Teacher Education Internship Program

Lisa Loop, Interim Director

Dr. DeLacy Derin Ganley, Director of Curriculum & Advancement

Dr. Anita P. Quintanar, Director of Student Programs & School Relations

The Ethnography Project

Teacher Education

Claremont Graduate University

Spring/Summer 2006

Who we are –that is, our values, our experiences, and our perspectives–

determines the foundation of our teaching.Ethnographic studies allow the investigator to describe and analyze the practices and beliefs of cultures and communities. The focus is to understand the culture or community from a participant observer perspective that takes into account the insider’s and the outsider’s perspective (modification of D. Mertens, 1998, p. 164). It is guided by the investigator’s “mental models” (Senge, 1990); that is, it is guided by the researcher’s own paradigm and/or theory about the way things are. In ethnography, the researcher must be willing to abandon or modify his/her paradigm when presented with data that does not “fit” his/her original model. Ethnographic studies allow the researcher to observe a complex world in a way so he/she can describe the interrelationships among previously unknown themes and patterns and, in turn, in a way that expands and informs the researcher’s own perspective.

The Guiding Premise of the Ethnography Project:

The Expanding Focus of the 6-Part Ethnography Project

A B C D E F

In this presentation, you will find

GUIDING QUESTIONS

to help you understand the scope and focus of each of the project’s

six sections.

Guiding Questions?Look at the SPIRIT of these questions. They

are meant to give you a sense of the KINDS OF QUESTIONS you should be

seeking to answer in each section. They are

not Q&A prompts meant to be

answered in a paragraph or two.

Part A: Term 1 in TLP I(First Spring/Summer)

A

Term 1’s Focus: Introduction to teaching, including an introduction to lesson plans; classroom management; CA content standards; Education Specialist standards (Level I, mild/moderate); Teacher Performance Expectations & Tasks (TPEs and TPAs); etc.

Part A:Who am I, and why do I want to be a teacher?

What have been my own (and my family’s) attitudes toward school?– How has my background (cultural, linguistic, and socio-economic) influenced my

experiences and success in school? – How has my ability/disability impacted my experiences in school? (And, perhaps, think

about specific teaching styles that seem to strengthen your learning.)– What is/was my family’s attitude toward education? How does/did this impact me?– What specific experiences shaped my perspectives on teaching and learning?– Which teachers had the greatest/least influence on me and why?

Why do I want to be an educator?– What experiences have I had that make me want to be a teacher?– What special talents and character qualities (positive and negative) do I bring to the

profession?– What’s my understanding of the link between social justice and accountability? How do

I define these terms?– How committed am I to positively impacting the academic and social success of my

students?– What contribution do I want to make to the field?

A

Part B: Fall Term in TLP II

A B

Fall Term’s Focus: Instruction that supports academic success for all (with special attention given to strategies for teaching non-native English speakers).

• Struggling students – At least three of the five

students should be students for whom school has been least successful.

• Special needs student (TPA, Task 2)

– At least one of the five students needs to be in a special education program.

• Non-native speakers of English (TPA, Task 2)– Three of the five should have a

primary language other than English.

– At least one should be in the early stages of English language acquisition.

Part B: Who are my students?

To answer this question, interns focus on five specific students.

Q: What if I can’t find five students that meet the suggested criteria?

A: Get as close to the guidelines as possible. Discuss specifics with your Faculty Advisor.

Q: What if some of the five students drop out or are moved from my class?

A: Mobility is an issue, so this may happen. To minimize the chances of not having five students, choose eight students to begin with. If they all stay, you can pick five. If your numbers ultimately drop below five, don’t worry too much. Talk to your advisor about how to make their exodus part of the “story” (and the ethnography).

Student Selection

Q: What about legalities? And privacy? Do we get permission?

A: This is important. Interns need to get written parental permission for each of their ethnography students. Also, to protect identities, interns must use pseudonyms for the students, all school personnel, the school, the district, and the city.

Part B: Guiding Questions1. Who is my student?

