During one of my practicum's (year 1/2) I witnessed in a HPE lesson the class being split into groups, my AT had selected the leader for the day as one group leader and then another student as the opposing group leader. She then allowed them to select their own teams. They then went about selecting the best students and ones that they liked, the not so physically active or ones that they weren't friends with at that time were left til last. At the end there were two students who left, and neither leader wanted to pick, they hesitated quite a bit and the AT had to step in to assign them to a group. This is the most devastating thing for a child, to not only be not picked, but to have to be assigned to a group that you are not wanted in.
What was trying to be achieved?
Groups were being created for the lesson of HPE
How might others give meaning differently?
I found it really sad to watch as the demeanour of the two students at the end completely changed and their participation in the lesson was very minimal. As a parent I would be devastated to know that this had happened to my child, as you want your child to be happy and to be liked and picked, but you aren't there to hold their hand and make sure that they are picked early on, this is the teachers responsibility to have these situations done fairly.
What alternatives for action were there?
Rather than the leaders picking the groups the teacher could have numbered off the students (1, 2, 1, 2, 1, 2), this is a random selection so that students are not picked for their ability or for whether they are liked on that day.
Who was disadvantaged/advantaged?
The two students at the end of selection were disadvantaged as their own self-worth was greatly affected, they didn't want to participate or give much effort to the lesson after this. Unfortunately this makes the situation worse as they get picked on told to 'hurry up, your making us loose!' by other peers.
What are the taken-for-granted assumptions?
That students will pick fairly, and that the reasons for selection are just. The teacher should assign groups until students are at a level that they are able to make selections and they are able to make sense of why these selections are made.
References:
Graham, C. (2001). Teaching children Physical
Education: Becoming a master teacher. Champaign,
IL: Human Kinetics.
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