PHED 239 Module 4: High School

Site Observation/Teaching ssisting ssign!ent

Due one da" a#ter the observation
Directions: Read and become familiar with the questions below $E%O&E the
observation. Submit answers to the questions on a separate sheet (word-
processed/double-spaced). Points will be deducted for grammar, spelling and
punctuation mistaes. Total ' 3( )ts*
+nclude the #ollo,ing general bac-ground in#or!ation:
!ame of high school
!ame of cooperating teacher(s)
"rade level of students
!umber of students in class observed
#escription of facilities $ equipment available at school
.uestions:
%. #escribe how students interacted with each other, teachers, and/or
administrators.
&. 'hat characteristics of a high school student did (ou witness) "ive
e*amples.
+. 'hat rules, routines, and management techniques are used b( (our
cooperating teacher(s))
,. 'hat units are the students participating in during this time of (ear) -ow do
the teachers determine what units the students will be involved in) -ow long are
the units)
.. /n( discipline issues) 0f so, how were the( handled) 'hat is the teacher1s
discipline polic()
2. 'hat are the average class si3es) -ow are classes divided (i.e. b( grade
level, sill level, etc))
4. 'hat is/are (our biggest concern(s) about teaching at the high school level)
5. 'hat are (ou most looing forward to in regards to teaching at the high school
level)
$ac-ground +n#or!ation:
/gawam -igh School
6s. 6urra(
"rades 7-%&
&, students were in the class
/gawam -igh School had two g(ms, a weight room, and a giant outdoor
field at their disposal. 8he main g(m was split into two with a giant curtain
dividing them. 8he second g(m was a smaller si3ed g(m that was located
in the bac. 9ne negative aspect about the smaller g(m was that the( had
a giant net hanging from the ceiling that would cause some problems if
pla(ing a game that involves hitting a ball in the air (volle(ball, badminton).
8he weight room was located directl( behind the smaller g(m and the
outdoor field was right outside the doors in the weight room. 0 reali3ed that
equipment was not going to be a problem at /gawam -igh School. 8he
unit the( were in was floor hoce( and ever( student had their own stic,
there was enough goals, balls to use, and gloves for the goalies to have.
Scattered throughout all the g(ms on the side were also poles used for
volle(ball and basetball hoops hanging from the ceiling. 0n the weight
room the( had treadmills, bies, medicine balls, free weights, and
machines. 8he( also had an equipment shed outside that can be used for
when (ou1re doing activities outdoors.
%. 9verall the students were e*tremel( well behaved and had no discipline
issues from what 0 saw. /ll of the students interacted and respected each
other ver( well. :or the most part (ou saw that man( of the students had
groups or cliques that the( would mostl( tal to or associate with. 8he
students also interacted reall( well with all of the teachers. 0 saw man(
students high fiving 6s. 6urra( or one of the teachers. 6s. 6urra( also
told us that the classes we were able to observe were probabl( their best
behaved classes. /s for interacting with administrators, 0 was unable to
witness that.
&. 9ne characteristic that 0 saw of high school students was the males being
e*tremel( competitive while most of the female students weren1t
competitive. :or e*ample, the class had a choice between pla(ing floor
hoce( or going in the weight room and doing a wellness unit. 0 onl( saw
three girls sta( to pla( floor hoce( and the rest of the girls went to the
weight room and rode the stationar( bies or ran on the treadmills.
/nother characteristic 0 noticed was that some students ;ust looed a lot
more ph(sicall( mature than other students. 9ne bo( had a beard and
was ver( muscular while one of his teammates was e*tremel( small and
sinn(.
+. 8here was an abundant amount of rules, routines, and management
techniques that were used b( all the teachers. 9ne routine that was
evident right off the bat was that after all the students were changed the(
got into four lines and each line had a captain and the captains lead the
warm-up with ;umping ;acs, pushups, and situps. /nother routine was
following ever( floor hoce( game the team captain would report the score
of their game to one of the teachers. / couple rules of the class were no
;ewelr(, must have proper shoes, and proper clothing. 6anagement
techniques used b( the teachers were having all the equipment set up and
read( to go prior to class, having students neatl( organi3e all the
equipment at the end of the lesson, and giving students adequate time to
change before and after the lesson.
,. 8he units that the students are participating in now are a floor hoce( unit
and a wellness unit. 8he teachers determine what units the students will
be involved in b( giving them choice. :or e*ample, students who want to
part of a competitive unit would chose floor hoce( and students who are
more rela*ed and want to participate in a noncompetitive unit would
choose wellness. "iving the students a choice allows them to feel
comfortable in their own sin. <ach unit lasts around , wees or so.
.. :or the lesson that 0 observed there were no noticeable discipline issues,
but the teachers did tal to us about their grading polic(. 0t was on a scale
of %-, , four being the best. /ll students were graded on this scale
ever(da(. 8he( told us that if a student is caught participating with an(
;ewelr( on the( are given a three for the da(. 0f a student is on a field trip
for the da( the( ;ust write :8 for that da(.
2. 8he average class si3e seemed to be around += students or so. 8he
classes were divided b( what unit (ou wanted to participate in. <ach class
was mi*ed with grade level and sill level.
4. 6( biggest concern about teaching at the high school level is being able to
command respect from all of the students and being able to discipline
them properl(. /nother concern of mine would definitel( be the wa( 0 tal
to them. Since the last module 0 was in was indergarten to second grade
01m used to treating all of the students lie children when this time 0 have to
treat them more lie adults.
5. 8he one thing 01m most looing forward to in teaching at the high school
level is being able to teach the students more advanced sills and
strategies that can help them in game pla( and activities.