Running head: FINAL 516 PAPER

Teacher, Student, Content Interaction Paper

James Flynn
EDUC 516
University of Southern California
Rossier School of Education
Dr. Clay Austin

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Teacher, Student, Content Interaction Paper

This final project was based on the observation of my own 2nd period Algebra classroom
and used myself as both the instructor and the observer. I chose this class for my reflection
project because this group of students have struggled the most during the school year with
academics and behavior issues. Rodgers (2002, p. 234) stated the first stage of the Reflection
Cycle is to be present in learning. Since this group has been a struggle to reach for both my team
and myself, I felt that the opportunity to explore their interactions with each other, me, as the
teacher, and the curriculum could be a good step forward to attending to their future needs. To
keep me focused on the Reflective Cycle, and observing the moment without jumping to
conclusions, I chose to video tape my entire 75 minute class period. The school at which I am
employed with also utilizes video surveillance in all classrooms and I was able to view those
recordings as well. Since video recording is a common occurrence in my classroom environment,
the students were aware of the camera, but it did not change the dynamics of the instructional
activity. My classroom runs on a block schedule and that does allow for more instructional
diversity in terms of curriculum delivery. The program that I teach in requires the students to
make-up two grade levels in one year (students begin as entering 8th graders and exit as enter 10th
graders). Curriculum presented must be compact, precise, and manageable. However, students
must also pass an end-of-year course exam to receive any credit for taking the class. This means
that they must also understand the material well enough to pass the exam, or they must retake the
exam/class over again to receive credit. To manage these tasks my daily class schedule is divided
into the following activities:

EOC Question of the Day

Prior Knowledge Review

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Introduction of New Material

Small Group Activities/Breakouts

Large Group Activity

Independent Work

Teacher-Desk Visits

Review of Class Assignment

Discussion of Day/Question and Answer Period

Exit Card (2 question assessment and student understanding checklist)

This paper will be focused on the Introduction of New Material conclusion and the start of
our Small Group/Break-Out Activity. The days assignment that was observed was an
overview of multiplying polynomials through the FOIL method. This was the second day of a
new unit and the ideas on the topic should have been becoming more concrete. I choose to look
at this 10-minute segment for analysis and reflection because it would contain my teaching style,
transition of activities, and how I monitor student understanding. During this moment of
observation, the students completed a guided note-taking and introduction presentation. They
then transitioned to a small group activity and this movement led to an altercation between two
students. While commonplace at the school because of the nature of the student population, this
is not an event that happens in my classroom. To help with the analysis of my video, and with
documentation of student participation, student/teacher interaction, and student understanding I
also used a charting method to help myself organize my observations. I used my class seating
chart during video review to document the students who had participated and how. I also noted
the students I spoke too during the video segment. I then compared these notes to the students
answers on the exit card and their level of understanding of material. For the purposes of this

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paper and for simplifying documentation, I will refer to myself as the teacher during this
report.
Analysis
The observed class is a demographic snapshot of the school as a whole. The class consisted of
15 students, 9 are male, 6 are female, 8 students are African American, 3 are Hispanic and the
remaining are white. As Rist (2000) pointed out, urban schools have not changed much since the
1970s, in terms of low expectations for student success by both teachers and surrounding
communities. The school does receive Title 1 funding and 99% of the school is on free or
reduced lunch. The majority of the students at the school have a multicultural background and
this effects how they view authority and others of a different race. The teacher differs from the
students in almost all areas, of background, economics, and culture. This is a factor, but as Nieto
and Bode (2012, p. 258) discuss a significant factor is how a school reacts (either negatively or
inadequately) to a students race, culture, and language that will be a determination of failure or
success. The class assignment during the given observation time was to be following along with
a Prezi slide show and writing notes into a guided note outline that the teacher had provided.
Students expectations for the assignment were to work quietly, raise hand with any questions,
and answer questions when asked. (Expectations where stated at start of lesson). Students had
worked on an introduction to the unit the previous day. The teacher held remote in hand and
walked around room, reciting Prezi slide-show material. Now, look at this definition that is
highlighted in yellow on this slide. Why, do you think Lamont that I highlighted this definition?
Teacher stands behind Lamont. Lamont answers, So we would think it was important. Teacher
responds, Yes, I want you to see that it is important and write it in your notes. Remember your
notes are what you study from. I cant stress to you enough how important it is to take down the

