Update on Service Learning

As I mentioned in class last week, I had a very interesting experience at my school a couple weeks ago. When I was working with my first grade students I noticed that one of the boys was in an obviously bad mood. Another boy in the group confirmed that the boy in the corner was upset over an incident that happened before we met in gym class. This is not the first time I have seen this boy in a bad mood. He has come to group with poor attitudes before and refuses to work with the rest of the group. When I asked him to read a line in our story, he told me to f-off. I was very taken back by his statement because he is so young. I remember that when I was that age I was scared to even think the F word! It made me wonder what his life was like at home and if it was a normal thing to use that kind of language there. I know that if my parents ever heard me use that kind of language I would be grounded for months.

The following week I returned to work with the same group. The boy who swore the previous week was in a bad mood again. This time, in the beginning of class, the classroom teacher approached the boy and nicely asked him to forget about what happened in gym class and do his best to work with the rest of the group. He was still a little reluctant to participate, but eventually gave in and worked with his classmates and I. This made me realize that maybe if I change my attitude about how I react to children, such as the boy who was in a bad mood, maybe it will assist in changing their behavior to a more positive one as well.

The culturally competent teacher is aware of the diverse cultural groups represented in his/her classroom, investigates the sociocultural factors that influence student learning, and is able to integrate this knowledge into his/her teaching.

Throughout the course we have been learning about the idea of SCWAAMP. I am a heterosexual, white, able-bodied, female. I attended a private, Catholic school from kindergarten through eighth grade. In high school, I transferred to a public high school. My personal history/ sociocultural characteristics intersect with those of the students whom I volunteer with because all six of the students I work with are of a different race. Where I attended elementary and middle school, there were very very few people of color. At my place of employment, on the other hand, I am used to working with children of different race and ethnicity. I work as a behavior specialist and often am assigned to children who barely speak English. This may be an advantage for me as a teacher because working with children of different backgrounds is not new to me. I have also learned a lot throughout this class about teaching children with different cultures. 

Describe the neighborhood, school building and classroom in which you are volunteering. What do you notice about the space and structure of the school? How do people use the space? How does this school ―feel‖ to you? What contributes to this feeling? Describe the classroom, the teacher, and the students. What is valued in this school? In this classroom? How can you tell? Check out data from www.infoworks.ride.uri.edu about your school. Give examples.

    The neighborhood that my school is in looks to be rather low-class. The buildings are not extravagant and there is graffiti on many of the surrounding buildings. The actual school building is red brick, very square and has a tiny parking lot attached. Both the building and the lot are enclosed by chain-linked fencing. Driving by the building, it is not easily noticeable that it is a school. In order to enter the building, you have to ring a bell and get buzzed in. 
     The kindergarten classroom which I am volunteering in is fairly organized and clean. It is a little cluttered, but not messy. There are clusters of tables labeled by colors (i.e. blue center, purple center, etc.) The first grade classroom is also organized and a little less cluttered. 
     The environment in each of the classrooms is different from each other. I have noticed that the kindergarten students are slightly more well behaved than the first grade students. I think that because I have had a background in teaching it comes fairly easy to me to complete the tasks and keep the students on track. I am assigned 3 kindergarten students and 3 first grade students. 

     The teachers in each classroom are very different. I get a much more friendly vibe from the kindergarten teacher than from the first grade teacher. The first grade teacher is noticeable younger, which makes me wonder if it has anything to do with the difference in attitudes. 

     I have noticed that some mornings the children recite the pledge of allegiance followed by an additional pledge that is unique to the school. I was very surprised when I finished reciting the pledge and the little kindergarteners who I was working with continued to recite more. 

     The school where I am completing my Service Learning is on the infoworks website and is not portrayed very nicely. The school is rated 55% for teachers examine students' work to guide instruction, 89% under students receive instruction in writing skills, 33% under instructional materials relate to students' interests, 45% under students revise their reports and papers, 64% under students provide feedback to one another and 89% under students are taught problem solving and decision making. These statistics are not very good when compared to other schools which are on the list. The school at which I volunteer at has fairly low scores in 4/6 of the categories.

About Me!

My name is Jennifer Link, aka Jen or Jenny. This is my first semester at RIC. I transferred from CCRI and attended classes there since 2007. I went part-time and worked full-time for a while so I am a little behind everyone else. I have been working with children who have special needs at Perspectives Corporation for just about three years. I love the work and decided to declare a major in Special Education.