Michael DeGuerre

SPED 510-03

Spring 2018

Diversity Project

General School Information

I attended Pittsburg High at a resource classroom. The cooperating teacher was Mrs.

Lopez. The students were Freshman/Sophomore students. The classroom was divided into two

classes which placement depended on a student’s capability. The larger class had about 6

students, and the smaller class had 3. Each class had a paraprofessional that went over material

with the students, and Mrs. Lopez supervised. The course for the small class was basic

anatomy/physiology. The course for the large class was physical science.

Building Report Card

Name of School Assigned for Diversity Project? ​Pittsburg High

Where is this School Located? ​Pittsburg, KS

If the website you study is different than KSDE.org, provide the site you visited to collect your

data in the space below:

Demographic Data

Total population of the school district: 3,143

Total population of your assigned school building: 919

Race/Ethnicity:

4.9% African American/Black

15.34% Hispanic

N/A Asian

69.53%Caucasian/White

N/A Native American

10.23%Other

SES (socioeconomic status):

55.06%Economically disadvantaged

44.94%NONeconomically disadvantaged

Disability: ​ 14.15% ELL (English Language Learners): ​ 6.96%

Assessment Data

Math Assessment Data

Grade Level ​ HS

All ​Students Level 1_​56%​_ All Students Combined Levels 2 – 4 ​44% All Level 4

Only ​4%​_

State Comparison Data

Disaggregated Data ​(Student Subgroups)

Student Subgroup: ​Free/Reduced Lunch​ (Economically Disadvantaged) Grade Level ​HS​_

Level 1_​65.26% Combined Levels 2 – 4_​34.72% Level 4 Only_​2.1%​_

State Comparison Data

Level 1 ​59.58%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​40.4%​_ Level 4 Only​ 2.09%​_

Student Subgroup: ​Self-Paid Lunch Only

Level 1_​45%​__ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​55% Level 4 Only_​6.25%​_

State Comparison Data

Level 1_​30.5%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​69.48% Level 4 Only_​11.19%

Student Subgroup: ​Students w/ Disabilities ​(It is possible the data will only show District and

not Building data. If this is the case, just record the district data.)

Level 1_​96.29% Combined Levels 2 – 4​ 3.7%​_ Level 4 Only_​0%​_

State Comparison Data

Level 1_​79.91% Combined Levels 2 – 4_​20.07%​_ Level 4 Only_​0.95%​_

Student Subgroup: ​Not Disabled

Level 1​ 48.64% Combined Levels 2 – 4_​51.33% Level 4 Only_​4.72%​_

Level 1_​38.07% Combined Levels 2 – 4_​61.91%​_ Level 4 Only​ 8.16%​_

Student Subgroup: ​White

Level 1_​50%​__ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​49.98% Level 4 Only ​5.35%​_

State Comparison Data

Level 1_​35.92% Combined Levels 2 – 4​ 64.06% Level 4 Only_​8.69%​_

Student Subgroup: ​Whichever was the next largest student population under Race/Ethnicity.

Name of Next Largest Subgroup: _​Hispanic​__

Level 1​ 61.53% Combined Levels 2 – 4​ 38.45%​_ Level 4 Only _​0%​__

State Comparison Data

Level 1_​61.4%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​38.57%​_ Level 4 Only_​2.05%​_

ELA Assessment Data

All ​Students Level 1_​34.69%​_ All Students Combined Levels 2 – 4​ 65.29% All Level 4

Only_​6.12%​_

State Comparison Data

Only_​5.8%​_

Disaggregated Data ​(Student Subgroups)

Student Subgroup: ​Free/Reduced Lunch​ (Economically Disadvantaged) Grade Level _​HS​_

Level 1_​43.11%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4​ 56.87%​_ Level 4 Only_​2.75%​_

State Comparison Data

Level 1_​45.78%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4​ 54.19%​_ Level 4 Only_​2.06%​_

Student Subgroup: ​Self-Paid Lunch Only

Level 1_​24.13%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​75.84%​_ Level 4 Only_​10.34%​_

State Comparison Data

Level 1_​20.85%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​79.14%​_ Level 4 Only_​8.52%​_

Student Subgroup: ​Students w/ Disabilities ​(It is possible the data will only show District and

not Building data. If this is the case, just record the district data.)

