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Observation #1

Observation

1.The first impression of the classroom is the walls are covered in student assignments,

tip, and learning material for future or prior lessons. Lighting is ideal for a calming environment

and halfway through class the lights get turned on fully. Things are organized and labeled

accordingly. Grades are posted on the back wall and updated monthly. There are 7 tables of six or

less. Students have enough space to work, theres textbooks, laptops, and iPads for all students.

Ms. Gergel keeps all old assignments in the cabinet per quarter.

2. Student make-up is completely diverse. We don’t see a majority or minority. Everyone

seems to be equal culturally. We have a good gender balance as well. Looking at the seating

chart, Ms. Gergel has color coded the students who have ELL, behavior issues, those who are

helpful, and those who have special needs.

3. The only rules posted in the classroom is the Lab Safety rules : Never eat or drink in

the lab, study the procedure before you begin, follow all safety instructions, if you spill any

chemicals, wash off immediately, know the location and proper use of equipment, keep all

materials away from an open flame, thoroughly clean area and hands after completed, report any

accident or injury, no matter how small, to your teacher. All other rules are posted in the Student

Handbook.

4. Ms. Gergel always reminds students of rules and student code of conduct since they

always want to test authority.

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Observation #2

Drawing
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1. The workflow of the space is a bit cramped. Movability in the classroom is a bit tricky

to weave between a sea of desks, chairs, and students. The space is used efficiently for the

amount of objects crammed into the room.

2. The only improvements to the physical arrangement of the room would be less items in

the classroom, less students, less desks, etc.

Observation #3

Instruction

1. The posted daily projects and lessons are given at the beginning of the period, once the

kids settle in. The lesson or project is posted on the white board or projector screen.

2. Some instruction is given in groups, large or small, and also individually; depending

on the project or group of students behavior.

3. Ms. Gergel’s teaching style depends on the students, she can be relaxed, fun, and

commands her authority.

4. Ms. Gergel incorporates learning styles by teaching lessons in different ways, either

hands-on or classics lectures or even individual student research. She also uses metaphors that

the students can relate to and can help solidify the information.

5. The students always seem engaged in the lesson, by asking questions constantly and

most of the classroom chatter relates to the lesson given. There of course are some exceptions

to the “norm”. Some kids just don’t want to participate or want to make Ms. Gergel’s job more

difficult. Ms. Gergel deals with these students efficiently and quickly.
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6. No student is ever isolated from the rest of the class. They can choose to be isolated if

they want to work alone.

7. The lesson transitions are smooth. Ms. Gergel informs the students of fifteen minutes

left to work on their lesson before moving on, then warns them every five minutes until their

time is up. The lesson they worked on had transitions from research, to creating a poster

board, to presenting the information to the class.

8. The effective command is Ms. Gergel yelling, “Class, Class.”, and the students

respond “Yes, Yes.” If the class doesn’t settle she threatens them by saying, “You won’t like it

if I got angry.” Then if some students still act out she calls them by name. She requires eye to

eye contact and pencils down before giving further instruction.

9. Behavioral problems consist of: constant talking between students, shouting out, fake

hall passes, horseplay, physical affection among students, stolen technology, not remaining

seated before the bell rings, etc.

10.With this school Ms. Gergel is not really restricted by policies producers. She has a lot

of freedoms to run her instructional time how she wants to.

Observation #4

Culture

Physical Characteristics

1. The school is very clean. The classrooms and most lockers are inside the building’s

halls. The middle of the school is an open courtyard with the halls surround it. The

gymnasium and library are at the far left end of the school with security gates to go in and out
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of. The halls are busy during class switches and lunch, as well as before and after school. The

teachers and one security guard monitor the halls, courtyard, and around the perimeter outside

before and after school. The outside road safety is present with lights, signs, and a gate to the

parking lot.

