to not want a move towards competitive sport in primary schools

[noseynoonoo]

First off, this is not a political rant and I hope it doesn't turn into one.

I am so cheesed off about this: www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-19219942

The details are patchy but it looks on the surface that competitive sport such as football and netball are to be widely promoted - is there anything less motivating?

Football, is just too dull, kicking a ball around, usually with limited skill at primary level whilst netball involves 7 girls per team of which 2 stand still most of the time.

My daughter just wants to be active. I don't care if it's competitive, I just want her moving and being fit. As the second tallest girl in her class, and if teachers are as unimaginitve as they were in my day, she'll be Goal Shooter or Goal Keeper and kept within a small semicircle. My son is a little dynamo and finds football dull. I hate to think of sports being so restricted.

So, can anyone tell me that I have misunderstood where school sports is going?

Every subject is a competition

I agree - but forcing competitive sport will put people off exercise. Two different things IMHO. I have no issue with either. Let the sporty compete, let the non sporty do something exercisy (my new word) that doesn't make them feel like a failure.

Every school had a child who is deemed useless at sport, the short one, the fat one, the one in glasses etc - but I bet you with encouragement they could probably have a roaring time at field athletics, lobbing a shot put!

I would gave hoped that a competent teacher would come up with a more balanced and interesting PE programme than that which OP expects.

DD's all girl school has always done competitive sport and do so from reception. Their sport's days are lovely to watch. They cheer one another on and everyone takes part with a smile. Yes, there are winners - but those getting the biggest cheers are those who try the hardest, even if they happen to fall over or come last. It's not just sport's day either though - they do a lot of competitive sport in normal PE and in juniors they all participate in inter school sport's matches and within the school in interhouse sport - netball, hockey, tennis, rounders, tag rugby, swimming, athletics... They also do other sports such as judo, ballet, dance fit, trampolining, diving in Y6, and others. They do use some sport's specialists from outside the school and they are very fortunate that their PE teacher is herself an ex Olympian who participates in two Olympics in diving - hence the diving being added to the PE syllabus. They also had national spotters come to the school and put all the junior school through some assessments and 3 are not training properly for the future outside of school.

I work in an infant school so we don't get to do much competitive sport as yet anyway due to their age. They do play football, hockey, cricket, type games with an outside agency who comes in and do play games against one another.

This year we dis our first competitive sport's day in Y1 and Y2. It was VERY successful and the children loved it. And interestingly far more parents came and watched and supported this year. In the past we have just had a handful of parents - this year about 2/3rd of parents came.

YANBU most children have learnt to lose with good grace long before school,let alone in KS1.How many 8/9 year olds do you know who throw a Snakes and Ladder board across the table when they've lost because I don't know any?

I've posted on this before but strongly believe kids need to get fit and learn to love sport/activity/exercise first.They are 100% more likely to keep up at a sport if it's one they enjoy.

Countless children/adults hate/hated net ball,football etc(I was one of them) and couldn't give a stuff re winning or losing. We're all individuals. Hating competition doesn't mean you need to be unfit or not good at any sport.I was a very good swimmer. Being forced into competitive and dull sports such as net ball put me off sport completely for years.

Have only recently discovered how much I also enjoy rowing,cycling and hiking.I always thought I was rubbish at all sport as I lost or was last at everything.For years I could have been enjoying sport for me if I'd had my confidence boosted and skills improved for me and at my own level such as schools try to do with children not able in other subjects .

Cameron is just trying to get away with putting as little money as possible into state school sports.Far easier to berate schools and pluck an ethos out of the air than provide decent facilities for all state school children some of whom have no access to swimming pools or even a green field to kick a ball around on. Pretty sure they'll pump money into the elite few and completely ignore the millions of kids with buggar all sport facilities.

But then there are plenty of private school kids with wealthy parents and expensive school facilities topped off with state lottery funding when they're Olympic material to keep the gold bling coming so why should he worry.

*I agree - but forcing competitive sport will put people off exercise. Two different things IMHO. I have no issue with either. Let the sporty compete, let the non sporty do something exercisy (my new word) that doesn't make them feel like a failure.

Every school had a child who is deemed useless at sport, the short one, the fat one, the one in glasses etc - but I bet you with encouragement they could probably have a roaring time at field athletics, lobbing a shot put!*

But that's like saying that children not great at maths shouldn't be pushed and challenged. Of course they should. To do otherwise is simply defeatism.

Competitive sport is not so much about others as challenging yourself.

That's the mindset thats been lost in this country because of the doctrine that competition is bad.