Level 1_​68.75%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​31.25%​_ Level 4 Only_​0%​_

State Comparison Data

Level 1_​72.54%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​27.44%​_ Level 4 Only_​1.95%​_

Student Subgroup: ​Not Disabled

Level 1_​28.04%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​71.93%​_ Level 4 Only_​7.31%​_

Level 1_​26.06%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​73.91%​_ Level 4 Only_​6.29%​_

Student Subgroup: ​White

Level 1_​30.46%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​69.52%​_ Level 4 Only_​7.81%​_

State Comparison Data

Level 1_​25.06%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​74.92%​_ Level 4 Only_​7.11%​_

Student Subgroup: ​Whichever was the next largest student population under Race/Ethnicity.

Name of Next Largest Subgroup: __​Hispanic​___

Level 1_​47.5%​_ Combined Levels 2 – 4_​52.5%​_ Level 4 Only_​2.5%​_

State Comparison Data

Level 1_​47.34%​_ Combined Levels 2 – _​52.64%​_ Level 4 Only_​1.78%_

Reflection of the Data

Reflection

The data provided can be advantageous to finding where students of a particular

subgroup struggle, as well as other students in a particular subgroup have an advantage. It can

help illustrate with hard numbers that the self-paid students have a clear advantage than those
who do not. Perhaps with this data, it could help the community and school district realize that

disadvantaged students need more resources.

The data itself is not significantly surprising. Students with disabilities, have

free/reduced lunch, or are Hispanic score remarkably lower than students without disabilities,

have self-paid lunch, or are white in both Math and ELA. Though the data may not be

surprising, I did find some noteworthy details:

Students with disabilities at Pittsburg did not score higher than Level 2 for both Math

and ELA, while the state—though less than 2% for ELA and less than 1% for Math—have

students score in Level 4. This suggests there is a deficit at Pittsburg for students with

disabilities.

Hispanic population for Level 4 Math for the state is 2.05% (not good compared to

8.69% for students who are white). However, Pittsburg High got a 0%. As a future math teacher,

did was shocking to find 0% of an over 15% overall subgroup not excel in the subject. Especially

considering that Level 1 and Level 2 – 4 numbers are fairly identical compared with Pittsburg

High and State. When comparing the numbers to the whole school, out of 140 students, not

one of them have made it to Level 4.

ELA has better number than Math. This is entirely expected for this area. Incidentally,

mathematics is a universal language, that is, it can translates readily through all languages and

culture. There is a social misunderstanding about mathematics in the United States, and

especially the rural area. There seems to a grievously false concept that one is either born with

the capabilities of understanding math, or not. However, reading and writing are socially
considered skills that one can hone over time. Both ELA and mathematics are skills that can be

taught, then, with practice, can be learned. This is a social barrier I must face as a future math

teacher.

Overall, Pittsburg High scores better under ELA than State. Pittsburg High is doing a

good job teaching ELA. The math scores are clearly lacking for the school compared with State.

Even the Self-Paid Lunch Only numbers suggest a clear deficit for mathematics. Once again, this

may not reflect the teachers of the school, but rather the attitude of the subject for the area.

The data is what I expected to find. I personally find it helpful to allow me first-hand see

the struggles I may face in my particular subject. Mathematics has a negative attitude for many

different areas, and plenty of students cannot find the extra help needed at home. As a future

teacher, I will need to prepare myself to help my students overcome these attitudes, especially

if the students are low SES and non-white.