2. There is only one or two security guards on campus that walk around the interior and

exterior of the school. The halls and classrooms are carpeted and the walls are decorated with

student assignments. The fluorescent lighting is efficient. Bathrooms are available in each hall,

sometimes two. All doors are locked and require a key, except the admin, deans office, and

hallways. There is zero graffiti and kept clean at all times.

Culture Of The School

1. Mission: Students are the priority at Escobedo Middle School. Our efforts to encourage

individual talents and dreams are reflected in our classrooms, programs, and actions.

Motto: Sikhona: We are here now because of you. The word Sikhona comes from the

tribes of Northern Natal in South Africa. In the same way, our staff at Escobedo is here because

of you, our students, parents, and community.

Mascot: Bulldog, or paw print.

2. Students interact with the students they know and most always say “Hi” and take the

time to talk to staff if they are asked. The main office is cautious with all visitors. They make

sure to always check ID’s and take your picture for your visitors badge. If you are not on a pre

approved list you cannot retrieve a child or be on school grounds past the office. All staff are a

bit frazzled but friendly to visitors.

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3. Students tend to gather in classrooms or by the halls. Time between classes seem to be

just enough to get to class without extra time to mess around. When students do gather, they

tend to be loud and showoff to visitors with misbehavior.

4. The school is organized by numbers and symbols. Each hallway’s symbol represents a

different academic subject; Science, music, art, math, etc. Numbers are on the hallway door

entrance as well to see which hall has your classroom. If your class is 809 you’ll find it in the

800 hallway. Library and gym are at the front far left of the school, and the health office, main

office, and dean’s office are all at the front entrance of the school.

5. Trophies, awards, and achievements are all displayed along the hallways, main office,

and in the gymnasium entrance. The Administrative office also holds a plaque of names of

people and companies that have made contributions to the school.

Culture Of The Classroom

1. Ms. Gergels expectations vary for each class.The accelerated classes gain more

lenience and the classes that pose a challenge are kept busier and have to require more

restrictions. Ms. Gergel wants all students to succeed and takes the extra time for those who

need it.

2. Each class is different and typical. We have the class clowns, who always have

something to say, the quiet and shy ones, and those who rotate on participation. Every day is a

gamble.

3. Ms. Gergel does well to connect with the students. She commands, not demands,

control of the classroom. She gives students the chance to do what they want and distribute
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consequences when needed, sometimes individually, sometimes the whole class. The students

tend to work well together.

Observation #5

Teacher Interview:

1. What was the primary reason you became a teacher?

I became a teacher because I only had two teachers that I felt had my best interest in mind when I

was growing up and I felt that kids needed more advocates in education. My grandfather had

been an educator for over 40 years and I had spent a lot of time in his classroom and it just called

to me, as cheesy as that sounds.

2.What are the main challenges you face as a teacher?

The main challenges I face are having buy-in from students and having enough support from

administration, whether that means financially or in terms of training and time to collaborate

with my peers.

3. What is the best part of being a teacher?

The moment when a kid finally gets something that they have been struggling with is the best!

The ah-ha moments make the job completely worth it! I love when a kid is excited about science

because of something they did in my class.

4. How do you determine where students sit in class?

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I actually spend a lot of time on this. The first thing I do is look at my list of students that have

IEPs. I place them in the best possible areas. Then, I place my ELL students and students with

504s or vision issues. The next thing I do is take my very strong learners and place them next to

my struggling students so they can work as peers. I place any other kids and then I look over the

entire chart to find kids that maybe shouldn't sit near each other and then I move them around if

needed. The proper seating chart can make or break your class.

5. How do you select members of any flexible groups?

Generally I let kids choose their own groups, unless it’s the beginning of the year and I don't

know who works well together yet. If it's a group that I need to choose, I give them a card with a

number on it depending on how many groups I need and then I make them find either members

with the same numbers or to make a group that has one of each number to shake it up.

Additionally, sometimes I will ask them a multiple choice question (Usually from a Page-Keeley

Probe) and they will sort themselves based on what answer they choose from the question.

