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Madison Nadeau

Professor Beth Evans

EDU 460

January 29, 2024

I will be analyzing the characteristics of the community, district, school, and classroom factors

and point out how these all impact student learning. I will also look at past student assessments, and how

they identify they learn best to also plan and figure out how to accommodate all of these students' needs.

Lastly, I will look at a few students who have 504 plans in place and take note of how that will also

impact my future lesson planning.

Community/District

The community that I am student teaching in had a median household income of $50,827 for

2022 (Cubit, n.d). While the national median income was $74,580 (“Income and wealth in the United

States”, 2023). This shows that the community has a lower median income so the students at the school

may not have as much disposable income compared to other communities in the United States. This will

be kept in mind when determining what supplies students will need to complete assignments outside of

the classroom since a lot of students may not be able to afford some of the supplies that I have at the

school.

The district that I am student teaching at also serves eight schools (“RSU 9 Mt Blue Regional

School District”, n.d). Among the eight schools, 98% of the students are white so students aren’t being

exposed to a lot of diversity (“RSU 9 Mt Blue Regional School District”, n.d). I could help expose

students to more diversity by incorporating information about other cultures in my lessons to help better

their understanding of other cultures that they could face outside of school.

In a survey, 52% of the students in the district also receive free or reduced-price lunch (“RSU 9

Mt Blue Regional School District”, n.d). This survey must’ve been done before the academic year

2022-2023 since the start of that academic year all students are given free lunch and breakfast (Stasburger,
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2023). However this statistic does show that before the year 2022, some families were low-income, so

this further shows that the students in this district come from families with not a lot of resources. This

will be kept in mind when assigning assignments for students to complete outside of the classroom or to

make sure that students have the time inside of school to complete anything that they need to.

School

The school that I have been placed at serves 721 students total with a student-teacher ratio of 14

to 1 (“Mt Blue High School”, n.d.). So class sizes can average around 14 students. This helps show how

many students I will be working with and how to plan lessons and activities to accommodate a class of

that size. With around 14 students I could have enough students doing group and partner work. I also

know that I may not be able to provide one-on-one attention to all of the students in the classroom. So to

accommodate that I will provide enough class time to be able to provide one-on-one help to students who

will need it.

The school also has a minority enrollment of 8%, this further shows how little diversity the

students are exposed to (“Mt Blue High School”, n.d.). This could affect learning because students are

not exposed to many different cultures during their developmental years. To further their comprehension

of diversity, I will incorporate information about other cultures in my lessons and be mindful that a lot of

these students don’t know about many cultures. So if there happens to be a new student who isn’t part of

the majority, I will need to also be aware of classroom behavior that other students could express that

could impact others' learning since they aren’t exposed to many different cultures.

In a previous survey, about 30% of the students in the school had free lunch and 6% of students

had reduced-price lunch (“Mt Blue High School”, n.d.). However, this survey also doesn’t specify the

time that these statistics were taken. But it must’ve been taken before the year 2022 since all students

have had free lunch since then (Stasburger, 2023). But these statistics do show that before the year 2022,

there were a lot of students who came from a home that may not have a lot of disposable income. This

can affect learning in that if they don’t have the needed resources at home to complete assignments, they
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may not be able to fully complete them. So allowing students to complete assignments while at school

where they do have the resources would be the most beneficial for all students.

The school does have a tech center that is integrated into the school so that students can take

classes that give them valuable skills that they can use when they are out of school. A few of the students

that I am teaching are part of this tech center and they recently had their Program Recognition days

(Adminstrator, 2024). This tech center can help some students develop career skills while they are in high

school and potentially experiment with different careers to find which one best fits them. They could also

get a step ahead and learn some skills and have more experience in the field they want to pursue as soon

as they are out of school compared to other students who haven’t had the same experience.

Classroom

The classroom layout has all of the student's desks arranged in a rough U shape facing toward the

front of the room where the teacher's desk faces back toward the students. This can affect students'

learning since all of the students know that the teacher can always see them so they would be more likely

to stay on task and can get their answers answered when they raise their hand.

The students use Google Classroom and can always see what the plan is for the week and each

day. This can help students be prepared for class and be able to know what they might miss if they are

absent during the week. The teacher also projects their laptop when helping students fill in their notes so

students will be able to visually see the material and hear the material at the same time and the students

will have access to the completed notes right after the teacher finishes. This routine can help students

who are either visual or auditory learners and students who may have missed some information while the

notes were being filled out.