Target Student Profile

Later in the daily reflections, it will be apparent that I have spent more time with a

female student, Student A, who is about 15. She is mixed ethnically, so I do not know how she

identifies herself. She is extremely unmotivated, and easily agitated. She is open about her

mood, and tries to express her good and mad moods. It is difficult to keep her on task, as she
does not wish to be there. She is, however, sociable outside of the classroom, and seems to

have many friends.

The other students I have worked with, I have worked with for a day each. Student B is

female and white. She is friendly and introduced herself to me the first day I arrived. She is

willing to learn and cooperate, and in general, maintains a positive attitude. She struggles with

retaining information, but still tries to answer questions, even if she does not remember.

The other student I worked with was Student D who is female and Hispanic. She is

rather reserved and does not speak a whole lot during class. She struggles a lot with reading

and writing, and has not been able to demonstrate to me any ability to read. She also does not

demonstrate any frustration due to these inabilities. It is almost as if she simply views these

inabilities as a fact of life.

Daily Entries

February 20

I arrived at Pittsburg High School rather early. We did not have class today, so I did not

know how long it would take me to get there from where I live in Joplin. Apparently, I grossly

overestimated. I hung out in my car for a few minutes, rather nervous, since I have no idea

what to expect. I was told by my cohort that my cooperating teacher, Mrs. Lopez, is a great

person. Turns out that she is the mother of my cohort’s roommate, and they know each other

well. So it made me less nervous to expect an agreeable cooperating teacher.

showed up at the office, the secretary gives me parking slip, a sign-in sheet, and asks for my TB

results. I had not even anticipated that request, so I sort of blankly stared at her, panicked, and

finally told her I did not have it. She smiled, and said that’s fine, but to bring it in next time. I

expected her to not let me in without it.

A student showed me where the classroom was, and remarked that he has not even

heard of this teacher. He was wearing a drama t-shirt, and kept up a conversation for the entire

time. I was too busy taking in the novelty of the school to really listen to anything he was

saying. I responded with quick “yeahs” and “uh-huhs”, as I was noticing how increasingly

nervous I was. I was hoping that it would not be inconvenient that I was this early.

Once I got in the classroom, Mrs. Lopez greeted me warmly, and introduced me to the

two paraprofessionals in the classroom. The classroom had two tables that seated two different

classes in it. Each para instructed the two different classes. The smaller class were students who

were lower-functioning, while the larger class was more higher-functioning. Mrs. Lopez said

today was an off-day since there was an assembly, so the schedule was messed up. It turns out,

coming in early was a good thing, since they had an early class period anyway.

I got to observe the classes, though with the off-schedule, the classes were not doing a

whole lot. I awkwardly went from one class to the other and introduced myself to the

students—though, I doubt I looked as awkward as I felt. I did not have the opportunity to

observe long; despite my coming in early, the class had ended rather early. I got to talk briefly

to Mrs. Lopez as we became more familiar with each other.

there would not be much to observe in this one either. There were only a couple of students,

and they were only using this time to catch up with past assignments. So, I got to leave early,

since I did have some work I needed to catch up on myself. It was a little disappointing that my

first day I did not actually have the opportunity to observe anything substantially. I was

promised that Thursday would be back to normal.

February 22

On my second day, I got to experience the entire hour with the students. It seems that

Mrs. Lopez is more of a supervisor than an instructor. The classes were split up between the

two tables as two different paraprofessionals did instruction on both tables. The larger class

was working on physical science of what seemed to be a middle school text book, while the

smaller class was working on an elementary-school level anatomy and physiology.

Today, I was able to make a better observation with the students as I got to actually

witness their actual studying. I observed the large class as the para read through their

textbooks. One of the students started to fall asleep.

This was a scenario that we had discussed in Dr. Flynn’s class, so it was definitely

interesting to see how this would be handled. The para first started to shout at the student to

wake up, but she kept putting her head down. Eventually, Mrs. Lopez came over and was

physically sitting the student up. The student eventually started to open her eyes and sit herself

up. As this was happening, another student remarked that she does this all the time—she uses
her low-blood sugar as an excuse to fall asleep in class. This was definitely not a reason we gave

in Dr. Flynn’s class.