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notes, study your notes, because then what happens when you study? Everyone? the class
shouts out, YOU PASS! The teacher responds: And if you pass? The class answers, You go
back to regular school. Some students in class laugh because they did not shout that part out.
The teacher begins to ask questions about their lack of enthusiasm about rejoining a regular
school. Students call out dumb rules, just another black kid, like it here, mess up again.
Teacher responds with, You made a change when you took chance to enter this program and I
believe all of you are going to make it, its up to you to believe it. Teacher then directed
students back to the assignment. This segment of observation does detail the teachers
ideological view of hard work and motivation. However, it also details how the Social Cognitive
Learning Theory is applied in the delivery of content. Social Cognitive Theory is centered on
being aware of the thoughts and feelings of people around them Ormrod (2011).
The goal of any classroom is to have a climate that is supportive to the learning process. The
teacher designs the classroom to be interesting but not over stimulating. The classroom has
bulletin boards on the wall that detail the class rules, procedures, and schedules. As described by
Lampert (2001) structure, consistency, and respect help students understand how to meet
expectations. There are also motivational posters, student work, and student drawings.
Predominately displayed throughout the classroom are various designs of the slogan, Fight On!
The wall behind the teachers desk is a collection of student artwork, pictures, notes, and cards.
These are personal items of the teachers and are reflective of the report he has built with his
students. As noted by Nieto & Bode (2012, p. 256), students of ethnic backgrounds who feel they
have caring teachers are overall more successful in school. When the class began to wrap up the
assignment and transition into the small group activity, two students began to argue over whose
turn it was to be activity leader. The students, both male, started to verbally argue, but then

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progressed into pushing the other out of their seat. The teacher responded by walking up to both
boys and placing one of his hands on each shoulder and asked Tell me how you are going to
solve this before it goes too far. The boys both began to talk at the same time. One of the boys
became angered and stood up from his seat. He started to pull off his jacket and was yelling,
Im tired of you fronting me, dawg! Always gotta be in my face! A girl sitting towards the side
of the commotion yelled towards the boy, You better not be disrespecting Mr. Flynn like that!
Thats my teacher! The boy responded by calling her a name and then looked at the teacher and
said, Im not at you, Mr. Flynn. This boy just keeps getting on mine all day. The teacher
directed the boy to go stand by the door until he could talk with him. The teacher buzzed for a
behavior tech to come to his room and then had the boy sit at a table with his back towards the
class. The teacher spoke to the class and said, Ok, lets all relax and get back to business. Marc,
Demon, and I will solve this. Lets go on with the activity. When the tech came to the
classroom, the teacher had her monitor the students and he spoke to the boys outside the
classroom. When they came back in a student in the back called out to the boys You straight?
and the teacher replied, They are fine, they handled it. Lets all move forward. Lampert (2001)
detailed that teachers need to make rules, schedules, and assignments based on each individual
class and they may need to be changed based on the needs of the class. When teachers see
students struggle in this area, more time needs to be dedicated to teambuilding and working in
groups. This is of extra importance for students from ethnic backgrounds. A study looking at
home and school connections by McCarthy (1997) stated some diverse populations might feel
pressure when asked to participate in class activities and sharing of ideas may not be
commonplace or recognized in their homes.

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The teacher has designed his classroom to focus on student involvement and communication
of ideas. The subject area of mathematics tends to be non-cultural specific and blends well into
kinesthetic learning activities. Having taught primarily in special education and behavior
modification programs, the teacher stresses the importance of having students understand
expectations of curriculum and classroom behavior. This has proven to be helpful in his current
assignment. The school is a Behavior based model. This type of school follows the Behaviorist
Learning theory that all human actions are a response to a stimuli and that all behavior can be
shaped by using rewards or punishments (Ormrod, 2011). The teacher believes strongly in that
theory, but is more focused to the Social Cognitive Theory of Learning that states that motivation
and observation affect learning, but no behavior can really change unless the individual wants to
change (Ormrod, 2011). The class is structured around this belief and daily tasks include
activities that reach all modalities of learning but still maintain the focus of understanding. For
example, as the students were working in small groups the teacher went to each group to observe
their task. One group was socializing and not working and the teacher asked them if they had
completed the activity. The students responded with No, I didnt get it. The teacher asked,
What didnt you get? The assignment or the activity? One student who was new to the
program and had been achieving almost perfect grades, but was still struggling to make friends,
responded that she understood the assignment but the activity did not make sense. The teacher
took an extra activity set and talked out the first step of the activity as he performed it. He then
asked the student to do the next step. To which she laughed and responded, I didnt get it. The
teacher asked her to talk out the activity with her shoulder partner to see if they could work out
her confusion and the teacher would just observe. Before moving on, he reminded the class that
off-task behavior would be recorded on their color sheet. He then completed the steps with the

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remaining members of the group. Cushman (2003) spoke from a students perspective and
suggested that teachers understand that their students have other pressures during the school day
that are not reflective of the subject area. For example, students may have problems finding
placement with peers or doubt their skills when speaking in front of others. Thinking about the
reactions of students from their point of view helps maintain classroom control and student
progress through curriculum.
Quality of the Interaction
The moment of the observation that clearly showed how learning is possible in this classroom
was during the Prezi slide show instruction. This snapshot of the classroom shows how the
teacher provides guided instruction through classroom concepts with the use of graphic
organizers, scaffolding techniques, and at level curriculum. The material is presented in new,
innovated methods that encourage student participation and understanding. In this classroom,
students are faced with overcoming dual obstacles of academic difficulties and previous teacher
mind-sets. Milner (2010, p. 15) spoke that educators can force a self-fulfillings prophecy on
their students if they set only limited expectations for success. The teacher needs to strive to
maintain high-expectations for his students and focus on their assets and not their deficits. These
students are the example of what happens to poor, ethnic students in urban areas that have slowly
lost the belief in their teachers and thus of themselves. The teacher attempts to help his students
see that they can be successful so that the cycle of frustration and lack of self-worth does not
continue into adulthood. The classroom is open for discussion but well controlled. This was
evidenced by the way the teacher was able to bring the students back to the lesson quickly while
still not taking away from the belief that the classroom was a safe place to speak openly. The
teacher does not assume the role of power head and each student feels comfortable to speak of

