Avery Proffit

Professor Vartouhi Asherian

EDU 202

Assignment #1 (Observations): 02/21/17 (1:30 P.M.-3:30 P.M.)

1) What are your first impressions of the classroom/school environment? Warm? Friendly?
Organized etc.? Describe the physical environment in detail.
The class is a mild temperature and all students are seated in the teacher’s orderly
fashion. The room is well organized. And put together in an orderly fashion.
2) Please describe the student make-up of the class, including gender, ethnicity, ELL,
students with physical challenges, and any other apparent attributes that are important to
note.
Students listen well to teacher’s instructions and are overall well organized. I noted that
there is a bit more males in the class rather than females. There is a wide mixture of
different ethnicities in these students.
3) What are the posted class rules in the room? (Exactly as written)
Rules
-No slapping
-No punching
-No pushing
-No shoving
-No wrestling
-No pinching
-No flicking
-No kicking
-No tripping
4) Does the teacher enforce the rules? Are rewards of consequences being used for
compliance or noncompliance?
Yes, the teacher enforces her personal rules such as no talking during tests and no
plagiarizing. Students are given a zero or a deans referral for copying or cheating on tests.
Assignment #2 (Classroom Layout): 02/23/17 (1:20 P.M.- 3:20 P.M.)
1) Describe the workflow of the room. Is the space used efficiently?
The workflow of this classroom is normally quite smooth and simple and the space in this
room is just about being used to its advantage.
2) In your opinion, how can the physical arrangement of the room be improved?
I personal would arrange the desks more spaciously and spread apart in a sense that
students can get around more easily.
 3) In your opinion, are there any concerns regarding safety during a normal school day or
during the possibility of fire, shelter in place, or lock-down?
The only concern I would have concerning safety is if a fire should happen to break out,
the students may have trouble smoothly getting to the door in through traffic due to the
desks being sort of cramped together.

Assignment #3 (Instruction): 02/23/17 (1:20 P.M. – 3:20 P.M.)