I am not sure how to handle a situation where a student utilizes her physical conditions

to completely shut down, lay her head down, and no longer participate. The solution in this

classroom was to force the student awake. I was aware of the vast variety of problems students

would present in the classroom, and it is clear situations like these will definitely keep me on

my toes. This is one of the situations where there is not a clear answer on how to handle the

situation, other than being firm and consistent.

February 27

Today, I got to read out of the book for the students. The text books seem to be

extremely brief. This seems to be rather problematic considering the students do not

understand details of concepts, and it is also hard for the para to understand exactly what it is

trying to say, as physical science is not her strength. I can tell the para is trying to understand

what is going on so she could pass it on to the students. This does not help the students that

seem rather disinterested in the subject in the first place.

After finish reading the chapter—consisting of only two pages—we worked on the

worksheet. For the most part, a couple of students are rather helpful at answering the

question. There are a couple, however, that seem to have to prod along just to write down the

question, let alone answer it. The only male student in the class seems to rather play on his

phone than participate. However, he actually is further along than the other students.
 This student appears to be rather intelligent and is perhaps the highest

functioning—intellectually—student in this class. He does exhibit some rather inappropriate

behavior, such as wanting to lie down on the floor to take a nap. He says offensive things just to

see how you would react. He does respond well to humor, but it seems the best way to work

with him is to remind him when his humor is plain inappropriate.

As we go along the worksheet, the students are work fairly well at finding the answers

that come directly from the text. Even the male student, who is clearly on his phone, has found

the answer already and is simply entertaining himself as he waits for the others to catch up. I

think it is evident that this class is going far too slow for him. It seems he has behavioral

problems that place him in a slower class. However, I am not too sure how helpful this

particular class is for him.

Once the worksheets are finished, they are placed in their class’s box, and they wait

until the bell rings. At this point, every student has their phones out with headphones in each of

their ears. Without going into a social commentary of the effect of technology and social

interaction, I am certain this is a scene that will I see often in the future.

March 1

I had the opportunity to work one-on-one with a student. The students were gearing up

towards a test on energy, so I sat next to student A. She is an emotional student that clearly

does not want to be there. She acts like the whole classroom is a joke—to be fair, I am not sure
myself the objective of the classroom other than working through worksheets and taking tests.

Outside of the classroom, she seems to be sociable, hence her persistent tardiness.

Since the student does not want to be there, she will often put her head down and try

to sleep. I would try to keep her on task, but she has no intention to listen to me. As we go

through the worksheet, she will be slow to write anything down. After numerous times of the

para and I directly telling her the answer on the worksheet, she will finally write something

down. What she writes down, though, is not in correct spot as she neglected to participate that

she became behind. I point this out, saying that that answer is for the following question.

Frustrated she got the wrong answer, she vehemently erases her answer and lays her head

down on the table, showing she has given up.

I try to encourage her, but she is stubborn. It does not take much for her to become

frustrated and overwhelmed with the worksheet and to give up. She clearly does not see a

purpose to it all, and it is hard for me to give her one. Eventually, she does finish, tears her page

out of the packet, and throws it into the box. She then puts her headphones on, grabs her

things, and stands by the door as we wait for the bell.

I understand the difficulty of finding motivation to complete homework when a student

does not relate to an assignment. This can be remedied when a teacher is emotionally invested

into the subject. The para that goes through this worksheet, however, struggles with math,

which makes it difficult for the physical science class. Since the para is not emotionally invested,

the environment of the classroom is performance-focused, as the para herself is

performance-focused. Thus, the completion of worksheets is the primary goal. There seems to
be little regard for retention of the information. I do not blame the para for this management

style; she is doing her best with the resources she has.