– What are my student’s strengths and weaknesses (in and out of the classroom)?– What are my student’s aspirations and dreams? – What are major events that have shaped/influenced my student?– What are my student’s goals for the upcoming year? For the future?

2. What is my student’s academic “story?”– How does my student feel about school? (And what has brought about this attitude?)– To what degree does my student meet CA’s standards? Where is he/she strong?

Weak? (It is best to use multiple indicators to assess this.)– What has been my student’s past experience with school? – When was my student most/least successful in school?– How has my student’s background (cultural, linguistic, and economic) influenced

his/her attitude toward school and his/her future? What about the students ability/disability?

– How is my student influenced by the attitudes of his/her family’s feelings towards school?

3. Given my sense of the student, what is my plan for bringing about academic success?

– Create an action plan. Continually evaluate and reflect upon its effectiveness.

1. Interviews & Field Visits

• Interviews– One-on-one student interviews

– Parent interviews

– Peer Interviews

• Student shadowing

• Home visits

• Neighborhood/community events

• Surveys

3. Observation & Reflection

Data Collection & Sense Making

4. Student Achievement Plans • Custom-made plans that identify

specific academic goals for each student and the specific steps the intern will take to help make these goals a reality. (*VERB-LADEN plans.)

• Student work samples

• Cumulative file information

• Observations of former teachers (collected via interview)

• Attendance/transfer records

• Standardized tests and assessments

2. Scholarly Artifacts & “Footprints”

• Journals

• Anecdote logs

• Dialogue with CGU peers and advisors

• Connecting classroom experiences to academic texts

*Action Verbs(ideal for action plans)

• acknowledges• defines• identifies• measures• qualifies• adds• denotes• illustrates• mentions• questions• advises• describes• improves• models• rationalizes• answers• demonstrates• Influences• moves

• reacts• asks• depicts• inspires• names• recommends• asserts• discourages• interprets• narrates• recognizes• assessed• encourages• interviews• negotiates• reinforces• assists• endorses• introduces

• notifies• rewards• assures• enumerates• justifies• objects• schedules• clarifies• explains• labels• offers• seeks• classifies• evaluates• leads• organizes • shares• collaborates• explores

• learns• outlines• shows• compares• expresses• lectures• persuades• teaches• confirms• features• listens• plans• tells• confronts• focus• lists• predicts• terminates• confuses

• formulate• maintains• promotes• translates• considers• frustrate• mandates• presents• understands• contrasts• furnishes• manipulates• probes• visualizes• critiques• guides• maps• promotes• warns

A B C D E

Spring Term’s Focus: Gaining familiarity with a larger societal framework via analysis of the schools and communities in which the interns work.

Parts C, D, & E: Spring Term in TLP III

1. What is it like to be on my campus? (i.e., physical description of the school & its people).

Part C: What is happening at my school?

2. What school policies & practices shape my school’s culture and/or identity?

3. What are other influences (including district, state and federal policies & practices) that impact my school?

4. What kind of resources & support does my school

have?

1. What is it like to be on my campus?• How can I describe the following so that my reader has a sense of my

school’s physical space and its feel?– The school’s location

– The appearance, maintenance & style of campus and its buildings

– Important campus landmarks (if any)

– My specific physical environment (Are there challenges associated with my classroom?)

• Who are the people on my campus? (And, has this changed over time? If so, why? And, how do people feel about these changes?)

– What is the composition (ethnic? linguistic? economic? gender? religious? political?) of the students? Faculty? Administration? Staff?

– Within each category, are there identifiable camps? How are these groupings signaled?

– How do each of these parties feel about being at the school? How are these attitudes revealed?

• What is the technology situation in my classroom? At the school? In the homes of my students? (These questions should be addressed in ED330/331.)

• What school events have I attended? Describe.

Part C: What is happening at my school?

2. What school policies & practices shape my school’s culture and/or self-identity?• What are the school’s formal/stated and informal/inferred policies?

– Student promotion/retention

– Students assignment into special programs (i.e., bilingual, SDAIE, GATE, Special Education, etc.)

