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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To question this with school?

16 replies

User998877 · 13/06/2017 17:48

DS is in YR4 and they have been doing trials to pick pupils to represent the school next month.

Ds is very sporty and plays a number of sports both in/out of school. He hasn't got into the team, but is insisting it's not fair as he beat the boy in his class who did in every race they timed in school.

Thing is, this boy's mum is the TA who assists the PE teacher in PE lessons, so I've got a little niggle that this may be the reason he got picked over ds. If he bat ds... that's fair enough. Ds is not one for bigging himself up BTW

Would you question this with school?

OP posts:
Allthebestnamesareused · 13/06/2017 17:58

Hi PE Teacher

I was wondering whether you could clarify the criteria for X team selection.

If they reply it was on the basis of the trials answer : Oh I thought that but as DS believes he had outperformed some of the children selected I assumed there must have been other criteria too.

Original poster
User998877 · 13/06/2017 18:34

I was thinking about exactly the same conversation... will it not make me look deranged Grin

More feedback would be helpful... I know it's not a juicy parking thread, but help me out here MN...

OP posts:
ScarlettFreestone · 13/06/2017 18:37

I think you could write a very polite note. Or perhaps even better speak to the teacher in person.

KeepSmiling83 · 13/06/2017 18:38

I would check the criteria too. It depends on the team as for some things we don't always pick the 'best' in our school. We like to try to let everyone have a go at representing the school so it could be that they want someone else to have a turn?

Witchend · 13/06/2017 18:43

There's also the possibility he won in his own mind, but didn't in reality. I used to do some sports coaching and boys of that age were often proclaiming that they won "easily" when I could see that they hadn't. It was often (and this was various groups over several years, so not the same children at all) several boys standing there in victory poses.

Original poster
User998877 · 13/06/2017 18:44

Keep Our school isn't that way sadly, they always pick the fastest from the trials.

OP posts:
Original poster
User998877 · 13/06/2017 18:47

Witch very valid point, which is why I'm slightly reluctant.

The way I see it, if I ask they will say this other boy beat ds anyway, they would be stupid to admit it! On the other hand if they know ds did beat this other boy, they will also know I'm bloody watching them.

OP posts:
BarbarianMum · 13/06/2017 18:54

We had a similar situation (ds not selected for the athletics team although being faster than another boy who got in) which we queried with his teacher. She spoke to the PE teacher, they reran a couple of races and ds made the team easily. No idea what went wrong the first time.

Original poster
User998877 · 13/06/2017 19:15

Barb what did they do about the boy they originally put through?

OP posts:
Fairenuff · 13/06/2017 19:20

A boy in my class told me he was the fastest in the whole class because he won but what he didn't realise was that we had grouped children in a way that they would be against someone of a similar ability so, although he won that particular event, he is far from being the fastest in the whole class. Of course I didn't tell him that so in his mind he beat everyone.

BarbarianMum · 13/06/2017 19:41

user he got to stay on the team as one of the subs. He's also in the football and cricket teams so doubt it was too traumatic for him.

Offherhead · 13/06/2017 19:47

You would come over as deranged. Your child did not get selected.

Original poster
User998877 · 13/06/2017 20:00

Off why so, are we not allowed to question schools without judgement?

He gets selected for lots of things so it matters not to me what teams he is or isn't in. However it matters to him and he is insistent that in the final 3 trial runs of the best four boys from their year group, he came 2nd and 2nd and 3rd respectively. The boy who came fourth (who's mum is a TA and helps in PE) got into the team.

If we are talking about just one race then maybe I could justify this by thinking ds may have got it wrong, but not three!

OP posts:
Fairenuff · 13/06/2017 20:25

So ask them then OP. You won't be the first and you certainly won't be the last. They will be very used to parents questioning why their child wasn't picked for something and they will be able to give you an answer.

Original poster
User998877 · 15/06/2017 23:26

Fair I did just that! I spoke with the Deputy Head yesterday and she assured me that the children would have been timed and chosen on times alone. I said that I hoped she was right because it wouldn't be fair if not.

Phone call this afternoon to say that there had been an error and ds had got into the team after all Hmm

Sometimes you get a gut feeling that something is not right and this was one of those occasions.

OP posts:
Fairenuff · 16/06/2017 17:06

There you go then. It's always worth checking if you're bothered about something.

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