A Case Study on Student Differentiation for an IEP in an AP English III Class

Bethany Womack
Dr. Lyttle-Burns
EDC 300
Eastern Kentucky University
November 25th
 Womack 1
Introduction

My name is Bethany Womack. I am a Secondary English Education major at Eastern

Kentucky University. Through CED 300 this semester, I have been completing clinical hours at

Madison Central High School in Richmond, Kentucky. The class that I am observing and

teaching in is a fairly large, AP ELA class of juniors. The class is mainly engaged and

participatory, and the students seem to have a good repertoire with the teacher. There are a

couple of students who are uninterested and disengaged, but for the most part, there is active

learning taking place among most of the students. There are 11 females and 29 males. There is 1

male student with an IEP, and 8 GT students. The school is a public high school located in the

downtown area of a small town. It is a Title 1 school which means students qualify for free and

reduced lunch. The socio-economic standing of the students ranges from low to middle-class.

There is a 19% total minority enrollment and 47% economically disadvantaged enrollment out of

the 1,933 students enrolled.

For my case study, I decided to focus on the 1 male student with the IEP. For

confidentiality purposes, I’ll call him John Doe. John Doe is on the autism spectrum. He does not

need content differentiation or accommodations as he is on the same academic level as the other

students in the AP English class. However, he does need behavioral and situational

accommodations and differentiation. He is always engaged and invested in the content and class

discussion, but sometimes his emotions and social skills need extra attention. For example, if

John feels as though he does not understand specific instructions or if he feels that what the

teacher is saying contradicts something that he previously thought, he will get extremely

frustrated and shut down.

 Womack 2
Watching the way my teacher interacts with and handles John Doe has been extremely

beneficial to me. Seeing how to efficiently and effectively navigate class discussion and cater to

students’ specific emotional needs has given me plenty of ideas on how to do that in my own

classroom in the future. Making sure the student in question is sat with other students who are

patient and willing to help and work with him is crucial to his success. My teacher is extremely

good at understanding and catering to John Doe’s needs. Through my observations of this

student, I am confident in his ability to succeed despite his IEP.

Data Analysis

As I stated previously, this class is a fairly large, AP ELA class of juniors. The class is

fairly engaged and participatory, and the students seem to have a good repertoire with the

teacher. There are a couple of students who are uninterested and disengage, but for the most part,

there is active learning taking place among most of the students. There are 11 females and 29

males. There is 1 male student with an IEP, and 8 GT students. The school is a public high

school located in the downtown area of a small town. It is a Title 1 school which means students

qualify for free and reduced lunch. The socio-economic standing of the students ranges from low

to middle-class. There is a 19% total minority enrollment and 47% economically disadvantaged

enrollment out of the 1,933 students enrolled. In order for each student to have the best learning

experience, especially the student I chose to focus on with the IEP, differentiation is key for

student success.

The relationships between the students and the teacher are based on mutual respect and

kindness for the most part. The teacher is constantly trying to connect content with personal

experience, and it encourages effort and engagement. I think experiences and backgrounds tend

to be affirmed. This is especially true of John Doe. Even though he can get sidetracked and tend
 Womack 3
to dominate class discussion, the teacher handles him extremely effectively by validating what he

feels and has to say while also making sure that the other students get the same opportunities as

well.

My cooperating teacher is extremely good at teaching for John Doe’s needs. This student

has grown up with an IEP. Therefore, he has had to struggle a little bit to integrate himself into

the classroom. He requires absolutely no content differentiation as he is on the same level, if not

higher, than his peers. However, his IEP does require him to have emotional and situational

differentiation. The differentiation comes in the form of sitting him around peers who are good at

interacting with him, navigating how to approach class discussions with him, and things of that

sort. Sometimes he can get upset and fixated on things, but academically, he is extremely

accomplished.

John Doe scored in the 90th percentile in terms of his ACT score. Even though his math

and science scores were higher, his English and reading scores were still in the highest percentile

for his class. John Doe consistently scores high grades on his papers and assignments. Even

though he requires a bit more explanation and care, he is dedicated to the content and excellence

in the course. He excels at critical thinking and contributing substantially to class discussions. He

thinks deeply about any questions he is posed and gives fully formulated and intelligent answers.

His weakness is that sometimes he can get frustrated to the point of shutting down if he feels like

he doesn’t understand something. Because he is on the autism spectrum, he has a tendency to get

fixated on certain things and get bothered very easily. However, the cooperating teacher is

patient, compassionate, and dedicated to making sure the student understands while also

remaining firm and disciplinary when needed. Because of his above average scores, John Doe is

considered college-ready and successful in the course.

 Womack 4
Differentiation Plans

Using the unit and lesson plans you created in EMS 300, you will submit three plans (in the

format included below) that address the findings for your case study student. Write a one-to-two

paragraph introduction here that briefly explains how you accommodated for your case study

student. After the introduction, insert the three lessons in the chart below.

