Community & School District

As a future teacher in Oregon it is essential that I understand the diverse population that it encompasses. Oregon has seven regions. Each region encompasses different jobs, cultures, and environment, which are occupied by an assortment of people. The school I am currently doing my Clinical III resides in the Willamette Valley Region, which is in Northwest Oregon. This region is known for its abundant orchards, wineries, and annual rainfall that begins in autumn until early summer each year (Guide Tour). There are 42 school districts within the Willamette Valley Region. The school district I am located in is the Salem-Keizer district. This district was founded in 1855 and is the second largest school district in Oregon. Educating over 40,000 students the Salem-Keizer school district includes sixty-five schools. The SalemKeizer school districts mission statement: is In partnership with the community, we ensure that each student will have the essential knowledge, skills, and attitudes to be a lifelong learner, a contributing citizen and a productive worker in a changing and increasingly diverse world (Salem-Keizer). The school districts vision is for all students to graduate and be prepared for a successful life (Salem-Keizer). The community and school district influenced teaching and learning during my work sample because the school districts vision trickled down and was apparent in the school I was teaching at. When walking down the halls you will see signs showing the Graduating Year for each class posted on the doors and around the classrooms. Schools within the Salem-Keizer school district want their students to graduate and be prepared for their future.

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Each year the Salem-Keizer school district creates a Strategic Plan its purpose it to align the districts mission and vision with school practices. For the 2013-2014 school year the Strategic Plan encompasses nine goals divided up into four subcategories. The first three goals focus on student achievement through differentiated instruction, preparing students for college and careers, and professional development. The second category focuses on creating an effective organization to support student achievement and encompasses four goals. These goals emphasize building on teacher training programs at partner universities, implementation of a new evaluation process for employees, creating an instructional framework for preschool aged children, and implementing improved facilities for student achievement and staff success. The last two categorized are leadership development and public engagement. These goals highlight the importance of professional learning communities (PLC) for shared decision-making and enhancing communication with parents and community partners (Strategic Plan). As I immersed myself into this district I found knowing and understanding the districts goals to be a key component to my success in the classroom. As I interacted with school staff and administrators I felt I understood their goals, as I taught I was aware of the current emphasize on the CCSS and collaborating in a PLC. I worked to communicate with parents through an introductory letter and send home students work in a timely manor. I was also aware that what I teach these students know would affect their future so I taught with the students futures in mind.

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School and Staff

Welcome to Battle Creek Elementary!

The school district and community influences each school in many levels. The deeper impact made on students comes from the specific school and the staff where they reside. It is the job of the schools staff to implement the districts vision and goals. Within the Salem-Keizer school district Battle Creek Elementary, lies in the South Willamette Valley Region and is where I conducted my work sample. To learn more about Battle Creek I collected the following most recent demographic information. Taken October 1st, 2012
459 enrolled students 37% Free Lunch 7% Reduced Lunch 92% Stability 93% Attendance 230 Males 229 Females 8 Asian 9 Black 66 Hispanic 5 Indian 35 Multi Racial 10 Pacific Islander 326 White

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The number of students in specialized programs for the whole school is the following: (School Improvement Data)
16 TAG 32 ELL 69 IEP 0 Migrant

Battle Creek has eighteen K-5th grade teachers and sixteen instructional assistants with class sizes ranging from twenty-four to thirty-four students in each class. By looking at the number of student to teacher ratio, seeing varying ranges of SES, languages, and attendances at Battle Creek. The diversity this school covers makes me proud, the world around us is very diverse so they best school learning environment should incorporate the same amount of diversity. The student to teacher ration influenced my teaching because I was vary aware that I would have thirty-two students in my classroom and that it would be difficult to acquire one on one time with each student. Because of this I planned workshop stations sample and specifically added a Guided Group, which included six to seven students. This way I was able to check in with students on a more personal level. The classroom I was in was also fortunate to have a classroom IA for two hours a day and I was able to include her and my cooperating teacher into my lessons for extra support. During the workshop I was also able to make modifications for TAG and ELL students through differentiated instruction. Students, staff, and school location was important to consider when I was planning and implementing my work sample.