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their feelings out loud. The students spoke about their concerns with the teacher and their
concerns were not devalued. This conversation between the teacher and the students is reflective
of the positive climate in the classroom. A study by Matsumura, Slater, and Crosson (2008, p.
297) states that quality classroom climate can be defined as a level of respect and regard
teachers showed students in class discussions and activities, students opportunity to engage in
collaborative work and the presence of classroom rules for respectful, prosocial behavior. The
teacher does use motivation as a strategy, but also incorporates his belief in the students ability
to do well. Classroom management is important and the teacher attempts to make student
proactive in his belief that everyone is responsible for helping themselves, but everyone must
work together. Students are treated as being intelligent and are told that the teacher believes in
them. Landson-Billings (1994, p. 123) directs that students should be treated as competent so
they will demonstrate competency and teachers should scaffold information to build success.
Since this classroom is in a low-socioeconomic urban area and the majority of the students are
African-American, it is even more important for the teacher to encourage students to reach
success by facilitating learning with motivation and attainable goals. When the teacher spoke to
the class about his beliefs about them, and I believe all of you are going to make it, its up to
you to believe it, this summed up how he felt about all of his students: there is no limit to what
they can accomplish.
Reflection
In my school district, we use the Marzano Teacher Assessment Evaluation Method. Marzano
has a reflective section built into it. Since my county adopted this evaluation method, I have
noticed that I do take more time at the end of the school day to review what went right and what
I need to change for tomorrow. According to Yost (2000, p. 41), the end result of critical

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reflection for the individual is cognitive change, and this is what I hope to achieve in order to
enhance the students learning process. Using the video camera and seeing me as my students see
me gave a much better insight to the type of teacher I am. I was surprised to see how much I
moved throughout the room, as I had thought this was a weakness of mine. I also found it helpful
to record whom the students were who answered the most questions, and whom I interacted with
the most. In comparing this data with the assignment grades, I was able to see who truly
understood the assignment and who just liked to talk. Watching the actions in the classroom, I
have concluded that I need to rearrange my classroom to allow for better teacher movement and
student visibility. I also need to restructure my small group assignments for my 2nd period. I plan
on eliminating the Activity Leader term and trying groups of three or four instead of two. I also
noticed during this experiment that while I value motivation and believe in having my students
achieve success that my idea of success may not be theirs. I need to help them discover what
they consider a successful life and the types of motivation I can offer that will move them to
success. In conclusion, I believe that authors Falk and Darling-Hammond (2010, p. 74) were
correct in their statement that the ability to observe, evaluate, and reflect on students learning
and experience-all aspects of documentary practices-is essential to effective teaching.

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References
Cushman, K. (2003). Creating a culture of success. In Fires in the bathroom: Advice for teachers
from high school students (pp. 62-85). New York, NY: The New York Press.
Falk, B., & Darling-Hammond, L. (2010). Documentation and democratic education. Theory into
Practice, 49(1), 72-81.
Lampert, M. (2001). Teaching to establish a classroom culture. In Teaching problems and the
problems of teaching (pp. 51-100). New Haven, CT: Yale University Press
Landson-Billings, G. (1994). Culturally relevant teaching. In The dreamkeepers: Successful
teachers of African American children (pp. 102-126). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Matsumura, L. C., Slater, S. C., & Crosson, A. (2008). Classroom climate, rigorous instruction
and curriculum, and students' interactions in urban middle schools. The Elementary
School Journal, 108(4), 293-312.
McCarthy, S. J. (1997). Connecting home and school literacy practices in classrooms with
diverse populations. Journal of Literacy Research, 29(2), 145-182.
Milner, H. R. (2010). A diversity and opportunity gaps explanatory framework. In Start where
you are, but don't stay there: Understanding diversity, opportunity gaps, and teaching in
today's classrooms (pp. 13-44). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Nieto, S., & Bode, P. (2012). Understanding student learning and student achievement. In
Affirming diversity the sociopolitical context of multicultural education (6 ed., pp. 252293). Boston, MA: Pearson.
Ormrod, J. E. (Ed.). (2011). Educational psychology, Developing learners (7 ed.). Boston, MA:
Pearson.

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Rist, Ray C. (2000). Students social class and teacher expectations: the self-fulfilling prophecy
in ghetto education. Harvard Educational Review, 70(3), 257-301.
Rodgers, C. R. (2002). Seeing student learning: Teacher change and the role of reflection.
Harvard Educational Review, 72(2), 230-252.
Yost, D. S. (2000). An examination of the construct of critical reflection: Implications for teacher
education programming in the 21st century. Journal of Teacher Education, 51(1), 39-49.