Target Area After completing the 3 following lessons:

For Growth What do I want them to learn?
Insert the statements that include what you want your students to learn.
● By the end of the year, student will flexibly use a variety of
comprehension strategies to read, comprehend, and analyze grade-
level appropriate, complex literary texts independently and
proficiently.
● Students will compose a sentence that integrates a quote.
● Students will compose a thesis statement.

Lesson 1: UNDERSTANDING THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT AS CONTEXT

THROUGH IMAGERY

Standard: RL. 11-12.10 By the end of
the year, flexibly use a variety of
comprehension strategies (i.e.,
questioning, monitoring, visualizing,
inferencing, summarizing, synthesizing,
using prior knowledge, determining
importance) to read, comprehend and
analyze grade-level appropriate,
Learning Target: By the end of the year,
students will flexibly use a variety of
comprehension strategies to read, comprehend,
and analyze grade-level appropriate, complex
literary texts independently and proficiently.
 Womack 5

complex literary texts independently

and proficiently.

Pre-Assessment: Ask students to write Formative Assessment: Have students write

down one or two things or people that down one or two new things that they learned
they already know in terms of the Civil or any preconceived notions that were
Rights Movement. challenged and use that as an exit slip.

Procedures Accommodations / Adaptations

Engage The student with the IEP does not require

Greet students at the door as they walk content differentiation, but he is seated
in. strategically with other students best equipped
to help him out and engage with him.
Pull up interactive PowerPoint

Have students write down one or two Engage:

things or people they already know -For the student with the IEP for autism,
about in the Civil Rights Movement take special care to be warm and inviting
so he’s comfortable since he is not familiar
Introduce the topic of the lesson (Civil with me
Rights Movement as context for MLK
Jr’s Letter from Birmingham Jail) to
the students and ask them what they
already know/have learned about the
topic.

Write down the students’ comments on

the board.
Explain:
Explore -For the student with the IEP, I will pace
Give background/intro information to myself and check for understanding of the
the Civil Rights Movement (especially in content and questions before moving on
Birmingham, AL) -For the G/T students, I will target the
more abstract or advanced questions
Explain toward them
Explain that lots of pictures and videos
were taken during this time that have
gone down in history and are still
referenced today
 Womack 6

Explain how protests were a big part of

the Civil Rights movement, what they
are, and how they often get overlooked

Explain that protestors were often

provoked to join the movement through
the powerful imagery that they saw

Play the videos and show the pictures,

giving brief intros/explanations for each
one

Ask students what they see in the

pictures (emotions, facial expressions,
and what they convey about the time)
· Questions like:
-What do you think is
happening in the photograph?
-How does it make you feel?
How do you think it made the Evaluate:
people who saw it at the time -I will ask the students if they are clear on
feel? what I am expecting, and I will take special
-Who do you think the care to make sure the IEP student
intended audience was and understands
what was the intended effect?
-Do you think this
photograph effectively
conveys a message?
-What is that message?

Elaborate
Explain how protests have always been
and still are relevant and ask students if
they can think of any more current
examples of movements that rely
heavily on protest

Explain the relevancy because protests

were a big part of the Civil Rights
Movement and how they will also be
important in the upcoming unit, and
specifically in relation to this lesson, the
next reading which is MLK Jr’s Letter
from Birmingham Jail
 Womack 7

·
Play clip from MLKJ’s “I’ve Been To
The Mountaintop Speech”

Evaluate

Ask students to take out a piece of

paper and create a caption that
addresses the problem depicted for a
specific picture that I place at the end

Remind them to keep the questions that

we considered earlier in mind while
crafting their caption (address the
literal problem but also the emotion)

Have students write down one or two

things that they learned or preconceived
notions that were challenged

Collect papers at the end

Lesson 2: INTEGRATING QUOTES FOR SYNTHESIS DISCUSSION/ESSAY

Standard: LESSON STANDARD C.11- Learning Target: Student will compose a

12.1 Compose arguments to support sentence that integrates a quote.
claims in an analysis of substantive
topics or texts, using valid reasoning
and relevant and sufficient evidence.

Pre-Assessment: Have a student write a Formative Assessment: I will then ask them to
sentence that integrates a quote to write another sentence that integrates a quote
establish a baseline for what they do or in order to gage their growth and sentence
do not already know.
 Womack 8

development from the beginning of the lesson

to the end of the lesson.

