Annie Bultman

EDUC 302/303
November 19, 2015
Context Section
In an effort to understand the learning context and environment of my students, I will be
assessing the social, cultural, economic, and administrative constructs of South Christian High
School. By examining not only the school and the local community, but also by assessing my
learners, I hope to provide a glimpse into the schema of the school. By assessing this schema, I
wish to establish a better connection between my students context of learning and the unit plan
that I am constructing. Firstly, I will begin by providing an overview of the school itself.
South Christian High School can be found within a large suburb community of Grand
Rapids, Michigan. Located near US Highway 131, this grades 9-12 institution hosts
approximately 41 teachers and 628 students (National Center for Education Statistics, 2014).
Interestingly, the majority of these teachers have graduated from Christian institutions
themselvesparticularly from Calvin College. For example, 9 out of 10 of the administrative
staff graduated from Christian institutions while 7 of them graduated specifically from Calvin
College (South Christian High School, 2015). Even the head of the school, Jim Peterson, as well
as the school principal, George Guichelar both graduated from Calvin College. Hence, this value
for Christian education sets the tone of the school. As one teacher joked in the staff lounge, This
is the school where Calvin students find jobs.
Ultimately, this value for Christian education is reflected within the schools faith stance.
Although the school is not directly affiliated with a specific denomination, the Christian faith
represents the backbone of the schools philosophy. From the abundance of mission trips and
service opportunities offered to the required chapel sessions the students attend, the school
remains rooted in its faith. Even the parents/guardians must sign a statement of beliefs upon
enrolling their children into the school (South Christian High School, 2015).
These Christian values are especially reflected within the schools emphasis on mission
trips and its inclusion program. As my mentor-teacher, Kate Avila, explained, The school is
incredibly open toward inclusion and celebrating the gifts of every student. During my interview
with Avila, she further explained the special needs program: Connections. Within this program,
students with special needs find support, go on special field trips and mission trips as well as
partner with local businesses to find jobs. Furthermore, Connections empowers the student
body to partner up with students with special needs through lunch-buddy programs and even a

banquet called the Connections Banquet. Kate continued, The inclusion program is really
powerful here and there is a strong culture of adoption as well. This is a very service-oriented,
tight-knit community of believers (Avila, personal interview, 2015).
With such a culture of inclusion and ministry, the school has also made strong efforts to
expand its cultural and ethnic diversity by establishing a foreign exchange program. For over 30
years, students from China, Denmark, Hungary, Netherlands, Guatemala, South Korea, Spain and
Japan have traveled across the globe to attend South Christian High School. However, even with
such efforts, out of the 628 students, only 4 are African American while 27 are Asian and 12 are
Hispanic (National Center for Education Statistics, 2014). As Avila commented, The school still
has strides to make in increasing diversity. Interestingly, according to the Grand Valley State
Universitys Community Research Institute, 10% of the population within South Christians
county (Kent county) are African American while another 10% are Latino (CRI, 2014). However,
within the 3 class periods I visit daily, 65 out of 67 of the kids I work with are white. The other 2
are Asian.
Interestingly, students at South Christian tend to commute far distances in order to attend.
As Avila explained, The majority of the students commute quite a distance to get to school.
They really dont walk here. This commute reflects the commitment of the school community at
large. Even within its socioeconomic factors, South Christian remains a tight-knight, conservative
community. When asked about the schools socioeconomic panorama, Kate further explained,
For being a Christian school in Grand Rapids, its definitely more of a blue collar feel. For
example, many of the families own their businesses and instead of donating with funds, they
often donate with services like roofing, concrete, etc. These families are very generous and
dedicated toward the school (personal interview, 2015).
This family-oriented, conservative culture also values the freedoms that come with a
privatized school system. When asked about the No Child Left Behind Act, Kate explained that
the act does not have precedence over the SCHS administration. As she described, There is
such a beauty in the freedom that comes with a Christian school because youre not slaving to
fulfill the set standards of NCLB. You can actually unleash and do great things. However, the
school requires that unit plans be uploaded to an online portal and database for the administration
team to assess. Even with this database, however, the departments of the school work as a
collaborative team by sharing and implementing their ideas and curriculum.
The foreign language department in which I assist especially capitalizes on this
collaborative system. Within the department, the three teachers are constantly sharing new ideas
and establishing a sense of cohesiveness between their classes. As Avila explained, There is

more of a free reign with foreign language. The people who are truly scrutinizing your work are
your fellow colleagues who help and double check everythingand of course the students who
provide feedback, albeit informal feedback. Interestingly, the Spanish department has created its
own curriculum. Only 10% of its materials actually come from an official textbook. The other
90% is created by the teachers, meticulously compiled into large folders, and shared within
googledocs. As Kate affirmed, There is so much creativity and freedom in being a Spanish
teacher.
Thus, the students at South Christian High School have access to a strong learning
program that is rooted in the freedom of a privatized curriculum. With such committed parental
support and the generous contributions of its patrons, the school is founded upon the core values
of faith and family. With about 20-24 students in an average classroom, the students receive a
more personalized education. Furthermore, learners who wish to explore elevated programs can
take advanced placement courses in the subjects of math, physics, social studies, and English.
Thus, the privileged socioeconomic culture of the school provides many additional opportunities
for students.
The students in my particular classrooms also enjoy access to these amenities. For
example, the school has been renovating its building and materials step-by-step. As Avila
explained, We pay for everything completely before moving on. We never go into debt
(personal interview, 2015). Thus, the school has been transforming slowly but steadily from
classroom to classroom. For example, within Avilas classroom, the individual student desks have
been replaced with rolling, round tables and rolling, swiveling chairs. This flexibility and
accessibility allows for the students to look at the two smart boards that are situated on either side
of the classroom. Additionally, each Spanish teacher within the department uses ipads not only
for grading, but also for recording students on their speaking tests. Ultimately, these new
amenities have helped Avila to create an interactive atmosphere for both her Spanish II and
Spanish IV class periods.
In addition to recent renovation and technology, the classroom also represents the culture,
strengths and growth-points of each group of students. On a linguistic and ethnic standpoint, all
of the 67 students in the classrooms I visit are native English speakers, and while 2 of them are
Asian, the remaining 65 are white. Although there are no students with apparent special cognitive
or physical needs, on a learning abilities spectrum, there is a range of abilities represented within
the Spanish II classrooms. While some students ace each test, other students are struggling to pass
the course. I work with 2 of these students on an individual level, trying to establish strategies for
learning that work will with their preferences, needs, and gifts. As I construct my lesson plans, I

