Interviewing A Student

I did not feel like I should be asking a younge student many of the questions that I wanted answered. So I went to my sistr and got one of her friends to voluntere for the job. She is a Sophmore at Upland High School were she marches in the band. I asked her if she was in any advanced placement? She said "yes, I am in honors and college prep classes". That led me to ask if she could tell the difference bettween the two classes when it came to curriculum and the students in the class? In response she stated "The work in honors is way more time consuming and is alot harder than the college prep. Ther is a different atmosphere because some kids in the college prep class do not care and it makes it hard to learn. Sometimes when the students do not care the teachers do not care". I replied with do you get special treatment being in an honors corse? In responce "Yes we get to talk alot more in the honors class and they say honors students understand in stead of haveing a blank look on ther face". This really stood out to me becaue I had discussed this in my liberal studies class and concluded that honors students are treated more like an adult than a child. maybe that is why they mature much faster than regular students.

I really wanted to know if she got any special treatment from other teachers because she was in the band for the school. I asked if she got any special treatment, and she replied with "Yes, we get to miss school. But teachers are not leanient on grades. We half to make up all of the work which can very hard during compitition season but we make it work". I then asked do any of your teachers play favoritism in their classroom? She replied with, "Yes, one of our teachers would change a lesson to make sure that the band students understood. somtimes even for the other students". This to me did not sound like favoritism but a true teacher doing his job. Thats what I like to hear. It lead m to ask if the principal was involved with the students? She said "Yes they both are... We actually have two principals and one vice principal. Everyday they go over the intercome and speek to us and during our lunches they walk around and talk to the students". I loved how involved the principals were at this school I knew they had two principals because the population at that is outrages but I love how they work as a team. I then asked if she had any non speeking students in her cass? She replied, " No, all of my students in my classes speek english, but ther is one student at our school who has a disability so he has a translater who goes class to class". I found this so cool that the school helps out like that. She also said "all of the students are really friendly to him and it makes no difference". I was surprised that the students were actually nice because when I attended the school the kids were really mean.

I brought up a subject that was very touchey and was not sure if I should go their but I did and loved the responce. I asked if racism was an issue at her school and she said "No, if so I do not notice everyone I know hangs out with everyone. And if the student feels confortable they anonce that they are interested in the other sex and no one cares! It is really cool because I have alot of guy friends who like guys and they are the coolest friends ever". I then asked if ther was any problems with vandalism or gangs at her school? She stated "Ther is vandalism just like tagging or breaking windows but they are the type of thing that is fixed before we even make it to school the next morning. Ther are gangs I guess I do not really know if ther are they keep to them selves and thats it. Nothing crazy"."Ther is alot of PDA also known as Public Demenstration of Affection but nothing out of the ordinary at a high school." I found this interesting because when I went to that school the PDA was really bad to the point that people were recieving Saturday school for it.

I then wanted to know more about the contriversal testing that all of the students had to take in order to exit high school. I asked her what she thought of the exam? She responded with "It was a waiste of time, the questions were too easy anyone should be able to pass that test. They should let people graduate based on their GPA so it is all of the work they have put into it". I asked if the classrooms were up to date tecnologywise and she said yes all of the teachers use the computers all the time and let us work on them too". This student was very usefull because she had alot of opinions and stated the truth. She is a student who is egar to go to USC or Harvard with my sister with is really cool. I hope they end up togeather because starting fresh is really hard for alot of people. This school seems very organized and on top of things. I believe it would be a school that i would love to teach at just because the atmosphere of the teachers ands students is really amazing.

Interviewing a teacher

I interviewed an elementary school teacher at the Water of Life campus. She is 32 years old and graduated from San Bernadino University with a BA. She has been working at this school for about eight years now and is working on receiving her Credential from Cal State Fullerton. She has a husband at home who she adores and loves to spend her free time off roading with. While interviewing her I learned a lot about what to expect for my first year as a teacher and also for the long term.

Wanting to get to the heart of the story I asked questions that that evolved around pre teaching and first years. I asked the teacher "When did you know you wanted to be a teacher?", she replied with " College, but in high school I was voted most likely to become a teacher. At that time i did not believe that at all and now looking back they were right". I was a little shocked by the response because people state that most teachers know when they are in elementary school that they want to become a teacher. I also wanted to know "How did you feel the first day of class?" She chuckled and replied "I was very nervous and overwhelmed. I felt unprepared yet it was exciting and fun". I could really tie this back to my reading and class discussion because all most all first year teachers state that they feel unprepared. I felt I needed more reassurance so I asked "What should I know for the first year of teaching?". She responded with "Stay positive, it is an ongoing learning process and their is always something to improve on. Also steel from others and share that way you get fresh ideas plus they love to share". This was very interesting to me because literally as a teacher your work is never done.I then wanted to know "What advice can you give?" She responded with " Do not try to do it all and ask for help when you need it. You really need to push your self through especially the first year." I felt a little discouraged by this because it seems like no matter how much education you have you can you can never be fully prepared fro the classroom.

I wanted to dig a litter deeper and find out how she felt about her job and if she would ever want to do anything else. One question that I asked was "What do you love about your job?" With a smile she replied " I love teaching kids and watching them when they understand the concept that we are working on. I also love to inspire them and prepair them for their future." This really hit home for me because I know when I volunteer in a classroom, seeing the students understand what they have been working on is very rewarding. I replied with "What do you dislike about your job and if you could do any other profession what would it be?" In response she stated "I really do not dislike anything about my job. Maybe my least favorite thing to do is paperwork. O and I hate having to parent, parents that can be frustrating." This led me to a follow up question of "How do you communicate with the parents to keep them aware of the classroom and their student?" She replied and encouraged me to " Communicate with parents weekly, they receive a letter home every week on what they are learning and what is coming up. I also talk to the parents through email it seems to work better for this group rather than playing phone tag. In some sever cases I will make a call home just to make sure everything is okay." I loved her idea of like a weekly news letter especially in elementary school because the parents are informed and they know what the children have for homework that week. I definitely plan on using something like this when I teach.

