Education 301: Site-Based Observation One

Brittany Rathway

Site-based Observation One

Education 301-002

26 September 2011    

During my site-based observation, I was observing a male student in the first grade.  The teacher of this classroom paired me with him on my first day.  I am studying elementary education and special education, and the teacher thought it would be beneficial for me to work with a student that has an IEP.  On the first occasion, I observed that the boy was wearing casual clothes and had a cartoon character on his shirt; it was a superhero. His clothes were similar to his peers’.  However, he was one of the bigger students in the classroom.  The male student wore Velcro Spiderman shoes that he continually took off and on during my observation.  He also wore glasses.  On my second day of observation, I noticed that he was wearing a similar shirt with another superhero on it, but he did not have his glasses on today.   

On my first observation day, I observed at the beginning of the day.  The student that I was observing sat in the first column of desks and the second row.  First I observed that the students were supposed to have two pencils sharpened before the day started, and they were also asked to work on a math worksheet.  The male student that I was observing only had one pencil without an eraser, and he did not sharpen it.  When his pencil broke as he was working on his math worksheet, he had to explain to the teacher why he did not have another one sharpened.  He understood that it was his fault and was visibly upset.  The teacher gave him another pencil to use, and he began to work on his math worksheet again.  After a few minutes, he got up out of his seat and asked the teacher for an eraser.  He got out of his seat a few times during the time he was working on his math worksheet.  Then, I began to help him with his math worksheet.  He was distracted easily during the time I was working with him.  However, once he focused on the problems, he was able to complete them correctly.  The first grade class has not fully learned addition and subtraction.  Nevertheless, the student was able to correctly complete the problems with some assistance from me and a tens chart.  He was very excited after I praised him for completing the addition and subtraction problems.  It was then time for the class to attend gym class.  When the class returned, the teacher started the math lesson for the day.  The lesson was on “fewer” and “more”.  The teacher used an overhead to teach the lesson, and the class seemed very involved in the lesson.  The male student spoke out multiple times during the lesson, and the teacher had to ask him to stop talking out during the lesson.  After he did not comply, the teacher had to stop the lesson and firmly discuss the behavior issue with him.  He was clearly apologetic after being reprimanded in front of his peers.  During the rest of the lesson, he answered when called on and respected the teacher.  I could tell that he respected the teacher and did not enjoy upsetting her.  After the teacher finished the lesson, she passed out a math packet on the lesson.  I was standing in the back of the classroom, and the male student called for me to come up and help him with the worksheet.  My worry was that I did not want to help him too much, but then I also wanted him to know he could depend on me.  Forming a comfortable bond with him was important to me.  As I was helping with his math packet, he kept leaning over and touching the computers that were next to him.  I had to ask him three times to stop touching them.  On the third time, I addressed the issue firmly like the teacher did.  After this, he stopped touching the computers.  I believe that he was testing me to see how far he could push me and bend the rules.  When I asserted myself as an authority figure, his behavior changed, and he went back to focusing on his math packet.  When it was time for me to leave for the day, he was evidently disappointed and begged me not to leave.  I explained to him that I had to go to school also to learn like he did.  He understood and gave me a hug.  I explained that I would be back next Monday, and he gave me a thumbs-up before I left. 

On my second day of observation, I observed the classroom in the afternoon.  Observing the students in the afternoon was very different than observing them in the morning.  They had already eaten lunch and were much more active than in the morning.  When I entered the classroom, the male student I was observing shouted my name and was waving excitedly.  It made me feel very good that he remembered me and was happy to see me.  The male student I was observing was active and distracted at this time of the day.  The teacher had to ask him to take his seat multiple times before he actually listened and sat down.  He was pulled out of the class for a title one class.  When he came back, the teacher started an English lesson.  Today, she was discussing subject and predicate.  I noticed that the students were a little less focused in the afternoon.  The teacher put sentences up on the overhead, and the students had to pick which one had the correct sentence order.  The male student I was observing got called on to go up to the overhead to answer a question.  He was very eager to go up in front of the class.  When asked to choose the correct sentence, he answered correctly.  He circled the correct answer and wanted to stay in front of the class; the teacher had to ask him to sit back down.  For the rest of the English lesson, he sat in his seat and was respectful of the teacher.  At the end of the day, I passed out a math check for the students to complete.  However, the male student had an accident and wet his pants.  He was very upset and kept asking for new pants.  The teacher explained to the student that since he did not use the restroom when the rest of the class did, that he would have to wait until he went home.  He was very distraught and could not focus on his math check.  I tried to keep him focused on his work, but he could only think about his accident.  I felt very bad for the student, but I knew that I had to be an authority figure and try to keep him focused on his work.  At the end of the day, the students’ father came to the school to talk to the teacher.  I stayed with the students while they were talking.  The male student was very excited to see his father but got upset again after his accident was brought up.  He was excited to leave with his father, but before he left he said good-bye to me.  The second day of observing the male student was a much more eventful experience.  However, I was able to learn a lot about teaching in a classroom, and how to deal with difficult situations in a classroom.

As I observed the first grade male student, I noticed many things that I have never seen before.  I actually observed the student and his reaction to different situations and teaching strategies.  Also, I noticed the way he wanted approval and praise from his teacher.  This goes along with Erikson’s Stages of Personal and Social Development.  According to Erikson’s stages, the male student would be in the Industry vs. Inferiority stage of 6 to 12 years old (Slavin, 2010, p. 54).  In this stage, teachers and peers take on increasingly important roles for the student (Slavin, 2010, p. 55).  The student tried very hard to please his teacher and to hear her praise him for a job well done.  However, when he did something wrong or “failed” in the teachers’ eyes, this caused great distress.  Erikson states, “Failure creates a negative self-image, a sense of inadequacy that may hinder future learning,” (Slavin, 2010, p. 55).  When the teacher had to reprimand the student or discuss behavior issues, this was seen as failure in his eyes.  He craves her approval and does not want to “fail” at something in the teachers’ perspective.  I believe that this ties in with Stage 3 of the Conventional Level in Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Reasoning (Slavin, 2010, p. 59).  Kohlberg’s Stage 3 is defined as “Good Boy-Good Girl” Orientation; good behavior is looked at to be behavior that is approved by others and pleases others (Slavin, 2010, p. 59).  Just like in Erikson’s stages, the male student was trying to please the teacher and behave well, and when he did not, he felt as if he failed.  As I was observing, I also noticed that the male student worked more efficiently when working cooperatively.  In chapter 2, Vygotsky’s theories support cooperative learning (Slavin, 2010, p. 42).  When the student was able to think out loud and work with his peers, he accomplished more and worked through the problems more efficiently. 

This first observation experience opened my eyes to many new things.  I know realize that I have observed a classroom as a whole, but I have never been given the chance to observe one student and how they react in an everyday classroom.  This experience gave me the opportunity to observe how a student learns and deals with their strengths and weaknesses in the classroom.  I look forward to observing more intensely and discovering new strategies and ideas in the classroom!