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Cassidy Camara

Doctor Warwick

WRIT 109ED

1 May 2024

Running Towards Self Improvement: How Community and Self-Efficacy Transformed a

Final Exam into an Unforgettable Journey

I remember this like it was yesterday although it took place four years ago. You might be

wondering, how is it possible to remember every detail from an event that happened four years

ago? Well, it's because I saw the impact I had created within my community and for the first time

during my high school experience, my peers and I were truly connected. “For your final, you

guys will be running a 10k” my Athletics P.E. teacher announced to our class. Looking around

the classroom my classmates and I had slight grins on our faces and felt a collective sense of

nervousness but excitement at the same time. The Athletics P.E. class I was enrolled in was for

students who were currently on a Varsity sports team and still wanted to take P.E. Being on the

Varsity Soccer team along with a couple of teammates and other fellow athletes in this class

created a close community with like-minded individuals. The reason we were excited with this

announcement that we were going to have to run 6.2 miles was because this was a time when we

could test our abilities as athletes and see how successful we could be at running. We wanted to

see how we would perform under pressure and wanted to prove ourselves to one another. We

welcomed the challenge with open arms.

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However, we soon found out that this final assessment was not only for our P.E. class but

the three other P.E. classes being taught that quarter as well, which were composed of two

freshman P.E. classes and a yoga class. When discussing with the other classes, we could tell

everyone else was terrified and absolutely dreading this assignment. This final assessment

demanded an extraordinary feat - running 6.2 consecutive miles, timed, to secure a passing

grade. Our teachers told us this was going to be our final about a month before it was to take

place. After talking with my fellow teammates and other student-athletes in our Athletic P.E.

class, we decided that we would do whatever we could to make this experience better for the

students who were dreading this final. You might be wondering, how could we possibly do this?

Well, from that moment on, we decided that every day, after school, those who were willing and

wanted to, would all collectively meet and start running together to prepare for the final.

When we showed up to our agreed meeting place, to our surprise, we had a large group

of students that showed up. I felt an overwhelming feeling of joy in this moment because I was

expecting maybe 5 students to show up but it turned out to be 30 plus students. I realize now why

I felt so much joy in this moment, it was because every single person that showed up didn't have

any obligation to be there, they were all choosing to be there. As described by Jennifer Wells in

her article “Dispositions Towards Learning,” these students showed an incredible amount of

self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is defined as “learners’ beliefs about their capabilities to do the things

or produce the things needed to influence events affecting their lives” (Wells 21). These students

believed in their capacity to succeed and took concrete steps toward their goals. Our self-efficacy

allowed us to set challenging goals for ourselves since we had confidence in our abilities to meet

our goals.
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Initially, many of these students joined our runs out of necessity, driven by the need to

pass their P.E. class. However, as we progressed and spent more time with one another, the runs

became a communal activity, something we began to look forward to despite the inherent

challenge. This shift was inspiring; students who once dreaded running found joy in the process

because of the supportive community we had built. This became a pastime for all of us where we

could come together as a community and not only prepare for our final but also get to know and

work with each other to better ourselves. It became a place for all of us to escape from reality

and really just enjoy living in the moment. Even as a soccer player I sometimes hated the thought

of running, so having people show up to run when some of these people had no interest in

athletics or running at all was inspiring to see.

My teammates and I agreed to host this running event 3 days a week with the possibility

of one additional meeting on the weekends if some students could not attend because of other

commitments or simply because they didn't want to on a certain day. This was our way of doing

self-regulation which Wells describes as “a process learners go through when they choose how

they will adapt to new learning situations” (Wells 21). We had our goal of helping these students

successfully run a 10k, so now all we had to do was implement steps to help them get there. We

started off simple and gradually increased the distance we covered after each meeting. This

method ensured no one felt overwhelmed and allowed everyone to adapt at their own pace. At

the first meeting, we did a slow jog for half a mile and then walked together until we covered a

collective distance of 2 miles. In the next meeting, we ran one mile and then walked until we hit

2 miles. At the next, we ran 1.5 miles and then walked an additional 1.5 miles. We continued to

gradually increase the amount of time we spent running each day and the total amount of

distance we covered until we ended up being able to run 5 miles consecutively. By gradually
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making these changes, we allowed these students to not feel completely overwhelmed with the

thought of having to run 6.2 miles and built up their confidence and beliefs in themselves. I

found this method to be extremely effective and I think others did as well because each day, we

had if not the same, a slightly less amount of individuals. This showed us that people were

finding meaning and value in what they were doing and were choosing to show up each and

every day we met to better themselves despite how difficult the task was. After doing this for

about 4 weeks, it was finally time to run the 10k in class for our final.

