Austin Simpson

Kendra Vair
EDUC331
28 Apr. 2015
Setting and Context
Thompson School District:
Thompson School Districts total enrollment for the 2014-15
school year is 16,083. Of those 16,083 students, 12,082 (75.2%) are
white with the second largest ethnic group, Hispanics, making up only
a quarter of that at 3,165 (19.7%). The remaining 5.1% of the student
population is made up of primarily students that identify as Multiple
Races (2.2%), Asians (1.3%), and Blacks or African Americans (1%)
while American Indians/Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians and Other
Pacific islanders are just less than 1% of the entire population in
Thompson School District. The gender make up is majority male
(51.8%) (thompsonschools.org). Funding per pupil sits pretty low in
Thompson School District compared to the other districts in Larimer
County with a little over $6,000/student in 2012-13 (same as Poudre
Valley). The total funding for the districts sits between Poudre and Park
with about $90,000,000/year in 2012-13
(http://www.larimer.org/compass/).
Conrad Ball Middle School:

Conrad Ball Middle Schools current enrollment is at 679. The

ethnic background of CBMS is a bit different than Thompson School
District with a slightly lower white population (66.4%) and a slightly
higher Hispanic population (28%). However, the remaining ~5% is
reflected similarly in CBMS as it is in the district with 2.9% of students
checking the Other Race/Ethnicity box and 2.7% are multiple races.
CBMS is composed of the exact same gender ratio as the district with
51.8% of students being male. Over 50% of the school has free and
reduced lunch. There are 39 ELLs, 69 GTs, and 108 special ed.
students. CBMS has two full time counselors, which is uncommon in
any school, but can be a huge advantage when dealing with troubled
and struggling learners (thompsonschools.org). However, CBMS also
boasts a higher than average student/teacher ratio (19:1 where the
state average is 16:1). Based on 2010 testing info Students at CBMS
scored higher in the Proficient range than the state average for CELA
but also scored a bit lower in the Advanced range. The rest of the
scored were about average except that 10% fewer students scored in
the Intermediate range at CBMS than the state average. These stats
tell me that students could be challenged a bit more to break out of
the proficient range and into the advanced range. CBMS reading stats
lacked a bit, with more students scoring on average in the
unsatisfactory range than the state average (city-data.com).
Mrs. Boyles Classroom:

Mrs. Boyles class has 28 students currently enrolled made up of

fifteen boys and thirteen girls. To the best of my knowledge there are
three Hispanics, one that identifies as other, and the rest identify as
white. Within that break down, there are eight GT students, one
student on a 504 plan, and one student on an IEP for Autism Spectrum
Disorder. The class ranges from very engaged students who get their
work done immediately to students who seem a bit more withdrawn
and hesitant to start working on assignments and class activities.
There are a couple of students who love to read out loud to the class,
but all are willing to participate most of the time. There are no students
that seem so withdrawn that they do not speak out in class nor are
there students who do nothing at all.