Miranda Leas

Cultural Diversity Practicum

Reflection Paper
11/07/2019

I did my culturally diverse practicum in St. John, North Dakota at St. John High School.

The population of St. John is only around 400 people, but many people live on the nearby Turtle

Mountain Indian Reservation or in rural areas out of town. Roughly 75% of the population of St.

John is Native American and 25% of the population is White. There are around 160 students in

high school, 90% of the students are Native American, and 10% of the students are White. The

staff at St. John High School are roughly 75 % Native American and 25% White. Everybody in

high school speaks English as their first language, but some do know some of their Native

American languages. Around 34% of the families on the Turtle Mountain Reservation live below

the poverty level and the unemployment level is higher than average. In comparing St. John

High School to the school I graduated from just 7 miles away, the Native American population is

slightly higher in St. John, but otherwise, most other demographics are the same. I was quite

surprised by how similar St. John was to Rolla, which ended up making this practicum pretty

easy.

The majority of the Native American students are part of the Turtle Mountain Band of

Chippewa Indians. Students also come from the neighboring communities of Rolla, Belcourt,

and Dunseith. Belcourt is home to Turtle Mountain Community High School, which is where the

majority of the Native American students go, but some parents and students prefer a smaller

school for various reasons, which is why St. John has a rapidly growing student population and

has had to add onto their school, which houses grades K-12. Overcrowding was evident in the
classrooms. The physical size of the classrooms suggests that around 12 to 15 students should

fit comfortably, but some of the classes have upwards of 20 students. While this doesn’t

typically seem like a huge number of students to fit in a classroom, it really was evident in this

case. Students would have to sit at countertops which were meant for storage, not students. I

think this negatively impacts both the teacher and the students because the teacher is often

teaching off to the sides of students and students aren’t able to give their full attention or be

comfortable sitting at a space that’s not meant for them.

One of the most surprising things about St. John School that I didn’t realize before going

into my practicum is that everybody gets a free lunch, even the teachers. The school also

provides nearly all of the supplies that the students need including pencils, crayons, notebooks,

and highlighters. The students don’t usually bring their own supplies to each class, as they

expect the teachers to have what they need. Only a handful of students carry around a

backpack that usually only holds a few supplies. Although I think it’s a great thing that students

don’t have to provide their own supplies, it does not prepare them for college or anywhere that

they will be responsible for keeping track of their own supplies and making sure they have what

they need for their day.

In the days of the demand for increased security in schools, I found it surprising that the

school doesn’t lock their doors or require visitors to check-in. As I am originally from the area, I

am aware of the high crime rates that plague the communities in the area, so it was an uneasy

feeling that anybody can walk in or out of the school as they please. Personally, I would feel

safer teaching at a school that has its doors locked during the day, even if I teach in a town that

doesn’t have a whole lot of problems when it comes to crime.

 An eye-opening moment for me came when a freshman student asked me, “Do you get

free food in college?” As I’m an online student, I wasn’t completely sure of an answer to tell

him, so I responded along the lines that I think it’s included in the room and board that he will

have to pay for, but there is financial aid and help that will be available for him. It makes me

wonder if these are limitations that make some high school students think that they might not

be able to go to college. This made me more conscious of some of the financial problems that

face some of the students. They know that food can be a large expense and try to seek out

solutions that will help them keep their food expenses down, whether they are aware of it or

not.

As a business education major, I was surprised when I got to St. John and learned that

they only have two different classes offered in my content area, keyboarding and computer

applications. I figured that by the size of their school, they would have offered many other

classes such as accounting, marketing, and entrepreneurship. I think that business classes are

among some of the most practical and useful classes that can be taught at the high school level.

This makes me worried as maybe a lot of other schools are like this and offer only a limited

selection of these classes. I’m not sure if the reason for offering only two classes was due to

lack of finding a teacher or lack of interest in the classes.

In one of the classes I observed, there was 14 freshman boys and one girl. I watched this

same class with both a male and female teacher in charge. To no surprise, the students

respected the male teacher more. I’ve seen this on countless occasions and have always

wondered why students tend to respect male teachers more. From what I’ve observed, I feel

like the female teachers let the students get away with more disruptive behaviors. These
smaller disruptive behaviors slowly lead to more and more bad behavior. Students will push the

limits and soon be out of control. As a female teacher, I think that it’s important to establish the

sense of authority and define my expectations with students as soon as the year begins and

when first beginning my career at a school. Of course, it’s important to be personable and

approachable, but it’s also essential to show the students that I’m there to teach them and not

to be disrespected.

This experience reaffirmed my desire to teach in a smaller school setting. In my

experiences in observing both at a small and a large school, the atmosphere and school culture

are completely different. I would be comfortable teaching in a culturally diverse setting as I

have lived and went to school in a culturally diverse region. Although this was a fairly short

practicum, it reaffirmed my views in that students are going to be different and come with their

own set of challenges at each and every school. I wouldn’t say that this experience necessarily

expanded my knowledge about the lives of culturally diverse students, but instead a new view

on how to help and be better at being culturally aware of circumstances that may arise.

Cultural diversity can come in many shapes and sizes. Differences in race, ethnicity, age,

ability, language, nationality, sexual orientation, gender, religion, or socioeconomic status all

are ways that people can be different and considered diverse. Unfortunately, some people

think that they are better than others simply because of a difference in their culture. It’s

important for teachers to not be blind by their students’ diversity, but to embrace the

differences they have the pleasure of getting to know and teach. It’s also important for students

to be aware of the differences that make them unique and how to be culturally aware of

different people they come across in their future.