6.How often do you interact with parents in person? (or at all) What are main reasons for

interactions with parents?

I interact with parents in person when my committee plans parents and pastries events, usually

once a quarter. I also have parent-teacher conferences sporadically throughout the year, which

are scheduled through the counselors office. Some weeks I can have as many as three, sometimes

I go a couple of months without one. The main reasons for meeting with parents are for grade or

behavior concerns.
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7. How much grading do you complete on a daily/weekly basis?

I don't spend as much time grading as typical teachers, since I have a phenomenal student aide

this year that does a lot of my grading for me. I probably spend two hours a week on grading.

Years that don't provide me with a great student aide, I probably spend more like four hours a

week. I tend to do things that are either easily graded by students or are projects that have rubrics

to follow.

8. How long does it take to prepare lessons for the day/week?

It depends on the topic. We got new standards this year and half of them are new and half of

them are topics I have taught before. If the topic is something I have taught before, My lesson

plans for the week usually take about an hour. This includes finding all of my supplies and

having copies made. If it is a topic I have not taught before or am not completely comfortable

with, it might take around four to 6 hours to plan. I try to plan in 3-4 week chunks, or entire units

at a time so that I have a week of planning, and then a week of grading...that way I don't go

crazy. I also change my lesson plans as the day progresses when I teach lessons, so I like to sit

down at the end of the day or week and edit my lesson plans so that the next year I remember

what things worked, what things didn't, and what things should be tried differently.

9. What procedures or strategies do you use to maximize instructional time?

I have table folders for each of my classes where they turn in work and I keep it in there after I

grade it so I never lose time in handing work back. I also have a basket that is kept in
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chronological order with extra copies so that if a student is absent, they don't waste time asking

me what they missed, they just check the basket. I try to be extremely organized with my

supplies so that I can find things easily and so can students. I keep a table-set of textbooks on

each table so students don't have to go back and forth to a bookshelf. I also make students choose

one person from each table to get supplies so they are picked up in a more timely manner as

well.

10. What positive reinforcements have you used successfully? What behavioral consequences

seem most effective with this age group?

Candy works surprisingly well with 8th graders! Also, they love stickers, which I never would

have believed unless I saw it. Generally letting them use an electronic device is my best tool.

Whether its telling them we will play a game on Kahoot or another platform or telling them we

were going to play a game and we might not get to works almost every time. Telling them if they

are good for a time-frame and then they can work with a partner works well, too. I try to get to

know my kids and their interests, so I can modify my lessons to be interesting to them so I don't

have a lot of behavior issues. The most effective tool I have is calling their parents. If I even say,

"Do I need to stop and call parents?" They tend to get back on task.

11. How are specialist teachers involved in your instructional planning and process?

At my current school they are not, as least I have never seen them involved in the science

department. At former schools I have worked with, they worked on lesson plans and even helped
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teach new ideas with us. It really depends on how your administration chooses to use

instructional specialists.

12. How often are you evaluated, and what measurement tool is used by the administration for

determining your teaching performance?

This also depends on your supervisor. I have had administrators that come in all the time, and I

have had administrators that I see once a year in my classroom. My evaluation is once a year,

and they have to have a specific amount of minutes in my classroom to get observations for my

evaluation. Newer teachers require more minutes. I will gladly show you my evaluations if you

want to see the tool they use, Its pretty lengthy to describe

13. What consequences are there if your evaluation is not favorable?

You can get quite a lot of help, especially if you are a union member. I'm honestly not sure what

the consequences are, as I have never asked about that. I do have a colleague this year that comes

into my room from time to time to observe and discuss classroom management because they

were not doing so well on their evaluation. All I know is that administration is required to mentor

you if you are at risk of a poor evaluation.

14. What surprised you most about teaching as a profession?

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There isn't one big thing, but a few little things. I didn't think I would love middle school as

much as I do. I also find it surprising that the atmosphere in the building can change the entire

experience. If you are in a building with support, the entire career becomes less of a job. Finding

the right building is just as important as finding the right subject or grade level. I also find that if

you're not having fun, its on you to figure out how to make it fun, both for your students and for

you.