1) What is the posted daily schedule for different subjects or periods?
The posted daily schedule is not given specifically and the subjects taught are all related
to English/Literature topics.
2) Is instruction done in small groups, centers, whole groups, individually?
Most of the instruction is done individually among all students.
3) How would you describe your cooperating teacher’s teaching style?
My teacher’s teaching style is more verbal (linguistic) than anything because she
normally uses examples through stories and speaking to the students.
4) Does the teacher incorporate the sensory modalities (learning styles)? If so, give
examples.
Yes, the teacher uses a bit of all the learning styles such as when she shows CNN Student
News to the class as a daily routine and she has warm-up questions at the beginning of
class concerning what they have learned in the previous class session.
5) Do the students seem engaged in the lesson(s) that are being presented? Please explain.
Overall, the students engage in the lessons being taught by participating in class
discussions and doing in class work and book work.
6) Are there any students isolated from the rest of the class for any reason? Why?
No students are isolated from the class as a whole. They are all good-working students.
7) Is instructional time managed efficiently? Please explain.
The instructional time is managed pretty efficiently being that the teacher follows her
own schedule routine each class.
8) How does the cooperating teacher handle transitions from one subject or period to
another, and are these transitions effective?
The transition from period to period is fairly well-handled by the teacher. There is a break
time period in between two different periods that gives the teacher time to chill for a few
minutes to prepare her next lesson(s) to teach.
9) List ways the teacher attempts any “attention getting” commands? ( Ex: Countdown,
Light flicker, Heads on Desk) How effective are they?
The teacher just uses basic eye contact with the students to grab their attention and it
works fairly accurately.
10) What specific behavior issues does the teacher have to deal with? How does the teacher
deal with these behavior issues? Be specific.
There are no behavior issues that I have noticed yet, that is, that the teacher has had to
deal with, so far.
 11) Are there any policies or procedures in place that help or hinder instructional time? If so,
explain them and how they help or hinder use of instructional time.
There are no policies or procedures to help/hinder instructional time because the students
normally get all instruction done in time before class ends.
Assignment #4 (Culture): 03/2/17 (1:30 P.M. – 3:30 P.M.)
A) Physical Characteristics
1) Consider the school property: Building, grounds, fencing, equipment, landscaping, trees,
parking lot, crosswalks, gates, signs and symbols.
The school property is very unique and quite large for a middle school. The building is
made of bricks and concrete and it is split into different sections. The grounds outside the
school are white concrete as well as in the courtyards of the school. There is only fencing
around the grass field on the gym side of the school and around the bike racks and tennis
courts. Most equipment is in the gym and lunchroom such as bleachers and tables and
basketball baskets. There are many plants and small trees planted in the courtyard flower
beds. The parking lot is quite small but moderate and there are two of them, one in front
of the school and one in the back of the school. There are no crossing guards at the
crosswalks. There are no gates that I have noticed so far and there are many signs on the
school doors and classroom doors and hallway walls.
2) Next, study the interior of the school: halls, floor coverings, lighting, doors, windows,
hall colors and decorations and entrance security.
The halls are small and are one-way traffic ONLY. The floors are all carpets except for
the bathrooms which are all tile. Lighting is perfect and covers all the areas of inside
including in the classrooms. Doors of the classrooms are wood, heavy doors and the
outside doors are metal, two-way doors. Some classrooms have glass tile windows while
others don’t as well as windows on all the doors. The hall’s color contains of teal and
yellow for the school colors. Sometimes there are decorations on classroom doors or on
the hallway walls for upcoming events. There is no actual security guards on duty in the
halls, but there are school monitoring cameras in the halls.
B) Culture of the School:
1) Identify the school’s mission statement, motto, and mascot.
“Our mission is to motivate students to become lifelong learners through a challenging
curriculum. We will provide a safe environment that fosters respect and values diversity.”
That is there mission statement and their moto is, “We choose today what we become
tomorrow.” The mascot is the flying tiger.
2) Analyze staff and visitor interactions in the main office. Note student and faculty
interactions in other areas of the school.
The staff seem to be friendly and welcoming to all visitors and students coming in almost
all day long. Students, from what I have seen, are normally very nice to the faculty
members and polite and make regular conversation. Deans are normally on patrol in the
courtyards after lunch is over to be sure students are staying in their classes and not
wandering the campus grounds.
3) Look at the formal practices: School day schedule; ages of students; calendar of events;
size of school; grouping of students.
The school schedule goes from 9:00 A.M. to 3:19 P.M. Students in my class range from
11-12 years old. Events that happen in this school are normal advertised in the hallways
and on the doors. The school is about average size and decent enough for the number of
students attending here. They group the students according to grade level and ages.
4) Observe student to student interactions, inside and outside the building. Observe where
students gather to socialize – lunchroom, halls, playground, etc.
Students are normally very talkative in and out of the classrooms and make conversations
amongst each other about their own gossips. A majority of the students gather in the
courtyard during lunch to chat and gossip and do what-not horseplay and have access to their
cellular devices.
5) Explain how the school is organized- by grades, departments or not. Are
hallways/classrooms labeled?
The school is organized by hallways such as, Eighth grade hallway, Seventh grade
hallway, and Sixth grade hallway. There are all in separate buildings and are labeled in
painted letter above the hallway entrances. (Ex. 600’s, 700’s, 800’s) Classrooms are
labeled by teacher and subject being taught.
6) Examine school traditions, achievements and awards; community recognition or
community partners; extracurricular activities/clubs and athletics. Look for and
document sources of community pride and sense of identity through ceremonies,
assemblies, trophies, and artifacts.
School traditions are things such as school dances for holidays and special assemblies.
I’m unaware of any achievements or awards for this school. I’m unaware of any
community recognition or community partners. There are only a few athletic teams such
as the cheerleading team and the basketball teams. In the main office, there is a painting
of the school’s founder, Mr. Jack Lund Scofield. In the library, there are paintings of the
mascot on the walls and the school’s moto and school artifacts in cases. The school
identifies itself through assemblies by having them often and frequently.
C) Culture of the Classroom:
1) Look for teacher(s) expectations for learning and success, interactions with students, and
his/her personality.
The teacher is very progressive with the students and expects very much of them as a
class and as individuals. She interacts patiently and calmly with all students and uses
humor once in a while to make the students feel at ease and more relaxed with the
lessons. The teacher herself is very outgoing and friendly and calm with her students.
2) Evaluate the level of student participation in the class. Who participates? Who does not?
A majority of the students participate in the lessons and lectures and they all work at a
steady pace. There are very few, if any, students that don’t participate.
3) Evaluate the interactions between teachers and students, rapport, cohesiveness,
distribution of power, tone, frequency and reinforcements.
The teachers overall, in this school are in good control of the students and seem to have a
good understanding of how the students work and what they desire to create a better
learning environment.

