ContextualFactorsAnalysis

KingMiddleSchool

UniversityofMaineatFarmington
AshleyGodbout
Fall2015

IamsureifIGoogledaninspirationalquoteaboutdirectionmysearchwouldreturn
somethinglikethis,beforeyouknowwhereyouaregoing,youmustknowwhereyouhave
been.Thisistrueforanycircumstanceinlife,butIbelieveittobeexceptionallytruefor
teaching.ItiscrucialthatIdiscoverandanalyzefactorsthatwillaffectmystudentsandtheir
learning.Portlandisawholenewworldtomesoitsvitaltothesuccessofmyclassroomand
mystudentsthatIknowexactlywhatfactorsareinfluencingtheirlivesinsideofmyclassroom
and,moreimportantly,outsideofmyclassroom.
IamcompletingmystudentteachingatKingMiddleSchoolinPortland,Maine.Iam
teachingmathematicstofourclassesofeighthgraderswithawiderangeofabilities.Wehave88
studentstotal,43girlsand45boys.Iwillbeteachingprealgebraandalgebra,specificallyslope
andgraphinglinearequations.Inaddition,wehaveonesectionofmathlabthatmeetstwicea
weektoworkongeometrystandards.Mathlabisveryinteractive,handson,andhomeworkfree
sostudentstendtoenjoyit.
CommunityFactors

PortlandislocatedinsouthernMaineinCumberlandCountyalongMainesrockycoast,

andisthestateslargestcity.Portlandishometoawardwinningrestaurants,manybusinesses,a
historicdowntownwithlocallyownedshops,excellentschools,fantastichealthcare,beautiful
beachesandmuchmore.ItisoneofMainesmostvisitedplacesinthesummerastouristflood
thestatetoenjoytheendlessbeaches,beautifulviews,history,outdooreateries,and
entertainment.Accordingtocensusdatafrom2013,Portlandhas66,318residents(American
FactFinder)..PortlandsunemploymentrateforAugust2015was2.8%,lessthanthenational
andstaterate(LaborForce).Figure1comparesdatabetweentheUnitedStates,Maineand

Portlandforunemploymentandlaborforcestatistics.ThisisgreatnewsforPortland,andthe

Figure1:(CreatedinMicrosoftExcel)
cityoffersalotofemploymentopportunitiesinhealthcare,science,financial,hospitality,small
businessandmanyotherfields.EventhoughPortlandsunemploymentrateislow,households
arestillstrugglingfinancially.Themedianhouseholdincomeis
$40,806,about$6,000lessthan
Maineasawhole(FactFinder).
Interestingly,Portlandhasasignificantlyhigherpercentageof
collegeeducatedpeoplecomparedtothestateandU.S.,buthasalowermedianhousehold
averageincome.Portlandattractsavastvarietyofpeople,makingthisfactnottoosurprising.
RecentcollegegraduatesareveryattractedtothecityofPortland,butsoaremanyimmigrants
whoseneedsarehigh.ManyofPortlandslowtomoderateincomeresidentsliveinpublic
housing.45%ofPortlandspublichousingresidentsareundertheageoftwentywhichmeans
11%ofschoolagedchildreninPortlandliveinpublichousing(FactsandFigures).Manyofmy
studentsatKingMiddleSchoolcomefromKennedyParkandParkSide,bothofwhichare

publichousingneighborhoodsandpartofthepoorestgeographicalcensustractinthestate.The
averageincomeofapublichousingassociationresidentis$18,154.08(FactsandFigures).This
hashugeimplicationsformyteaching.Mystudentsprobablydonothaveaccesstobasic
materialslikebinders,paper,pencils,etc.athomesoIcantexpectthemtoalwaysbeprepared
forclass.Manyofmystudentscometoschoolhungrybecausetheonlytwomealstheygetaday
arebreakfastandlunch.Ialwayshavetobeawareofthesefactors,especiallywhenassigning
homeworkandprojects.Duringthefirstweekofschoolwhenitwasunbearablyhot,myteacher
didnotassignhomeworkbecauseshetookintoconsiderationthatmanyofourstudentsprobably
donthaveafanintheirhouseandprobablyarentsleepingwellintheheatandhumidity.
DistrictFactors
ThePortlandSchoolDistrictisMaineslargestdistrictincluding10elementaryschools,
threemiddleschools,andfourhighschools.Collectively,theseschoolsserveabout7,000
studentsfromprekto12thgradeand4,700adults,andemploy1,248people(Student
Demographics).