When we were first told that the final was a 10k, everyone in my Athletics P.E. class

started to make it into a competition and wanted to see who would finish first, second, third, last,

etc. Everyone wanted to show off their athletic ability and prove to each other that they were the

fittest in the class. However, when it came time to actually run the 6.2 miles, our mindset had

completely shifted after participating in our running meetings. When we showed up to the final,

without even discussing it, we all knew what we wanted to do. We were going to run with the

students we had gotten to know over the past 4 weeks no matter how fast or slow we would be

going. We got together with the students who showed up to our running meetings, tried to give

an exciting pep talk in hopes of bringing reassurance and confidence to these individuals

knowing how nervous they were, and then we were off.

On a very hot summer day in the middle of June, we were about to see if everything we

had been working so hard on was about to pay off. We had all agreed on two requirements when

doing this run together. One, to never go below a light jogging pace, and two, to stick together as

a group. No one cared how fast we were going, as long as we were running, together, as a group.

The first mile went by a breeze but as soon as we hit the mile-and-a-half mark everything

changed. The brutal beating from the sun with the combination of having no breeze at all on this
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summer day kicked in and really started to affect me at this point. I looked around and could see

that I wasn’t the only one feeling this way. We had beams of sweat dripping from our faces, our

legs were starting to feel like bricks with each step getting harder than the previous, and were

struggling to maintain constant airflow. We were all desperately hoping for a cloud to appear in

the sky or a gust of wind to pass through to give us some relief but we knew this wasn’t going to

happen.

At this point, it became all about discipline. Despite these harsh conditions we were

going through, I knew we could still do it. Even though my body was begging me to walk,

mentally I knew that I could keep going no matter what. While our bodies were physically being

pushed to their limits, it was all about mentality and collective determination that kept us going.

As we were running, I kept on reminding everyone that this is what we had been working so hard

on for the past four weeks, that we could all do this. We were the ones in control of our own

outcomes, not anything or anyone else. As a group, we motivated each other to push ourselves to

places we hadn't gone before. We picked one another up, supported one another, and stuck by

each other's side the entire time. At this point, our bodies were doing everything in their power to

get us to walk, but mentally we pushed through. As we hit the 5-mile mark, we all got a

rejuvenating burst of energy. We only had one more mile to go before we were done. We kept on

running until our teachers waiting at the finish line came into our point of view. Some people let

out a few cheers as this meant we were so close to the finish line. There we were, now only a

couple of feet away from accomplishing our goal. Simultaneously, we all picked up the pace and

gave our very last bit of energy and strength to rush towards the finish line. Every single one of

us finished the 10k and received a passing grade.

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The last few steps before we crossed the finish line were the most rewarding steps I have

ever taken. We crossed the finish line and all of us couldn't help but have the biggest smiles on

our faces as the thing we had been working so hard on for the past month was finally completed.

After our heightened emotions of finishing the 10k wore off, we all realized that this was about

much more than just getting a passing grade in a class. Even though our initial goal was just to

finish the run on time and pass the class, what we got out of it was so much more than we ever

could have imagined. In retrospect, the 10k challenge was not just a test of physical endurance

but a testament to the strength of human connection. Our journey had transformed us, teaching

us the importance of resilience, teamwork, and the power of collective effort. It underscored the

incredible potential we have when we come together, support each other, and push beyond our

perceived limits. We built a community, a group of people who got to know each and every

individual on a personal level, which wouldn't have been possible if we never took the initiative

to do this in the first place. The running meetings became a place where we could lean and rely

on each other, hold each other accountable, and get to truly know one another. We were a group

of individuals that started off as strangers but became close friends. We were there to support and

motivate one another and become the best version of ourselves in order to achieve our goals,

which we successfully did.

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Works Cited

Wells, Jennifer. "2 Dispositions Toward Learning." Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing Volume

5: 17.