Assignment #5 (Cooperating Teacher Interview) 3/7/17 (1:20 P.M.-3:20 P.M.)

1) What was the primary reason you became a teacher?

The reason she became a teacher is because she wanted to be just like her
kindergarten teacher. That teacher was her inspiration.
2) What is the main challenge(s) you face as a teacher?
Paperwork
3) What is the best part(s) of being a teacher?
The interaction with the students and watching the students’ amazement while they
learn new things.
4) How do you determine where students sit in the class?
She does not determine where they sit, she lets them choose their own seats unless
group work is being done.
5) How do you determine the members of any flexible groups?
Tries to get the high level thinkers, the lower level thinkers and two middle thinkers
for each group.
6) Beyond standardized testing, what assessments do you use regularly?
Cold reads weekly, fiction/non-fiction. Vocabulary and observations.
7) What requirements are placed on you for reporting progress to parents?
Giving out progress reports once every nine weeks.
8) How often do you interact with a student’s parents in person?
Only if there is a parent-teacher-conference for the concern of a student. Very rarely.
9) What type of discussions do you typically have with parents?
Help the child and parent create a success plan.
10) How much grading do you complete on a daily/weekly basis?
Grade’s about 300 essay questions a week, 100 comprehension papers per week.
11) How long does it take to prepare lessons for the day/week?
Everything is done online by a curriculum engine on the computers. It’s all very
simple to make the lesson plans.
12) What procedures or strategies do you use to maximize instructional time?
Start’s the students on bell work which starts them into the day’s lesson. Has all
handouts or worksheets pre-done and printed out for students to do.
13) What positive reinforcement programs have you had success with?
Follows school wide positive awareness. They give out colored bracelets for different
grades such as A’s, B’s, C’s as credit toward their actual grades.
14) What behavioral consequences seem most effective with this age group?
A dean’s Referral.
15) How are specialist teachers involved in the instructional planning process?
There is none of those teachers in this class. No comment.
 16) How often are you evaluated, and what measurement tool(s) is used by the
administration for determining your own performance?
Evaluate daily and for example she had to make a teaching portfolio for evaluation. Their
assignment is called Nevada Educator Performance Framework at a glance, three times.
17) What consequences are there if your evaluation is not favorable?
You get fired.
18) What types of support do you receive instructionally, financially or professionally
from the school, parent organization or school district to enhance instruction?
None, they pay for their own supplies and everything else.
19) What surprised you most about teaching as a profession?
The kids did not come with the same morals and values that she had growing up.

Assignment #6 (Classroom Interactions) 3/7/17 (1:20 P.M.-3:20 P.M.)

1)
Teacher Exchange Directed to Boys Teacher Exchange Directed to Girls
 .  .
 .  .
 .  .
 .

Summary of Classroom Interactions data from above:

The girls seem to have much more interaction with the teacher’s questions than that of the boys. I
believe this is so because girls naturally are more social and perky to talk and answer questions
while a majority of boys are either to shy or just not interested in going into further explanation
to understand the questions. Some boys may not feel it necessary to answer questions or ask
them. The teacher was asking review questions for the in-class novel they are currently reading
at this time. The students that answered seemed to know what they were talking about and were
confident with their answers.

Assignment #7 (Administrator Interview) 3/14/17 (11:20 A.M.-12:00 P.M.) Counselor: Patty