Figure2:(StudentDemographics)
Figure2showshowdiversePortlandschoolsare.32%ofstudentsinthePortlandDistrictspeak
aprimarylanguageotherthanEnglish,totaling55differentlanguagesspokenacrossthedistrict
(StudentDemographics).WhenIamteachingthesestudentsIneedtodeliverinstructionand
directionsinmultiplewaysandrepeatmyexpectationsoften.ManystudentsinthePortland
districtareplacedinEnglishLanguageLearner(ELL)classessotheycanimprovetheirEnglish
andunderstandthematerialataslowerpace.Thedistrictvaluestheirrelationshipwithparents.
Onewaytheyareaddressingthisisbyaparent/studentsurveyofferedonlineandinpaper.Some
ofthedatarevealedthat95%ofparentsfeelwelcomedattheirchildsschool,94%ofparents
saidtheyfelttheschoolwassafeandthattheirchildrenenjoyedattending,and95%ofstudents
saidtheyplantograduate(StateofTheSchools2015).Theyarehopefulformoreparticipants
thisyear.PortlandPublicSchoolshasextremelystrongrelationshipswithinthecommunityand
continuetosearchforavenuestostrengthenthem.TheycontinuetoexpandSTEMopportunities
forstudentsintheclassroomandinthecommunity.Thisisincredibleformystudentsbecause
theywillbeabletoexperiencerealworldmathematicsscenarios,exploreimportantskillsforthe
21stcentury,andpossiblyenvisionthemselvesinaSTEMcareersomeday.
SchoolFactors
KingMiddleSchoolisanExpeditionaryLearning(EL)school.ThegoalofEListoraise
studentachievementinschools.KingsprincipalMikeMcCarthystates,AtKing,eventhough
55%ofthekidsareonfreelunchand33%ofthemaresecondlanguagelearnersandspeak28
differentlanguageswescoreabovethestateaverageineverycurriculumareaateverygrade
level.LocatednexttoDeeringOakParkinPortland,Kingservesthemostracially,ethnically,

andeconomicallydiverse68gradepopulationinthestate.StudentsfromKingspeakatotalof
28differentlanguagesandmanystudentsareELLstudents.Thismeansthatalotof
differentiationhappensinthisschool.Manystudentshavenothadthesamelifeexperiences,nor
understandtheculturehere.AsateacherIneedtobemindfulthatsomeofmystudentswillnot
knowwordsorphrasesIwillreferto.Forexample,lastyearwhenELLstudentscametovisit
myclasswedevelopedthelessonaroundacarnival(fair),howeverthestudentsdidnotknow
whatthiswas.
Kingwasanextremelyunderperformingschool,soin1992theprincipalbrought
ExpeditionaryLearningtotheschoolandithascompletelytransformedtheschooltooneofthe
highestachievingschoolsinthestateofMaine(AdventuresInLearning).StudentsfromKing
MiddleSchoolscoreexceptionallyhighonstandardizedtestandareabovethestatepercentilein
readingandmathematics.SincetransitioningtoanExpeditionaryLearningmodel,student
behaviorissuesanddisciplininghasgonedown(AdventuresInLearning).Whatisreallyunique
aboutKingisthatparentsfromothersectionsofthecityrequestfortheirstudentstoattendKing.
Theschooldoesnotalloweverystudenttodothis,buttheyhaveanumberofseatsopenper
year..Inaddition,KingisamodelschoolforELandmanypeopleacrossthecountryvisitKing
everyyeartoseethismodelinaction.ELhasdiscoveredthatschoolsintheirnetworkscore
significantlyhigheronstandardizedteststhanpeersatnonELschools(Figure3).The
expeditionsreallyhelpstudentslearnthecontentandhelpthemtobeabletoapplyitin
meaningfulandengagingways.Iwillneedtoincorporaterealworldmathematicsintomy
lessonsandcreateprojectbasedlessonsthatalignwiththeELmodel.

Figure3:(ExpeditionaryLearning)
58.10%ofstudentsreceivefreelunchand6.48%ofstudentsareeligibleforreduced
lunch,so64.59%ofKing'sstudentsareeligibleforfreeorreducedlunch(FreeandReduced
Lunch).Theguidelinesthatdeterminethisarebasedonhouseholdsalaryandthenumberof
peopleinthehouse.Forexample.thepovertylineforafamilyoffouris$24,250.Thestudents
willqualifyforreducedlunchifthehouseholdincomeis$44,863.Theywillqualifyforfree
lunchifthehouseholdincomeis$31,525orless(IncomeGuidelines).Inshort,studentsare
eligibleforfreelunchifthehouseholdmakes30%abovethepovertylineorlessandareeligible
forreducedlunchifthehouseholdmakes85%abovepovertylineorless.Aspreviouslystated,it
isobviousthatIcannotexpectthatmystudentstoallhavethesameresourcesathome.
ExpeditionsatKingMiddleSchoollastfromsixtotwelveweeksandareindepthand
interdisciplinarybygradelevel.Studentsusethecommunityingenuineways,conduct
meaningfulresearch,createhighquality,reallifeprojectsandpresentthemtoanauthentic
audience.Theexpeditionsincludeakickoff,ananchortext,fieldwork,afinalproductanda