– Teaching programs (i.e., Open court)

– Staff development

• How are decisions made and implemented within the school? – Who sets the agenda? Who doesn’t?

– How are policies developed?

– How are decisions implemented?

• How do different people on campus feel about the school’s policies and practices and how they are generated (Students? Faculty? Administration? Parents?)

Part C: What is happening at my school?

3. Other Influences: What are other influences (including district, state and federal policies & practices) that impact my school?• How do district, state, and federal policies impact the school?

– Standards

– Legislation (like Title I, Individuals with Disabilities, Assistive Technology Act, etc.)

– Assessment/Accountability measures (like NCLB)

– Special initiatives

– Requirements for funding

• Besides policies, what are some other things that impact the school? The administration? The faculty? The staff? The students?

Part C: What is happening at my school?

4. What kind of resources and support does my school have?• What kind of support services are there on campus? Are they utilized?

– For students? (social, academic, career, college guidance, health, etc.)

– For employees?

– For parents?

– For the community?

• Who supports the school? Who does the school turn to help them meet their needs and goals?

– Parents?

– Community leaders?

– Benefactors?

– Corporations?

– Universities?

– Government?

• What are the opposition factors?

Part C: What is happening at my school?

1. What is my community’s history?

– Location

– Settlement history

– Population influxes

– Industry influxes

– Events that shaped the community’s psyche and/or identity

Part D: What is happening in my school’s community?

2. How can I describe the community so my reader has an accurate sense of it?

– Population demographics

– Layout

– Community gathering places, landmarks, & establishments

– Appearance, maintenance, & style

3. What are my community’s resources?

– Social/human/family service organizations & agencies

– Seminal community events

– After school/weekend/summer programs for kids

– Pillars of the community: leaders, religious institutions, businesses, government

4. What are my community’s aspirations and concerns?

– For the present?

– For the future?

5. What community events have I attended?

– How are they representative of the community’s gestalt?

1. Follow-up assessment of student learning & progress: What has the year been like for my student? How has he/she developed/not developed?

• Attendance• Involvement• Student attitude• Progress of student work samples• Pre/Post SAT 9/CAT 6 scores• Progress on standards• Course grades• Goals for the future

2. Assessment of teaching strategies/effectiveness: How was (or wasn’t) your student achievement plan effective?

• Summative analysis of student work. How does the student’s work reflect his/her growth?

• What strategies were most/least effective with each ethnography student?

Part E: Summative Follow-upWhat has the year been like for my five ethnography students?

At the end of the Spring Term, Parts A-E should be complete!

Towards the end of the Spring Term, the interns will write a Preface to their ethnography.

AFTER YOUR FACULTY ADVISOR HAS GIVEN YOUR ETHNOGRAPHY FINAL APPROVAL, you will bind the Preface and Parts A-E. One of the bound copies is kept at CGU. The other is returned to you by the Faculty Advisor.

Part F of the ethnography will be written in your last Summer during TLP IV but will not be included in the bound copy.

In the past, most interns have used a commercial printing place (like Kinko's or King’s Copy) to have their ethnographies spiral bound.

Preface: An Introduction to the Ethnography

The Preface is an author’s note to the reader. It goes before Part A. It is generally short (five pages maximum), and it prepares the reader for the text. It is written from the perspective of the author after he/she has completed his/her manuscript.

Preface: An Introduction to the Ethnography

• Write an introduction to the ethnography so your reader has a sense of what they are about to read.– What did you learn

from your internship?

– What was this project all about? Summarize.

– What did you learn from doing this research?

What is this ethnography all about?• If you didn’t write the

entire ethnography in the past-tense: Address the shifting tenses/perspectives of each part.

• Address the use of pseudonyms.

A B C D E

Part F: Final Summer in TLP IV

Summer Focus: Reflections on lessons learned from practice and scholarship

F

1. Theory & Practice • How does theory help me analyze/understand

what happens in schools?• Do I see any theory “played out” in my

experience or in the experience of my students?• Do any of my experiences provide data that

refutes or discredits a theory?• What is my understanding of schooling?