I disagree with such a strong focus on competitive sport, and instead think the emphasis should be on encouraging lifelong exercise - the two are not obviously mutually exclusive, but equally the one does not automatically lead to the other. For less sporty children a focus on competitive sport will put them off other forms of exercise, and even for those who enjoy it few actually continue to play after they leave school. Those who enjoy competive team sports should obviously have the opportunity, but it shouldn't be foisted on all.

Why is competitive sport so grea for all? I'm sure if there was a focus on competition for all academic subjects people would be up in arms (quite rightly) about the less able being disadvantaged. For some reason children who are poor at sport are just seen as fair game.

Nobody is saying it has to be all team sports or all competitive sports though all that is being said is we need to get away from this everyone is a winner type attitude which doesn't do anyone any good.

Just because some children don't like team sports isn't a reason to not do them.

We've just had our biggest haul of medals. Our best games in a long time (ever?). We were third in the table (the last time I looked).

I think schools are doing the jub perfectly taking into account the recent games. I think they should leave well alone.

YANBU

By that logic schools are doing a crap job because so many children are obese. The truth probably lies somewhere between the two.

I am intrigued as to why anyone would be unable to access competitive sport?

Those who are not good at it
Those who do not like it
Those who have some sort of disability which prevents them from taking part.

Sparks the difference with maths being kids are split into groups and pushed at their ability discretely as opposed to being pushed at the top level and thus failing in full view of the rest of the class/school and hollering parents.

I was scarred by competitive sports and Sports Day for years,it's utterly horrendous,you're not in the heads of all those kids losing and struggling in full view of others,you're not experiencing the bullying that goes on away from the sports field after.If these kids want to keep fit by learning other sports all power to them.

Why should kids continuously be pushed into sports they're crap at/hate just to make a few elite feel better.If you struggle at gaining maths skills a good teacher will attempt to try other ways to gain the end result.The desired result of PE lessons(physical exercise) is to get kids fit.If they're doing a sport they hate and are crap at after a while it's time to try something else.

"Just because some children don't like team sports isn't a reason to not do them." -Obviously it's not a reason not to offer them to those that do, but why should everyone have to do it (past a certain age)? It really isn't the only way to learn team skills, develop your self esteem etc. You can learn exactly the same from being in a school orchestra or choir, or many other ways of working as a team. And in this age of rising obesity surely finding other forms of exercise children enjoy is surely more important?

I hated maths. I do conform to the stero typical female who cannot count or work out how to park a car .

Arithmetic on the other hand

Yes why not forced team spelling bees with all levels of children in full view of the whole class/school/parents?Or forced reading recitals,would do wonders for the self esteem of poor readers and teach em to fail graciously.

They can all access competitive sports, they may not be the best at them but that doesn't mean they can't access it.

Devon - I would love to hear your realistic suggestions then for how your average school can provide every child with the chances to only do what they want to

Primary schools do need (IMHO) to put some competition back into sports days and end the All must Have Prizes culture that has crept in. Kids need to learn to lose.

Sirzy -One school I know has a choice of team sports (quite limited) or aerobics. Seems to work for them. By no means perfect but does provide options. My DDs very small primary school also has less competitive PE (at least with the younger years) and (mostly free) after school clubs for those who are keen - again, not perfect but an iffers a bit of an option.

What's wrong with competition? The only reason Team GB did well in this olympics is because of the home team support. Children need to be more competitive at school. They all seem to be mollycoddled and given this "it's the taking part that counts" bullshit.

I don't think children who are good at sports have many problems with their competitiveness levels. Some of them make team sports miserable for the less skilled.

Emphasis should be on sportsmanship, team play and skill.

In essence, I think football should be given less emphasis. In many schools, being in the football team is the pinnacle of achievement for young boys

I agree with devondeva and Prairieflower

I'd like ds to understand that he won't be top got at everything. I think it's imporant. I saw a sports day where there were no winners or losers. Every sport was a demonstration yet they had young girls grinding along to lady gaga.
I'd rather a bit of competitive sport.

One of the reasons we chose the school we did for DS2 was that there was no competitive crap in sports, and there was plenty of different ways of being physically active.

Its not all about being the winner and being the best. It can just be about having fun.

I think its great. Competitive sport is fantastic. It developed children in so much more that fitness.

Having fun doesn't always get you good grades though does it?

If you're no good at sports, you just get shouted at. Publicly. While your physical incompetence is on display for all to snigger at. This is not, IME, the case for other subjects, where the teachers actually try to get you to improve. You don't have to line up to be picked for a team in maths. And if you are the equivalent of the clumsy oaf who's always left till last - and yes, reader, that was me - in maths, you are given a bit of special attention and encouraged to move up a group. In sport, not so much.

I should perhaps add I am now a 49 year old health journalist who swims a mile three times a week. Sports, however, still make me shudder. The flashbacks are too intense.