culminatingevent.WearestartingthisschoolyearwithanexpeditiontitledTruthor
Consequence.Whatistruth?Whyandhowdopeoplemanipulatethetruth?Theseare
questionsWindsor8willinvestigate.Theanchortextforthisexpeditionis
IamMalala
.Wewill
providetwoversionsofthisbooksoELLstudentsdonothavetoreadsuchacomplextext.
ClassroomFactors
MyeighthgradestudentsallhaveaniPadthroughtheMaineLearningTechnology
Initiative(MLTI).TheyallhaveaccesstotheiriPadduringthedayandmostcanbringthem
homeiftheirparentssignedtheappropriatepaperwork.Therearesomanyrichandpowerful
resourcesforlearningmathontheiPad.PortlandSchoolspaysforeachstudenttohavealogin
forALEKS,shortfor
A
ssessmentand
LE
arningin
K
nowledge
S
paces.ALEKSisawebbased
mathematicsprogramanddetermineswhatthestudentknowsandwhattheydonotknow.
ALEKSplaceseachstudentintoanappropriatecourseandinstructsthemthroughit.Basedona
seriesofquestionsandlessons,studentsareabletopracticetheirmathskillsandbuildontheir
knowledge(WhatisALEKS?).ALEKSisanamazingprogram,butonethatshouldnotberelied
onasalearningtool.MystudentsseventhgradeteacherhadthemdoingALEKSduring
instructionaltimeandforhomework.Thisyearthestudentscomplete40minutesofALEKS
duringoursixdayrotationatKingandareallowedtodomoreduringhomeroomandathome.
Thisprogrammeetsmystudentsexactlywheretheyareatacademically,whichmakesit
extremelyindividualized.OnestudentmaybeworkingonalgebraIskillsandanothermightbe
addingandsubtractingmixednumbers.
Mystudentswillbeusingtheirlaptopsforavarietyofotherthings.Theywilluse
programslikeGeogebratocreateinteractivegraphsthattheycanmanipulateinrealtime.My

hopeisthattheywillbeabletousetheirtechnologytooltocreatemeaningfulandpowerful
learningexperiences.AlotofmystudentscomefromhomeswithlittletonotechnologysoI
lovethattheMLTIprogramallowsallofthemaccesstothesametechnologytoolandprovides
themtheopportunitytogainuseful,21stcenturyskills.
Room227islocatedupstairsintheWindsor8hallway.Itissandwichedbetweenthe
scienceroomandthelanguageartsroom.Thetablesareinthreerowssostudentshaveone
persononeithersideofthemunlesstheyareontheend.Ilikethissetupbecauseitallowsfor
studentstoturnaroundandimmediatelybeworkinginagroup.Thestudentsallfacethewhite
boardsandscreenprojectoratthefrontoftheroom.Homeworkiswrittenontheleftsideofthe
whiteboardandthedateandday(wehaveasixdayrotationatKing)arefoundontherightside
ofthewhiteboard.MydeskistotheleftofthewhiteboardsandMs.Murphysdeskisinthe
backoftheroom.OurentireleftwallisfilledwithwindowsthatfaceDeeringAvenueandlet
thegorgeousmorningsunintoourroom.Althoughtheroadcanbenoisywithsirensandtraffic,
itusuallydoesnotdisrupttheclass.Manycabinetsandshelveslinethewallswithbooks,papers,
manipulatives,games,projectmaterials,andmuchmore.Thewallsinourclassroomarealight
peachshadeandhaveminimalartworkonthem.ThereareafewpostersfromtheCommon
GroundFairandtwopaintingsfromtheartroom.
Myeighthgradestudentsareallveryuniqueanddifferentinsomanyways.Igavethem
amultipleintelligencesurveyonthefirstdayofschoolandtheresultsareshownbelowin
Figure4.Thisgroupisdefinitelyacloseclassandtheylovetointeractandtalkwitheachother.
Ithinkitwillbeverybeneficialtodoavarietyofcooperativelearningactivitieswithmy
students,however,mostofthetimeIwillbechoosingthegroupsinadvancetoprevent

distractions.Iwasverysurprisedtonoticehowhighlogicalandnaturalisticintelligenceswere.
Includingnatureinmylessonswillbedifficult,butnecessarywiththisgroupofstudents.Ialso
believethathandsonactivitiesandlessonsthatinvolvemovementwillbeverycrucialwiththis
groupbecausetheyareextremelyactiveandtheybehavebetterwhentheyarentforcedtositin
theirseatsanddoaworksheet.