Whenever students are being taught something different, they will fill out partially filled-in notes

either with the teacher or by watching a video if they are absent. Then they work on practice problems or

do an activity to further reinforce what they were just taught. After that, they are given a quiz review to

prepare them for the quiz. This is repeated until they are done with the Unit and then they are given a

Unit test review packet to practice problems and given a day to review the material as an entire class,
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either Q&A style or by doing a review activity. Students know about this routine, so they always have an

idea of what to expect when they come into class. This can impact their learning in that if they were to be

absent, they know they will most likely have to complete a packet of some sort and get the notes needed

for that lesson. This routine can also be beneficial for students who thrive with routine and knowing what

they will be doing next class.

The students do know that they have access to classroom materials such as calculators, rulers, and

graph paper whenever they need it. So students don’t have to worry about having to provide this material

on their own if they happen to forget it for class and they will always be able to complete the work that

they need to for that day. They also know that they can ask the teacher for help when needed, such as

during a quiz or test if they aren’t fully understanding what the question is being asked and need extra

assistance to hear what the question is asking and not just reading it.

Student Analysis

The way that the school organizes when students take certain classes has caused a gap in the

majority of the student's learning. There is some content material that students haven’t been exposed to in

over a year or they were never taught, and some of this material is a much needed skill. I will help

improve this by assessing at the beginning of the unit to see what exact skills they do remember and have

retained. Then later go over and reteach material that the majority of the students are missing, so they can

further their understanding and be able to meet the current standards that they need to meet
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During the students' NWEA testing in the past, 19% of the students scored HiAvg, 38% Avg, 31%

LoAvg, and 12% Low. So over half of the students scored well on the NWEA, however, the other half of

the students scored below average. So I will need to keep in mind that some students either don’t do very

well on tests or are missing some fundamental material that hindered their ability to score well on the

NWEA. During lesson planning, I will make sure to go over every possible step in completing problems

and to go slow when teaching new material since some students may need more time to absorb and

practice the material.

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I took a “Getting To Know You” survey of a class on their thoughts on the class that I am student

teaching. About 43% of the students said they didn’t like the content of the class, about 21% were in the

middle and 35% liked the content. This shows me that the majority of the students in the class don’t

particularly like the content that they are being taught. Additionally, about 35% of the students aren’t

motivated to complete the work in the class, 43% are in the middle, and 21% of the students are very

motivated to complete the assignments. This shows me that around half of the students in the class don’t

like the content of the class and aren’t motivated to complete the assignments in said class. Since students

don’t like or are motivated in the class, they could be more likely to not pay attention in class and further

not do well in the class. To improve student engagement, I will incorporate things that students do like

into lessons to increase their engagement and give students choices during lessons, such as picking

between two activities to complete, so they could have a sense of control over what they are learning and

be more likely to be engaged in the activity and to complete the assignment they chose to complete

(Maxwell, 2022).

Nearly 70% of the students have some sort of commitment outside of school, either being in a

sport, having a job, or a mix of both. I will keep this in mind when assigning homework or assignments

outside of the classroom since some students may or may not be able to accomplish everything for most

of the students they have more things going on than just school that they need to worry about.
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Over half of the students say they don’t like using the site they had been using before I started

student teaching there. A lot of this dissatisfaction is coming from wanting to do more in class. I will use

this information by incorporating activities for students to do after completing the notes to help solidify

what I just taught them and also to give them some variety and cater to how they want to be taught.

Nearly half of the students prefer to by themselves, 37% prefer to work with a partner, and the

rest prefer to work in a group. This shows that the majority of the students prefer to either work alone or

with a peer. I will incorporate this when I plan for activities or when students are completing practice

problems. I will always give them an option to either work by themselves or with a partner.
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Students identified which kind of learner they were in the “Getting To Know You” survey too.

41% of the students identified themselves as a visual learner, 23% as an auditory learner, 13% as

read/writing learner, and 23% as kinesthetic learner. Almost half of the students identified as visual

learners, so while going over notes or going over steps in an activity I will always have something

showing to the students they can follow along visually and not have to entirely rely on my voice to know

what is going on. 23% of the students identified as both auditory and kinesthetic learners, so during

lesson planning, whenever I am going over notes or an activity, as I am showing the steps I will

simultaneously explain the steps as I am going along. For the kinesthetic learners, I will incorporate

activities that involve students getting out of their desks and moving around the room so they can get their

bodies moving while learning.

For this particular class, there are 16 students total and there are four students that have a 504 plan

set in place for them. There are a few accommodations that are similar to one another and other

accommodations that are unique to some of the students. Additionally, each student shows a variety of

different engagement levels in class.