March 6

The students are preparing for a test. They are given a study guide with terms and

questions over the entire chapter. I got to work one-on-one with Student B. I was to work with

Student C—the student that fell asleep in the class on my first day—but she was absent. I am

starting to notice that Student C is absent a lot. This may be due to her medical condition, or

some other reason entirely. Student C is quite friendly and tries hard. On my first day, she

introduced herself to me and asked what my interests are.

There is a remarkable difference with working a student that sincerely tries and one that

does everything in her power to avoid trying. Student B’s biggest struggle I noticed is retaining

the information. She is the one most likely to try answer the question, even though she cannot

remember the answer exactly. When she gets the answer wrong, though, she does have a

tendency to remark something along the lines of “I’m dumb”. To which I have and will always

reply something along the lines, “You’re not dumb; you just made a mistake.”

One thing I will always stress as a teacher that taking chances and getting things wrong

does not make you “dumb”. In my classroom, I will encourage students to try. Making mistakes

does not make one dumb. Getting it wrong does not make one a failure. Mathematics—my

topic I will teach—is a skill, like playing a musical instrument, that takes time and practice to

hone. Likewise, it also requires imperfections, unsuccessful attempts, and downright silly
mistakes to get the hang of it. For me, as a successful student, most of the points I miss on my

upper-level undergrad math classes are plain silly mistakes. I will not tolerate students calling

themselves “dumb” or putting themselves down for making mistakes.

It took as the entire class time to work on the study guide. The students were told that

there will be a substitute teacher tomorrow, and then the following day, they will continue to

study for the test that will be at the end of the week.

March 8

The students took their tests today. They were originally supposed to take their tests

tomorrow; however, after hearing the report from the substitute from yesterday where they

did not review for the test, the para decided that the students must be ready for it. I am not

sure if that was the best tactic, but the punishment did demonstrate cause and effect for the

students’ poor time management choices.

I helped Student D with her test. I was told that she needed help with the reading and

then some of the questions. I asked how much “help” was required, and I was told I may need

to guide her to the answer. This proved challenging. I did not want to simply sit next to this

student and tell her every answer, but it seemed that was direction that was intended.

So I sat next to her, and reminded her to write her name, and read through the

questions. This student is possibly the lowest functioning student of this particular class. I was

surprised by how little the student was able to read. As I read through the multiple choices, I

would give subtle hints by my inflection of the correct answer, but these subtle hints became
less subtle as we were going through the test. Guiding a student to a correct answer, I found

out, is extremely difficult if the student does not even know which multiple choice selection the

answer is. I felt there was no guiding, but more-or-less pointing directly at the answer.

I did try my best to avoid such things. I would reword each question to a language that

she may understand better. I tried my best to define words so she at least demonstrated the

basic understanding of the concept. She did retain the key points: energy cannot be created nor

destroyed, everything has energy, etc. There were a couple of questions that she could not

demonstrate an understanding of, so I allowed her circle her best guess without divulging more

information.

In the end, though, I literally had to spell out the short answer questions. When it came

to writing down a simple sentence, she froze. At first, I helped her as I would help a sixth-grade

student on writing their best answer, but it was not enough. Even words that were in the

question, I had to point to so she would know how to spell.

Considering that this class was physical science, I understand the lack of concern for

pushing her to read and write more. I do not know what classes the student takes for her

reading and writing. If this was my student, I would get to the bottom of it. This student will

simply not succeed after high school without these basic skills that she clearly lacks. In my

opinion, I feel putting effort into improving these skills will be far more beneficial than trying to

have her understand physical science. When it came to calculations, I let her use the calculator

on my phone and told her which numbers to multiply and divide, but she did not even

recognize the symbols “×” and “÷”.

harshly. However, from what I can see, it does not appear they are setting up this particular

student for success after high school.