Procedures:
Engage
Greet students before beginning the
lesson.
Delegate a student to hand out my quote
sandwich forms as I begin assessing
students’ baseline knowledge by asking Delegate the student with the IEP to pass out
about students’ experience with
integrating quotes and/or synthesis.
Pre-assessment: Have students compose
a sentence that integrates a quote.
Accommodations:
The student with the IEP does not require
content differentiation, but he is seated
strategically with other students best equipped
to help him out and engage with him.
Engage
papers for me while I’m beginning the
discussion

Explore
Use the illustrated Google Slides to
explore the quote sandwich method.
Explain
Give general overview and explanation
of synthesis and how it is usually based
in making a claim and using
information and quotes as evidence
from multiple pieces in order to support
that claim.
Explain
While the student with the IEP does not need
explicit content differentiation, he can get
frustrated or overwhelmed if he misses or does
not understand something so checking for
understanding of the class (and especially him)
is essential.

Explain the general structure and set-up

of the quote sandwich method by using
the first “body” slide on the Google
Slides.

Elaborate
Go through the slides and show
examples of each part of the quote
sandwich and how they should look
and/or be introduced.

Evaluate
 Womack 9

Pull up last slide with the instructions

for the students to create their own
paragraph using the quote sandwich
method. We will complete this together
as a class.

They will have their blank handout to

fill out as we go over the example so that
they’ll have a model to keep.

Have the students write another

sentence integrating a quote to gage
growth and sentence development from
the beginning of class to the end.

Collect sentences for data.

Lesson 3: UNDERSTANDING THESIS STATEMENTS IN A SYNTHESIS ESSAY

Standard: RL. 11-12.10 By the end of Learning Target: Students will compose a
the year, flexibly use a variety of thesis statement.
comprehension strategies (i.e.,
questioning, monitoring, visualizing,
inferencing, summarizing, synthesizing,
using prior knowledge, determining
importance) to read, comprehend and
analyze grade-level appropriate,
complex literary texts independently
and proficiently.

Pre-Assessment: I will ask students to Formative Assessment: At the end, as an exit

write down what they believe to be the slip, the students will write down one or two
definition of an effective thesis things that they learned from the lesson and
 Womack 10

statement on a piece of paper and how how comfortable they are now (1-5) after
comfortable they are with writing one learning those things.
on a scale of 1-5 with one being not
comfortable at all and five being
extremely comfortable.

Procedures: Accommodations:
Engage The student with the IEP does not require
At the beginning of class, I will greet my content differentiation, but he is seated
students and open up the discussion on strategically with other students best equipped
thesis statements and how they relate to to help him out and engage with him.
their synthesis papers
This student does not require content
I will begin the pre-assessment and have
differentiation, but instead requires situational
students write down on a piece of paper
and emotional differentiation. Because of this, I
what they think the definition of a thesis
will make sure that he is seated and grouped
statement is and rate their comfort with
with students who understand how to
them on a scale of 1-5
effectively work with him as well as subtly pay
more attention to him in terms of making sure
Explore
that my directions are clear and he
I will begin the PowerPoint explaining
understands expectations.
what a thesis statement is and how it
will work in their synthesis papers.

Explain
I will walk through the TOE model of
creating a thesis statement and explain
through a couple examples how it
works. At the end of the lesson, the
students will have the opportunity to
put the TOE method into action by
creating a thesis statement in their table
groups based on popular fairytales,
movies, or tv shows.
· Little Red Riding Hood
· Cinderella
· SpongeBob SquarePants
· Batman
· Mean Girls
· Etc.

Elaborate
 Womack 11

I will be walking around as the groups

write their thesis statements in case
anyone has questions or concerns

Evaluate
I will take up the students’ thesis
statements at the end of the class to gage
what they’ve learned

Reflection

This case study has opened my eyes to many different things. I had a slight “privilege”

this semester by being placed in an AP English class. This means that most students were active,

engaged, and invested in the learning process. Because of this, I did not have too many huge

challenges or difficulties when it came to teaching and interacting with my students. However, a

challenge I did have was differentiating for John Doe.

As I’ve already stated, he is in this AP English class and does not require any

differentiation for content. He is on the same level intellectually as all of the other students in the

class. His scores and the content that he produces are extremely rich in understanding. In a lot of

cases, he is even advanced in terms of grasping content and meeting benchmarks. However, he

does require emotional and situational differentiation on a case-by-case basis. Having to

differentiate for this student throughout the semester has equipped me with very helpful tools to

use in my future classroom with my own students.

 Womack 12
More specifically, choosing a student with an IEP to focus on during this case study has

taught me a multitude of ways to differentiate for assessment, instruction, and collaboration with

other students. As mentioned multiple times before, John Doe does not need content

differentiation. However, because of his placement on the autism spectrum, he absolutely needs

differentiation in the way that he is handled in terms of assessment, instruction, and interaction.

Most of this differentiation comes in the form of patience and allotting extra time for his

questions and to cater to his needs.

Another huge thing that I have learned is how to differentiate for collaboration with other

students in a class for a student with an IEP. John Doe tends to get frustrated very quickly and

easily. Because of this, his placement in the classroom is extremely important. The teacher is

extremely strategic with where she places John Doe. She made sure that his deskmates were

students who know how to interact with him and calm him when he gets frustrated. She also

placed him at the cluster of desks closest to her in order to be easily accessible in case he would

need her.

