Today was different from any other day I've been at Classic City- in a good way.
I went to Ms. McNair's room as usual to see if Michael needed help with his online quizzes. But Michael was in a really bad mood today and Ms. McNair suggested I go downstairs to the social studies department to see if the social studies teacher had anything for me to do. I was excited because social studies is my second content area and there is a possibility I will teach it one day, so I know I need the experience.
The class was pretty full when I walked in- there were about twenty-five students silently reading at big tables. The teacher told me that one girl, I'll call her Karen, needed some help with her online material. So he brought me over to her and introduced us, then left the two of us to work on some Economics quizzes.
Karen and I got along well really quickly, and she told me she was a senior and she planned to graduate in May. She showed me how far along on E2020 she was and I was surprised about how different her attitude was than Michael's. Her best friend was in the same class and the two of them let me in on all the gossip, telling me about their crushes and what they had done over the weekend. I had a really good time getting to know some different students, and immediately felt comfortable in this new environment.
Instead of econ, Karen asked me to help her finish some literature quizzes on E2020 instead. I was glad to do so, because econ has never been one of my strongest subjects. She knew the answers to most of the questions, but appreciated my help and input. At the end of the day, I was sad to leave.
I asked the social studies teacher if I could come back downstairs next week and he told me he would love the extra help and that the students would surely benefit from it. So I left Classic City very positive and uplifted today, anxious to help other students in a different subject.
Monday, February 18, 2013
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Day 4
February 6, 2013
Today was incredible! I could tell it was going to be a good day at Classic City High when I showed up and Ms. McNair (the Language Arts instructor) told me that I was going to be working with a student in the media center. I had never been to the media center, and I was excited about spending some one-on-one time with a student outside of the normal class environment.
Once again, I was paired with Michael, because he is very behind on his Language Arts credit. Ms. McNair told me that she would probably have to drag him out the door to the media center because he really hates having a tutor. But surprisingly, Michael went willingly with me to the media center and talked to me the whole time. I was thrilled because he seemed to be in a really good mood. We talked for a while about his weekend and how he was doing in his classes, and he was very vocal about how much he wanted to get all of his credits completed and get a high school diploma.
We spent our time on the E2020 computer program, working on some Language Arts quizzes. Michael got a little bogged down by all the reading, and I had to keep encouraging him to look at the text and then reread the questions. On the first quiz, he ended up getting an 80%! I was excited for him. He had to leave the room a few times to go ask Ms. McNair a few questions, but I didn't mind waiting for him. We discussed how he liked the E2020 program- and he admitted to me that he would rather be taught by a teacher and not a computer program. He didn't think he was learning as well by simply watching powerpoints and taking quizzes. This really got me thinking. I know that a major advantage to Classic City High is that classes are smaller and there is a small student to teacher ratio, but what about this computer program made it a better system than a normal classroom? Michael seemed to be having a really hard time with it, and I could tell how hard he was trying. Is this online program really the answer for these struggling students? I will have to continue to observe and evaluate it as I spend more time at CCHS.
Today was incredible! I could tell it was going to be a good day at Classic City High when I showed up and Ms. McNair (the Language Arts instructor) told me that I was going to be working with a student in the media center. I had never been to the media center, and I was excited about spending some one-on-one time with a student outside of the normal class environment.
Once again, I was paired with Michael, because he is very behind on his Language Arts credit. Ms. McNair told me that she would probably have to drag him out the door to the media center because he really hates having a tutor. But surprisingly, Michael went willingly with me to the media center and talked to me the whole time. I was thrilled because he seemed to be in a really good mood. We talked for a while about his weekend and how he was doing in his classes, and he was very vocal about how much he wanted to get all of his credits completed and get a high school diploma.
We spent our time on the E2020 computer program, working on some Language Arts quizzes. Michael got a little bogged down by all the reading, and I had to keep encouraging him to look at the text and then reread the questions. On the first quiz, he ended up getting an 80%! I was excited for him. He had to leave the room a few times to go ask Ms. McNair a few questions, but I didn't mind waiting for him. We discussed how he liked the E2020 program- and he admitted to me that he would rather be taught by a teacher and not a computer program. He didn't think he was learning as well by simply watching powerpoints and taking quizzes. This really got me thinking. I know that a major advantage to Classic City High is that classes are smaller and there is a small student to teacher ratio, but what about this computer program made it a better system than a normal classroom? Michael seemed to be having a really hard time with it, and I could tell how hard he was trying. Is this online program really the answer for these struggling students? I will have to continue to observe and evaluate it as I spend more time at CCHS.
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