Final Case Study

Final Case Study

Natalie McDonald
Calvin College
Final Case Study
Case Study Part I:
Buchanan Elementary School is a member of the Grand Rapids
Public School District, serving students from Pre-Kindergarten through
Grade 5. Located in the Burton Heights neighborhood, Buchanan
teaches a diverse community of learners. Of the 558 students at
Buchanan, 506 are Hispanic, 30 are African American, 9 are White, 3
are American Indian/Alaskan, and 10 identify with two or more races
(Search for Public Schools). Buchanan embraces its diverse community
of learners and provides many opportunities for students to express
their culture. According to Nieto and Bode, schools should be viewing
students cultural background as a strength on which education can
draw and build. Pedagogy should be changing to incorporate students
lives. Individual differences must be taken into account in teaching and
education should meet the child where they are (Nieto & Bode, 1992).
This is exactly the kind of education Buchanan is practicing.
According to the Grand Rapids Public School Website, Our
classroom teachers, resource teachers, Bilingual Support teacher,
school nurse, school psychologist, school social worker, and speech
teacher convene regularly to provide support for students that are

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struggling with academics, behavior, or personal issues (Buchanan

Elementary School). The staff at Buchanan works together and is in
close communication to ensure that learners are being supported at
school.
Buchanan provides many opportunities to involve parents in their
childs education. Parents are invited to events such as Muffins with
Mom and Donuts with Dad, where they can interact with their learner
in the school environment. There are also events that showcase
students learning. For instance, Buchanan offers a night where
students writing pieces are put on display in the hallways of the school
for parents to come and view their students work. Opportunities such
as these exemplify Bronfenbrenners model of the interaction between
the self, home and school in regards to establishing a strong
associations of the microsystem (What is Bronfenbrenners Ecological
Systems Theory?).
At Buchanan students feel a sense of belonging in their
community. Teachers explicitly prioritize the values that Buchanan
hopes to instill in their students. Each morning students recite the
school Pledge. I am a Buchanan Little Red Hawk. I will take
responsibility for my own learning and behavior. Today I will think for
myself. I will gain knowledge and skills to be successful. I believe I can
achieve, so I will! The pledge is significant because it is a daily
reminder of the hopes the school has for its learners.

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I observed Mrs. Js first grade classroom. There are 19 students in

her class, with 11 boys and 8 girls. The learner I observed is Tamara
Brown. She is an African American, first grade student in Mrs. Js
classroom. Tamara lives with her mom, who is a single parent. Tamara
is well liked by her classmates and teacher. She has an eagerness for
learning, always piping into class discussions and sharing her ideas for
the class. Tamara is in no way shy. She is energetic and excited to be at
school with her teacher and friends. Tamara is extremely kind and
enjoys being helpful in any way she can. She is also very encouraging
toward her classmates, and always has a positive perspective. Even
when she is being corrected or reprimanded, she responds politely and
makes her wrongs right. For example, during one of my observation
periods her classmate Derek confronted her about an issue he had with
her regarding the way she was doing her work. Tamara was quick to
apologize to Derek and corrected her behavior.
Case Study Part II:
In Case Study Part II I analyzed Tamaras neurodevelopmental
strengths and weaknesses by considering work samples and my
observations of Tamara in the classroom. Work samples I observed
include spelling tests, worksheets, and writing samples from her
journal. According to SAKM, For educators, a students written
production can provide great insight into their learning profile,
presenting cues to the weak functions that might be derailing the

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desired outcomes (Barringer, Pohlman & Robinson, 2010). I was able

to make objective observations and analysis by considering the context
of Tamaras classroom and her background as a learner.
Tamara has a considerable strength in social cognition. She
collaborates well with her peers and is always a good friend to her
classmates. For example, each morning students take turns doing an
activity on the iPad but they ran out of time. One of Tamaras
classmates, Danielle, was very distressed that she didnt get a turn.
Tamara quickly walked over to her and reassured her that she would
get a turn next time. Tamara also has strength in topic maintenance
and knowing what to talk about when. When she contributes to class
discussion, which is often, she is on topic and can clearly communicate
what she wants to say. Tamara is well liked by her peers and teacher
and has done a great job of self-marketing. She is always wiling to help
out and is not afraid to speak up and share her thoughts or feelings.
Based on my observations of Tamara, I believe she has a
weakness in attention, specifically the function of facilitation and
inhibition. Facilitation and inhibition refers to the ability to use time
wisely by focusing on the task at hand and remaining engaged in that
task in order to complete it in an appropriate amount of time
(Sevensma, 2016a). Tamara typically moves through her work very
slowly and is one of the last students to complete assignments. I know
she recognizes this because during one discussion I had with her she