will need to keep in mind the needs of these individuals as wellparticularly within the area of
grammatical comprehension. Much of their confusion is due to lack of organization while
studying these concepts. By providing clear worksheets and explanations within my lessons as
well as hands-on implementation activities, I hope to provide organized structure as well as
opportunities to practice.
By observing 3 specific class periods everyday, Ive developed my own assessment of the
learning cultures of each group of students. For example, within 1st hour Spanish II, the students
remain very attentive and self-directed, breezing through grammatical concepts with a relative
sense of ease. However, their counterparts in 3rd hour Spanish II require more of a methodical
instruction with each new concept explained and practiced thoroughly before advancing to the
next. As Kate described, There are some kids who will learn despite you. I have more of that in
1st hour. But there are kids in 3rd hour who need to be taught clearly and well all the time in order
for them to advance. I have to break things down. But then I notice that I teach better...I develop
better practice (Avila, personal interview, 2015).
The difference between these class periods is also evident through their attention level
and their ability to stay on task. Within the first period, although the students arrive at 8:00AM,
they bring energy to the classroom activities. With 24 students in the classroom, the interactive
lessons that Avila teaches are met with a sense of efficiency and energy. These students seem to
master the new material with relative ease and work will with partner/small group activities.
However, within the third class period, due to the lower amount of students (17), the classroom
lacks the same charisma and energy. Grammatical concepts and new vocabulary have to be
carefully and clearly explained before diving into small group work. Furthermore, while Avila
tends to give almost all of her mechanical instructions in Spanish (take out your books, close your
computer, stand up, etc.), while explaining grammatical concepts, she almost always explains in
Englishespecially with the third hour Spanish class. Interestingly though, these third hour
Spanish students respond better to hands-on-activities. In other words, the sooner that they can
practice the new materials with a group game, quiz, or challenge, the better.
This sense of differentiation can be witnessed through the way Kate manages her class.
Instead of constantly monitoring her students, she keeps them motivated and interested by
providing tasks and activities for every new concepteven each new vocabulary word. Thus, the
kids have grown to expect an interactive atmosphere. For example, every day, the students are
expected to complete Repaso Rpidoa quick review assessment in which they quiz one
another on their target vocabulary words. These quick reviews help to prepare students for
vocabulary listening/writing tests that are given on a weekly basis. In order to practice new

vocabulary or grammatical concepts, Avila often creates information gap activities or small group
games that require the students to implement and produce the new material. These activities are
only reemphasized throughout the homework given outusually practice sheets for individual
writing and comprehension growth.
However, on a spiritual level, Avila also strives to expand learning beyond the classroom.
Typically, she reads an article from a Christian perspective written about current events, social
justice, or faith practices before the class begins. She is very selective about the materials she
chooses to present to her class, and afterward, she usually allows time for group prayer or she
prays over the class. This routine only establishes a deeper connection between the students
education and their faith. Furthermore, it allows students to think beyond the classroom and
engage with the world around them.
In the end, as I construct my unit plan for my Spanish II 3rd hour class, I want to be
mindful not only of these spiritual expectations, but also of my students needs for an interactive
environment. Although I want to maintain a sense of structure within their routine (i.e. Repaso
Rpido, vocabulary powerpoints, homework worksheets, etc.), I also want to challenge my
students toward creativity. By implementing activities such obritas (short skits), conversational
role-play, essay writing, Kahoots, etc. I hope to provide an environment in which the students can
actively engage with the material. Furthermore, by centralizing the unit upon the story of Nick
Vujicica man born without arms and legsI hope to provide a context of meaning that allows
students not only to learn the parts of the body, but also what it means to be the hands and feet
of God.
Ultimately, as I seek to construct a unit plan for Spanish II, I will need to remember the
power of differentiated instruction and empower my learners with student-directed activities.
Instead of dominating the learning environment myself, I want to enable these students with the
tools to construct their own learning. Within this rich context of faith and community/parental
support, I hope to provide authentic and empowering instruction.

Works Cited
Avila, Kate. Personal interview. 14 Oct. 2015.
Community Research Institute. Ed. Joshua Church. Johnson Center at Grand Valley State
University, 2014. CRI . Web. 17 Oct. 2015.
<http://cridata.org/GeoProfile.aspx?type=4&loc=26081>.
National Center for Education Statistics. Education Sciences National Center, 2014 . Web. 17
Oct. 2015.
<https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/pss/privateschoolsearch/school_detail.asp?Search=1
&SchoolName=South+Christian+High+School&City=Grand+Rapids+&NumOfS
tudentsRange=more&IncGrade=-1&LoGrade=-1&HiGrade=-1&ID=00>.
South Christian High School Website. N.p., 2015. Web. 17 Oct. 2015.
<http://www.schs.org/default.html>.