Student #1 needs to have frequent check-ins, copies of classroom notes for quizzes, visual

support, extra time to complete assignments, provide a planner, and to prompt to record assignments.
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While planning for lessons I will set time aside in class to be able to check in on every student alongside

this student. I will allow students to use previous notes or review packets to be used during quizzes and

tests since what I am more focused on is whether the students can apply what they have been taught

instead of memorization. I have already planned on providing visual support to all of the students since a

lot of students have identified themselves to be visual learners. I will also allow students to work on

assignments outside of class and be able to come in to finish their work when needed, so there is no time

limit on assignments. The plan for the day will be posted at the beginning of the week for each class, so

everyone will know what is happening and have access to the plan anytime. Additionally, this student has

A’s in all of their classes and they are always eager to learn. Whenever there is a concept they don’t fully

understand they always ask for more problems so they can practice it until they finally feel confident.

Student #2 needs preferential seating to help minimize distractions, frequent check-ins, extra time

to complete assignments, assignments should be quality over quantity, allow breaks to improve focus,

allow the use of fidgets or tools to improve self-regulation, breakdown assignments into manageable

chunks, closely monitor progress, and allow extra “think time” to formulate a response. For the class, I

will allow students to choose where they want to sit and I will only provide certain seating arrangements

if there ends up being a group of students that are distracting others if they are seated together. Similarly,

with the previous student, I will already have allotted time in lessons to be able to check in with all

students. Along with this, I will also be able to monitor all of the students' progress so if they aren’t on

track I will sit with them to see what they are having difficulty with and help them along. While students

are given time to do the assignment, they will have the opportunity to take a break when needed, but I will

monitor students to make sure they aren’t taking a break during the entire class period and that they are

able to get some work done. Fidgets will be allowed in the classroom for all students, as long as they

aren’t distracting other students' learning. As I am going over notes for students to fill in, I will go over it

in chunks and provide a break in between these chunks so students won’t be too overwhelmed and so that

students can have a chance to process what I taught them and be able to figure out if they have any

questions on the material. Then I will move on to the next bit of material. I will also section off
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assignments so that students are utilizing a set of skills in one section and a different set of skills in

another section, and to give only a few problems at a time and for the last few problems, students will

need to use a variety of skills at once. Additionally, this student is an A/B student in all of their classes,

with a B in this class from the first semester. They don’t talk much in class other than to talk to their

peers nearby, either to work on problems or to talk about their day. They don’t outwardly ask for help,

but whenever I am nearby and they happen to have a question, they will ask it.

Student #3 needs to leave five minutes early so they won’t encounter crowded areas in the

hallway. They need to be allowed to leave the classroom when stressed for up to ten minutes. And to

allow preferential seating between the teacher and the student. I have this student during the last period of

the day, so when planning the lesson, I will make sure that the last portion of the class will be spent

working on their own on an assignment, so when this student needs to leave early, they won’t be missing

any vital information. I will try my best to make sure to not create a stressful environment in the

classroom, however, if the student does end up getting stressed for any reason, I will keep in mind that

they have up to ten minutes to decompress. As stated earlier with a different student, students will be

allowed to sit wherever they want until it affects the learning of other students, then in that case, I will

separate those particular students. Additionally, they are an A/B student with an A minus in this class

from the first semester. They keep to themselves mostly and occasionally talk with peers nearby during

group work. However, if they happen to miss a class they will always make sure to get the work that they

need and are always on task during class.

Student #4 needs clear rules and expectations, to modify their workload, clarify instructions, and

provide written instructions. When creating lessons, I will inform students about what they should be

working on and what they can and cannot do, and reiterate these rules and expectations further when

students get distracted. I will make sure that this student can complete the needed material and complete

the problems that I assign, and if they need to be modified in any way, the student and I will have a

conversation about that to figure out what is best for them. As I explain the plan for the day, I will have

the plan on Google Classroom, but I will also provide a step-by-step plan on the board, so if students
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forget what they need to do next, they can read it off the board or Google Classroom. Additionally, this

student mostly has C’s in their class with a C plus in this class from the first semester. They did show

improvement from the first quarter and second quarter going from a D minus to an A minus. From the

previous work they have done, it appears they do know most of the content, however, they have difficulty

answering the questions that are being asked. I will need to closely monitor their work and help point out

what the question is being asked in a worksheet so they can have the opportunity to be able to practice the

skills they need to practice.

Student #5 is passing all of their classes and had an A minus in this class from the first semester.

They don’t talk a lot in class and don’t participate in group discussions much. However, they do appear to

grasp the content of the class and do ask for help when I am nearby if they need it.

Student #6 is passing all of their classes and they did show improvement in this class going from

an F to a B between the first and second quarter. They are one of the few who participate in class

discussions and they raise their hand whenever they need help, not just when I happen to walk by.