March 13

The students were finished with their test, so they have started a new chapter, simple

machines. I decided to help Student A from now on. She seems to have the hardest time out of

all the students of staying on task. Even the student I helped with her test will actually stay on

task fairly well, even if the para is required to spoon-feed her answers. Student A clearly shows

that she does not wish to be there and will often lay her head down on the table. Where she

sits makes it difficult for the para to help her stay on task as well, since she sits almost at the

other end of the table. The chair also lets me sit next to the male student, who is often playing

on his phone. It helps reassure that he is on task himself.

We got about 20 minutes in when the fire alarm went off. Mrs. Lopez was working with

a problem outside of the room, so the paras were in charge. As we went outside, the poor para

could not hold up a green sign as Student A could not be found. Everyone else was accounted

for except her. All the other classes were holding up their green sign besides this one. The

principal was there with his radio saying Student A’s name. About 5 minutes later, another

student in the class found her talking with her friends somewhere else entirely.

By the time we returned, the para explained to that student how unacceptable that was.

She explained how the point of these drills is to have everyone accounted for quickly. How
embarrassing it was to be the only class out there without a green sign. The student hastily

apologized and made the comment that she was just talking with her friends.

The student seems to know a lot of people, and have a good social life. She just does not

show an interest in school. She also can be rather inconsiderate to the situation of others and

does not regard how her actions as effecting those around her. I am certain this student will be

a challenge to work with.

March 15

We went over more simple machines today, but the heart clearly was not into it. Spring

break is next week for both the class and me. The excitement for the vacation on top of the

disinterest in the text book was almost palpable from everyone. The para often had to repeat

the phrase, “Come on, guys. Let’s just get this done!” That appeared to be the main goal for the

whole class; let’s just get this done.

One thing I noticed today in comparison with the other days: students who are off task

are much easier to work with when everyone is in a good mood. When Student A does not

want to stay on task, she usually groans, glares, and makes snide remarks. Today, she wore a

warm smile, as well did everyone else. It is hard to become upset over students for getting off

task when they are genuinely happy.

As we worked through the worksheet, the answers were easily surrendered. I think it

was understood that none of this information was going to be retained anyway, so there was

not an urgency to have the students to find the answers as much as they can. Besides, after
answering every question, there was tendency for students to make a string of unrelated

comments on the side.

I guess one thing to take from this is when I become a teacher, and plan a schedule for

the school year, I need to take into account days like these and not put a lot of strain on the

students. After witnessing how little was accomplished from today from both the students and

the instructor, I should not expect much to happen for my future students on days like these.

March 27

We got back from Spring Break, so the students were still getting into the groove of

things. I sat next to Student A today as we went over the worksheets. I was given the

opportunity to read the chapter about pulleys. Like all the chapters in this textbook, it was

brief, so it took only a few minutes before we started working on the worksheets.

Once we started working on the worksheets, it became evident how much the brevity of

the text became a problem. Mathematics is the para’s weakest subject, so it is difficult for her

to look at the answer and know how that number was figured. For me, I know the tools,

strategies, and patterns when I see numbers, and can figure out the process of finding the

answer without looking at the formulae. However, this worksheet had pictures that can easily

change everything if you are not paying attention to the details.

While working through the worksheet, the students had little difficulty until we reached

an anomaly on one of the answer. We could explain how the answer key got the mechanical

advantage of each pulley for all of the pictures, except one, where the most of the class period
was the para and I discussing on why the answer is what the key says it is. At this point, the

students who were originally confused on the problem lost interest, and just jotted the answer

down and threw their worksheet in the basket. Considering an upcoming test, the para and I

decided to get to the bottom of it.

Eventually, I did find a single sentence in the middle of the paragraph that said you do

not count a pulley attached to another pulley. Sure enough, the picture showed the pulley

attached to another pulley, though even that picture did not make it obvious that that was

what it was doing. Of course, by this time, the students are already engaged on their phones for

us to explain why that one was different.

