Catalina Davila Year: 2015

Reluctance to Reading or Writing

The situation:In my fifth grade class, I have a student who has been difficult to work with since day one. My cooperating teacher did tell me about this student and her reluctance to read and write. Since student teaching started I have tried to help her, providing different ways for her to start reading and writing. However, no matter what I have tired she will not read and write. Her reluctance also leads her to communicate in a less than appropriate manner with me. From third quarter her grades have significantly dropped but she has said she does not care. For this paper, I will refer to the student as Student A. Those involved:For the past three weeks I have been teaching every subject. For reading we just finished reading Crispin: The Cross of Lead. Students were supposed to read each night and then answer chapter comprehension questions along with chapter. In their groups or as a whole class students would then discuss the comprehension questions. For about a week my cooperating teacher was sick and was not in class. I was the lead teacher for that week which led Student A to think she did not have to complete her reading or writing homework. After we read the book Crispin: The Cross of Lead, we started to read The Giver. For The Giver the students only had to complete chapter summaries each night and the discussions would happen in class. Student A did not have her work completed for any of the two books that I taught. When it came to math, Student A would not engage at all in the lessons that were 45 minutes to one-hour duration. The lessons were structured in a manner that allowed them to practice the mathematical concept with the aid of a video. Students were also strongly encouraged to take notes since as sixth graders note-taking would be important. For the span of five weeks I have had to repeatedly talk to Student A. In this fifth grade classroom, for the last month and a half, students are to prepare for The Revolutionary War Wax Museum. Students chose a character from the Revolutionary War and then write an informational essay based on research they have conducted. The students all had about a week to research information on their character. However, after the week of research Student A only had seven to ten bullet points with only the basic information about their characters life such as birthplace, birthday, and death. My thoughts: When I have to constantly talk to Student A, I go through different emotions, first I become frustrated, then I calm down and remind Student A that she needs to be working, finally Ill talk to her privately. But in my head I am thinking that I have absolutely no idea how to get her to participate in class discussions, to read or write at home or school. When I see her that she is not paying any attention I intentionally call on her and I think, This will get her to focus however, it does not. As Ive talked to Student As Spanish, Science, Art, and Music teachers they inform me that Student A does not participate or do any work in their class either. When I see Student A in class or when Im lesson planning I am constantly trying to think of ways in which Student A would actively participate. I frequently am asking myself if Im doing enough for her.

My Reactions: As Im teaching I notice that Student A is not participating in either Reading, Math, or Writing. Usually when I teach Reading or Math I am at the front of the classroom. I pay close attention to the students and am able to see who is paying attention. When I see Student A, I am frustrated. Intentionally I would call on Student A to participate in hopes that she will focus but it does not help. The Experience: In one situation, as the rest of the class were taking notes and participating, Student A was present but absent. When the students were working individually in Math I walked over to Student A and told her she needed to take her math notebook out, take notes, and complete the independent practice problems. I then walked away and went to help other students. Before the whole class discussion I returned to check on Student A and found that she had not taken any notes or completed the independent practice problems. I walked away shaking my head. I was thinking, this is why Student As grades have significantly dropped fourth quarter. After every math lesson, the assessment I use is called a Quick Check. On one occasion students completed the Quick Check to show how well they have understood the lesson. Student A raised their hand every day when it comes to completing the Quick Check. I walk over to Student A and she said, I dont get it. I asked Student A if she was paying attention and taking notes even if I already knew she was not paying attention. I always try to help Student A despite her lack of attention. As I tried to help Student A, she did not allow me to explain and then I told Student A I cannot help her if she did not allow me to explain to her how she should solve the problems. I walked away not feeling happy and again questioning if I was doing everything I could for Student A. Impacts my identify as an elementary teacher: This experience worries me. As an elementary teacher I try to make learning fun for the students. I look for reading and math games that will allow them to understand the concepts being taught. I thought I was doing this well but Student A has made me question my approach. For example, I wanted Student A to read and I suggested that they should listen to the audiobook but this approach did not work. During reading time, I also asked Student A if she needed me to read with her but she said no. For math I asked Student A what I could do and she simply shrugged. This is my first experience of having a student who is reluctant to do any work. I have experienced many emotions while trying to help Student A. But as an elementary teacher this experience has showed me that I have yet many things to learn. I want to be able to reach all my students. I learned and can improve:This experience has been difficult but now reflecting on it I can see that it is a helpful experience. Most importantly I learned that not all students will respond to the same instruction. The other students would work well yet Student A had me carefully thinking of my lesson plans. In doing so, I have learned that my teaching and lessons have to be diverse and provide every student with the ability to learn and to be engaged. In order to learn from this experience I have evaluated what I was doing in the classroom always keeping Student A in mind. To improve, I will encourage students always allowing open communication and freethinking in my classroom. I want to be able to listen to students and to be able to get them involved in the classroom teaching them responsibility. In teaching fifth grade I used group work, if I continue to use group work I will assign roles to make everyone responsible in the group. The experience has also taught me that my instructions and expectations must be clear for all students. Setting and keeping clear expectations allows for all students to understand what is required of them and also to let them know that I believe in them. From this experience I have learned that creativity is extremely important and not just only to students like Student A but for all the students. I will work and learn how to avoid monotony in the classroom structure. During these weeks of student teaching, my cooperating teacher has emphasized the importance of drawing connections to real life. In reaching Student A, this may have been an area in which I was weak and need to improve. Student A was not engaged since they did not see how reading Crispin or learning about coordinate pairs was applicable. Creating real life connections will help students see the value in learning. Student A allowed me to see that teaching will be challenging but that there is room for improvement.

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