As a future high school English teacher who will have students who will probably have

IEPs and other special needs, focusing on John Doe for my case study was extremely beneficial.
 Womack 13

References
List your references here, using APA format.
 Womack 14

Appendix A

Culturally Responsive Teaching

Culturally Responsive Teaching

Observation Worksheet

Culturally responsive teaching is multifaceted and involves various dimensions of the teaching

and learning process that include what is taught, how it is taught, to whom and by whom. This

activity offers you the opportunity to reflect critically on culturally responsive classroom

practice.

Directions: Observe a classroom for a day. Use the following questions to guide your reflection.

Provide a brief description of the school, the community in which the school is located, and the

class you are observing.

● This class is a fairly large, AP ELA class of juniors. The class is fairly engaged and

participatory, and the students seem to have a good repertoire with the teacher.

There are a couple of students who are uninterested and disengage, but for the most

part, there is active learning taking place among most of the students. There are 11

females and 29 males. There is 1 male student with an IEP, and 8 GT students. The

school is a public high school located in the downtown area of a small town. It is a
 Womack 15
Title 1 school which means students qualify for free and reduced lunch. The socio-

economic standing of the students ranges from low to middle-class. There is a 19%

total minority enrollment and 47% economically disadvantaged enrollment out of

the 1,933 students enrolled.

Look at walls, posters, media centers of the school. Who is represented? Who is not

represented? How does the visual representation on items displayed in the school reflect of the

demographic characteristics of the school? Of the community? Of the country?

Examine the texts that are being used in the class. Does the content reflect the cultural

backgrounds of students in the class? How are the following groups represented: people of

color, women, youth, working class people?

● There really aren’t a ton of super diverse posters or pictorial representation

throughout the school. However, since it’s an English class, a lot of diverse people

groups and issues are discussed through the pieces that are read. That is something

that I appreciate in English. It is definitely more inclusive and presents more

opportunity for diversity.

Examine the interactions between teacher and students. Do these seem to be based on mutual

respect? What aspects of the interactions, if any, would you classify as culturally responsive?

How does the teacher connect the course content to students’ prior knowledge and experiences?

● The relationships between the students and the teacher are based on mutual respect

and kindness for the most part. The teacher is constantly trying to connect content

with personal experience, and it encourages effort and engagement.

What aspects of student identities seem to be affirmed in the process of teaching and learning?

What aspects of student identities might be suppressed during the lesson?

 Womack 16
● I think experiences and backgrounds tend to be affirmed. I can’t really tell if

anything is being suppressed.

What, if anything, might you do differently to make the lesson more culturally responsive?

● The lesson today was introducing the Civil Rights Movement so it was very geared

toward equality, and specifically, African Americans. I think I would probably

focus a little more on women specifically and their struggles to make it more

inclusive.

Appendix B

Thinking About Responsive Instruction

THINKING ABOUT RESPONSIVE INSTRUCTION

Observation Worksheet 2

Directions: The goal of this observation is to help you reflect on the “fit” of a classroom for
particular learners in that classroom and to examine ways a teacher can differentiate instruction
to improve the fit for more students. Before you begin the observation, ask the teacher to point
out to you one or two students who have a hard time with the content of the class, one or two
who have behavior problems, and one or two who are particularly advanced. Take a few minutes
as class begins to locate these students and observe them briefly. Then select the three you will
watch for the remainder of the observation. (Do not use actual names of schools, teachers,
administrators, or students when using this worksheet.)
Observer’s Name: Bethany Womack
Date: 9/25/19
Grade Level: 11
Subject: AP English III
Class Size: 26
Background Information:
● The school is located near the downtown area of a small town. It qualifies for free
and reduced lunch. There are many different races, ethnicities, and social class
standings present within the student body. It makes for an extremely diverse
environment.
 Womack 17

What to Record: First, write a very brief description of each student as a learner. Then, in the
boxes that follow, take notes on the three students as the class proceeds. Do you have any
evidence that they are participating actively in the class? That they are understanding the content,
are confused, or are bored? What sorts of behavior do they exhibit? Why do you think they are
behaving as they do? What is working well for them? Or poorly? Does the class seem interesting
to them? In the fourth box, take notes on anything the teacher does to make the class successful
for the three students you’ve selected. Has he or she tried to make the environment seem safe and
inviting to the students? Are there materials or activities particularly appropriate for these
learners? Do the students have choices about how to work? Are questions targeted to address
particular learner needs? Are there opportunities to meet with the teacher to clarify or extend
learning? Jot down whatever you think affects the learning of your three target students and
reflects teacher attempts to actively address varied learner needs.
Student #1
Name: Student 1
Description: Student 1 is very engaged and always has something to contribute to the
discussion. He is energetic and humorous.