Observation #6

Student Observation:

The student in Ms. Gergel’s class are working in groups of two, or individually, to

research the Human Genome. The goal is to research and understand the human genome set up

and genetic mutations that can occur. They also are required to find beneficial mutations, how

they happen and what symptoms they cause. They will eventually create a poster board

representing the genetic mutation they have chosen to research. The student I’ve discretely

observed is a young girl in the class. She listened intently to the directions given by Ms. Gergel.

After they were released to start working on their research, she immediately got up to go get a

poster template and an iPad. She quietly sat back down and was surprised and scoffed at a

classmate who asked her what they were supposed to be doing. Then she set out her pencil bag

and the classmate proceeded to ask for a pencil to borrow. Then, she was able to get started on

her research, and answered the questions provided. She worked quietly by herself, taking notes

and writing in different colors for organization, and she outlined her paper to look like the poster

board template. The student shields herself from distractions by plugging her ears and covering
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her eyes to read. She would interact with other students from time to time, laugh and joke or

comment on a debate about the assignment; then she would immediately go back to work. When

she was done with her research she put away her materials and quietly waited to leave class. This

student is extremely organized and seems to learn by simple reading comprehension. Without

seeing her grades she seems to have the study skills to be well prepared for her higher

educations.

Observation #7

This opportunity to engage in this field observation work. I had an amazing time

interacting with the staff and students of Escobedo Middle School. My first impressions were

what I was expecting. Walking into the principal’s office gave me some butterflies, and going to

the classroom filled me with excitement. Once I got into the classroom I felt completely at

home. The students were curious and wanted to know who I was; almost defending their

classroom. The first thing to impress me was the folder technique Ms. Gergel had set out. Each

table, for each period, has their own folder. Inside the folder one side held homework being

turned in to be graded, and the other was material for class projects or tests. I was introduced to

the class, and another teachers’ class for an added bonus during Ms. Gergel’s prep period. When

being introduced, the class was expected to give me even more respect than they do to the staff

and other teachers in the school.

Ms. Gergel does have one of her period as a preparation time instead of a class. During

this time she can choose to do whatever she needs or if the school needs, substitute another

teachers class. We had the opportunity to sub for a class one day and it was filled with sixth
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graders and rock and roll history. It was a fun and different side of teaching that I’m glad to have

experienced.

I got into the classroom during a rigorous time in the curriculum; preparation and

examinations for standardized testing. The students merge classes by grade, and separate testing

dates, times, and alphabetically get divided. The students test for half the day and then resume

their regular classes, or vice versa. I got to see students who are not normally in class together

tackle a project in pairs. The students adjusted well and didn’t seem to mind much of who they

worked with or didn’t. Regular testing is done by Ms. Gergel are held in the computer lab and

each student is on their own computer. This way of testing has a higher chance of students

cheating by looking up answers on the internet, keeping notes on the screen, or looking at each

other’s computers. The students still seem to want to learn at this age and tend to follow the rules

for important grades. After the test on the computer is completed, the students can immediately

review their grade and then work on typing skills.

When I had the opportunity to step into another teachers’ class they played a game where

the students had to guess what the other student was describing without using the actual word.

The students had so much fun with the game, and it could be used to learn vocabulary words in a

light manner.

I also had the opportunity to sit and eat lunch in the teacher’s lounge. The teachers were

from all different dynamics. The older teachers would just sit back and listen to the younger

teachers complain about the school district. Some teachers did not eat in the lounge but their

classroom instead. I feel with Escobedo Middle School, the teachers are trusted and have
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extreme latitude to work with. Another science teacher exclaimed he likes to take his students

outside for some projects.

Leaving the school for the last time I left Ms. Gergel with a gift and a personal letter

expressing my gratitude for her time, wisdom, and honesty. This has fueled my fire even more so

for my future.
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