I am going to be splitting my service hours between two schools. I will be doing one portion at Midvalley Elementary in a kindergarten class, and I will be doing the other portion at Jackling Elementary in a 6th grade class.
At Midvalley Elementary 69% of students are considered low-income and there is a very diverse group of students. Their tests scores are below state averages. The surrounding neighborhood is very diverse and has people of many different socioeconomic and racial backgrounds.
At Jackling Elementary over 75% of their students are considered low-income and many of them speak English as a second language. They have very poor test scores at this school but that is likely due in part to possible language and cultural barriers. As far as what I know about the surrounding neighborhood it is mostly low-income and many of the families speak English as a second language.
I have learned that I will get the opportunity to work with a very diverse group of kids. I chose to split my time so that I could get a feel for how it is to work as a teacher to both younger and older age groups. I only know English and a very limited amount of sign language so there may be some communication barriers that I have to work around with some students. I also noticed that I will be working mostly with kids that come from low-income areas. Additionally both schools seem to have low test scores so it will be interesting to see first hand how the teachers are handling language and cultural diversity within their classroom. That diversity will certainly create opportunities for more engaged and targeted learning but it will also create unique challenges so I look forward to getting some tips on how to best handle or address those challenges.
My understanding of service learning is that it will give me a hands on experience of what it may be like to be a teacher. I will get to see some of the specific challenges and issues facing modern teachers and students, while getting some insight on how to tackle those issues. The service learning component of this class serves a few purposes. One is to get me into a classroom setting to observe and participate. This will help me in deciding if teaching really is for me. Secondly I will get some insight into what age group I would prefer to work with if I do decide to teach. Lastly, I will get hands on experience from seasoned teachers, while also having the opportunity to apply the concepts and skills I am learning in this class.
At Midvalley Elementary 69% of students are considered low-income and there is a very diverse group of students. Their tests scores are below state averages. The surrounding neighborhood is very diverse and has people of many different socioeconomic and racial backgrounds.
At Jackling Elementary over 75% of their students are considered low-income and many of them speak English as a second language. They have very poor test scores at this school but that is likely due in part to possible language and cultural barriers. As far as what I know about the surrounding neighborhood it is mostly low-income and many of the families speak English as a second language.
I have learned that I will get the opportunity to work with a very diverse group of kids. I chose to split my time so that I could get a feel for how it is to work as a teacher to both younger and older age groups. I only know English and a very limited amount of sign language so there may be some communication barriers that I have to work around with some students. I also noticed that I will be working mostly with kids that come from low-income areas. Additionally both schools seem to have low test scores so it will be interesting to see first hand how the teachers are handling language and cultural diversity within their classroom. That diversity will certainly create opportunities for more engaged and targeted learning but it will also create unique challenges so I look forward to getting some tips on how to best handle or address those challenges.
My understanding of service learning is that it will give me a hands on experience of what it may be like to be a teacher. I will get to see some of the specific challenges and issues facing modern teachers and students, while getting some insight on how to tackle those issues. The service learning component of this class serves a few purposes. One is to get me into a classroom setting to observe and participate. This will help me in deciding if teaching really is for me. Secondly I will get some insight into what age group I would prefer to work with if I do decide to teach. Lastly, I will get hands on experience from seasoned teachers, while also having the opportunity to apply the concepts and skills I am learning in this class.
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