I became really curious on how she ran her classroom management and accommodations if any for those who need a little more help. I tried to get some info from her on classroom management by asking " What is your classroom management? And do you get the parents involved?" She kind of thought about it and replied " I have class rules, and if they are disobeyed then I hold the student accountable. I try really hard to have the punishment fit the crime and to keep a balance so that their is still respect for teacher and students. You never want to hold a grudge because it stays with them and they will be angry and never learn." I found that very interesting and a good analogy you need respect in the classroom. I was curious wanting to teach in California if " There were any accommodations for children who do not speak English and if they were graded differently?" She mentioned that "She has a conference with the parents and sets individual goals for that student. there is also a lot of pre teaching that goes on before class starts. I also do a lot of one on one with them work on vocab and they also get modified assignments. They are graded differently because they do different levels of work." This did not surprise me at all because you want to ensure every student is learning in your classroom so extra time with a student is always useful. This led me to inquire "Are their accommodations for children with learning disabilities?" She responded with "Yes, everything is modified like class work, tests, groups, and some seating. Most students sit any where but if they are dyslectic then I try to keep them up front so I can check up on them." This was very cool that she made sure that everyone was learning even if it was at their own rate.

I was almost done with the interview when i was wondering if she would have done anything different. I asked "Would you ever change your career?" with a laugh she responded with " The only other job I would want to sing professionally but that is unrealistic so there is no other job I would choose." This lead me to ask "Do you get involved with your students sports by attending or talking to them about it?" She replied " I ask them about how their sports are going but I don't attend the events. I do not want to show favoritism and I feel my social life should be kept private." I agree completely that private life should be kept to yourself because students are always picking and prodding trying to figure out were you come from and your life story.

I was almost done when I thought of one more question that I felt was very important wh

ich was "What was the hardest aspect and do the parents respect you?" with no time at all she responds with "Yes we support each other and when I talk to them I use different terms and wording. For example ill say lets work together or ask them to help and support my decision. The hardest aspect is being confident that you taught everything that they need for their education and their future". This was very inspiring because it showed that parents really do care and want to help the teacher as much as they can. Being able to incorporate the thoughts of another teacher has been very useful and inspiring. I now know if I ever have a question to not hesitate to ask because teachers love to share.

Reflection 2

Jennifer Whitten
Schools and Communities in Partnership
Many schools today do not have the support from their community and it shows. Many schools who have support from the community have higher rates for success and many more parents who come in and volunteer. Their are different way that the community can get involved such as arranging PTA's, IAF, and help promote learning. Those states that do not have ht e community help are the ones who struggle the most and are expected to also obtain high test scores. A community can also be considered a parent, government, basically anyone who helps in the classroom out of the goodness of their hearts. I know for many people this is really hard to do because both parents re working to make a living but I know that my mom would work in my classrooms teaching children to speak english. I went out with some of my friends and met one of the girls my mom and helped and she remembered and asked me about her. That made me proud to call her my mom because she changed someones life including my own.
Many communities have different ways for helping and others feel that it is not their job to help the education. The community feels that it is the teachers job to take care of the students and to a;so keep the test scores up. Oakes states "Today, low-income communities increasingly seek to hold schools accountable for providing high-quality education to their children"(408). This showed that in some cases teachers did not have a chance unless they were taking money from their pocket to provide a proper eduction. Many cities are going through these problems today and it wont change until they get the help from the parents and communities. Many of these schools can be located in low income areas were they feel the students don't take their education seriously. That still is not an excuse if the government knows this is going on they should help their currant students. They are the students who will be running the government when they retire; wouldn't they want to make sure they are being replaced by a well educated being.
Many communitees suport the education by haveing groups such as the PTA. My mom was also part of the PTA while I was in elementry school and helped promote bake sales or back to school nights. I remember they would have different classrooms donate different treats and they would try to raise money to buy new books, ect. According to Oakes "Today, the national PTA continues to take progressive stands on many of these issues and tries to have its membership reflect the charging demographics of the country"(407). Many schools through out the country have PTA but their are some that don't and that need them more than ever. If parents are unable to help out at the school then maybe they should take seniors from the local high school to do communitee service. If all schools had PTA's then they would have an additional sourse of income that could make the biggest difference for some schools.
Anouther orginization that is occuring in the educaton system is the IFA. The IFA is an orginization that takes in polls to see what others think should be changed or what might need help. According to Oakes "They identify area of overlapping self-intrest with other parents and, if possible, with educators at a school"(410). I feel this is very important because schools can set goals for next year on things they want to change and try to accomplish those goals. This could help the students be more encuraged to learn or could even chalenge those who havent been challenged due to old text books,
Their are many different ways that the community could get involved in education. Some just need to be informed and others just need a little encouragement. Once parents get involved the better because I feel the students of those parents always seemed to have help t home too for homework. This was due to the parents knowing what their was for homework and would mke sure it was done. If communities continue to make PTA and IAF commities for schools then they will be promoting knowlege.

Very First Blog

Good morning,
I have just created my Blog web site and look forward to using it to inspire my education :)