Alexandra Szucs

Harris
EDUC 201
October 3, 2013

Reflective Journal Assignment #1 Race and Ethnicity

Race and ethnicity are often interchanged but they have distinct differences that should
be taken into consideration when discussing the topic. Race refers to the physical characteristics
one possesses. Ethnicity refers to the experiences one has had and cultural traditions in which
one participates as well as the origin of ones family. Race and ethnicity are important in
teaching in particular because students are often struggling with how to define themselves in
society and within their peer group.
When I walk down the halls of Smithland Elementary School, I do not see many things
that portray images of ethnicity or race. There is childrens artwork on the walls, as well as some
sculptures displayed in the cafeteria and auditorium, from every grade. There is one wall in the
stairwell that has globes that children have colored with words in Spanish and in English labeling
the oceans and continents. Self-portraits of some of the grades are hanging in the front hall but it
does not provide the whole schools cultural make-up. There are no blatant things that would be
seen as racist but the lack of expression of multiculturalism is not something that should be
glorified. Oftentimes, people think that being colorblind with regard to race is a good thing.
However, races should be acknowledged but in a positive way by celebrating childrens diverse

backgrounds. The classroom itself lacks almost any multicultural aspects except for the names of
the children on the desks that provide clues to their racial and ethnic backgrounds.
There are many opportunities to observe students in the classroom working together and
separately on class work as well as assessments. One thing I have noticed in the classroom is the
white children always finish the assessments first and have no trouble reading and understanding
the directions by themselves. The last ones to finish are usually the Hispanic children and they
usually require the directions to be reread and paraphrased. During reading group, the children
are split into a more advanced group and a less advanced group. The more advanced group is
primarily white female students and the lower group is mainly Hispanic and African American
children. This could be considered discrimination by parents who are unhappy with the group in
which their child is placed. The children were all tested and placed accordingly in an attempt to
provide each child with the best chance of success.
There are some instances when students bring their ethnicity into the classroom
unknowingly. Sometimes, the Hispanic students will get excited talking between themselves and
begin speaking Spanish because it is more natural. They sometimes will refer to something in
Spanish and apply it to the current topic, relating the two experiences to create a richer learning
environment. Incorporating all students races enriches the learning environment for all the
children in the classroom. They can learn to respect their peers and get an idea of what the real
world is like in the United States. Being able to work and get along with all different types of
people is essential to succeeding.
As a teacher, I hope to incorporate different values and traditions of all my students. I am
interested in learning about the backgrounds of different people and think it is important to foster
a curiosity about things outside ones personal experiences and culture. I want to be the teacher

that is not accused of discrimination, stereotyping, unfair segregation, or any other negative race
related issue. It has always come naturally to me to treat everyone as if they were my biological
brother or sister. We may all be different but we still have to cohabitate and treat others as we
would like to be treated in return. It is important to me to have a multicultural classroom because
no one is inherently better than anyone else. In elementary school, children should not have
preconceived notions of who they should be or what they should do with their life because of
what they look like or where they came from.

Alexandra Szucs
EDUC 201
Harris
October 24, 2013
Reflective Journal #2 Socio-Economic Status
Gollnick describes socio economic status as a familys placement in society based on
income, education, wealth, and power. It is based in part on the prestige given to ones job. It is
also based on the level of educational attainment whether that is a General Education Degree, a
Bachelors Degree, Masters, Doctorate, etc Wealth and income are related but are very
different once they are defined. Wealth is, in short, how much a family is worth. That includes
cars, homes, valuables, and anything that has a monetary value. Income is the total amount of
money a family earns each year.
My placement at Smithland Elementary School is very different from my elementary
school experience. I was in a private Episcopalian school in a suburban area south of Richmond
City. There were people who lived in the country, suburbs, and city but we were all from upper
class white families. We had religion classes, we went to chapel, and we had to do community
service. Smithland is a public school with a huge amount of diversity. The students are from all
different social classes and all different types of family structures. There is no combination of
religion in school, which seems weird to me. The school is much bigger than my elementary
school. We had 40 kids per grade and 2 classes. Our campus also housed our middle school.
Smithland is attached to a middle school but they dont use the same hallways. They have
multiple classes per grade and many more students.
One of the key indicators of the economic make-up of the school is the Fresh Fruit Grant.
This is a grant that provides fresh fruit three times a week as a snack because the students may

