Teaching Students to Fail

𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗙𝗮𝗶𝗹
𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵

I still remember the year I wasn’t picked for the school relay team.
I was the fifth-fastest kid in the class.

Not last—but not fast enough. Sports Day was always my favourite day of the year. But that year, I stood on the sidelines, watching the others race.
It wasn’t dramatic.

Just that quiet, sinking feeling of being left out.
At the time, it felt like failure.

But here’s the truth:

That moment taught me more than any win ever could.

It lit a fire.
It made me work harder.
It sparked a curiosity in me

about what was possible if I committed to improvement.

Ten years later, I stood on the podium at the Commonwealth Games with a bronze medal around my neck.

𝗙𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗺𝘆.

𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘴.

In education, we often talk about creating “𝘀𝗮𝗳𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲𝘀.”

𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝗳𝗲𝘁𝘆 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘂𝗿𝗲.

It means preparing them for it.
Giving them the tools to fall, reflect, and come back stronger.
Because high performance isn’t just about talent or outcomes.
It’s about resilience. Ownership. Growth.
And those qualities are forged in moments that don’t go to plan.

𝗔𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝘄𝗿𝗮𝗽𝘀 𝘂𝗽, 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗯𝘃𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀:

Who won the tournament.
Who made the team.
Who got the top grade.
But here’s a better question:
Who failed—and learned from it?
Who missed out—but showed up again anyway?
Who didn’t shine—but never gave up?
That’s where high performance really begins.

𝗟𝗲𝘁 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘂𝗺

In PE, we have a unique opportunity.

We can help students 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘂𝗿𝗲, 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘷𝘰𝘪𝘥, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘶𝘴𝘦.

When we create environments where:
Taking risks is normal
Effort is celebrated
And setbacks are fuel for progress

𝘄𝗲’𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀.

𝗪𝗲’𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗿.

𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗮 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆’𝗹𝗹 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗿𝘆 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆’𝘃𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗳𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲.