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TASK 2: Student Needs Analysis

TASK 2: Student Needs Analysis

Andrea LaPlante

WGU

IYT2 – Introduction to Curriculum Theory

Angela Hernandez

December 17, 2020

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TASK 2: Student Needs Analysis
TASK 2: Student Needs Analysis

I am an educator in a suburb of Spokane, Washington. Within my district there are very

established neighborhoods. Many people raised their family and continue to reside in the

community throughout their retirement. In the early 2000’s, there was a steel manufacturing

company that had a two-year union strike, followed by a major reduction in their employment

rate. This has had a residual effect on the school district. The last bond we passed was in 1996,

this only accounted for renovations, and did not include any new construction. Despite having

run many bond elections, the district has been unable to succeed in the last 25 years. Throughout

this time the school district has additionally been under the direction of several less than ideal

super-intendents. Instead of reaching out to repair relationships and build trust, they have

struggled to sustain those necessary relationships in the community. In the last 5 years, we have

begun to see some stability in our school district, and there has been a tremendous effort to gain

the support of community members. In our population break down, only 29% of households

have children. This makes the community outreach even more important, as we seek support

especially in financial matters. Another factor that impacts students, and creates an exceptional

need is that 10-15% of our student population live in a more rural area in our district, and do not

have internet access. Although we are a 1:1 school with MacBook Air laptops, and we have

shifted the majority of our curriculum to digital access, there are students who cannot access the

internet once they leave school.

As I look at the exceptional needs of students in my instructional setting, I have many

students who come from single parent homes, or students who live with someone other than their

parent. I have students who are at age 16 responsible to support themselves financially, so in

addition to attending school, must work a more than part-time job. I have students who are the
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TASK 2: Student Needs Analysis
primary caregiver for younger siblings so that their parents can work to support their families.

While at school, we want to focus on the academic side of things, wanting to ensure that students

are learning, and measuring their growth, so many students are focused on their basic needs.

This at times has created a disconnect with students and has been something I have focused on

throughout my tenure.

Some of the potential challenges that I face in my instructional setting, is the inability for

students to complete work outside of the school day. Without internet access, even though

student have their work at their fingertips, they are unable to do any homework assignments,

which sometimes makes it difficult to continue serving the entire program when they come each

day with varying levels of preparedness. I teach a performing arts class, choir, and another

challenge that I face is having students available for performances outside of the school day. I

have a top-level performance choir that is active in the community and surrounding areas, and it

is challenging to try and balance a students’ family and job responsibilities outside of the school

day. Yet, as a critical piece of the school’s community outreach, it is necessary for me to

achieve some kind of balance.

My own personal philosophy of curriculum is within the premise of PRIDE, Personal

Responsibility for Individual Daily Effort. I believe each student is responsible for the effort

they exhibit during each rehearsal, they must self-regulate not only their behavior, but their

learning. Because I know that not all of my students have access to work on material at home, or

the foundational knowledge to be able to practice independently, my expectation is that the

majority of student learning will happen within my class during the school day. Through this

process, I am able to differentiate my instruction among students. I utilize section leaders who

are at a higher mastery level. I expect more from these students, as I established my philosophy,
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TASK 2: Student Needs Analysis
this is the belief that I hold all students accountable to. In addition to being responsible for

themselves, and their behavior, section leaders are responsible for musical foundational skills,

and guiding their peers throughout the music learning process in sectionals and small group

work. They must develop another level of independent musicianship.

Because I know the majority of student in my classes will not be working on class

material outside of class time, I feel like my philosophy does address the exceptional needs of

the students in my instructional setting. Students are able to not only learn but master the

material in the timeframe that we have to work. I often tell students to “trust the process.” I did

not begin my teaching career with the parameters of students not doing work outside of the

classroom instruction, however, through the last several years, I have developed a process, where

I begin each year by teaching students music fundamentals. Through this process, I also teach

students how to sight-read, and read music as a vocal musician without the aide of an instrument.

Once we have established the fundamentals, I begin to incorporate the music they will be

performing, so they have a practical application of the material they are learning. Throughout

this process, I have found that students don’t necessarily need to spend much time outside of the

class period to achieve an appropriate level of mastery. I do have ninth through twelfth grade

students in each of my classes, so there is a variety of proficiency levels. However, as students

go through the process, each time we focus on the same concepts, more advanced students, are

able to achieve a deeper level of understanding of the material, and their ability to apply it to

their performance. By having students in each grade level in each class, new and beginning

students are able to accelerate their learning and mastery of the material.

My personal philosophy of curriculum most closely aligns with the Social Efficiency

Ideology. Though my vehicle of delivery in music, my intention for students is to leave my class
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TASK 2: Student Needs Analysis
as a better person than when they entered. Through the process of developing the whole child, I

am able to efficiently meet the needs of society. Students are learning to contribute to a whole

bigger than themselves and work tremendously hard in the process. They are learning delayed

gratification, we often work for many weeks to prepare a performance, only to complete that

work in a matter of minutes. Students learn there are so many important things for them to be

involved in and that their work does matter. Through this training, students are becoming

productive members of their society. The skills and procedures that I require in my classroom,

that I can facilitate in the 55 minutes that I see them each day, are skills they will use in their

future homes, and workplaces (Shiro, 4-5).

The exceptional needs that I deal with regularly with my students in their need to come

and be present in the classwork, so they can fulfill their other responsibilities and obligations, go

hand in hand. By creating the curriculum in this manner, students are able to be successful not

only in my classroom, but more responsible in their other classes at school, and their other

responsibilities throughout their lives. Students often sacrifice a shift at work, or time with their

family to be present at our performing obligations, whether that be a school concert performance,

or a community outreach event. As an integral piece of the community outreach within our

school, I regularly emphasize with students that I don’t expect them to become professional

musicians, but I do expect that they will become fine music appreciators. I encourage them to

support the local live performing arts and encourage them to remember the experience they had

in high school, as they graduate, find their careers, and begin raising their own family. I share

regularly with students that I hope they will not only sing to their babies, but that they will

someday encourage their own children to participate in their school music program.
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TASK 2: Student Needs Analysis
I have been in my current position for 13 years, as I have developed and shared this

philosophy with many students, I am beginning to see a shift in my community, where I am

finding more community support because patrons have a regular reminder of the value of what I

am teaching. Each year I have students complete a reflection of the year, and the things they

have learned. As seniors complete the reflection, and evaluate their time in my program, I feel

that community shift in their responses, and their ability to share their own experience of

“trusting the process.”

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TASK 2: Student Needs Analysis
REFERENCES

Schiro, M. S. (2013). Curriculum theory: Conflicting visions and enduring concerns. Los

Angeles, CA: SAGE. Retrieved December 16, 2020, from

https://wgu.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781452272092/recent.