I am performing my service at an elementary school where i work with fourth graders. On my first day volunteering I was a little bit nervous but more anxious and excited to begin my first teaching experience. While im walking down the street to the school i can see the big building from a distance away. It is right off of a main road and is located in a very hectic area of town. As I pull up to the school I see dozens of students energetically running around the playground enjoying their brief time at recess. I walk into the building and sign in at the main office then I got a brief lesson by the literacy coach on exactly what activities and learning exercises I would be doing with my very own students. As I walk to the classroom I see lines of students waiting to use the restroom, which reminds me of my childhood days when the teachers would escort me and my fellow classmates to the bathroom. As I walk down the halls i notice that the school is generally very dark and dimly lit. There are posters and banners hung up all over the walls that promote following your dreams, respect, and the value of education. This immediately tells me that the school makes an effort to enforce the importance of learning and the repsect towards others. I was surprised when several young students held the door for me and clearly showed an interest to me being in the school. Once I reached my classroom I took a look around at all the decorations on the wall, piles of textbooks, and closets of backpacks and coats. At first I just observed the teacher and paid special attention to how she would interact and try to relate to the children. I finally got one on one time with my students and was glad to see that they were at the appropriate reading levels and did not seem to be struggling too much. Both of the kids scored 100 percent on their sight word evaluation and could easily read through the poems that we read together. I got to spend time with other children and am concerned on how behind they are and the significant lack of motivation. I realize that if the students who are behind do not get individualized attention early on then they will most likely struggling their whole lives and that I have the opportunity has the ability to change that around within a few months.
Since I have been in catholic private schools my whole life I was a little nervous about the behavior of public school children and had a view of them being slightly rebellious. However, I’ve have come to find out that the children were extremely polite and attentive to everything I had to say and teach them. I got to know a little bit more about them and their interests and have formed somewhat of a bond with them. The teacher keeps them in line and will firmly tell the students if they are misbehaving or going against the rules. At first I was surprised and disapproved of how frequently and sternly the teacher would yell at the students. However, as I spent more time with them I realized that if you do not raise your voice and let them know who’s in charge then they will walk all over you and pay little to no attention to their schoolwork.
The school environment seemed very structured and organized, which gave me a content and safe feeling about my surroundings. Just by spending two hours in the classroom I could already come to the conclusion that respect, hard work, and motivation are extremely valued in the classroom as well as the school. There is no time spent fooling around and every minute is consisted of reading or listening to the teachers lesson. I believe that this classroom needs to be slightly less structured and allow more time for participation and open discussions. Whenever a child raises their hand they are allowed to speak briefly and are then silenced by the teacher. Theorist Ira Shor would challenge the ideals of this classroom and would urge the teacher to allow more time for creativity and participation. Through active learning students are able to truly grasp the meaning of education and students from different backgrounds are more likely to learn at similar levels. The school environment provides structure in a way that creates a safe learning environment but also hinders the students from effectively learning all the materials that are being taught.
