Was I unreasonable to rig the school council election?

[Coffeeandteach]

I can tell you who will win when I look at the list of candidates. Every year it annoys me that some lovely, often overlooked, somewhere in the middle child will put themselves forward and read a thoughtful speech (written all on their own, at school) but never wins. They lose out to either the most popular or the most able child.

The child who got the most votes today had a speech that consisted of only, "I should win because I am the most popular."

I broke. I rigged it. The lovely, overlooked, somewhere in the middle child was announced the winner and she was delighted (and will do a great job).

YABU- You are the Putin of teachers. Shame on you!

YANBU- Sometimes you have to help the little guy

I'd do the same to be honest if someone had a speech like that!

good for you ! you did the right thing. the other child sounds entitled as heck, i bet mummy [esp] and daddy are so proud they are raising such a potential brat

You didn't rig it. You excluded a candidate who had no respect for the process. Good management.
Hopefully taught the popular kid a lesson too, they should have put the work in.

Not at all unreasonable. Sometimes you need to tweak the numbers slightly so that someone who will do some good wins.

Hopefully this will be a great chance for her peers to see what actual leadership looks like and fingers crossed those who voted based on pure popularity will have grown up a little when it comes to casting their votes in the real world.

The way to deal with these things in the future is that there is a 3 way vote and candidates have to do an A4 page outlining why they are bets for the job.

Student vote
Teacher panel vote
Independent 3rd party vote (mayor, local celeb etc).

Interested to know how you rigged it though

Think every teacher had done this sometimes!

YANBU. You're my hero OP!

I never bothered doing stuff like that as I knew I wouldn’t win.

It’s a bit like the old next baby model competitions, it was always the most prolific Facebook posters kids who won.

So that's how Blair became Prime Minister......

Have you been taking lessons from Dominic Cummings?

Though at least the impact of your decision will not lead to thousands of deaths as his actions have contributed to.

Yikes 4% actually think you're being unreasonable...

The popular kid? Hmm rings a bell.

Of course you rigged it. And it was you who had no respect for the process. you decided that your opinion on the candidates was more important than the voters.

On the scale of things in a school election where you feel you are doing good - not exactly putin is it. But yes you rigged an election and had no respect for the democratic process.

I would strongly suggest you read Miss Pym Disposes by Jospehine Tey btw.

Oh and you did the right thing!! Well done

Democracy isn’t a simple concept. It comes in many different forms. And not all so called democratic election systems are what we’d call fair (look at first past the post in the U.K., for example). Systems allow for what they allow for; you just played the system. Politics, innit? 😜

My mums a deputy head. She does this every year 😂

Does your school serve humble pie for lunch? An extra large slice for popular kid, eh. A lesson to popular kid, and the rest of them that dedication and hard work are worth more than superficial 'qualities.'

Absolutely the right thing. Lovely, quiet, well-behaved children get overlooked all the time. I'm in secondary and have made it my mission for the last few years to help these kind of kids to thrive. My own very quiet, but extremely hardworking daughter was nominated for a Jack Petchy this year. The reason? Always doing the right thing, even though she's so quiet What you did would have made that child's year.

I don’t think you’re unreasonable but equally the popular child can’t really help being popular and being popular isn’t a bad thing. Will be interesting to see how it pans out.

The only way you are being unreasonable is by continuing to run a school council based on a popularity vote. Why don't you ask the head to scrap it? Do the children with SEN ever get chosen? The shy children? You ought to be giving out opportunities like this on a fair basis instead.

@nosswith

Have you been taking lessons from Dominic Cummings?

Though at least the impact of your decision will not lead to thousands of deaths as his actions have contributed to.

This^^. Well op? Are you ?

Have you*

I don’t blame you OP but yes I would do as a pp suggests and change the process for next year-

Kids votes worth 1
Staff votes worth 2
SLT votes worth 10 😆

Or similar... but make it a bit more transparent.

Yay! Well done OP! What a lovely thing. I bet you made that childs year. And taught the other child a life lesson. cheers to you! X

@pallisers

Of course you rigged it. And it was you who had no respect for the process. you decided that your opinion on the candidates was more important than the voters.

On the scale of things in a school election where you feel you are doing good - not exactly putin is it. But yes you rigged an election and had no respect for the democratic process.

I would strongly suggest you read Miss Pym Disposes by Jospehine Tey btw.

are you the entitled kids mum by any chance ? the voters in this class are children who will follow the popular child /outcome as they want to be seen to be on the 'winning side' if asked.abit like on here sometimes, a sheep mentality.