Student #2
Name: Student 2
Description: Student 2 is usually disengaged. He is obviously capable but refuses to put in
any effort. He is blatantly annoyed and doesn’t care about contributing whenever the
teacher tries to engage him.

Student #3
Name: Student 3
Description: Student 3 is very smart and capable, but he is on the spectrum and definitely
has an IEP. He willingly engages in class work and discussion. However, he gets extremely
frustrated if he doesn’t understand something and shuts down.

Student #1
-Student 1 answered multiple questions
and contributed throughout the class
many times
-He is funny and actively engaged
-He seems to have a good repertoire with
the teacher
Student #2
-Student 2 immediately made it obvious
that he didn’t want to be in class when he
walked in
-He laid his head on the desk the whole
class period and refused to participate at
all
 Womack 18

Student #3
-Student 3 participated enthusiastically
-However, there came a point where he
didn’t understand something and
immediately shut down and put his head
on the desk
-It was hard to pull him back in, but once
the teacher did, he was engaged again
Teacher
-She showed amazing amounts of patience
-She encouraged Student 3 and took her
time with him instead of writing him off
or getting frustrated
-She encouraged Student 1’s interest in
the topic and affirmed his comments, and
she was strict but fair with Student 2

Reflections on Your Observation:

1. To what degree did you feel the content and activities of the class matched the readiness level
of the students you observed? On what do you base your conclusions?
The activity was extremely relevant. The teacher introduced argumentative essays as a way
to begin prep for that portion of the AP exam.

2. What ideas do you have about how a teacher might effectively address the readiness needs of
the students you observed?
I think she did a great job. She was very thorough and made sure everything was clear to
the students. She also made extra sure to support and encourage Student 3’s
understanding.

3. In what ways did the teacher work to make the content and activities link to student interests?
She made sure to relate example topics for possible argumentative essays to pop culture
and things that would be familiar to teenagers.

4. What ideas do you have about other ways in which a teacher might tap into student interests at
some point during the unit that you observed briefly?
She could have maybe grouped students and had them take a stance on something of their
choice and create a sort of mock argument.

5. In what ways did the teacher work to address varied student preferences for how to learn?
It was very discussion-based so there wasn’t a bunch of differentiation.
 Womack 19
6. What other ways can you think of to give students a range of ways to learn in this class, both
when the teacher is presenting and when the student is the worker?
Incorporating visual, audio, and hands-on learning would help cater to different students.

7. In what ways do you think the learning environment in the classroom encourages and supports
learning for the students you observed?
It’s very open and inviting. The open discussion gives students a platform to speak up
without feeling judged or intimidating.

8. What other ways can you think of to make the learning environment even more encouraging
and supportive of the learning success of the students you observed?
Maybe more effort to gently encourage the quieter students or to bring up topics the
teacher might know specifically interests them.

Appendix C

Planned Beginning, Planned Discussion, and Planned Ending

Observation Worksheet

BEGINNING A LESSON

This observation activity gives you the opportunity to compare what you’ve learned about

beginning a lesson to what you actually see in classrooms.

Directions: Do not use actual names of schools, teachers, administrators, or students when using

this worksheet.

Observer’s Name: Bethany Womack

Date: 10/30/19

Grade Level: 11

Subject: AP English

Class Size: 31
 Womack 20
Background Information: Give a brief general description of the school’s social, economic,

and ethnic makeup.

This class is a fairly large, AP ELA class of juniors. The class is fairly engaged and

participatory, and the students seem to have a good repertoire with the teacher. There

are a couple of students who are uninterested and disengage, but for the most part,

there is active learning taking place among most of the students. There are 11 females

and 29 males. There is 1 male student with an IEP, and 8 GT students. The 1 student

with the IEP requires no differentiation for content (per the teacher) but does require

differentiation in discipline and interaction. The school is a public high school located in

the downtown area of a small town. It is a Title 1 school which means students qualify

for free and reduced lunch. The socio-economic standing of the students ranges from

low to middle-class. There is a 19% total minority enrollment and 47% economically

disadvantaged enrollment out of the 1,933 students enrolled.

What to Record: While observing teachers in action, pay attention to those times in the

instructional process when the teacher introduces a new lesson. Use the following format to

record what the teacher says to get students ready for that lesson.

1. How are the students made aware that the lesson is beginning? There is usually a bellringer

on the projector

2. How are the students motivated to become involved in the lesson? She is very engaging and

relates to them through being casual

3. What frame of reference is provided to help students organize their learning? The bellringer

has set instructions to follow or a prompt to answer

 Womack 21
4. How does the teacher make use of students’ prior knowledge as it relates to the new material

to be learned? The content always builds and she always refers to previous lessons to check

for retention

Reflections on Your Observation: Compare what you’ve seen the teacher do in beginning a

lesson with the steps advocated by this chapter’s author. In what ways are they similar and

different? In your judgment, was the lesson beginning effective? Why or why not?