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said, Im always the last to finish my work. This means she often has
to miss the beginning of recess to catch up on assignments. She takes
her time on her work, but to the point that does more harm than good.
Other things going on in the classroom do tend to distract her, but it is
mainly her slow speed that causes her to get behind.
Tamara has both strengths and weaknesses in language. She has
strengths in verbal and written expressive language involving syntax
and semantics. Syntax is the unit of language at the sentence or
clause level (Sevensma, 2016b). I have observed this in writing
samples where she creates sentences that convey meaning and
complete thoughts. Semantics is the level of language concerned with
word meanings (Sevensma, 2016b). In an activity that involved
matching pictures with the correct written description, Tamara
matched all of the questions correctly.
Tamara has weaknesses in both receptive and expressive
language involving phonemes. Phonemes are the smallest unit of
language or sound and are involved in sounding out words and spelling
(Sevensma, 2016b). Tamara consistently performs poorly on her
weekly spelling tests, getting 50% most weeks. Spelling is highly
dependent on ability to sound out words. Tamara struggles in reading.
According to her teacher she is significantly below the reading level of
her peers. Reading also involves the ability to sound out words in order
to sound them out.

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Tamara struggles with her fine motor skills, specifically

graphomotor function. She has made a habit of writing the letter s, b,
and d backwards. Even when she is corrected and directed to focus on
the letters as she writes them she still writes them backwards. In an
activity practicing pluralizing words, Tamara was so focused on the
pattern of pluralizing that her ability to write letters with the correct
orientation was impaired. She did a great job of pluralizing and even
came up with a rhyme to remember the rule. She would say, get rid of
the y, add i, and add ed. Even with continuous reminders to focus on
forming the letters she continue to write them backwards. According to
SAKM, Expressive language and graphomotor function work together
like a computer and a printera shaky connection can lead to
problems getting words, sentences, and passages down on the
page(Barringer, Pohlman & Robinson, 2010).
Case Study Part III:
Based on my observations in the classroom and analyzing
Tamaras work samples, I believe the sociocultural variable that has the
greatest impact on my learner is her dialect of AAVE. This may
influence the way she spells and reads because the way she
pronounces words is shaped by her dialect. For example, when spelling
the word smoothie she wrote smoovy. The way she spelled it out
matches the way she says it. Mrs. J often comments on how slowly

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Tamara works. Could it be that assignments take her longer due to her
challenge in reading and writing which is caused by her dialect?
I spent a lot of time correcting Tamaras reading and spelling.
This may have confused her because based on her dialect the way she
sounds out words makes sense. She could be struggling because the
dialect she uses at home does not match how she is directed to sound
out words when reading and spelling. Dialect speakers learn their
language by imitating members of their speech community who speak
the same variety, not by failing to mimic speakers of the standard
variety (Sevensma, 2016c).
There is information in Nieto and Bode regarding the way AAVE is
received in schools. Dialects are not well received, and are too often
viewed as a weakness rather than an asset to the learner. I am curious
about how Tamaras success would improve if AAVE were more
acceptable in her classroom. When students are able to use their
natural dialect in the classroom, their success surpasses what is
predicted. Students are best able to communicate in the dialect that is
most familiar (Nieto & Bode, 1992).
Another socio-cultural factor that influences Tamara is the fact
that she comes from a single parent home. Single parents have a lot
on their plate as they juggle working and supporting their family. I
dont know many details regarding Tamaras mothers situation, but I
cant imagine that she has a lot of extra time to practice reading with

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Tamara. Students that read a lot outside of school tend to perform at a

higher level than those who dont. According to Nieto and Bode, in
todays society we are seeing more and more one-parent families
leading to less family participation. Studies have shown the more
family engagement the better student achievement is (Nieto & Bode,
1992).
There are a variety of variables that contribute to a learners
performance in school. By observing Tamara in her classroom I have
been able to gain knowledge concerning neurodevelopmental and
sociocultural factors that influence her as a learner. The interactions of
these factors are deeply intertwined. By looking at all of these factors
and considering how they all contribute to Tamaras learning profile, we
can best find ways to support her in the classroom. I believe Tamaras
attitude and willingness to learn and improve is her best asset. I have
no doubt that Tamara will only continue to grow and be a successful
student given the appropriate support.

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References
Barringer, M., Pohlman, C., & Robinson, M. (2010). Schools for all kinds
of minds:

Boosting student success by embracing learning variation.

San Francisco, CA:

Jossey-Bass.

Buchanan Elementary School - Grand Rapids Public Schools. (n.d.).

Retrieved May 8, 2016, from http://www.grps.org/buchanan
Nieto, S., & Bode, P. (1992). Affirming diversity: The sociopolitical
context of multicultural education. New York: Longman.
Search for Public Schools - School Detail for Buchanan School. (n.d.).
Retrieved May

8, 2016, from

http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_detail.asp?
ID=261644005304
Sevensma, K. (2016a). Neurodevelopment: The Attention Controls.
[Lecture].
Sevensma, K. (2016b). Motor & Language Cloze Notes. [Lecture/notes].
Sevensma, K. (2016c). Language Cloze Notes. [Lecture/notes].
What is Bronfenbrenners Ecological Systems Theory? (n.d.). Retrieved
May 8, 2016,

from

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http://www.psychologynoteshq.com/bronfenbrenner-ecologicaltheory/

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