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Classroom Learning Environment

Walk down the bright hallways of Battle Creek Elementary at the beginning of a long hallway on the first floor, step into this first grade classroom and you will find a lot of laughter, literacy, art, and arithmetic. Not only is this classroom conducted through the content standards it was set-up by building a community. The students have been able to get to know one another, form relationships, and take risks with each other. It is a safe learning environment because the teacher is fair and is able to maintain a caring demeanor while managing the classroom. The classroom has a bright disposition because of the big windows that allow the flow of natural light. Encouraging statements are posted around the room and expectations of behavior and classroom procedures are well established.
Please take a look around! Figures 1.1

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Two carpets are arranged in this classroom and utilized for read-aloud and smart board activities. Different chart papers are posted around the room and consistently revisited to reinforce concepts and support ELL students (Figures 2.1). When emerging myself into an already established classroom environment I took into consideration the behavior expectations, classroom procedures, and classroom layout that were already created in the classroom.

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Students Figures 1.2

Figure 1.3

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In the 1st grade classroom I am specifically in at Battle Creek the student population is as follows: thirty-three magnificent students ranging from six to seven years old! Eighteen of them are girls and fourteen are boys (Figure 1.2). The demographics of the classroom are seven Hispanic, two Russian, one Iranian, two African-American, one Punjabi, one Filipino, and nineteen Caucasian students (Figure 2.3). Five of our students are English Language Learners (ELL) and their levels of language development vary. According to the yearly ELPA tests that occurred last March; one student is in transition, two are at a level three, and one student is at a level one. We currently have one tag student, and three more students in the process of being tested. We do not have any students on an IEP. Their range in culture, language, and ability may be overwhelming for some, but I believe this is what makes the best learning environment. When our students graduate and go out into the real world they are going to encounter the same diverse environment and need to know how to work, understand, and communicate with people who are different then them. These students individual backgrounds influenced my instruction in many ways. For English Language Learners I incorporated visual aids and sentence strips. Students with low social economic status I was sensitive to their situation and did not ask for students to bring in supplies from home or complete a project at home. To support students with various academic abilities I incorporated differentiated instruction and included modifications to their assignments when needed. The best way I can support all of my students is to create an open classroom. This is so

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critical because it creates an environment where everyone feels supported, can be wrong, and able to learn from one another. Personal Context I was born and raised in Henderson, NV a suburb to Las Vegas. I believe my exposure to a vast amount of cultures lead me to becoming a caring, respectful, and accepting teaching. I was also raised in a single parent household. I know this is why I am sensitive to sending home a ton of homework, or asking parents to help students create projects that may cost money. But on the other side of the coin I was fortunate enough to have a Mom who was able to spend time with me each night going over homework and reading engaging books. Relating my experiences to this first grade classroom is fairly easy. The classroom has a diverse set of students with different backgrounds, languages, social economic statuses, and family support. This influenced my teaching because I was aware that not every student would have support completing homework. I also knew that the background knowledge each student brought to my lesson was different but each experience was important and worth sharing. As a future teacher I can admit the range of needs in the classroom can be overwhelming. But I see each childs individuality as a different perspective we can all learn from. Paring my students perspectives with an understanding of the community, staff, classroom environment I create, and my personal context will help me become a caring and intentional teacher. All of these aspects influenced the students I taught at Battle Creek and were taken into consideration as I planned and implemented my lessons.

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References

Guide Tour Oregon, Salem-Keizer. Retrieved from http://www.guidetooregon. com/regions /willamette/i ndex.html Salem-Keizer School District, Department of Education. Retrieved from http://www.salkeiz.k12.or.us/about School Improvement Data, Battle Creek Elementary Demographic Summary (2012-2013). Testing & Evaluating Strategic Plan, Salem-Keizer Public Schools (2013-2014)

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