It is clear that the class would be far more effective if the instructor would have looked

at the material in advance. The attitude that this class has is “Let’s get this done” rather than

“Let’s learn something”. In educational psychology, we would refer to this classroom

environment as performance-focused—“Let’s get this done, so we can pass the test”—instead

of mastery-focused environment. I do not see the purpose of making the students grind

through these worksheets if there is an attitude that retaining the knowledge is not a goal. It

definitely feel the purpose of this class is to check off the box that they went over this particular

material.

March 29

Student A made it clear with her body language that she did not want to be here today.

She stormed in the class and immediately put her head down. We started going through the
textbook, and it took her as long as possible, with a few promptings from me, to lead her to the

right page. As the para read through the text book, it was clear that she was not paying

attention.

Once we were going through the worksheet, it seemed it took everything in her power

to avoid writing anything down. The worksheet was all short answer, and once the class agreed

on an answer, I would tell her the answer. She would just look at me, then stare blankly at the

worksheet. Eventually, she did write the answer down, but they already moved on to the next

question. Eventually, she was behind, and when she heard the answer that was given, she

wrote that answer down on the wrong problem. When I corrected her, she groaned, erased the

answer, and complained that that was the answer she heard.

Eventually the rest of the class was done while she was still working on this assignment.

I decided to act as if I were a teacher, not an observer or a tutor, and keep her on task to finish

the assignment. Of course, I was not going to directly give her the answers, but provide her

clues in the textbook. This was upsetting to her as well, as she refused to participate in the

group discussion, she missed out getting the answers. However, without the class discussing

the answers, it allowed her to actually focus on each individual problem.

The other students were talking, and she decided to chime in on the conversation.

When another student responded to her, I looked at that student and said calmly, but sternly,

“Hey. She needs to get this finished.” Then I turned to the student and said, “If you wanted to

talk, then you should have participated with the others. Now that they’re done, we are going to
finish this now.” The student remarked under her breath something about not wanting to talk

anyway. Nevertheless, we did finish the worksheet in time without distraction after that.

I have to admit that I did feel like a teacher today, and not an observer. I did not

necessarily enjoy reprimanding the student, but I did appreciate that it worked. It was

comforting to know that I can put my foot down when necessary and get a student on task. So

far with these hours, I have never felt like an authority figure. I have wondered if I can maintain

control of a classroom with little experience in keeping a classroom under control. I am

definitely more confident in that aspect now that I was given an opportunity to demonstrate

keeping a student on task. Though, I will admit that keeping this student on task is extremely

exhausting, and I am not sure if I would have the patience to keep it up year round.

April 3

This is my last week at the school. The students are preparing for a test on Friday, and

today they have their study guide for the whole chapter. They have worked on it some, though

Student A has little completed on hers. The first part of the class, the students wrote down

their definitions that they know how to find at the beginning of each section. As usual, she is

taking her time in doing this, flipping through each page as dispassionately as possible. I

definitely feel like I have to pick my battles with her, so I am not just sitting next to her

repeatedly prompting her to write this down or write that down.

Today, she gave up far too quickly. For whatever reason, the para had the numbers on

the questions change. Perhaps it was because the key had different numbers, but it did not
change the answers. The student was not really listening in the first place, but once the new

numbers were announced, she wrote that down as the answer. I try to explain to her that that

was not the answer, but a change in the question. She became frustrated and threw her pencil

down. I reassured that all we needed to do was divide the numbers that she gave. I picked up

her pencil, and crossed out the previous numbers of the problem and wrote down the new

numbers next to them. The student, though, had already given up.

I tried to prompt her to move along to the next problem, where the rest of the class

already progressed. It took her a bit, but eventually, she did start going through the other

problems. She even wrote down the correct answer to the one she previously skipped. Another

problem arose with the changing of another set of numbers on a problem. This time, I told her

immediately that these numbers are going to be changed. Before even discussing how to solve

the problem, she threw her pencil down then and groaned. I picked it up to cross out the

numbers and wrote in the new ones. Eventually, she picked up her pencil and worked on it.

