Course Name: SED 5010-200

Name: Karen Bierman

School Visited: Howard Elementary

Grade level(s): 4th/5th split

Instructor: Mrs. Jane Dearth

Date Visited: June 8, 2010 Time: 10:00am to 12:00pm

As I walk up to Howard Elementary School in Dearborn, Michigan, I notice immediately the

outside is very neatly kept and nicely landscaped. The School Secretary, Pam, greets me with a

smile as I sign in. After all, I am not a stranger to this school. My daughter attends first grade and

I run a Girl Scout Troop that meets here every other week.

Today, I will be observing a 4th/ 5th grade split class at Howard Elementary. My goal is to

observe inclusion in this classroom. The teacher, Mrs. Dearth has been teaching at this school for

over ten years. She is a vibrant woman in her late forties, who dresses professionally and keeps

an impeccably tidy classroom. One poster on the wall reads, ”Only positive attitudes allowed

beyond this point.” Another simply states, “Do your best.”

In this classroom there are fourteen girls and twelve boys. Nine students are 4th graders and

the rest are 5th graders. The split in this classroom occurred in February when Dearborn’s school

budget was slashed, and the principal had to combine some classes to compensate for the loss of

three teachers. When I arrived to observe the class I asked Mrs. Dearth if she had any special

needs children in the class. She informed me that she had three gifted learners in the class and a

boy named Christopher, who has Downs Syndrome. The gifted learners and Christopher are

fourth graders. I also noticed that three of the female students cover their heads and Mrs. Dearth

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lets me know that they are Muslim, speak fluent English, and do not need any special help with

their English.

I observed the class during Readers Writers Workshop and the approach to teaching that day

seemed to be questions proposed by Mrs. Dearth in order to get the children to think creatively.

As I watch Christopher, he is very well behaved and engaged in coloring while the class is

discussing what three things they would save forever. On a normal day, Christopher has a

Paraprofessional with him in class. Today the Paraprofessional is absent, so Mrs. Dearth has to

accommodate Christopher without additional help. Mrs. Dearth did include Christopher in the

classroom discussion by asking him some questions and suggesting that he write down and draw

one thing that he would save forever. When he is done, the Mrs. Dearth invites him to share with

the class what he has chosen. I was touched by how enthusiastic, supportive, and accepting the

class acted towards his contribution.

The physical layout of the class consisted of desks arranged in a horseshoe shape, and lots of

students work displayed on the walls. The schedule for the day was written on the board and the

classroom had many books displayed. I observed two additional tables with lots of chairs for

group work. One student was alone at a table because he had been disruptive. This is a typical

solution in Mrs. Dearth’s classroom when a student is having a behavioral problem. I did notice

that when Mrs. Dearth needed full attention of the class she would say,” voices off” or “eyes and

ears” to get the children to listen to her. I asked Mrs. Dearth how she dealt with more serious

behavioral problems and she said that a visit to the principal and or a call home seems to be

effective. I did not observe many opportunities in the two hours that I visited the classroom, for

the students to share and learn to support each other, only when the students shared ideas in the

classroom discussion. Although the class did seem supportive of each other.

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 As I mentioned earlier, a Paraprofessional is usually in the classroom with Christopher to

support the teacher and his learning. Christopher leaves the classroom for special education and

speech therapy for thirty minutes each, twice a week. He is also taken from the class to work

with an occupational therapist and a social worker for thirty minutes each, once a week. The

gifted learners stay in the classroom all day but attend an after school program twice a week.

Mrs. Dearth also challenges them in class by assigning them the same work as the fifth graders

when necessary.

I believe that the mainstreaming/inclusive education process seems to be working well in this

classroom. The teacher accommodated all the students differing academic levels, and the group

seemed to genuinely like and respect Christopher. I think the education of all the students could

be improved by not having so many pull out services for Christopher. It can be disruptive to have

him leave the classroom and also exaggerates his differences by doing so. I do feel that by

segregating the disruptive student to a table away from the class was not helping to build

community within the classroom.

Overall, I feel this site definitely met my needs and goals for the visit. I feel that my presence

may have changed the dynamics a bit and would have liked to somehow watch without them

knowing it. I really liked how Mrs. Dearth incorporated Christopher into the lesson plan and

think that she could have given him more to challenge him from what I saw that day. In my

opinion from what I observed that day, it may not be necessary to have a Paraprofessional with

Christopher every minute in the classroom, because it creates a separation between him and his

classmates.

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 Field Experience Inclusive Schooling Observation Report Grading Rubric

Name: Karen Bierman

Date Submitted: June 18, 2010

Directions: Complete this form as a self-evaluation of your report and attach it to the end of your
report. Select all and then type the number you have scored as your rate.

Very Poor Poor Fair Good Excellent

1 2 3 4 5

ITEM STUDENT’S RATING & COMMENTS Dayna’s RATING & COMMENTS

Summary of your
observations and
interviews 1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
I choose 5

Quality of writing,
communication, and
grammar. 1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
I choose 5

Shows awareness of
readings and class
materials. 1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
I choose 5

COMMENTS: I enjoyed this assignment because I was able to experience a real-life classroom. I
have not yet had the opportunity to do any student teaching so this helped to reveal what actually
happens in the classroom. Although I felt that the classroom I observed appeared to be thriving, I
would have liked to see more group work and opportunities for more non-traditional practices
such as the students guiding the learning. The teacher invited the students to participate, but it
felt like a question and answer period rather than a collaborative learning community. Perhaps if
the teacher would have had the students do this lesson in groups it might have been more
engaging. I also thought that the gifted learners in the class could be grouped with other students
in the class to provide assistance and to build self-confidence.

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