Figure4(MadewithMicrosoftExcel)
MyteacherandIcanalwaysbefoundinthehallwayat7:55inthemorningwhenthe
studentsarecomingintoschoolfromoutside.Wewelcomeeverystudentwithasmileand
positiveattitudetostarttheirdayoffgreat.Wehavetenminutesforhomeroominthemorning
andthenstudentsproceedtotheirfirstclass.Everydayisdifferentinclassroom227wedont
haveaspecificroutinethatstudentsfolloweveryday.However,wespendthefirstfewminutes
ofclassreviewinghomeworkandaskingforquestions.Sometimestheyhandtheirhomeworkin
tobecheckedandsometimestheyselfcorrecttheirhomework.Everystudentisexpectedtodo

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theirhomework,butwealwayshaveaconversationwithstudentsthatdonotcompletethe
homeworktoseewhatisgoingon.Wedomultipleformativeassessmentsperdaythatallowus
togaugewherearestudentsareandtohelpusplanforthefuture.Wehavespentthefirstmonth
ofschoolworkingonorderofoperationsandaddingandsubtractingintegersbecausewequickly
learnedthattheywereverylowintheseareas.Thesetopicsarenotpartoftheeighthgrademath
curriculum,butwecannotmoveonuntiltheyhavemasteredthesebasictopics.
Belowisachartofmysequencefourclass.Theyareanoutstandinggroupofstudents
withawidevarietyofabilities.Someofthemaregreatatmathandlovemathandforsomeof
themmathcausesalotofanxiety.Itrytogiveasmuchpositivefeedbackaspossible,especially
withthestudentswhostruggleinmath.Occasionallywewillmodifyassignmentsforthemso
tasksarelessoverwhelmingwhichseemstoworkwellformoststudents.Imconstantly
encouragingstudentsinthisclassandpraisingthemfortheirhardeffortbecauseIdonotwant
themtofearmath.
Student
Number

IEP/ELL/OtherInformation

NWEAMath MI
Score

Interests

1.CA

Movedherein6thgrade,pressurefromdad 229
todowell

Kinesthetic/Naturalist

Sing,sports,
surf,friends

2.CA

Concerningfamily

257

Logical

Art

3.WB

252

Visual/Naturalist

Run,video
games

4.BC

235

Intrapersonal

Guitar,
draw,read,
friends

5.ED

Triplet.Perfectionist.

256

Interpersonal

Sports,read,
draw

6.ZD

IEP,Divorcedparents

207

Naturalist

7.AH

Hasgreatretiredmentor,easilyinfluenced

226

Visual/Interpersonal

Sports

11

8.LK

Absentfrequently

243

Visual

Art

9.JL

244

Kinesthetic/Musical

Baseball,
playtenor
saxaphone

10.MM

ELL,newtoUSAlastspring

Kinesthetic/Interpersona
l

Dance,
soccer

11.IM

Leftfor7thgrade

Interpersonal

Friends

12.KN

Intheprocessofbeingreferredtospecial
education

Interpersonal

Rugby

13.MR

246

Visual/Interpersonal

Football,
fishing

14.LR

Busyfamily,familyhasfosterchildrenand
doalotofcommunityservice

247

Naturalist

Walking,
friends,
cook/bake

15.GS

ELL,IEPlearningdisability
Divorcedparents,7thgradeteacherswere
worriedabouthersafetyathome(illegal
immigrantslivingatherhome)

206

Interpersonal

Dance

16.MS

Nicefamily,concernedaboutgrades

209

Naturalist

17.LS

255

Logical

Sports

18.JS

ELL,slowtolearnEnglish,newtoUSA
lastyear,hardtransition

200

Interpersonal

Dance,
cook,sing,
playcards

19.FT

DivorcedparentscausedmovetoPeaks
Island,blamedmother,toughtransition

231

Intrapersonal/logical

Draw,run,
circusarts

20.SW

MomsarelobbyistsinD.C.,alotof
pressuretodowellfromparents

261

Interpersonal

Tennis,
listento
music

21.MZ

Familyhasgoodcommunicationwith
school,celebratesallJewishholidays

214

Interpersonal

Swim,
soccer,write

MystudentsNWEAscoresshowtheirwiderangeofabilities.ThegoalthatIam
focusingheavilyonisoperationsandalgebraicthinkingbecausethisiswhatmyunitwillcover.
Themajorityofmystudentsareaveragetohighperforminginthiscategory,butaboutafourth