All I can figure to do with this student is to be extremely patient and calm. She becomes

easily frustrated and agitated. Of course, if she would stay on task in the first place, she would

not become frustrated. I feel like it is this cycle she puts herself in. She does not want to be

there, so she refuses to work, but this places her behind. Since she is behind, she gives up, and

refuses to try to understand. Since she does not understand, she does not want to participate,

so she does not want to be there. I am not sure how to break the cycle. All I know is the pattern

that she has placed herself in is exhausting for others to keep her caught up.
April 5

Today is my last day at the school. We finished working on the study guide today, as

tomorrow is their test. There was not much left for the students to do with the study guide, so

the majority of the class period was the para asking questions and the students responding.

There was little for me to do, even though I am more confident to be involved with the

students. The students seem fairly prepared for the test, so today went by rather smoothly.

After the students left, I got talk to Mrs. Lopez and the para. We discussed the

classroom and concerns we had over it. Apparently, this class is one of the more difficult classes

for the para with respect to the students. With one student who is frequently absent, and when

present, all she does is try to sleep, they expressed how difficult it was to keep her caught up.

The student that I read the test to they expressed the same concerns I had about her future

outside of high school. They agree that she is not prepared to be successful outside of the

classroom, and there will be limited opportunities for her.

The discussion moved onto the student I have been helping, and it was remarked that

though she struggles here, she is “street smart”. She borders between the classes, and barely

makes it to the more advanced class. I suppose this is why she struggles so much and finds

herself in that cycle where she does not allow herself to succeed. It was never discussed what

her IEP was, so I do not know her particular disabilities. I definitely struggled with keeping her

motivated and on task.

We finally discussed the only male student in that class who seems far more advanced

than the others. I would guess that he has behavioral issues rather than learning issues. Mrs.
Lopez pointed out that he will often say inappropriate things just to get a reaction. She told an

anecdote of when the first day she met him, she gave him a warm, friendly greeting, and he

responded by calling her racist. There was no reason for him to make such an accusation, he

said it just to get a reaction. As far as I could tell, that student says outrageous things like that

not to be aggressive, but because he finds it funny.

Final Reflection

It definitely was a journey going through this field experience. Though it was brief with

the 10 hours, it became evident that I was more confident in the end. I started out rather

uncertain, and I felt a little awkward, but I decided that I will try to make this an experience to

grow as a teacher, and not an observer. I feel like I have made that positive step of growth,

though I also realize that I am need of more practice and experience.

I have realized throughout these weeks that there are going to be many new and

unpredictable obstacles that will come with working with a vast variety of students. There is a

chance that I will have a student that will try everything in his or her power to refuse to

cooperate, and that may include deliberately falling asleep in class to avoid working. These past

few weeks, I became more aware of the challenges students will provide. Granted, not all

students will be challenging, but it would be naïve of me to believe that I will not face some

bizarre challenges.

I think the greatest takeaway from my experience is the value of patience. There have

been a couple of days after working with the student that I felt like I have been pulling teeth.
Her refusal to stay on task proved to really have been trying my patience on a few occasions

that I certainly have thought about giving up myself. The though, “If you don’t care, then why

should I care?” have popped in my mind, I will admit, but I knew I had to keep pushing her and

motivating her to continue. Maintaining that level of persistent patience will absolutely be

challenging if I had to repeat that process each day. I hope by then, however, I will have

attempted new approaches to have my students motivated.

Overall, the experience was a positive experience. I could have easily tried to work with

less challenging students; there were a couple of students that definitely seemed excited to

have my help. Instead, I chose to work with the student that perhaps wanted my help the least.

I have to admit, I was hesitant to work with her; I readily recognized that she did not want any

help. She did not even want to be there. Nevertheless, I also recognized that I will not have a

real learning experience if I was not presented with a challenge. Even though the student most

likely did not appreciate my helping her, it was certainly a positive learning experience in the

end.