Context

Although I will be teaching more than one Spanish II class, the class that I will teach
consistently is second hour, which is composed of 21 students from 9th-12th grade, so their ages
range from 14 to 18. There are 12 girls and 9 boys, and there are 3 African-American students
and 18 Caucasian students, all of which come from an American cultural background and whose
native language is English. According to Mr. Mockabee, socio-economic backgrounds of the
students vary, so that a student from a very low socio-economic background may sit next to
another student from a very high socio-economic background. In regards to attention, four or five
students have short attention spans, so they may be easily distracted or have trouble focusing.
One student suffered a concussion last semester, and that has had effects on her learning.
Another student likes to draw while she learns but she is also a good student, so it would be good
to make sure that she is looking at visuals that are essential to learning in class. As for memory,
motor, spatial and sequential ordering, and higher order thinking range of abilities, none of them
lack these abilities, at least to the knowledge of Mr. Mockabee. In regards to special needs, one
student is hyperactive and may speak out in class at times, while in third hour, there are two
students who have been diagnosed with attention deficit disorder (ADD). Like the socioeconomic backgrounds of the students, the social systems of peers and family and the moral,
spiritual, and faith development of the students consist of a wide range. Students may have two
parents, a single parent, divorced parents, etc. And students may be strong in their faith, may be
unsure of their faith, or may not be Christian. As for unique qualities about this group of learners,
this is the group that is most like a homeroom. For instance, they attend chapel and also do
school wide activities such as fundraising as a class together, so they may be closer in terms of
their relationships with each other and with Mr. Mockabee, compared to first and third hour.

Additionally, second hour is the highest functioning class; they have the highest class average at
91.3%, compared to 88.0% of first hour and 91.2% of third hour.
The classroom does not have specific rules but follows the general rules of the school
such as not using a cellphone during class and not eating in class in order to preserve the carpet.
Instead of focusing on rules, Mr. Mockabee emphasizes relationships with his students and
creating a comfortable environment for learning. Thus, the most important rule that he has is that
everyone respects each other, especially because the Spanish II class is composed of students
from all four grades so he expects students to treat each other well regardless of grade level. The
general routine is that the teacher checks and goes over the homework with the class and then
they do various learning activities for the rest of the period until they receive the homework for
the next day; these learning activities are typically learning new vocabulary with powerpoints,
taking notes on grammar, and playing educational games. Additionally, the first class of the day
always begins with a devotion and prayer and then starts learning Spanish. In terms of physical
arrangements, students sit at tables in groups of four around the room, giving the teacher plenty
of space to move around the room. As for equipment, there are three projectors, a document
camera, Apple TV, and MacBooks for the students and the teacher.
Grand Rapids Christian High School is a private Christian high school for 9th to 12th
graders. Although the school does not have recent socioeconomic statistics available, Mr.
Mockabee and I talked with the person in charge of lunch, and she told us that 78 students
receive free lunches and 34 students receive reduced lunches. In total, 112 out of the 910
students this 2015-2016 school year receive free or reduced lunches. So, there really is a range of
socioeconomic backgrounds represented in GRCHS; it is not a school composed of just middle
class and higher. In terms of diversity, it is estimated that 25-30% of GRCHSs students are

students of color. In the school year of 2012-2013, the student body of 924 students was
composed of 711 whites, 134 African Americans, 54 Asians, 23 Hispanics, and 2 Native
Americans. According to the data from the National Center for Education Statistics (2012), the
student/teacher ratio was 18.1 in the school year of 2011-2012.
As for Spanish, there are two tracks that students can take: regular and multi-sensory.
Regular Spanish classes range from Spanish I to Spanish IV, and there is no AP Spanish class.
However, next year, they are starting dual enrollment with Calvin College, so they will be using
the syllabus, textbooks, and assessments of Calvins Spanish 301 class, which is one semester,
and making it into a one-year class. Students who take this class will then be able to receive
college credit for it, if they also pay Calvin. As for the multisensory track, these classes are for
students who are struggling in regular Spanish classes, and many of these students are AfricanAmerican. The multi-sensory classes are much slower than the regular Spanish classes, so
students in these classes do not learn as much grammar or vocabulary as students in a regular
class do. The multisensory track lasts for two years, whereas the regular track lasts up to four
years.
In regards to curriculum standards, the Spanish department bases their standards on the
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language (ACTFL) standards and Michigan
World Language standards. They do not have a published list of standards, but they have
essential learning targets, which are the most important skills or concepts that each department
determines. The Spanish department also does not use a textbook series, because they found that
all of the Spanish textbooks that they had used previously were lacking in some significant way.
So, a few years ago, the Spanish teachers began creating their own curriculum over the summer,

and year by year, they worked on the curriculum for each level in Spanish until they finished
Spanish IVs. Therefore, they teach with their own material and curriculum.
Students are mainly from the region, rather than the city of Grand Rapids. The majority
of students come from the cities north and east of Grand Rapids such as Lowell, Rockford, and
Cascade, but there are also students who come from cities south and west of Grand Rapids such
as Kentwood, Byron Center, and Grandville. In general, most of the families from these cities are
middle class, but there are also students who come from Grand Rapids and who live in poverty.
At GRCHS, they have a support base for students who struggle academically, and this is called
Educational Support Services. Students who have a diagnosed learning disability are placed in
the program and given a tutor that helps them all throughout high school. Some of the students in
the program do not have a diagnosed disability, but they are still given extra support. As for
learning opportunities closeby to the school, students who are residents of Grand Rapids have
access to many books, DVDs, and CDs from the Grand Rapids Public Library, which is about 15
minutes away from the school by car. Other possible learning opportunities are museums, such
as the Grand Rapids Public Museum and Gerald R. Ford museum, which are both close to the
Grand Rapids Public Library.