12

ofthemperformatalowlevelinthiscategory.Iwillneedtoaccommodateforthesestudents
anddofrequentcheckinswiththem.InasurveyIdidwiththesestudents,alotofthemsaidthey
learnbestthroughhandsonactivities,gamesandpuzzles.Iamgoingtoincorporatethese
variousinstructionalstrategiesasmuchaspossiblebecauseitwillhelpallstudentsconceptually
learnthischallengingmaterial.Basedontheresultsofthemultipleintelligencesurveyalmost
halfofthisclasshasinterpersonalastheirhighestintelligenceorasatiewithsomethingelse.

Figure5(Madebymetachart.com)
Manyofthemwroteonthesurveythattheylearnbestbyworkingingroups.Boththeseartifacts
gavemeconfirmationthatalotofcooperativelearningstrategieswillworkwellwiththisgroup.
Theyhaveassignedseatssosometimestheywillworkwithapartnertotherightorleftofthem
orwithpeopleinotherrows.Ifwearecompletingalengthyactivitythatinvolvesalotofgroup
workIwillmakethegroupsaheadoftime.TheyhaveafewcommoninterestsamongthemsoI
couldgroupthemaccordingtointerestsandhavethemworkingonassignmentsrelatingtothat

13

interest.Someoftheirinterestsincludesinginganddancing,cooking,playingandwatching
sports,drawing,andexercising.WhatIloveaboutgraphingisthatwecancollectdataaboutour
classandourinterestsandusethedatatocreategraphsthatwecananalyzeandinterpret.My
ELLstudentsareverychallengedwhenanassignmenthasalotofwordsandlengthydirections.
Itsreallyimportantthattheexpectationsanddirectionsaredeliveredtotheminmultipleways
andthatIcheckinwitheachoneofthemtomakesuretheyunderstandthetasks.
Lastly,Iaskedthemtowritetomeaboutthebestmathexperiencetheyhavehad.Afew
explainedthathavingateacherunderstandthewaystheyliketolearnwasthereasontheyhada
successfulschoolyear.Somereferredtoexperiencesinelementaryschoolwhentheylearned
multiplicationanddivisionbutdidntquitegetitandthenonedayitjustmadesense.Itis
evidenttomethatthesestudentsrememberandcelebratetheiraccomplishmentsinmathbecause
theytrysohard,butdontalwaysdowell.MyteacherandIhavemadeagoaltochangesomeof
ourstudentsattitudesaboutmath.Wewantthemtofeelconfidentintheirabilitiesandtobe
excitedaboutusingmathintheireverydaylivesoutsideofschool.Theyallhavethetoolstobe
successfulandexceptionalmathstudents,wejusthavetochangetheirmindsetsbyconstantly
givingthempositivereinforcementandencouragingpraise.

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WorksCited
%FreeandReducedSchoolLunchReport.
MaineDepartmentofEducation.
Retrievedfrom
<
https://neo.maine.gov/doe/neo/nutrition/Reimbursement/ED534/District
>

AdventuresInLearning.KingMiddleSchool.(2005).Retrivedfrom
<
https://king.portlandschools.org/about_us/our_school/adventures_in_learning
>

AmericanFactFinderResults.AmericanFactFinder.Retrievedfrom
<
http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/community_facts.xhtml
>

FactsandFigures.PortlandHousingAuthorityStudyCenters.Retrievedfrom
<
http://www.phastudycenters.org/factsfigures.html
>

IncomeGuidelinesForFreeandReducedLunch.
MaineDepartmentofEducation
.Retrieved
from<
http://www.maine.gov/doe/nutrition/financial/guidelines.html
>

LaborForceStatisticsByGeography.
MaineDepartmentofLabor.
Retrievedfrom
<
http://www.maine.gov/labor/cwri/laus1.html
>

StateofTheSchools2015.
PortlandPublicSchools
.(2015,March15).Retrievedfrom
<
http://www.portlandschools.org/common/pages/DisplayFile.aspx?itemId=7215998
>

StudentDemographics.
PortlandPublicSchools
.(2015,January14).Retrievedfrom
<
https://www.portlandschools.org/UserFiles/Servers/Server_1094153/File/District%20Informati
on/FastFactsSpring2015.Revised020515.compressed.final.pdf
>

WhatisALEKS?ALEKS.Retrievedfrom<
https://www.aleks.com/about_aleks
>