Teaching and learning? (And has it evolved?)

Part F: How can I make sense of my internship as a scholar practitioner?

2. Your Experiences• What did I learn from working with different kids

and their families?– What impacted my teaching the most?

– What impacted the student/teacher relationship the most? The family/teacher relationship? The school/teacher relationship?

– How did home visits inform my teaching?

4. Vision & Personal Philosophy• How does my school’s mission statement relate to

what is done in my school? • What is my own emerging vision/mission and how

do I hold myself accountable to it?• How do I foresee myself interfacing with CGU’s

vision? What is my emerging understanding of social justice and accountability?

3. Larger social/cultural/political/ economic context & education

• How do larger social/cultural/political/ economic issues impact my students, their families, and schools?

• What are trends in education? (And how do these trends impact teachers & their students?)

• What are dominate themes that relate to education and social change? How do you see these themes played out?

Choose one or more of the following topics. Address in 10-12 pages.

Items General Education interns need to take to their Induction

Plan Coordinator at their employing district:

• Professional Action Plan (from TLP III) -- required

• Part F of Ethnography (the paper from TLP IV) -- required

• Final TPE evaluation (from TLP III) -- highly recommended

A B C D E

A. Self

B. Student’s Academic History

C. School

D. Community

E. Students: Summative Follow Up

F. Reflection: Lessons Learned

B FALL

C, D, E + Preface SPRING

A First Term

F Final Summer

F

0. Preface (written in Spring)

Bound Copy = Preface + Parts A-E

Nitty-gritty Instructions:

Reference Requirements• Be sure to have FIVE REFERENCES (either

paraphrases or direct quotes) per part/section that reference speakers and texts.– Reserve your direct quotes for “gems”—those phrases

that are so good (i.e., so concise, so uniquely worded, so dazzling, etc.) that something would be lost if you paraphrased. If you can say something more clearly or more concisely than the original text, do so!

• Be sure to cite/document according to APA (i.e., in-text attribution, parenthetical citation, and bibliographic entry). See APA handout for specifics.

• Texts you’ve read (whether in Teacher Education or not)

• Speakers • Course packets or

articles

• Student work• Student comments• Adult comments• Accountability data on

your school

References Data

Nitty-gritty Instructions:

References -vs- Data

Nitty-gritty Instructions:

Expectations of Graduate-Level Scholarly Writing

• Graduate scholarly writing…• Is interesting and has a clear purpose

• Uses academic language that is in the active voice and the formal register (instead of slang or colloquialisms in the informal register)

• Uses varied sentence structure (simple, compound, complex) and varied sentence beginnings

• Is well organized with focused, developed paragraphs that are logically ordered

• Is void of grammatical, usage, mechanical, and surface errors.

• Has proper documentation (i.e., APA)

• Interns are encouraged to visit CGU’s writing center (http://www.cgu.edu/pages/798.asp or @ 909/607-2635)

Nitty-gritty Instructions:

Photos• Photos are often a nice addition to the

ethnography.

• Each photo should have its own caption.

• (Written) parental permission is required for youth featured in the photos.

Why do we do

value the

ethnography

project?

Because it is a

great way for

interns to develop

skills and

perspectives.

SELF REFLECTION

COLLABORATIVE WORK

OBSERVATION&

INVESTIGATION

COMMUNICATION

• Students• Parents• Other educators

– Other teachers– Administrators– Counselors– Paraprofessionals

• CGU Peers• CGU Advisors &

Faculty

LISTENING

• Student Performance Indicators – Student work samples– Test scores– “Cumulative file”

information– Past teacher comments

• Policies• Institutional histories• Family & community

context

ANALYSIS

APPRECIATION OF DIVERSITY

UNDERSTANDING WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A SOCIALLY JUST

& ACCOUNTABLE TEACHER

Questions?

Lisa Loop, Interim Director

Dr. DeLacy Derin Ganley, Director of Curriculum & Advancement

Dr. Anita P. Quintanar, Director of Student Programs & School Relations

See your Faculty Advisor!