not be receiving fruit at home. When I have been there, I have seen kiwis, bananas, blueberries,
and pineapples. Another indicator of a lower economic status was the amount of kids who
bought or received lunch at the school instead of bringing a packed lunch. At the end of the day,
parents were there to pick kids up after school. A majority of the parents were white. This led me
to believe that these were probably parents who are financially stable, or at least enough that
both parents dont work full 9 to 5 jobs because they were able to be there to pick up their kids.
The rest of the kids rode the bus home or went to an afterschool program. Another indicator that
was not as obvious was that of language. Not necessarily the language the student spoke but
rather how the student spoke the language. I picked up on a few kids who seemed to be talking
above their age level in many different ways. Some of the kids were knowledgeable about the
government shutdown and others were quick to correct someones grammar when they spoke
incorrectly.
This knowledge of socioeconomic status can influence teaching in various ways. There
may be an accidental dividing of the class by social class if there is an event that requires
students to buy a ticket or requires them to send in something from home like cupcakes or
cookies. Sometimes a students family cant afford to splurge on something like that. It may also
become apparent if there is a day where one of the parents is supposed to come to class or all the
parents are supposed to chip in money for a class project. By being aware of the economic
differences, teachers may have to opt out of a fun but unfair activity because some students may
not be able to afford to go or participate.
By planning ahead and knowing the demographics of my class, I can attempt to avoid
uncomfortable situations. By using activities that require no cost to the students, such as writing
letters, or making an art project in art class, I can work around financial situations. I can also use

different students in different ways. Some students can sign up to bring in materials for a project
while others assemble it. We can also brainstorm as a class about fundraisers if we need money
for something. In that way, I can teach my students about the value of hard work as well as
donate money to a charity or class event.

Alexandra Szucs
EDUC 201
Harris
October 24, 2013

Reflective Journal #3 - Gender

Gollnick defines gender as the respective characteristics associated with femininity and
masculinity as determined by culture (p. 115). Gender is often confused with sex, which is the
biological make-up of a person to be male or female. Gender is not based upon biological
characteristics but upon societys definition of how makes and females are supposed to behave.
Girls, by societys definition, like pink, dolls, and are fragile. Boys, on the other hand, are rowdy,
violent, and like to play in the dirt. American society pressures everyone to fit into one of these
two categories without any variation between the two.
The ratio of boys to girls on the day I chose to really pay attention to gender related
topics was 9 boys to 10 girls. The teacher in the classroom is also a female. When the teacher
allows the students to find their own partner or pick their own seats, boys always matched with
boys and girls always matched with girls. They also sat divided on the carpet for whole group
reading time. The tendency is for boys to be more rowdy and have their name moved down on
the behavior chart while the girls are more controlled and make up more of the top of the chart.
The 2 in the top category on the chart were both girls and the 4 in the bottom group were made
up of 1 girl and 3 boys. The middle two groups were divided almost exactly girls in the higher
middle and boys in the lower middle. The boys tended to get in fights with each other but the

girls were able to calmly handle disputes between each other. On the playground, on boy got hurt
and a girl was the first to walk over and help him. One could tell he was trying very hard not to
cry in front of her. When I came in, they were finishing up a math test and all the girls already
had their hands raised (signaling they were done) while all the boys were still working and
needed much more time to read through the directions and the problems.
The one thing that really caught my eye was one of the girls tends to be a little bit more
tomboyish. She tends to push the limits harder than a girl typically would and talks back to the
teacher every once in a while. These are things typically associated with male behavior. There is
also a boy who is very timid and is usually the first one to be willing to work with a girl. He
definitely stands out from the very rambunctious group of boys in the classroom. He doesnt
mind much and does not get into as many arguments in the classroom. He tends to be more along
the behavior lines of a typical girl. These two seem to defy the society mandated definition of
boys and girls in a few ways which can seem like a breath of fresh air in a world so dictated by
society.
The teacher seems to do a good job of equally reprimanding boys and girls for talking
even though the boys are much more of a distraction and interruption than the girls intermittent
talking and chatting. When she splits them up into pairs, the boys tend to be very verbal in their
discontent with being paired with a girl. The teacher immediately responds with saying that the
girl is smart or will be a good partner with which to work. She calls on both boys and girls
equally, giving them fair chances to answer questions and show their knowledge. She encourages
them all to do their best and doesnt appear assume that one student will need more time because
of their gender but usually because it has become a trend. She uses the extra time she has to help

them along to make sure they stay with the class. She wants them to work in mixed gender pairs
just as one might in a career.
There are many ways to create a nonsexist classroom. Some people may think that
nonsexist means turning a blind eye to differences in gender but it really means quite the
opposite. Nonsexist education aims to encourage boys and girls to choose whatever path they
want to pursue regardless of societys preconceived ideas about what they should do. One of the
ways to create a nonsexist classroom is to have equal representation of women and men
throughout history in all fields. Some obvious examples would be male nurses or stay at home
dads and female scientists and doctors. Another way is to encourage all students to go to college
and graduate school or to participate in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
career paths. In addition to goals and paths for the future, I can create mixed gender groups in
which to work and imitate the groups in which students may find themselves in the future.
Creating a nonsexist classroom is not easy but it is essential to teach beyond the classroom and
consider what lays ahead for my students.

