Emily Kriser
Fall 2010
Contextual Factors:
The Community of Saint George:
Population of Saint George:
St. George
Population, 2006 estimate
Population, percent change, April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2006
Population, 2000
Persons under 5 years old, percent, 2000
Persons under 18 years old, percent, 2000
Persons 65 years old and over, percent, 2000
Female persons, percent, 2000
67,614
36.0%
49,663
8.6%
28.4%
19.3%
51.4%
Utah
2,550,063
14.2%
2,233,169
9.4%
32.2%
8.5%
49.9%
The data that is listed above and below on Saint George, UT population, was
taken from the Utah Census website located at http://quickfacts.census.gov. According to
this population table of the Saint George, Utah area, there are a high percentage of people
under that age of 18 years old (28.4%). The population of female persons, shown at
51.4%, makes of more than half of the population here. This increases the number of
children that would be enrolled in school and the chance of students being male or
female.
Population Demographics:
St. George Utah
White persons, percent, 2000 (a)
Black persons, percent, 2000 (a)
American Indian and Alaska Native persons, percent, 2000 (a)
Asian persons, percent, 2000 (a)
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, percent, 2000 (a)
Persons reporting two or more races, percent, 2000
Persons of Hispanic or Latino origin, percent, 2000 (b)
92.3%
0.2%
1.6%
0.6%
0.6%
1.8%
6.7%
89.2%
0.8%
1.3%
1.7%
0.7%
2.1%
9.0%
The community of Saint George has some diversity in its population. The graph
table indicating the city’s demographics shows that the majority of the residents are
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White (92.3%), followed by the Hispanic or Latino race (6.7%), then the American
Indian an Alaska Native people (1.6%), and then some Asian and Native
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander people (0.6%). The Saint George area has a high percentage of
Hispanic and American Indian people in comparison with other areas of Utah. A teacher
could plan to have some representation of each kind of student in his/her classroom.
Language and Education of Saint George, Utah:
St. George Utah
Language other than English spoken at home, pct age 5+, 2000
High school graduates, percent of persons age 25+, 2000
Bachelor's degree or higher, pct of persons age 25+, 2000
9.3%
87.8%
22.0%
12.5%
87.7%
26.1%
This information shows that there are several households that speak a language
other then English. This will definitely increase number and likelihood that teachers will
have ESL students in their classrooms. Therefore, it is essential that teachers are prepared
to instruct all kinds of learners. The other part of this table indicates that most of the
Saint George population has received at least a high school education. There is definitely
room for growth, because the education level is only 87.8%, leaving 12.2% or 311,107
people who do not finish secondary education.
Washington County School District:
The school district has provided a 2010 CRT (Criterion Referenced Test) report
on their website for the public to view. The first part of the report shows how the school
district as a whole is performing in comparison to the entire state of Utah proficiency
levels. This graph shows that in the content area of Language Arts the state of Utah is at
81.0% proficiency and WCSD is at 81.7% proficiency. The district is above the state
proficiency level. In the area of Mathematics, Utah is shown at 69.5% proficiency. The
district is above this level at 73.8% proficiency. The last content area is Science. The
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state of Utah is indicated at 69.7% in comparison to WCSD which is at 74.6%. The
conclusion that can be made from this graphic display is that the Washington District is
above proficiency in all three of these content areas. (www.washk12.org)
Proficiency Percentages over Time:
2006 2007 2008
2009 2010
Language Arts
79%
79%
79% 81% 82%
* Mathematics
75%
74%
75%
70% 74%
Science
70%
69%
70%
70% 75%
* Mathematics scores from 2009 received a new cut score which changed the
scaling and equating. Data from 2009 and on are not comparable to prior years.
This table above is from www.washk12.org. This shows the CRT proficiency
percentages over the last five years for Washington County School District. The district
as a whole has been at the proficient in all three content areas of Language Arts,
Mathematics, and Science, from 2006 to current year 2010.
Total Spending per Pupil Expenditures of Washington County School District
(WSCD): $5, 363
Breakdown by Expenditure:
Instructional: 64 %
Student and Staff Support: 8%
Administration: 9%
Other expenditures: 19%
This table taken from Washington County School District website
www.washk12.org, shows the way that funds are being used in the school district for
each student. The majority of the funds are being put towards the instructional accounts. I
feel that this exactly what should be done to help students succeed in learning and
mastering the standards and content areas that the state of Utah has put in place. The next
area that funds are being used is in other expenditures. This may be for materials and
teacher training. The staff support and administration areas are at about the same
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percentage for spending of funds. This table shows what is currently the priority in the
district is and that is student learning and growth.
Contextual Factors of East Elementary
Number of students at East: 492
School Ethnicity:
1%
White
1%
3%
Hispanic
6%
Asian/Pacific Islander
27%
62%
American
Indian/Alaskan Native
Black
Unspecified
Ethnicity
White, not Hispanic
Hispanic
Asian/Pacific Islander
American Indian/Alaskan
Native
Black, not Hispanic
Unspecified
East Elementary
62%
27%
6%
3%
Utah Average
78%
15%
3%
2%
1%
1%
2%
N/A
East Elementary Characteristics:
There is great diversity at East Elementary, because of the demographics of the
surrounding neighborhoods. East Elementary is located at 453 South 600 East, Saint
George, UT. The school can be found exactly across the street (600 East) from the Dixie
State College Hansen Football Stadium. The ethnicity data in the table above is from the
website www.greatschools.com. There are about four hundred and ninety-two students
that attend East Elementary. There majority of students are white, but there is a big
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representation of Hispanics (27%). The next percentage is of (6%) Asians/Pacific
Islanders, and then the next race that is indicated are American Indians (3%). There are
definitely some socio-economic differences at this school in comparison to others in the
school district. This school has 52% of the students as eligible for free or reduced lunch.
