Reflective Essay in Education, APA Style (Gibson), Study notes of Architecture

Download Reflective Essay in Education, APA Style (Gibson) and more Study notes Architecture in PDF only on Docsity! Reflective Essay in Education, APA Style (Gibson) Marginal annotations indicate APA-style formatting and effective writing. Source: Hacker Handbooks (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011, 2007). This paper follows the style guidelines in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th ed. (2010). Running head: SERVICE LEARNING: ERIC 1 A Reflection on Service Learning: Working with Eric Onnalee L. Gibson Michigan State University Author Note This paper was prepared for Teacher Education 250, taught by Professor Carter. The author wishes to thank the guidance staff of Waverly High School for advice and assistance. Full title, writer’s name, and school halfway down the page. An author’s note lists specific information about the course or department and can provide acknowledgments and contact information. 4/11_A The header consists of a shortened title in all capital letters at the left margin and the page number at the right margin; on the title page only, the shortened title is preceded by the words “Running head” and a colon. Source: Hacker Handbooks (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011, 2007). SERVICE LEARNING: ERIC 2 A Reflection on Service Learning: Working with Eric The first time I saw the beautiful yet simple architecture of Waverly High School, I was enchanted. I remember driving by while exploring my new surroundings as a transfer student to Michigan State University and marveling at the long front wall of reflective windows, the shapely bushes, and the general cleanliness of the school grounds. When I was assigned to do a service learning project in a local school district, I hoped for the opportunity to find out what it would be like to work at a school like Waverly—a school where the attention to its students’ needs was evident from the outside in. Waverly High School, which currently enrolls about 1,100 students in grades 9 through 12 and has a teaching staff of 63, is extremely diverse in several ways. Economically, students range from poverty level to affluent. Numerous ethnic and racial groups are represented. And in terms of achievement, the student body boasts an assortment of talents and abilities. The school provides a curriculum that strives to meet the needs of each student and uses a unique grade reporting system that itemizes each aspect of a student’s grade. The system allows both teachers and parents to see where academic achievement and academic problems surface. Unlike most schools, which evaluate students on subjects in one number or letter grade, Waverly has a report card that lists individual grades for tests, homework, exams, papers, projects, participation, community service, and attendance. Thus, if a student is doing every homework Background information about the school sets the scene for Gibson’s personal experiences. Reflective essays may include descriptive passages. Source: Hacker Handbooks (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011, 2007). SERVICE LEARNING: ERIC 5 the case, then Eric’s parents are attempting to break the cycle with their children—and they have the good fortune to live in a school district that supports their desires. In contrast to the idea that most people have nothing more than social reproduction to thank for their socioeconomic status (Bowles & Gintis, 1976), Eric seems to believe that hard work and a college education are keys to his success. Another key to Eric’s success will be the resources he enjoys as a student at Waverly. Abundance of or lack of resources can play an important part in students’ opportunities to learn and succeed. Because nearly half of all school funding comes from local property taxes (D. Carter, class lecture, April 4, 2006), areas with smaller populations or low property values do not have the tax base to fund schools well. As a result, one education finance expert has argued, some children receive substandard education (Parrish, 2002). Waverly does not appear to have serious financial or funding issues. Each student has access to current textbooks, up-to- date computer labs, a well-stocked library, a full art and music curriculum, and numerous extracurricular activities. While countless schools are in desperate need of a better-equipped library, Waverly’s library has a rich collection of books, magazines and journals, computer stations, and spaces in which to use all of these materials. It is a very user-friendly library. This has shown me what the power of funding can do for a school. Part of Waverly’s (and its students’) success results from the ample resources spent on staff and curriculum materials. Adequate school funding is one of the factors that drive school and student success. Source is cited in APA in­text citation style. Gibson considers the larger implications of her personal observations. Class lecture (personal commu­ n i cation) is cited in the text only, not in the reference list. Source: Hacker Handbooks (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011, 2007). SERVICE LEARNING: ERIC 6 Aside from funding, placement policies determine school and student success. A major concern of both educators and critics of education policies is that schools will place students into special education programs unnecessarily. Too often students who do not need special education are coded for special ed— even when they have a learning issue that can be handled with a good teacher in a mainstream class (D. Carter, class lecture, April 6, 2006). At Waverly High School, teachers and counselors are not so quick to shuffle Eric into special ed. I agree with several of Eric’s teachers who feel that he may have a mild learning disability. I began to feel this way when Eric and I moved from working in a private tutoring space to working in the library. It was clear to me that he had difficulty paying attention in a public setting. On February 9, I wrote in my journal: Eric was extremely distracted. He couldn’t pay attention to what I was asking, and he couldn’t keep his eyes on his work. There were other students in the library today, and he kept eavesdropping on their conversations and shaking his head when they said things he did not agree with. This is how he must behave in the classroom; he is easily distracted but he wants to work hard. I see that it is not so much that he needs a tutor because he can’t understand what his teachers are telling him; it is more that he needs the one-on-one attention in a confined room free of distractions. Even though Eric showed signs of distraction, I never felt as if he should be coded for special education. I am pleased that the Source: Hacker Handbooks (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011, 2007). SERVICE LEARNING: ERIC 7 administration and learning specialists did not decide to place Eric in a special education track. Eric is exceedingly intelligent and shows promise in every academic area. He seems to be able to succeed by identifying problems on his own and seeking resources to help him solve those problems. He is a motivated and talented student who simply seems like a typical adolescent. I came away from my service learning project with an even stronger conviction about the importance of quality education for a student’s success. Unlike the high school I attended, Waverly pays close attention to each child and thinks about how to get all its students to succeed at their own level. Jean Patrice, an administrator, told me, “You have to be able to reach a student where they are instead of making them come to you. If you don’t, you’ll lose them” (personal communication, April 10, 2006). Patrice expressed her desire to see all students get something out of their educational experience. This feeling is common among members of Waverly’s faculty. With such a positive view of student potential, it is no wonder that 97% of Waverly High School graduates go on to a four-year university (Patrice, 2006). I have no doubt that Eric Johnson will attend college and that he will succeed there. As I look toward my teaching future, I know there is plenty that I have left to learn. Teaching is so much more than getting up in front of a class, reiterating facts, and requiring students to learn a certain amount of material by the end of the year. Teaching is about getting students—one by one—to realize