Alexandra Szucs
EDUC 215/201
Harris
November 14, 2013
Reflection #4: Language

Language is written or spoken speech and is a system that enables people to communicate
with one another and to share their thoughts and ideas with one another. Language is how we
express feelings, share new ideas, learn information, and how we as a society thrive. Language is
one of the most important things that we as humans have. It is what brings us together as a
community. For many of us, our language connects us to our families and friends and is
something that is invaluable that we take for granted. For children who come from other
countries and start school in the United States, it can be very difficult to have to break from their
native language and learn a new language.
Smithland Elementary is located in the Harrisonburg County Public School System. In
Harrisonburg City Schools, the students represent 41 countries and 40 languages. However, it
would be very difficult to cater to all 40 languages. Smithland Elementary is a dual language
school in English and Spanish. All students are at some disadvantage whether they are learning
Spanish or English. There is some English as a second language support for English language
learners but not necessarily instruction in their native language in an English based classroom.
Since Smithland is a dual language school, half of the student body is native Spanish speakers
and the other half of the student body is native English speakers. In the classroom in which I
observe, there is an almost even split between native Spanish speakers and native English

speakers. There might be a slight majority by Spanish speakers but not more than 1 or 2 more
than the English speakers. What I find interesting is that the native Spanish-speaking students
never speak Spanish in the English classroom.
There is no apparent help for student with limited English proficiency. When I asked my
teacher about the support for English language learners, I was told that they do not really offer
much extra support because the native English speakers are also at a disadvantage in classes
taught in Spanish. Unless a child is doing very poorly and requires extra help to pass testing, no
extra support is provided. My teacher does, however, spend a lot of time on vocabulary in all the
subjects. She goes through all the words that students may not know and ensures the whole class
understands the meaning of the word. She uses a lot of repetition and group reading aloud to
make sure that students are getting the ideas being presented and are able to verbalize what they
mean. One technique she uses quite often is reading a little bit of a passage or asking a math
problem and then having the students pair up and share their ideas, thoughts, or answers to the
question. This really gets the students verbalizing what they mean, practicing their English, and
ensuring they understand the material.
Being an elementary ESL teacher is where I truly want to end up in this profession. As a
future ESL teacher, I want to make sure that students never feel ashamed of their native language
and that they feel comfortable in my classroom, knowing that I do not expect them to be perfect
and get everything the first time I go over it. Another important component, in my future
classroom, is that patience will be very advantageous to maintaining my students trust and
getting them to succeed. Not only are they trying to learn the content, they are also trying to learn
a new language that is very confusing. I need to challenge my students just like I would a regular
student but I need to check to see that I am not pushing them too hard to the point where they

believe that it is impossible and they shut down. Checking for understanding is one of the most
important things I could do as a teacher with English language learners to ensure they are not
falling behind in their content classes. Seeing students get it and be able to express themselves
in a new language is one of the most exciting things to experience.

Alexandra Szucs
EDUC 215/201
Harris
November 14, 2013
Reflection #5: Exceptional Children

Exceptional children are children with learning and/or behavioral problems, children with
physical disabilities, or sensory impairments, and children who are intellectually gifted or have
special talents. This is a rough definition and a clear-cut definition would go on for pages. Many
of the categories of children that are able to receive accommodation through some sort of special
education, have ranges like the autism spectrum. It is hard to define exceptional children in a
concise way because of that very fact. Because of these varying ranges, some children may slip
through the cracks and not be diagnosed when they should be. However, many schools try to do
the best they can to provide for all children in the school and for some children, that may not be
taking part in a special education program.
At Smithland Elementary, there is only one special education teacher that must attend to
the needs of every exceptional child in the school. I tried to get in contact with her but as I
assume she is a busy person, I was not able to talk to her by any means. She has a website on
which she posted the two main methods which she uses for support. One is the push in method in
which she goes to the classroom to be with any students in that class that are considered for
Special Education accommodations or help. The other is being available as a resource for anyone
that might need her help at that time. She also has a type of mission statement, which says,
Students with specific academic, functional, or behavioral goals receive support and instruction.

Activities are designed to help each student meet their individual goals.
My teacher is not allowed to tell me specifics but she has one student who is in the
Special Education program. She receives no one on one support for the student but the Special
Education teacher stops in after school to get a brief report on the progress of the student. One
way that the Special Education teacher handles student who have behavioral issues is with a
chart that gets filled out by every teacher and that determines whether time is taken away at
recess or other consequences are given. The same general idea is given to students with attention
disorders. If they stay on task, they get good marks and have no consequences. If they get bad
marks, however, there is some type of punishment. In all the ways my teacher described, the
student has to take some responsibility in getting the sheet signed or keeping track of their
records. It gets the student personally involved in making the right decisions and learning how to
correct or control their behavior and the way they learn.
In my future classroom, one of the key things to remember is to be flexible and willing to
work with extra teachers including, but not limited to, special education teachers, ESL teachers,
previous teachers, and anyone else who is directly linked to the students success in school.
Another important point to keep in mind is that exceptional children are different but not worse
than regular school children. No matter how off topic or distracted they may get or how much
longer it may take them to understand a concept or how quickly they may get a new idea and be
bored, all children deserve my best effort in giving them the best education they can possibly
receive. It may try my patience in having a wide range of children in my class but I am required
to give it my best shot for each and every child. It is important to include every student in order
to be able to say that I am a culturally responsive teacher.