Which additional data did you gather to inform your thinking on the problem?
I realized that I needed to do a little more digging to find out more about why some of my students needs were what they were. I began looking at some of my student’s previous SSTs, their previous report card grades and comments from the previous teacher on their . This data gave me an idea on what strategies, grades and other interventions had already been used with my some of my students. I also noticed that a lot of the data showed some of the same struggles that I saw in the analysis of my own data. Furthermore, I was also able to acknowledge factors, like divorced parents, and parents that work a lot, that are within my sphere of concern, but not within my sphere of influence, that affect how I approach my intervention plan.
After analyzing all data, what do you believe are the root causes of the problem you have identified? Comment on: organizational culture, external factors, organizational structure, student demographics, instruction and preparation, and curriculum.
I have noticed that all of the students in my focus group have various needs and their own root causes. I noticed that for two of my students their divorced parents, and their unstable family life were the root causes to why they are not performing to their full potential. Each student has to remember which day they are going with what parent, which I know really bothers each student because they have shared with me how they miss one parent when they are with the other parent. I have also noticed the inconsistency with the support at home from both parents. They will come to parent conferences, separately, and blame each other for the lack of support one parent provides for the student. I ask the student if their parents help, but they confess that mom or dad are busy working or are tired when they get home they don’t help them with their work. This makes it difficult for them to have a consistent supportive environment outside of school. Another seems to be dealing with parents that are over supportive, and let him get away with not doing his work if he doesn’t feel like doing work. During conferences they told me that they did not for student Y to do homework if he was too tired from sports and other extracurricular activities. My last student’s root cause is more to do with his sense of defeat because he knows he is not performing as well as his classmates. I believe the each student has their very specific root cause, but they all share the same root cause of factors that are outside of my sphere of influence.
The current organizational culture that we have at school easily lends itself at pushing and supporting these students because our school has been working diligently to support students in being positive and proactive through the 7 habits program from Stephen Covey. This program is the backbone of our school’s organizational culture and directly empowers the group of students I have chooses, to believe in themselves and focus on creating goals, and path to getting to those goals. This type of culture creates a strong organizational structure from which my focus group can clearly see exemplary leadership, collaboration, proactiveness, and structured plans that lead to realistic sustainable goals.
My group of students are fortunate to attend school in an area where there is little crime and they can feel safe. Also, there are various opportunities throughout the school year for them to attend community events that support personal growth for each student. We have Art events, an international fair, monthly movie nights, after school programs, and sports that help them build on those collaborative skills. These external factors give my students multiple options to choose from, so that they can build their confidence and self esteem. My students are regular participants of some of these activities, which might indicate that they might have a lot on their plate, or that these activities are supporting them in staying focused. Our school’s demographic indicates that our school is comprised of various groups, but is predominantly white which is at, 56%, and hispanic at 35%. The students in my group are comprise of the same demographics.
Our school believes pushes our students with our instruction, preparation, and our curriculum. We are constantly piloting new and innovative things that will support our students by challenging them through rigorous, engaging and relevant content. My group of students have been exposed to this type of learning for about 3 years, and continue to show their eager predisposition to this type of instruction, preparation and curriculum.
Based on an outcome you would like to attain for the target group, write 1 goal and 2-3 objectives that support that goal. (Create a SMART goal – specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, timely.)
The goal that I would like for my target group to reach is that they will improve their reading comprehension and meet the trimester’s benchmark. My two objectives are: the group will read at a 2.4 or higher by the end of the first trimester of 2015-16 with a fluency of 95 or more words per minute and they will score 80 percent or higher on our weekly reading comprehension assessments.
I hope that by establishing these goals my students are able to feel empowered and ready to push themselves over the next trimesters and in the upcoming grades to meet the reading benchmarks.