Student #7 is passing all of their classes with either an A or a C and had an A minus in this class

from the first semester. They don’t talk much in class other than to one other student next to them. They

are fairly quiet and don’t ask for help too much while working on assignments.

Student #8 is an A/B student with an A in the first semester of this class. They don’t talk during

class discussions but they do talk to a peer next to them to work on problems together and to help one

another out if either of them gets stuck.

Student #9 is passing most of their classes with an A. They did have a C plus in this class in the

first semester. They keep to themselves in class and they rarely ask questions or for help while working

on their assignments. But they do appear to have a current grasp of the content.

Student #10 is an A/B student with an A in this class from the first semester. They are very

motivated in class and occasionally participate in class discussions. They do mostly talk to one other

person in class but whenever they get stuck they always raise their hand for help.
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Student #11 is an A/B student, with a B in this class from the first semester. They only talk to one

other person in class but they both work together to get their work done in class. They both are very quiet

and hardly ask for extra help.

Student #12 has an A in all of their classes including an A minus from this class from the first

semester. This student doesn’t talk much in class either, especially not during class discussions.

However, they are quick to ask questions if they are on a problem that they do not understand.

Student #13 is passing all of their classes with a C in this class from the first semester. They also

keep to themselves during class but occasionally participate in class discussions. They don’t ask for help

in class often but they are always on task working on assignments with a peer.

Student #14 is passing most of their classes and had a C minus in the first semester from this

class. They don’t participate in class discussions but they do talk with their peers nearby. They don’t ask

for help often, only when I happen to be walking around the room.

Student #15 is passing all of their classes with mostly A’s. They had a B plus in this class in the

first semester. They occasionally participate in class discussions and they ask questions whenever I am

nearby. They are always on task and working with a peer on assignments

Student #16 has A’s in nearly all of their classes with a B plus from this class in the first semester.

They don’t talk during class discussions, but they do talk with their peers. They do ask for help when I

am nearby occasionally but they also appear to have an understanding of the content.

Conclusion

When I am planning my future lessons I will make sure to provide the needed supplies in the

classroom for those students who are not able to afford these supplies. Additionally, I won’t have a time

limit on assignments to be completed. Students will be able to complete assignments in and out of the

class to help accommodate students who need this extra time and for those who have outside

commitments from school. Students will also have the option to work on their own, with a partner, or in a

group when doing activities or assignments based on what works best for them and since the class is big

enough to accommodate this. I will also include lots of variety in my lesson plans, such as information
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about other cultures to help expose students to something they don’t see often. I will also include

activities that get students out of their seats for those who learn best while moving. Including a variety of

different activities in the classroom will also improve engagement, additionally with giving them the

choice of activities to do and their seating in the classroom. Lastly, I will always set aside time at the end

of class to provide one-on-one help to students who overall need it. It also helps that the teacher's desk is

facing all of the students, so I will always have the chance to see all of the students and be able to notice

which students who are struggling and provide immediate assistance.

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References

Administrator. (2024, January 7). Foster Tech recognizes students for Outstanding Work - Daily Bulldog.

Daily Bulldog - Franklin County’s First News.

https://dailybulldog.com/features/foster-tech-recognizes-students-for-outstanding-work/

Cubit. (n.d.). Is Farmington the best Maine City for your business?. Maine Demographics.

https://www.maine-demographics.com/farmington-demographics

Income and wealth in the United States: An overview of the latest data. Peter G. Peterson Foundation.

(2023, November 9).

https://www.pgpf.org/blog/2023/11/income-and-wealth-in-the-united-states-an-overview-of-recen

t-data#:~:text=Income%20Levels%20Vary%20Across%20Geography,the%20pandemic%20and%

20subsequent%20recession.

Maxwell, L. (2022, October 10). Giving students choice in the classroom increases engagement.

Edutopia.

https://www.edutopia.org/article/giving-students-choice-classroom-increases-engagement/

Mt Blue High School. US News. (n.d.).

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/maine/districts/regional-school-district-09/

mt-blue-high-school-8922

RSU 9 Mt Blue Regional School District - Maine. DonorsChoose. (n.d.).

https://www.donorschoose.org/schools/maine/rsu-9-mt-blue-regional-school-district/16772#:~:tex

t=RSU%209%20Mt%20Blue%20Regional%20School%20District%20is%20a%20public,224%2

0projects%20funded%20on%20DonorsChoose
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Stasburger, J. (2023, January 9). Maine’s path to Healthy School meals for all. Food Research & Action

Center.

https://frac.org/blog/maines-path-to-healthy-school-meals-for-all#:~:text=The%202022%E2%80

%932023%20school%20year,as%20the%20school%20year%20progresses.