The demographics of Whiteaker Middle School in 2006-2007 are as follows. There were 38 teachers and 791 students. That’s a ratio of 21 students per teacher. There are around 250 students per grades, which range from 6th-8th grade. The ethnic groups are 75.5% white, 10.4% Latino, 2.0% Asian, 1.3% black, and 1.1% Native American.
The school extracurricular activities like choir, band, and sports which could cost or does cost extra money. Most students don’t have a problem with school extracurricular activities costing money. The school just got brand new lockers this year and even though the school was built in 1966 the school looks clean and not as old as it is. To me this means they keep up on the maintenance.
When walking through the halls and in the classroom most students are white and the way they are dressed I can tell most come from middle to upper class households’. This might mean that some students don’t understand poverty and might make fun of people who smell or don’t dress a nice as they do.
I will not tolerate any teasing in my class and if I ever hear teasing that has to do with what a student doesn’t have I will make sure to spend time in class discussing this issue. An issue with me is that it might be hard for some students to understand and some might never, but I will try my hardest and make a point how it is not okay to tease and give reasons why in a way they can understand.
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It certainly is important to be aware of any bullying going on in your school, as that can be quite common in a middle school. The percents you list for the ethnicity of your students only adds up to 90%, so somewhere there are 10% more students! I appreciate your sensitivity to income issues. How do you know that most students don't have a problem with money? What thoughts do you have about the cultures that are represented at your school? Also, I didn't hear anything about the support staff at your school. Be sure to comment on who is available and how that influences your thinking about your teaching.
ReplyDeleteI think it's interesting to hear the difference between your school and mine. At yours, the majority is white, whereas at mine the majority is Hispanic. My school has a uniform dress code so even though practically everyone qualifies for free or reduced lunches, you can't tell the level of poverty by their dress because they are wearing clothes sold by the school. I can see how you might find social rejection by the rich kids at your school and I like your resolve to not allow that.
ReplyDeleteI think that it is so important to give reasons as to why bullying is not okay. Any time we can instrinically motivate kids to do the right thing, we should.
ReplyDeleteDid you get any info on what kinds of specialists are available at the school? I'd be interested to know how many language specialists, etc...there are.
Another thing to think about is exposing your students to different cultures. I'm in a similar environment for my practicum, and I really want to try to help my students appreciate and respect other belief and behavior systems.