She opens the lesson with a planned discussion in the form of going over bellringer

responses and possible answers. The students are usually asked to write something to either

turn in or keep in their binder. I think this is an effective start to a lesson because the

bellringer is structured and measurable.

Observation Worksheet

PLANNED DISCUSSION

This observation activity gives you the opportunity to identify student behaviors that reflect their

ability to engage in effective classroom discussion.

Directions: Do not use actual names of schools, teachers, administrators, or students when using

this worksheet.

Observer’s Name: Bethany Womack

Date: 10/30/19

Grade Level: 11

Subject: AP English

Class Size: 31
 Womack 22
Background Information: Give a brief general description of the school’s social, economic, and

ethnic makeup.

This class is a fairly large, AP ELA class of juniors. The class is fairly engaged and

participatory, and the students seem to have a good repertoire with the teacher. There are

a couple of students who are uninterested and disengage, but for the most part, there is

active learning taking place among most of the students. There are 11 females and 29

males. There is 1 male student with an IEP, and 8 GT students. The 1 student with the IEP

requires no differentiation for content (per the teacher) but does require differentiation in

discipline and interaction. The school is a public high school located in the downtown area

of a small town. It is a Title 1 school which means students qualify for free and reduced

lunch. The socio-economic standing of the students ranges from low to middle-class. There

is a 19% total minority enrollment and 47% economically disadvantaged enrollment out of

the 1,933 students enrolled.

What to Record: You will be observing student behaviors reflecting their ability to engage in

effective discussion. Use the following format to record what the students do during discussion.

1. How do students demonstrate their respect for others? They don’t talk over the teacher or

one another and allow everyone to express themselves

2. In what ways are students maintaining an open mind? By not shooting down anyone’s ideas

and hearing one another out

3. In what ways are students demonstrating their willingness to accept responsibility for getting

the task done? They were on task and diligently working for the entirety of the group

discussion.
 Womack 23
4. What evidence is there that students are trying to reach a consensus? . There is a lot of

collaboration and modification of answers based on what they learn from one another.

5. How do students demonstrate their ability to stay focused on the issues? They don’t stray off

topic in discussion.

6. What evidence is there that students are thinking about the issues being discussed? Their

conversation revolves around the issue at hand

7. How do students demonstrate their ability to work cooperatively? By doing so without any

issues or fights

Reflections on Your Observation:

1. Summarize your general impressions about the students’ ability to engage in effective

discussion.

Students are generally able to engage in discussion in a respectful, productive

manner. They are on task, they don’t interrupt for the most part, and they are

respectful to the teacher and to each other.

2. If you had been leading the discussion, what changes would you have made? Why?

I would just make sure that every student got a chance to speak as opposed to

allowing a couple of students to dominate the discussion.

Observation Worksheet

ENDING A LESSON

This observation activity gives you the opportunity to compare what you’ve learned about

ending a lesson to what you actually see in classrooms.

 Womack 24
Directions: Do not use actual names of schools, teachers, administrators, or students when using

this worksheet.

Observer’s Name: Bethany Womack

Date: 10/30/19

Grade Level: 11

Subject: AP English

Class Size: 31

Background Information: Give a brief general description of the school’s social, economic, and

ethnic makeup.

This class is a fairly large, AP ELA class of juniors. The class is fairly engaged and

participatory, and the students seem to have a good repertoire with the teacher. There are

a couple of students who are uninterested and disengage, but for the most part, there is

active learning taking place among most of the students. There are 11 females and 29

males. There is 1 male student with an IEP, and 8 GT students. The 1 student with the IEP

requires no differentiation for content (per the teacher) but does require differentiation in

discipline and interaction. The school is a public high school located in the downtown area

of a small town. It is a Title 1 school which means students qualify for free and reduced

lunch. The socio-economic standing of the students ranges from low to middle-class. There

is a 19% total minority enrollment and 47% economically disadvantaged enrollment out of

the 1,933 students enrolled.

What to Record: While observing teachers in action, pay attention to those times in the

instructional process when the teacher is ending a lesson. Use the following format to record

what the teacher says and does to bring the lesson to a close.
 Womack 25
1. How are students made aware that the lesson is ending? Generally there is a period of time

where the teacher will ask if the students have any final questions

2. In what ways are students helped to organize or consolidate what they have learned? There is

a formative assessment to gage learning

3. In what ways is student learning reinforced? The willingness and ability to re-teach

anything that may be needed.

Reflections on Your Observation:

1. In your judgment, was the lesson ending effective? Why or why not?

Yes. The students were aware of the ending and understood that they could present

any questions they may need to.

2. Think of at least one other way that the lesson could have been ended and describe that

ending.