Edwards

1) Do you enjoy being at this school and ensuring that all the students get a proper
education?
Most definitely, been here for 16 years. As a counselor they pay more attention to kids
individually and make sure they get all the resources they need to be successful.
2) What is your moto for a student that is struggling in school or at home?
As a counselor it’s our job to be an advocate for the students in need.
3) Do you have any advice for a college student, such as myself, for advancing your field of
study as a teacher or administrator?
Depends on the population and students. Most importantly be respectful and the biggest
trouble that teachers have today is respect and consistency.
4) Would you say your particular job position is hard or simple for you personally?
Depends on the day. Every day is different. Dealing with mental health issues is the
toughest part of the job. What’s rewarding is when you see kids start to flourish in their
life in every
5) Any comments on how rapidly education in society today, is changing?
Expectations on teachers is so much greater. Teachers are under pressure and everything
is dated. Behavior and discipline is the biggest concern for society today.
Assignment #8 (Specialist Classroom Observations) 3/14/17 (12:20-1:10)
A.) P.E. Teacher: Ms. Wick
1) Do the students participate or behave differently in these classes in comparison to their
regular academic/cooperating teacher’s class?
Yes, this is a physical education class so therefore students are a lot more active and
lively than they would be in their normal academic classes. The students play sports and
do a lot of running and physical activities outside and indoors in the gymnasium.
2) Does any student seem to have a particular talent? Describe.
All the students pretty much play at their own pace and help each other out with team
work in order to succeed at game.
3) What is the curriculum like in comparison to the regular education (cooperating
teachers) class? The curriculum is all physical activities and rarely any writing ever, is
done in this class. Students seem to enjoy this class and are very talkative to one another
and to the teacher.
4) Describe the specialist teacher’s instructional style.
She is very straight forward in her instructions for each activity given. Today the class is
playing soccer and the teacher’s instructions are made very clear to the students.
5) What different strategies do you notice this teacher using that are successful?
Mrs. Wick uses a whistle to get the students’ attention during the soccer game and it
works quite well. It’s a normal strategy that a majority of P.E. teachers use these days.
6) What are the challenges the specialist teacher has to deal with?
I’d imagine that some challenges this teacher faces are students with injuries or students
with disabilities and occasionally students that refuse to participate in certain activities.
7) How are the student needs being met?
Students are all shown the same respect and they all respect one another.
B.) Special Education Teacher: 3/15.17 (11:55-12:30) Jennifer Williams

1) Do you notice any social and academic differences between the kids in this class?
 There is very few kids in this class compared to normal academic classes. There is a total
of only three students in the class today. All these students are autistic.
2) What is the curriculum like in comparison to the regular education class?
The teacher put on an audiobook for the students, while one of them laid on the floor in
the back of the room due to him claiming he didn’t feel good. The other two participating
students followed along with the audio book and afterwards, the teacher went over
comprehension questions with them having to do with the book. Given that the kids are
autistic, they are a little slower paced in getting the answers than that of an average
student.
3) Describe the SPED teacher’s instructional style.
This teacher is very patient with the students and she reads the comprehension questions
with the students to be sure they understand what they are learning. She allowed them to
find the answers for themselves and when they struggled to find an answer, she assisted
them right away.
4) What are the challenges these students possess?
Being that these students deal with autism, they face behavioral outbreaks if something
does not go their way or if something upsets them.
5) How are student needs being met?
The teacher is patient with the students and very calm. The students get the help they
need from the teacher.

Assignment #9 (Observing a student) - 3/15/17 (1:20 P.M.-3:20 P.M.)

1) Please summarize the setting, the lesson that was given, if the student was on task and
engaged in the lesson, and what you uncovered about putting yourself in a lesson
from the student’s point of view.
I am observing female sixth grade student, Anette. Today the class is doing a lesson
in the library about writing a thesis statement. She is participating by raising her hand
and talking to the teacher about the lesson and asking questions when she doesn’t
understand something. This student had a bit of trouble understanding exactly how to
put a few sentences together to make one thesis statement. I was able to understand
that in the student’s point of view, it’s tough to understand how to write something
such as thesis statement, if the teacher does not give proper instruction or if the
students themselves, does not ask questions on how to do so.

Assignment #10 (Summary) - 3/16/17 (1:20 P.M.-2:00 P.M.)

This was quite a great experience to learn and enjoy new things. The kids in the class
were all very nice and welcoming and got along great with me and with their teacher.
The teacher and I became friends quickly as well. At first when I took this course, I
was not so sure I would like the whole volunteer thing, but it turned out to be fun and
interesting and an eye-opener for sure. I look forward to the near future to be able to
work with kid and help them get through everyday school life. I got many peoples’
views on school beside the teacher’s, such as a counselor and students and deans.
Some teachers were negative about their job while others encouraged me to go for it
saying it’s a great job. I was left with many mixed emotions on if I still want to teach
but I’m sticking with my profession for the better good of our youth today.