Thomas Williams Professor Tollafield Practicum 4 October, 2013 School Culture Print Essay Aurora High School, with

its green banners flying, is a quaint school championed by the simply named Greenmen. While it seems to be a typical suburban high school, I was tasked with the challenge of reporting on the students that composed the student body. After touring the school, it was clear that merely watching the students would not be enough to learn about the outside factors that affect the students lives. I took to researching the school and the surrounding area to discover more about the students would teach. While the schools surface the student body seemed one-sided, the students come from a variety of different backgrounds and histories. As expected, the city of Aurora is primarily white, with very little ethnic diversity within the city. According to Civicplus, a website dedicated to collecting and distributing information about local cities, Aurora is 93.9 % white, with its next largest ethnic group being African American at 3%. (Demographics). Smaller still are the Asian Americans and Hispanics, who make up 1.9% and 1.3% of the population respectively. This racial disparity is obvious in the classroom as well, as there are only five nonwhite students in my co-operating teachers classroom, and an article by US News states that only 8% of students at Aurora are considered minorities (U.S. News). From this, I can assume that most students have not directly interacted with many ethnic experiences, and the odds that they have experienced discrimination on a firsthand basis are rare. As a teacher, this presents a unique experience, where I can attempt to turn the tables so that these students can understand ethnic issues without being surrounded by them.

In addition, many students come from a similar monetary background. In Aurora, the median household income was $79,308 (Aurora (City), Ohio). When compared to Ohios median of $48,071, Auroras middle range employee is making $31,237 more than the mid-range worker in the entire state. Auroras wealth is transferred to its school system. With a class set of laptops, plus a library full of a class set of desktops, students are sure to have access to a computer in some form so that they can complete multi-modal assignments. It is also likely that many students have access to some form of technology at their homes, or at their friends homes. The students are, for the most part, technologically literate, which means that different technologies can be used in the classroom. I have already witnessed students using word processing on their smart phones or IPods during days scheduled for revision, and I can make use of this technological skill to bring more difficult texts to the digital age. For example, I can have students research historical texts in class via the school-wide Wi-Fi and ask students to research information they dont know. On the negative side, I will have to be a bit more attentive during quizzes and tests if I make my acceptance of this technology known. However, not all students are as well off, as 8% of the student body are considered socially disadvantaged (U.S. News). While this is a small percentile, it increases the stigma that these students are likely facing in their everyday lives. Before undergoing this research, I had assumed that, based on what I saw the majority of students doing, that Aurora was a chiefly successful area. That 8% will not have the access that the other 92% has; I will have to maintain a balance of technologically based assignments and paper-based assignments. I will also have to consider what to do in situations when a student who has to have their paper typed and handed in to Turnitin.com for credit does not have the ability to do so at home. If this same student participates in after school activities, I will have to find a way to excuse the student from

something in order to provide them with a semblance of equal access, while not calling attention to his or her socio-economic status. This is something that I had not planned for, and I will now be including as an added question on my pre-assessment. The families at Aurora are very involved in the school system, and they strongly desire for their children to go to college. According to Ms. Halko, some parents even suggest special needs testing for students who do not need it so that they can receive special accommodations on the SAT and ACT. Auroras parents, for the most part, want their children to succeed, which means that I may be able to tap into the students parents as resources for enhancing my instruction in the classroom. While I can see that they are busy by the type of jobs they work, I may be able to develop collaborative assignments where the students interview their parents or work together to help construct a family narrative. Engaging the family, instead of just the student, could help enrich the school experience for students, and help them become more motivated. Additionally, 45.7% of Aurora residents over the age of 25 have a bachelors degree or higher, which will likely influence the children of these people to go to college as well. Outside of the statistics however, there is a lot that can be learned by simply walking around the school. For example, the students work together to create and maintain beauty inside of the school. Aurora is filled with art projects, and has a different theme each year. The previous theme was sweets, and the students filled the school with giant paper mache donuts, skittles wrappers, and other giant sized treats. The school is still covered with the projects, and they are placed so that, no matter where you are in the school, you can see one of the projects. Additionally, the strongest artistic works in art classes are posted in the hall on the way to the lunchroom. The broadcasting of these successes shows the camaraderie in the school. All successes are broadcast, instead of just the sports trophies (although they are also impressively

displayed in the main hall alongside the artwork). From the families to the way the school is decorated, the school is a community. As a teacher, this means that I have to maintain that community and become a part of it in any way I can. I plan to make a new twitter handle so that the parents can follow me, as can the students. I also plan to think of ways in which my English classroom can add to the artwork around the school. They already work on senior narratives, but Im working to draft a poetry project in which they make a class poem by drafting individual lines. I can then post these outside my door. After researching, it was clear why U.S. News labeled the school as the tenth best in Ohio. The school is well funded, and although it is slightly lacking in ethnic diversity, it has the ability to provide resources to help the students succeed. The thriving supportive community also assists in the students success as both learners and people. Interacting and working with these students will be a unique opportunity and one I plan to work at as best as I can.

Works Cited
CivicPlus. "Work Force." Aurora, OH. CivicPlus, n.d. Web. 24 Sept. 2013.

http://oh-aurora.civicplus.com/index.aspx?nid=549
U.S. News. "Aurora High School." US News. U.S.News & World Report, 2013. Web. 23 Sept. 2013.

http://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/ohio/districts/aurora-city/aurora-highschool-15676/student-body
"Aurora (city) QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau." Aurora (city) QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau. U.S. Census Bureau, 27 June 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2013.

http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/39/3903086.html