She could have done an exit slip and had the students hand them in on their way out

the door

Appendix D

Readiness Data

Readiness Data
Observation Worksheet
 Womack 26
Previously, you identified 3 students to write a very brief description on as learners. In addition,

you took notes on whatever you thought affected the learning of your three target students and

reflected on the teacher’s attempts to actively address varied learner needs.

For this observation, you need to pick one of the three students to be the sole participant in your

case study and begin to gather readiness data. The readiness data that needs to be pulled must

focus on the four different types of data we discussed in class. I listed each one below in separate

boxes.

Achievement Level Knowledge Base

This student’s reading and writing This student has been on the advanced

achievement and scores are consistent with academic track for the majority of his

those of the other students and, in a lot of academic career. His knowledge has been

cases, higher. built on a strong foundation of advanced

courses, and he is college-ready despite his

IEP.

Intellect Level of Effort

The student is extremely intellectual and This student puts in an enormous level of

even though he has an IEP, his differentiation effort. He is constantly engaged and cares

has nothing to do with academics. He is on about doing well in the class. His IEP, I

believe, has some to do with his fixation.

 Womack 27

the exact same level as his peers in the AP While he does put in a lot of effort, he also

English class. struggles with any deviation from the norm.

Reflection on data: Analyze the overall readiness data, and write 2-4 paragraphs explaining

what the data shows you about this student. What is their “backstory” and current “story” on

academic achievement?

This student has grown up with an IEP. Therefore, he has had to struggle a little bit to

integrate himself into the classroom. His IEP requires him to have emotional and situational

differentiation. The differentiation comes in the form of sitting him around peers who are good at

interacting with him, navigating how to approach class discussions with him, and things of that

sort. Sometimes he can get upset and fixated on things, but academically, he is extremely

accomplished.

The student is extremely dedicated to the content and participation in class. He exhibits

high levels of understanding and is generally on the same level as his peers. His reading and

writing scores are consistent with those of the other students and, in some cases, even higher. He

is on track to do extremely well in the class and to be college ready.

Appendix E

Higher-Order Questions
 Womack 28

(Observation Worksheet)

FOCUS ON HIGHER-ORDER QUESTIONS

Given the rapid pace of classroom dialogue, capturing the level of a teacher’s question can be

quite challenging. Here is an approach that will help you analyze the teacher’s use (or nonuse) of

higher-order questions.

Directions: Do not use actual names of schools, teachers, administrators, or students when using

this worksheet.

Observer’s Name: Bethany Womack

Date: 11/13/19

Grade Level: 11

Subject: AP English III

Class Size: 31

Background Information: Give a brief general description of the school’s social, economic,

and ethnic makeup.

This class is a fairly large, AP ELA class of juniors. The class is fairly engaged and

participatory, and the students seem to have a good repertoire with the teacher. There are

a couple of students who are uninterested and disengage, but for the most part, there is

active learning taking place among most of the students. There are 11 females and 29

males. There is 1 male student with an IEP, and 8 GT students. The 1 student with the IEP

requires no differentiation for content (per the teacher) but does require differentiation in

discipline and interaction. The school is a public high school located in the downtown area

of a small town. It is a Title 1 school which means students qualify for free and reduced
 Womack 29
lunch. The socio-economic standing of the students ranges from low to middle-class. There

is a 19% total minority enrollment and 47% economically disadvantaged enrollment out of

the 1,933 students enrolled.

What to Record: Write down each question asked in class for later analysis. After the

observation, assess each question in terms of Bloom’s Taxonomy to determine which of the six

cognitive levels most appropriately describes the cognitive demand of each question. Some

questions may be related to class procedures or other nonacademic areas, so you may want to

create a seventh category called “Other” for these noninstructional questions.

1: What is your level of comfort with writing a thesis statement?

2: Re-tell in your own words what the definition of a thesis statement is

3:

4: What are the parts of a synthesis essay?

5: Create your own thesis statement after examining the sources we are working with

6: How would you decide the best pieces of information to pull from the sources we are

using for the synthesis essay?

7 (other):

Reflections on Your Observation:

1. How are the teacher’s questions distributed across Bloom’s Taxonomy?

They are pretty evenly distributed

2. Are some levels underutilized or not used at all? Are some categories overused?

There aren’t any in category #3

3. Although no one has defined an “ideal” distribution, as a result of this observation, what are

some factors that you think are important in using the different levels of the Taxonomy?
 Womack 30
I think that the questions should be evenly distributed throughout the levels of Taxonomy

in order to provide different kinds of thinking questions

Appendix F

Equality of Distribution of Teacher’s Questions

Observation Worksheet

EQUALITY OF DISTRIBUTION OF TEACHER’S QUESTIONS

Directions: Do not use actual names of schools, teachers, administrators, or students when using

this worksheet.

Observer’s Name: Bethany Womack

Date: 11/13/19

Grade Level: 11

Subject: AP English III

Class Size: 31

Background Information: Give a brief general description of the school’s social, economic, and

ethnic makeup.

