Field Experience Research Reflection

Erin Kowalevicz // Philippines

June 2016
As part of my travel to the Philippines, I was required to develop a
research question and guiding questions to consider and respond to during
and after my three weeks in the Philippines. As a first grade teacher in a Title
1 school, I work with students who represent a wide range of abilities. In a
typical year, I have English Language Learners who speak English to varying
degrees, students who are identified as gifted and talented, students with
learning disabilities, students with emotional and behavior disorders, and
students above, on and below grade level academically. It can be quite a
challenge to meet each childs unique academic and behavioral needs, and it
often requires collaboration with the childs family and other teachers and
support staff within my school. Prior to travelling to the Philippines, I
wondered whether it was similar in their classrooms whether there were
wide ranges of abilities in each grade level and whether/how teachers
tailored their teaching to meet their students needs. With these thoughts in
mind, I developed the following guiding questions to focus on during my time
abroad:
How do elementary teachers and schools handle the diversity of
childrens skills? Do teachers differentiate instruction (e.g.,
differentiation of content, process, and/or products)? How are children
with special needs (e.g., special education students, gifted & talented
students, speakers of other languages, etc.) taught? How are they
identified? What support/professional development do teachers
receive in this area?
As part of my experience traveling to the Philippines, I was able to visit
several elementary and secondary schools. I spent the majority of my time at

Jose Rizal University (JRU), a K-11 private school located in Mandaluyong.

When our group arrived at our host school, classes had just begun days
earlier for the school year. The fact the children were only a few days into
their school year proved to be a challenge for seeing instruction, as many
classes were just getting into the swing of things and routines and
expectations were just being established. In addition to observing a wide
variety of classrooms, I was able to engage in interviews and casual
conversations with many teachers. I also participated in roundtable
discussions with teachers and administration in elementary and secondary
school settings.
In the schools I visited, all of the classes were heterogeneously mixed. I
talked with both elementary and secondary teachers about differentiating
their instruction. Several secondary teachers said they poll students in order
to find out their interests and strengths and then group them in that manner
at the beginning of the year. Once they got to know their students as
learners, they then adjust the groups in order to best meet their academic
needs. Elementary teachers talked about grouping students according to
their academic level (e.g., soaring group for students above grade level;
lifting group for those on grade level; and growing group for those below
grade level). Instead of having flexible groups that change frequently as in
most elementary schools in the U.S.; these groups were changed only four
times a year and were solely based on a diagnostic test at the beginning of
each quarter. When asked about small group instruction, many teachers said
that was not typically done in their classrooms due to the large size of their
class (often 40 - 50 students) and lack of space. Additionally, there were no
instructional assistants/aides, even in kindergarten.
While this expedition allowed me to directly engage and identify the
similarities between education and students in the Philippines, I found myself
conducting critical analysis on their teaching philosophy and how they
created instructional methods to eliminate prejudices and promote a
culturally responsive classroom. I realize there is an ever-changing demand

placed on teachers that requires students to be adequately prepared to

question their actions and change. This journey illustrated the criticality of a
variety of teaching methods to enhance student understanding; moreover,
collaboration among colleagues to augment our international mindedness.
My personal and professional perspective was expanded and reinforced
profoundly by experiencing Philippine contexts and viewpoints.