David's Story

As the semester draws to a close, and with just three visits left, I am finishing up the work on my inquiry project in my classroom. I am gathering the data, organizing it, and trying to make sense out of my findings- or decide if they even make sense. I am working specifically on my data analysis and trying to see a pattern or finding that emerges from it. With some help from my advisor, I saw something in my data that I don't know if I would have seen before. I knew that it was there, I just had not pin pointed it as something that had anything to do with my co-intern or I, and the work we had been doing in our placement.

In the past, my placements have been so obvious about the work I have done and the effect I had. I worked to tutor a young girl in kindergarten, and saw her read her first book, when I originally she could not recognize all 26 letters. In another placement, and young girl in danger of failing, passed the second grade above level in reading, because of my work with her in UFLI. These were obvious ways in which I had impacted a student. In this placement, I feel that it has been most beneficial to me, but I have no felt that sense that I have made a huge difference. However, the evidence was just not that obvious.

After going through the data and organizing it, I can see definite marked improvements in every student who we worked with in UFLI. And that was honestly to be expected I thought. The students we were tutoring were generally smart, just lacked motivation. No one who was in danger of being held back, and most of them were actually reading on or above grade level. And we did help these students, and they all are reading above grade level now, and I recognize that as a great thing. 

But the real sense of accomplishment came when my teacher helped me notice David. David is a young boy in my kindergarten class. He has a heart of gold, and is a genuinely sweet and caring child. David lacks focus, and was not excelling in class. He was not in danger of being held back because he was performing at grade level for all evaluations, however his class work was sloppy and he was extremely distracted. He did not display quality work. However, inside, you knew David could do it, he just needed a little attention. He was originally in a reading group with our mentor teacher, along with a few other struggling students. She was applying an intervention method, versus our normal UFLI because these students were reading well below grade level. When I began to implement my positive behavior system with my groups, our teacher decided to do it with certain students as well. David was one. She did not do it religiously or in the same way as I did, but she did it occasionally and when she did she noticed that David was in the wrong group, and really deserved to be in one with Holly or I, he just did not show this side of himself often enough for us to know. So, we made David apart of Holly's group. She implemented the system I had introduced her to, and by the end of their time together David had improved one level. This was not the big results we had seen in other students, but improvement was good in any form. I saw this, checked it off as a good thing, and moved on. When I took a second look at David however, I saw something much more then just a number in my chart.

David's entire attitude has changed since Holly and I began working with him. He is confident in himself and his abilities. He answers questions in class, and actually volunteers to answer. He has been promoted to table captain because he is showing responsibility for himself, his things and his work. He takes his time more often, to ensure that the work he is producing is quality. He has become a role model for other students in his group for what is expected of a good reader. Although his scores have improved in a way that might make him seem like a success story, he absolutely is. And in one of the most amazing ways you could be.

So looking back at this placement, I no longer see the benefit it had for only me as a future teacher. I see the impact that we made. And I can say that I touched a child's life, and that is the feeling that makes me do what I do.