This class is a fairly large, AP ELA class of juniors. The class is fairly engaged and

participatory, and the students seem to have a good repertoire with the teacher. There are

a couple of students who are uninterested and disengage, but for the most part, there is

active learning taking place among most of the students. There are 11 females and 29

males. There is 1 male student with an IEP, and 8 GT students. The 1 student with the IEP

requires no differentiation for content (per the teacher) but does require differentiation in
 Womack 31
discipline and interaction. The school is a public high school located in the downtown area

of a small town. It is a Title 1 school which means students qualify for free and reduced

lunch. The socio-economic standing of the students ranges from low to middle-class. There

is a 19% total minority enrollment and 47% economically disadvantaged enrollment out of

the 1,933 students enrolled.

Measure Response Opportunities

What to Record:

Student 1: TI, SI

Student 2: SI

Student 3: SI

Student 4: TI, TI, SI

Student 5:

Student 6: TI, TI

Student 7: SI, TI, TI, TI

Student 8:

Student 9: TI

Student 10:

Student 11: SI

Student 12:

Student 13:

Student 14: TI

Student 15:

Student 16:
 Womack 32
Student 17:

Student 18: SI, TI, TI

Student 19: TI

Student 20: TI

Student 21: SI

Student 22:

Student 23: TI

Student 24: TI, SI

Student 25: SI, SI, SI

Student 26: TI

Student 27: TI, SI

Student 28: SI, SI

Student 29:

Student 30: TI, TI

Student 31:

Reflections on Your Observation:

1. The teacher honestly tends to call on the same students repeatedly as you can see by my

recordings above. This is mostly because these students tend to be the ones who are most

involved and engaged on a daily basis.

2. Do these highly participatory students fit into any special group? (For example, did they sit in

a specific location or did they belong to a particular racial, ethnic, or gender group?)

The highly participatory students tend to be in the front. I think they should be more

dispersed throughout the class in order to hopefully encourage more participation.

 Womack 33
3. Were any students left out entirely? Can you suggest any reasons to explain why these

students did not participate?

A few students were left out completely. I believe it is because these students want

absolutely nothing to do with participating at all.

4. Can you offer any suggestions for getting them involved?

Sit these students near students who are engaged and enthusiastic. Have them work in

groups to hopefully grow their comfort with participating.

5. What other conclusions can you draw from your observation data? N/A

Appendix G

Wait Time and Teacher Reactions

Observation Worksheet

WAIT TIME AND TEACHER REACTIONS

Effective questioning in the classroom depends on a number of factors, including the length of

the teacher’s wait time and the specificity of the teacher’s reactions. In this activity, you will

have several opportunities to investigate these critical variables.

Directions: Do not use actual names of schools, teachers, administrators, or students when using

this worksheet.

Observer’s Name: Bethany Womack

Date: 11/13/19

Grade Level: 11

Subject: AP English III

Class Size: 31
 Womack 34
Background Information: Give a brief general description of the school’s social, economic, and

ethnic makeup.

This class is a fairly large, AP ELA class of juniors. The class is fairly engaged and

participatory, and the students seem to have a good repertoire with the teacher. There are

a couple of students who are uninterested and disengage, but for the most part, there is

active learning taking place among most of the students. There are 11 females and 29

males. There is 1 male student with an IEP, and 8 GT students. The 1 student with the IEP

requires no differentiation for content (per the teacher) but does require differentiation in

discipline and interaction. The school is a public high school located in the downtown area

of a small town. It is a Title 1 school which means students qualify for free and reduced

lunch. The socio-economic standing of the students ranges from low to middle-class. There

is a 19% total minority enrollment and 47% economically disadvantaged enrollment out of

the 1,933 students enrolled.

Wait Time

What to Record: Determining a teacher’s wait time requires little more than some patience, a

watch that can measure seconds (or the ability to count seconds), and an ear that can hear silence.

Remember, the wait time is silent time, without rephrasing of questions or any other verbal

interruption. After the teacher has asked a question, simply write down the number “1” if the

student receives a wait time of a second or less. If longer, write down the number that represents

how many seconds long each wait time lasts.

Teacher Reactions

What to Record:
 Womack 35
Literally every single reaction was praise/affirmation. She is very encouraging but a

healthy dose of constructive, kind criticism and guidance is also needed.

Reflections on Your Observation:

1. How long is this teacher’s typical wait time? About a minute

2. How many times did the teacher wait longer than three seconds? Almost every time

3. Do you believe that a longer wait time would be useful in this class? Yes, it would put more

responsibility on the students

4. What percentage of teacher reactions went to each of the four categories? 0%

5. What conclusions can you draw from that distribution? She needs to vary her responses to

the student responses

6. Considering your observation data, were student-initiated questions encouraged? How? They

were encouraged, yes, just because most of her reactions were affirming and made students

feel comfortable asking questions.