There is a very active PTA at East Elementary and they assist in recess duty, the annual
Book Fair, and activity days after school. East Elementary does a Math Fair and a
Literacy Fair each year for families to come and participate in. There are other Parent
Nights are held individual teacher teams through the school year.
CRT Testing Average for East Elementary:
The CRT scores for East Elementary are very close to the Utah State average.
This table shown above contains data from the Washington County School District
(www.washk12.org). This table indicates the score percentages for 2009-2010. In the
subject area for Science East Elementary was at 50% percent, whereas Utah performed at
an average of 52%. In Language Arts, East Elementary came in at an average of 68% in
comparison to 70% for the state. Last of all, in Mathematics, East Elementary had a score
average of 68% and Utah was at 71%. Overall, East Elementary measures a little below
the state average in every content area.
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Students per Full Time Employed Teachers:
East Elementary Teachers: 22
State Teacher Average: 24
Free or Reduced Lunch: 52%
Utah State Average for Free/Reduced Lunch: 30%
East Elementary is a Title I school in Washington County School District.
The district website states that “Title I is a federal education program under the "No
Child Left Behind Act of 2001". Funds are distributed to high poverty schools, as
determined by the number of students receiving free and reduced lunch, to provide
academic support and learning opportunities for those students in the areas of reading,
language arts, and mathematics. These allocated funds can be used to hire additional
teachers or teaching assistants to provide additional support for the children.” The
information that I found on the website www.greatschools.com, showed that the Utah
State Average for free or reduced lunch is 30%. There is a 22% difference in the need for
lunch assistance at this school.
Classroom Contextual Factors:
Teacher: Mrs. Shauna Marshall Grade: 4 Number of Students: 27
Dates-from 9/22/2010 to 11/4/2010
20
15
Boys
10
Girls
5
0
Class Demographics
Boys: 19
Girls: 8
ELL students: 3 students
This consists of two girls and one boy. There are two at the intermediate level and one
that is advanced.
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Resource: 3 students
Volunteer(s):
A female college student: She comes in and helps students with their math during that
lesson time. Mrs. Hatch is a parent volunteer who comes and helps with multiplication
facts.
________________________________________________________________________
Mrs. Marshall’s classroom is very organized and has a very structured
arrangement. There are twenty-seven students in this class. This consists of nineteen boys
and eight girls. This imbalance makes the seating options very limited. Mrs. Marshall has
a very good arrangement, keeping it in a girl/boy placement. There are three ELL
students that have been tested by the ESL Coordinator in this class. There are two girls
and one boy. One boy and girl are at an intermediate level. The other girl is at an
advanced level. All three ELL go and meet with ESL aides and participate in an English
Learning program called, “Imagine Learning.” These ESL students have been seated by
other students who are either at the same or a little above their own language level. The
three ESL students are pulled out every day at 10:30 for ESL instruction. The ESL
students participate in the content areas of math and science. There are three resource
students that meet Monday-Thursday with a special education teacher. These students are
out of the classroom most of the time because of other instruction that they receive. There
is not very much parent involvement, except for the two volunteers that I have listed
above. This consists of mostly low learners. They struggle in spelling, mathematics, and
language arts. I have been making accommodations in my lessons to help these students
in the learning process. The management plan that is place is a card system that is on one
wall of the room. Students start out on green at the beginning of each day. Students can
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be told to pull their card if they are talking, out of their seat, not on task, throwing
objects, etc. The green card indicates that the student is “doing great”. The next card is
pink and stands for “warning” and the third card is yellow meaning “loose five minutes
of recess”. The fourth card is purple and stands for “loose recess”. The last card is blue
and signifies that the student will be at “in school suspension”. This classroom has
technology materials in it. There is a Smartboard, computer projection, ELMO, and
sound system with microphone.
Second Class for Student Teaching-started 11/5/2010
Teacher: Mr. Brian Eardley Grade: 4th/5th split class
Number of Students: 27
Girls
52%
Boys
48%
Boys
Girls
Mr. Eardley’s class is a fourth/fifth split and consists of twenty-seven
students. He has fourteen girls and thirteen boys. The pie chart above shows the ratio
between the amount of boys versus girls in this class. There are thirteen fourth grade
students and fourteen fifth grade students. When creating the classes during the summer
the school found that there was going to be a large number of fourth grade students for
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the new 2010-2011 year. This class was formed by placing the high level fourth grade
math students in with the fifth graders.
There are not any resource or special education students in this class. There are
two female ESL students that are part of this class. One of these students is at the
advanced level and the second is at the intermediate level. The ESL students have been
tested by the ESL coordinator, and are participating in the “Imagine Learning” computer
program. The students are taught all the same curriculum as the rest of the class. The
intermediate level ESL student is allowed extra time and receives one-on-one help during
work time. There are five students that are pulled out daily for reading instruction at
11:30, Monday through Thursday. They go to reading while the class is doing the
Treasures (Language) small group rotation time. During math time, three students are
pulled out to receive math instruction. There are also two students who receive speech
assistance from the Speech Pathologist. In checking with Mr. Eardley, all students who
are receiving support in reading, speech, math, and ESL are expected to do all the other
work from the regular classroom. Mr. Eardley’s management plan is based on the
expectation that students will be respectful, listen, and complete their work in class
during the time given. If students complete their work and homework at home, then they
are able to participate in “Fabulous Friday”. The classroom does have technology
resources which are used regularly during the instruction time. There is a Smartboard,
ELMO, computer access, sound system and a VCR/DVD player for media presentations.
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