By:

Syed Muhammad Kashif (9888)

AN ASSIGNMENT SUBMITTED TO
Dr. SIRAJ JAMAL SIDDIQUI IN PARTIAL
FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS
FOR THE COURSE MGT-312
ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR

SUNDAY 15th November, 2009

Q.01: What was the movie all about?

Answer: 01
The movie is based on a true motivational story that verifies the magnitude of commitment,
hard-work and dedication to be the pivotal success factors in any mission or project.

The movie revolves around a minority student class in James A. Garfield High School in Los
Angeles County, California, USA. All students of the class belonged to Hispanic-Mexican origin
and had quite different cultural values to Anglo-Saxon school administration. This cultural
difference created a puzzling situation where school administration was treating students being
ethnocentric while students were treating their faculty parochially.

In these troubling times, a social reformer, Mr. Jamie A. Escalante joined the school. Escalante
had a steady computer selling job but being part of same community sector, he was always
committed to bring a positive change for his genre instead of his own self-growth only. Keeping
this mission in front, Escalante opted for a meager school teacher job over a promising career in
computer sales. He joined the faculty as computer teacher but was given maths class to be
taught as school was not regarded by US school regulator for providing PCs as sutdent’s track
record in foundation courses for computers were below average standards.

Escalante adopted a totally different outlook for teaching and presented basic mats concepts
using the cultural values, student know and familiar of. His methods were adopted by students
and they started taking interest in his course. He also utilized the advanced scoring methods of
pop quizzes and short exams to rightly gauge student marks and preparing them for the final
exam. All these methods resulted in steady improvement in students’ grade and their
promotions to next cadres.

Story reaches to its climax when Escalante defined an uphill task of studying calculus to his O-
level students to help them attained good financial support in A-level exams in senior school.

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This effort was discouraged by other faculty members also as it needed summer class
arrangements for that school administration had no facility.

But the committed Escalante did not bother for any of such problems and continued his zealous
efforts for his students for the challenging goal. He even approached kid’s trembling parents to
allow for their extra hours at school and arranged classes somehow. Escalante managed these
classes over and above his usual extra study classes for adult students of his community and his
commitment was never daunted even when he had a stroke and asked by doctors to take at
least one month’s complete rest.

Results of all this hard work were surprising to everyone including ETS, the Educational Testing
service as all of his 18 students passed the exam and qualified for taking senior school credit
hours. On further analysis, ETS noticed that all the students made almost similar errors and had
almost uniform numbers in different sections of the test. Before this test, Garfield school’s
previous record was also quite contrasting to the current result pattern.

Thus ETS management trapped with Stereotyping and started an enquiry into the test affairs.
Students treated it as sheer victimization and thus did not cooperate with the investigating
team thus the committee in which one anglo-sexan educator was there, charged the students
of cheating or using unfair means. They asked them to re-appear for the test and given just one
day for preparations.

Escalante again came to rescue to his students and his team. He motivated them in an
encouraging class meeting, prepared them for taking the task just as another milestone to
achieve. They collectively decided to take at least 18 hours study run from the available day
even at Escalante’s home where he himself served lunch and dinner by himself to his students.

After this challenging day, Escalante’s students proved to ETS that mental ability does not
belong to any specific community and talent does not always come with heredity. They all

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passed in bright colors and this time there was no one who could doubt their talent and
potential.

This touchy story shows:

 How leadership drives individuals.
 How people’s behaviors are related with their attitudes and antecedents.
 How one man’s dream spreads to a community?
 Reality is not what exists; rather what is perceived is the actual “REALITY”.
And above all
 MOTIVATION IS THE KEY TO SUCCESS and both Positive re-inforcers like rewards/
encouragement and negative re-inforcers of Avoidance, Punishment and Extinction all
need to be utilized in the right proportion.

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Q.02: How many motivational theories may apply here? Need to discuss each
one.

Answer: 02
Escalante has used motivation as the basic tool for driving his team and achieving quite
challenging goals of changing his students around. In his approach I observe that multiple
aspects of different classes of motivational theories are applied and in the following text I am
trying to define these major theories along with its application by Escalante.

Content Theories:
ERG Theory:
Theory specifies that humans need Existence, Relatedness and Growth and these needs are
activated not in a particular order. These needs can be activated simultaneous to one another
as well. Basically theory takes its roots from “Needs Theory” given by Maslow.
In the movie, we can see that students were coping with existence needs as they were coming
from weaker economic backgrounds and were doing part-time jobs to help their families
economically. Similarly their relatedness needs were being suppressed as cultural mix of the
community was just evolving. Hispanic boys were feeling neglected when their girl friends start
preferring white boys for their stronger social bond just because Hispanics won’t be treated a
strong factor in the US society overall.

