Teaching+Cases

**Teaching Cases.....My responses**

//__ Jaques and Alex __//
===//Jacques was a senior in my 4th period chemistry course. He kept up with his work and was doing a pretty good job in class. On the weekend that fell 2 months before graduation, Jacques had the misfortune of getting into a fight and ended up being beaten so badly that he was hospitalized for 3 weeks time. He was in critical condition and was placed on a respirator. Needless to say, the least of Jacques worries was chemistry. As it turns out, one of the students who beat Jacques was a student named Alex in my period 4 Chemistry class. The same class! When Jacques returned to school to meet with me and to get "missing work", charges were filed against Alex and as a result, a restraining order was placed on Alex. I was ordered by our building police officer not to allow Alex in the chemistry room for the rest of the year. And, I was ordered by Jacques doctor to allow him to miss the remainder of the year because he would be undergoing reconstructive maxilofacial surgery. Both of these students have the right to receive an education even though they can not physically be in my chemistry classroom. That means they are held to the same standards, yet the conditions for their learning are much different than "typical".// ===

===This would be a very difficult situation for the teacher. If it were me, I would first meet with the principal to find out what the school policy might be in a situation like this. I would assume that in this situation the teacher would have to prepare a syllabus for each student that laid out each of their assignments and when they would be due. I would then probably set up individual meetings with both the students, their parent(s) and the principal to establish good communication so that every one is clear on the responsibilities of each party. It would also be a great idea to set up some sort of communication through the internet (e-mail or wikispaces), since neither of the students can be on school grounds. This would make the teacher's job much easier, so that they don't have to run around gathering all the assignments every week. Perhaps once a week the teacher could meet with each student to clarify any of their questions and go through a lab situation, as completing the science labs would be the most difficult part about not being in the classroom. Another option that might help the situation is to appoint a other students from each class to meet with the students individually each week and help tutor them. ===

//__ Andrew __//
===//On the first day of my 6th period chemistry class one of our school counselors Bruce entered my class with Andrew (student) his advocate Jeff and his mom Sally. I said "hello" to Andrew and noticed right away glazed-over eyes. Andrew couldn't hear me. He was listening to music from his ipod. Bruce began explaining "Andrew has Schizophrenia and is taking psychosomatic "meds" for treatment." His mom chimed in "As you might have noticed, he is under medication as we speak". I held out my hand to Andrew and said "welcome to chemistry". Andrew kind of smiled and looked down. Bruce then spoke "Here is Andrew's IEP (individualized educaion plan)." "There will need to be major modifications made so that Andrew can be successful." Sally said "Andrew might miss your class for weeks or months at a time. It all depends on his meds." "One thing that helps him cope is his music." Bruce and Sally left the room and Jeff commented "I'll come by after school to discuss further". Andrew went over to a desk in the back of the room, sat down, looked blankly at the front of the room. He turned his music up - I could hear it from the front of the room. Shortly thereafter, Andrew had his head on his desk with his eyes closed, a hoodie pulled over his head. He stayed that way until the end of class. The next day of class, Andrew's mom called and explained that Andrew would not be in class for at least the next two weeks and requested that I provide the next two weeks of lessons that he would miss.// ===


===This would be a very difficult situation for the teacher as well as Andrew. My instant reaction is that it's not OK for Andrew to just call in whenever he wants to miss class. I understand that dealing with Schizophrenia can't be easy, but I still don't think that it's OK to miss so much school. The first thing I would do is meet with his parents, the special-ed advisor, and the principal to revise his IEP plan. In the plan I would say that rather than missing weeks of school at a time, Andrew would have to come to school and be accommodated in the special-ed room. I would also ask Andrew what types of music he enjoys to listen to. If the music is appropriate, I might play it certain times of the day in the classroom when I know that Andrew may have a more difficult time (after lunch, PE, etc.) I would also devise a personal plan with Andrew, where every day when he walks in he records a rating of 1-10 of how he feels that morning. Then he would briefly tell me why. Perhaps then I might be able to start to see patterns in his behavior (such as he feels worse when he doesn't get breakfast or enough sleep). I would include a lot of journaling in my class so that Andrew could learn how to express his emotions. Since he seems to enjoy music, I would also begin each day with music meditation using visualization and long-tones on a Buddhist tuning bowl. Because the ipod would probably start to bug me at such high volumes, I would agree with Andrew on a way to appropriately and gradually diminish the amount of time he is allowed to listen to it in class (only so many hours each day/week, only certain hours of the day, etc.) Most importantly, I would keep communication open between me, Andrew, and his parents. ===

//__ Dianna __//
===//Diana from Brazil not speak English. She entered my chemistry class 2 weeks after it started. She was a very successful student in Brazil, and her parents have met with me regarding their expectations that she do well in chemistry. The text used in chemistry is in english, as are all of my resources.// ===

===The first thing I would do in this situation is meet with Diana to find out how she learns best (is she more auditory, visual, kinesthetic?, etc.). Then I would utilize computer programs that are made especially for situations like this. For example, I think there are computer programs where you can enter in text, and the program will translate it fromenglish into spanish. Maybe I would also see if there is another student in the classroom, or perhaps the spanish program, who could help translate any problems that Diana might have with the material during a weekly tutoring session. I think it would be a good idea if Diana learned english in these tutoring sessions as well. Maybe the spanish teacher could also meet with Diana on a weekly basis to make sure she isn't falling behind. I would use lots of visuals in my lessons. When planning each lesson, I would also prepare thoroughly by checking that I can accomodate Diana in all of my lessons. I would be sure to check with Diana frequently to make sure that I can find outside help if she feels like she doesn't understand key concepts. Communication between the teacher, Diana, and the parents is key.=== 

__ Gabriel __
===//Gabriel was a student of mine who was taking one of my online AP Physics courses from the University of California College Prep. (UCCP), Santa Cruz. As per the accreditation for online science courses, it was mandated that the laboratory component be "physical", whereby students manipulated "real" equipment to study physics-related concepts. The students that I would have in the online AP Physics courses would be from all over the country and, in some cases, international. In fact, one of the reasons some of these learners were form all over the country and international was that many had exceptional talents above and beyond the AP Physics courseroom. For example, one learner was training to compete in the winter Olympics as a figure skater, while another was a world renowned pianist. Some students attended schools that did not offer an AP Physics course. And ever since a 1999// [|//class-action equal access suit filed//]  //against the state of California, students are to be guaranteed the right to access college-prep or AP courses, even if their school does not offer such courses. If their school does not provide such programs, it is the district's and/or state's responsibility to provide such opportnunities. Hence, online AP Physics. Now keep in mind the earlier statement that the labs for these courses were to be "physical". This meant that the school that the students attended was to have a mentor to ovversee the proper use, set-up, and safety of the physics lab equipment. Even if the school did not have the equipment, the mentor was expected to get creative and utilize similar supplies such that the lab could be performed. And get creative we did! OK, so Gabriel attended a school that lacked "common" science lab equipment (e.g., voltmeters, ring stands, circuit kits, and so forth). And, he was to complete the AP Physics "physical" labs prescribed for the course. I received a call from Gabe's mentor regarding how the labs were to be completed without the necessary equipment. In essence the majority of the labs could not be completed because the host school did not have the requisite equipment. Technically, Gabe's hosting school (someone other than the Mentor) signed that they had access to all of the necessary equipment, so Gabe was enrolled with UCCP. And, Gabe enrolled 2 weeks after the course began.//===