As these two needs were not addressing therefore students were not able to concentrate on
the growth needs and that’s the reason Escalate observed behind their lower grades and
continuous non-performance in schools. He used this evaluation as a basis for applying the
correction required for motivating his team and made his working analogy further strengthened
by different theories from Process and Reinforcement Theories.

Process Theories:
Equity Theory:

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Equity theory defines that individuals equate their rewards and job outcomes with their peers
and follows and on this comparison feel either positive inequity (consideration of having higher
rewards from others on lower or like performance) or negative inequity (consideration of
having lower rewards from others on the better or like performance). In positive inequity feeler
(a rare happening) they increase their outcome or output while in negative inequity case, their
trust on the reward system is shaken and their morale to work is totally shattered.

Application of this theory is quite evident in the movie as students belonging to a minority
background had “Negative Inequity” feeler about the society and school administration. The
students had impression that system is not ready to trust them and they are considered
second-grade citizens always.

They had the fear that even in case of better studies; their chances to go in good senior schools
were not there as their parents were not able to pay their fees. Society also won’t have open-
mind to accept them on good jobs. Thus their efforts to their job (study) were quite low and
they just attended the school for a social gathering and as a fun activity only.

Escalante worked on this factor and started talking them in their own language. He gave them
the confidence by applying similar scoring principles as they were hearing in other schools
where ruling elite kids were nurturing. He helped the kids for convincing their parents for giving
due time for studies and trying for a change. He treated all of his students equally and did not
bother to engage with “gangsters” of the community for ensuring fair and equal treatment in
maintaining class etiquettes.

Reinforcement Theories:
These theories are the pre-dominant part of applied motivation exercise by Escalante. Theory
depicts two basic type of reinforcing factors to build motivation such as:
 Positive Reinforces like rewards & Encouragement
 Negative Reinforces like Avoidance, Extinction & Punishment

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Theory also depicts that reinforces have maximum effect if they are immediately applied as
given in Law of Immediate Reinforcement. Similarly they create significant impact if they are
exhibited only if desired behavior is depicted which is as per “Law of Contingent
Reinforcement”.

Escalante used all these tools quite smartly. He encouraged his students in their small
initiatives. He encouraged them in just attempting to give answers, not specific to right answers
only. He encouraged them to take challenges, no matter they fail. That created a positive
reinforces for the students.

He also used extinction principle to force students to improve their efforts to studies and
improvement in grades as his encouragement status kept on changing. The same is desired to
focus his students for the final destination of clearing EST exams, not just the class tests.

He also used negative reinforces quite intelligently especially for boys who were just trying to
be over-smart. He first avoided them for giving a response against their hostile attitudes and
treated their ill-manners by using the “Avoidance” principle.

For few overly reactions, he also used punishment principle and took the culprit to the task. He
even physically punished few bad boys who tried to interfere in class affairs or destroyed the
decorum of the class. He expelled such characters from the class for certain period and made
his impression of a good administrator.

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Q.03: What was Escalante’s Motivation?

Answer: 03
Jamie A Escalante himself belonged to Hispanic-Mexican origin and he would have seen all the
problems faced to his community in his brought up as well. He was committed to make a
widespread change for his community. He was following for the change that brings good
prospects for people who had not given due rights so far and their talent is not utilized yet for
the betterment of overall US society.

His commitment to the cause and internal belief can be termed as Self-efficacy aspect of his
personality which is the prime motivation in itself. He had a dream and had strong commitment
attached to his cause. His internal strength made it possible for him to strive even in difficult
rather discouraging environment.

For defining motivation texture of Escalante, we can place him in “self-actualization” need, as
described in Maslow’s need theory. Escalante was committed to a social cause thus
achievement standards for him were quite different as compared to people whose needs
normally ends at the fourth classification of Self-Esteem of the same theory, as this grade is
possible to achieve in one’s own growth and prosperity.

For making a positive change in his community, Escalante not only focused his regular students
to have proficiency in Maths and calculus (basics for professional degrees) rather he managed
adult schools for the elders of his community. This attempt was totally a community service and
all of his community members respected his sincere and selfless efforts. Their appreciation and
his family pride in such noble cause was also a motivating factor for him.

Another strong factor of Escalante’s character is his belief in team achievements and taking all
team-mates together on the success ladder. That he showed when he strived to push all 18
students of his class to able to pass Calculus Exam. This desire for team achievement was also a

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big motivator for Escalante to switch career from successful salesmanship to teaching
profession which is considered not financially well-paying as of his previous career.

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